The Iliad (and Troy)

I started reading the Iliad (Fitzgerald translation) last year, well before learning about Nolan and the Odyssey, part of a prolonged dive into the ancient world. I'm familiar with Odysseus' journey home and thought I also knew the earlier tale about the Trojan War. I've seen Troy (2004), ha. But outside the fact it's an epic poem, strictly following a specific rhythmic meter, I was often surprised by what the Iliad included, or didn't.

Before going further, I want to reiterate that the Iliad and the Trojan War at large are less historically verifiable and more a vital piece of Greek mythology. We believe we know where the real ancient city of Troy was located, in modern-day Turkey, and if the Trojan War actually happened it would've been approximately 1200 BC, in the Bronze Age. That's 700 years before the first Persian invasion of Greece and the beginning of the classical era. It was legendary for the people we moderns think of as the ancient Greeks, the Athenians and Spartans, and helped define who they were and what they believed. That's why the story is still so fascinating today. Homer's two tales are the only complete surviving examples of that era (see the Epic Cycle), of the earliest civilization that preceded our own.

Supposedly Homer lived and wrote in the 8th century BC, the 700s. That's the thing, we can't even nail down when this man lived, or when he wrote these stories, or if he was even real. But that's who gets credit. The tales had been passed down in oral tradition over the centuries, mostly the Greek Dark Ages, and he could finally solidify them following the invention of a written language. So, we have two stories written about 2700 years ago describing what were considered true events of about 3200 years ago. That's all a long time, and should be taken into account. Nothing in the Iliad, to refocus on our subject, should be thought of as corny, cliche or unoriginal. It's literally the oldest story we're directly connected to, one of the oldest in human history. Understand this, and get over the format of it all, and you'll see a compelling narrative chocked full of notions of a proud ancient culture, much of which you might identify with yourself.

Here's a basic outline of the Trojan War, shown more-or-less in Troy:

• Helen, the most beautiful woman in the world, falls in love with Paris, a prince of Troy

• Paris sails across the Aegean and kidnaps her

• Menelaus, a Greek king and Helen's husband, gets his brother Agamemnon, warlord and king of Mycenae, to raise a great host

• The Greek army sieges Troy for 10 years

• In the 10th year, an argument between Agamemnon and Achilles over a female prize of war causes Achilles to withdraw from the fighting

• The Trojans, led by Hector, take advantage and push the Greeks back to their ships, almost into the sea

• Patroclus, loyal friend of Achilles, enters the fight and saves the Greeks, but is killed by Hector

• In grief, Achilles rejoins the battle, kills Hector, ties the body to his chariot and drags it around the city

• Trojan king Priam sneaks among the Greek ships and begs Achilles for his son's body, to which Achilles relents

• Before the city falls, Paris shoots Achilles through the heel, and he dies

• Troy eventually is taken after the use of the Trojan Horse, an idea of Odysseus, that finally gets the Greeks within the city walls

The Iliad is a more focused tale, centered on the spat between Achilles and Agamemnon. It begins with Agamemnon seizing Briseis, who's not related to Priam, and Achilles' response. The middle is various other Greek heroes (Diomedes, Ajax the Great) attempting to fill the void but failing, and Hector ruling the battlefield. Patroclus in the story is an awesome warrior and is not mistaken as Achilles, though he does don his armor. After his death there's a pause in the fighting and funeral games, with races and other contests. The preparations of Achilles are lengthy, and emotional, prior to his resumption of hostilities and the duel with Hector. The story ends with Hector's funeral. Achilles is alive and Troy still stands. And yet a tale is told in full.

From Book XXIV 'A Grace Given in Sorrow' (page 435 for me)

'Achilles,

be reverent toward the great gods! And take

pity on me, remember your own father.

Think me more pitiful by far, since I

have brought myself to do what no man else

has done before - to lift to my lips the hand

of one who killed my son.'

There's a lot beyond this narrative thrust. For one, while legend, the story is written like a historical document. Near the beginning there's a whole chapter detailing the Greeks in the army, from where they hailed, who leads them and how many ships bore them across the sea. When describing the engagements we learn exactly who's fighting (so many names), and how precisely, blow for blow, the killing takes place. In order to best describe the various goings-on we're given near constant tidbits of life in the ancient world, done to offer visualization of what the war would've looked or felt like. Sometimes characters get pages of background in the middle of the action so we understand their context. These little interludes are cool but they do mess with the flow of the story and require some focus.

I also found the relation of Aegean Bronze Age culture exceedingly interesting. There's a real code of honor here. These men were bold and brash, and wanted to fight for personal esteem and pride. They desired to say they slew a great enemy hero and display that opponent's gear (armor, weapons...), stripped for a prize. This is why many soldiers go after Hector on one side and Achilles on the other in doomed attempts. If one of the leaders saw cowardice, or perhaps stubbornness, they'd call it out and rouse their compatriot(s) to action. This keeps the Greeks from fleeing in their ships more than once. The importance of the respect for the dead, and funeral rituals, is clear as well, seen in the extended battle over Patroclus' body and the impact of the callousness shown by Achilles to Hector. More than anything else we witness the active nature of their gods. The prayers and sacrifices of humans are heard and frequently answered.

From Book XIII 'Assault on the Ships' (page 226)

At cross purposes,

the sons of Cronos in their power brought on

bitter losses and death for brave men. Zeus

on the one hand willed for Hector and the Trojans

victory, to vindicate Achilles;

at the same time, he willed no annihilation

of the Achaeans before Troy, but only

honour to Thetis and her lion-like son.

Poseidon for his part now roused the Argives,

moving among them, after he emerged

in secret from the grey sea; being grieved

by Argive losses at the Trojan's hands,

he felt bitter indignation against Zeus.

The role in the Iliad of the Olympian gods cannot be overstated. The feud itself is theirs. Athena and Hera seek the destruction of Troy while Ares and Apollo and Aphrodite support the city. (This goes back to Helen and Paris falling in love btw, but that part's not told in this story.) Apollo's arrows were the impetus that force Agamemnon to give up his own beautiful slave girl, and then seize Briseis from Achilles. Aphrodite pulls Paris right out of a duel with Menelaus and saves his life. The gods meddle repeatedly, by appearing in the persona of a trusted lieutenant to give guidance, by providing protection and stamina and courage, or, for another example, by assisting in the flight of an arrow. They do this, anyway, until Zeus clears the field. Not even the other gods dare openly defy him. You see, Thetis, Achilles' mother and a sea nymph, pleaded with Zeus to give her son glory after the disrespect shown him by Agamemnon. Everything that happens proceeds according to the god of thunder. Hector rules the battlefield because that's what Zeus wants. The Greeks are put in a desperate situation because they need to see that Achilles is the greatest of them all. The end result is preordained, and a performance before the gods.

Fate is a big theme throughout. Achilles knows his own. His twofold choices are to live a long life of peace in obscurity or a short brilliant life that will, in a way, make him immortal. As he chooses to reenter the fight it's with a sort of sadness, not just for his lost friend but also because he knows he'll never see his home again. His great feats are part of that fate as well, obviously, and Zeus' intention is revealed well in advance. It's no secret what will happen when Achilles and Hector fight to the death.

From Book XX 'The Ranging of Powers' (page 361)

But Hector answered without fear: 'Achilles,

why suppose you can frighten me with words

like a small boy? I, too, have some gift

for jeers and insults. You are strong, I know,

and I am far from being a match for you.

But on the gods' great knees these matters lie.'

From Book XXII 'Desolation Before Troy' (page 388)

But swift Achilles frowned at him and said:

'Hector, I'll have no talk of pacts with you,

for ever unforgiven as you are.

As between men and lions there are none,

no concord between wolves and sheep, but all

hold one another hateful through and through,

so there can be no courtesy between us,

no sworn truce, till one of us is down'

Pottery (from nearly 500BC, Attica) showing Achilles vs Hector

I have to say reading this has made me like Troy a bit less, because the film limits the story. (The duel is still fantastic though.) This is about both gods and men, and their effect on one another. And it's really great.