2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25
Summary of Homer's Iliad is the story of one of the most striking episodes of the famous Trojan War. The narrative describes the wrath of Achilles, as well as its disastrous consequences.
Tiff between Achilles and Agamemnon
Nine years have passed since the Greek troops began the siege of Troy. Having raided neighboring regions, the Greeks captured Chryseis, a girl who was the daughter of a priest in the temple of Apollo. Chryseis becomes the concubine of Agamemnon, the commander-in-chief of the Greek army. Of course, this event extremely angered Apollo. The deity sends pestilence to the army. Achilles, the bravest of the Greeks, convinces Agamemnon at a general meeting of the army to return Chryseis to her father. However, in return, the commander-in-chief demands that Achilles provide him with his captive - a girl named Briseis. Achilles feels insulted and decides to deal with Agamemnon with a sword. However, the goddess Athena, who desired the victory of the Greeks in the battle, keeps him from a rash act. As a result, Achilleslimits himself to calling the commander-in-chief a selfish and shameless coward, and also declares that from this day on he is not going to participate in hostilities.
Achilles decides to take revenge on the Greeks
Next, the summary of Homer's Iliad includes Nestor, the oldest and wisest Greek king. However, his attempts to reconcile the quarreling turn out to be a failure. The diplomatic and amiable leader Odysseus takes Chryseis to her father, Briseis goes to Agamemnon. Achilles turns to his mother, the sea goddess Thetis, and asks her to convince the supreme Zeus to grant victory to the Trojans. According to the warrior, this would help the Greeks understand how insignificant they are without him. Despite all the objections of Hera, who favors the Greeks, Zeus agrees. He sends the commander in chief an unusual dream, after which Agamemnon gathers a council of leaders, at which he asks if the Greeks want to return home. The warriors who took this offer seriously go to their ships. However, at the suggestion of Athena, they are stopped by Odysseus. He delivers a fiery speech. Wise Nestor gives his instructions to the soldiers. After listening to his speeches, the Greeks perform a sacrifice and prepare for battle. Only Achilles and his companions do not participate in this.
The war continues
We will not include in the summary of Homer's Iliad a detailed description of the forces that were put up by the belligerent states. The Trojan army is led by Hector, the son of King Priam. Hector's brother - Paris, who initiated this war (it was he who kidnapped Elena, the beautiful wifeSpartan king Menelaus), invites Menelaus to fight one on one. The winner was to finally take possession of Elena and end the long war. The first few blows allowed Menelaus to feel the proximity of victory. However, here divine forces again intervene in the matter: Aphrodite, who patronizes Paris, saves her pet. Athena is pushing her Trojan enemies to be the first to violate the truce concluded before the fight.
The following is a description of a series of fights, as a result of which the advantage is on the side of the Trojans. Seeing that things are bad, Agamemnon sends an embassy to Achilles. The commander-in-chief offers the brave warrior to return Briseis and reward him with generous gifts if he returns to duty again. However, Achilles refuses Agamemnon.
Troop clashes continue. The Trojans attack the Greek camp, Hector seems unstoppable. Fearing that Troy will win the war, Hera dresses up, adorns herself and retires with Zeus, her husband, on Mount Ida to divert his attention from the fight. Having discovered the tricks of his wife, the supreme god becomes furious and again helps the Trojans. The Greeks flee in panic. Patroclus, Achilles' best friend, sympathizes with them, puts on armor and goes out to single combat, but his opponent - Hector - turns out to be much stronger and kills Patroclus.
Revenge for a murdered friend
Further, a summary of Homer's Iliad again returns to Achilles. The warrior takes an oath to avenge his murdered friend. Thetis asks Hephaestus, the god of blacksmiths, to forge a new weapon for her son. Armed with new armor, Achillesbreaks into the battlefield and destroys a lot of Trojans. After the warrior defeats the god of the river Scamander and, after much persecution, meets with Hector. With the support of Athena, Achilles manages to ruthlessly deal with the enemy, whom he then ties by the legs to his chariot and takes him to the Greek camp. Hector's family mourns him bitterly.
The following is a description of the solemn funeral that Achilles arranges for Patroclus - Homer pays great attention to this event. The Iliad, the summary of which you are now reading, continues when the hero's body is burned and the ashes are placed in an urn of gold. The day ends with athletic games in memory of the deceased.
The fate of Hector
Not fully recovered from the loss, Achilles travels the next day to the burial hill of Patroclus, and does so on a chariot to which the body of Hector is tied. Apollo asks the gods to stop this blasphemy. Hera objects, but Zeus gives the go-ahead for Priam to redeem his son's body. Thetis is instructed to ask Achilles for consent to this. And Priam is informed about the will of Zeus by the messenger Irida. Hecuba is trying to dissuade Priam. But he, wanting to redeem the body of his son, goes to Achilles' tent with rich gifts. At this point, Homer describes a sublime pathetic scene. Saddened, Achilles agrees to accept Priam. He does not forget about the fate of his father, with whom he could not adequately say goodbye, and returns the body of his son to him. The Trojans mourn the death of Hector, and Homer's poem "The Iliad" ends, a summary of which webrought, with these words: “So they buried the body of Hector, horse-drawn.”
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