Writer’s intro:
Homer– an Ancient Greek epic poet who is believed to have written the Iliad and the Odyssey (circa 850 BC). We have made a summary of Iliad for the students of English literature.
Summary of Iliad
The most well-known epic in history is “The Iliad.” Because Helen had been taken from her husband, King Menelaus of Sparta, by Paris of Troy, the Greeks opposed Troy in the Trojan War. In the ninth year of the Trojan War, tensions are high among the Achaians (a super-ancient name for the Ancient Greeks). First, the priest Chrysies arrives to beg their king, Agamemnon, to release his daughter who was being held prisoner. The priest asks the god Apollo to unleash a plague against the Achaians when equillay Agamemnon rejects his request.
The Achaians come back together after the nine days of the plague and demand that Agamemnon return the girl. In the end, Agamemnon agrees, but only provided he gets Briseis, Achilles’ sweetheart and the greatest fighter among the Achaians. Achilles surrenders her but equally he gives up the struggle. He also begs the goddess Thetis, his mother, for assistance in convincing the other gods to support him in defeating the Achaians so they will understand how dependent they are on him.
Without a doubt, Achilles’ mother supports him. Zeus, the ruler of the gods, consents to fulfill Achilles’ request. Sure enough, the Trojans successfully conduct a counterattack over the course of the following few days, commanded by Hector, their strongest warrior. The Achaians are bound to the beach by the Trojans after several days of combat, and if they don’t stop, their ships will be set on fire.
The second part of the summary of Iliad
Patroclus, Achilles’ closest companion, now requests permission to engage in combat in place of Achilles. Achilles concurs, but instructs Patroclus to return after the Trojans have been pushed away from the ships. Patroclus kills Hector with the aid of Apollo after leading the Trojans all the way back to their own city walls. The Achaeans only prevent Patroclus’ corpse from being molested while Hector removes his armor and puts it on.
Achilles is driven insane by his grief and rage. He is informed by Thetis that he will perish shortly after killing Hector. Achilles agrees to pay the price of vengeance with his own life. He reconciles with Agamemnon, and his mother gives him new armour. Hephaestus, the gods’ blacksmith, created the armor. He charges into combat and slaughters Trojans on both sides.
He destroys the Trojan army almost entirely by himself. Hector is easily killed as he is chased by him across the city. In order for the Trojans to see how appallingly the body of their champion is handled, he then removes the body from the rear of his chariot and does circuits around the city of Troy.
Third part of the summary of Iliad
Following Patroclus’ burial, Achilles returns to the Achaean camp and hosts exciting games. The lifeless body of Hector still bothers him. Thetis, a messenger sent by Zeus, informs Achilles that he must take the payment that Priam, the ruler of Troy and Hector’s father, would provide in return for Hector’s body. When Priam visits Achilles, the man who murdered so many of Priam’s sons, Achilles is immediately reminded of his own father, who, like Priam, would outlive his most cherished son. When he recognizes what he has done, compassion replaces his earlier feelings of remorse and fury. In exchange for a ceasefire so that Hector may be buried, he returns the body to the Trojans.
The Trojans take eleven days to give Hector a suitable funeral and grieving period, relying on Achilles’ promise as their assurance. Future events are obvious as the epic comes to a close: Troy will fall, even if Achilles will not survive to see it. The city will be destroyed and its inhabitants, all save a small few, will be murdered.
Character List
ACHAEANS-Homer calls the Greeks “Achaeans.” They are also referred to as Argives, Danaans, and Thessalians.
Apollo–Son of Zeus and Leto and the God of archery and music, Apollo is a great champion of the Trojans.
Achilles- The king of Phthia. The leader of the Myrmidon group. He was Peleus and Thetis’s son. Achilles is the most important person in the Iliad. He is the best warrior in the Trojan War by a long shot. On the battlefield, he can’t be stopped and can defeat whole armies by himself. The main point of the epic is how he deals with his anger. He loses many of his friends because of his pride, refusing to fight because someone hurt his honor. The heart of the Iliad is his journey from anger to grief and wrath and then to acceptance.
Patroclus
Patroclus, menoetius’s son. Achilles’ favorite friend. Patroclus is one of Achilles’ men. Peleus, the father of Achilles, fosters him. As a child, he killed a man out of anger. Peleus took him in after he was started sending away. Since they were kids, Achilles and Patroclus have never been apart. Patroclus is both brave and kind. When Achilles won’t fight, it’s Patroclus who tries to save his friends from dying. Hector kills him, which brings Achilles back to the battle.
Agamemnon—Mycenae’s king. Atreus’s child. He was Menelaus’s brother. Chief leader of the Achaean army. Agamemnon feels the weight of responsibility most strongly because he is the high king of the Achaeans. He sometimes can’t decide what to do and sometimes is very stubborn and very proud. His insult to Achilles’ honor is terrible, but he can’t bring himself to apologize to Achilles in a way that will make the great warrior want to fight again. But his majesty is clear, and his attacks of indecision show how seriously he takes his role as ruler.
Menelaus
Menelaus–King of Lacedaemon. Son of Atreus. Brother of Agamemnon. Husband of Helen.
Briseis—Daughter of Briseus. Captive woman in the Achaean camp. Given to Achilles as a prize for valor.
Chryseis—Daughter of Chryses. Captive of Agamemnon.
Hector—-Prince of Trojan. Fathered by Priam and Hecuba. Andromache’s partner. He is the greatest Trojan warrior and the leader of his people. He is a civilized person. Who loves peacetime than to war. When he kills Patroclus, Achilles returns to the battle. Achilles kills Hector.
Priam—Troy’s king. He is Laomedon’s son. Hector, Paris, and many other heroes of Troy were his children. Priam is an old man who doesn’t like to fight, so he watches the battles from the walls of Troy. At the end of the epic, he pays a price for Hector’s dead body.
Helen—Daughter of Zeus. Menelaus’s wife. Partner of Paris. The Trojan War began when Paris took Helen away from Troy. Nine years later, she feels terrible about all the trouble and he sometimes looks down on her new husband, Paris.
Paris—Also named Alexander. A prince of Troy. A son of Priam. The husband of Helen. His choice of Aphrodite in the goddesses’ beauty contest wins him Helen. When Helen flee from Sparta, it starts the Trojan War. Paris is a strong fighter equally he does not like to fight. His best skills remain in the bedroom.
Zeus
Zeus, the ruler of the gods equally Cronus and Rhea’s son. Hera’s brother and husband. He was the father of the Olympian gods and of many people on earth, including Sarpedon. Zeus is the most powerful god and He rules the sky and has the lightning bolt in his hands. He is in charge of the universe and decides the fates of people, in additionsometimes he has to go along with fate.
Thetis—Daughter of Nereus, the Old Man of the Sea. Wife of Peleus. Mother of Achilles.
Theme: The Wrath of Achilles is the main theme of the epic.
This is the end of the summary of Iliad. You can read more summary from Classics in Translation.
