1. “The Tragedy of Achilles”
Ἰλιάς or
“The Tragedy of Achilles”
The Iliad Background

2. Hero’s Journey Refresher

5. The Epic
Epiclong narrative poem
An example of oral tradition
Oral tradition-->story passed down from generation to generation.
Epic hero possesses the following traits
Courageous
Loyal
Honorable

6. Homer The narrator of the epic The “blind poet”
Wrote Iliad and Odyssey
Iliad- 10 years of the war
Odyssey- 10 years after

7. Background information
Trojan War
Gods and goddess party
Eris not invited
Eris=goddess of discord
Angry she isn’t invited
Throws an apple into the party
“FOR THE FAIREST”
What do you think all the goddesses did as a result???

8. CAT FIGHT

9. The Compromise Heragoddess of marriage Athenagoddess of war/wisdom
3 goddess fought over the apple
Heragoddess of marriage
Athenagoddess of war/wisdom
Aphroditegoddess of love

10. The Compromise Zeus told Paris, Prince of Troy, to decide
Herapromises power and riches
Athenapromises him power and fame
Aphrodite promises him the most beautiful woman in the world.

11. Helen & Menelaus “the face that launched a thousand ships”
Helen was married to the King of Sparta Menelaus
Paris & Helen run off together
Menalaus wages war to get Helen back.
(one of his main soldiers is Odysseus)
This starts the TROJAN WAR
Helen was known as :
“the face that launched a thousand ships”

12. Who was Achilles?
Achilles was the son of the mortal Peleus and the goddess Thetis (the sea goddess). He was the mightiest of the Achaeans (a Greek clan) who fought in the Trojan War. Achilles was very brave and undefeatable in battle – almost immortal, in fact.

13. Achilles Childhood
Because Calchas prophesied that Achilles would be stronger than his father, Peleus gives Achilles to be raised by the centaur Chiron. However, before being sent away, Thetis made Achilles immune to death.

14. Achilles Story Cont.
Thetis held Achilles by the heel and dipped him into the River Styx to make him immortal. Thus, the only vulnerable (weak) spot on Achilles’ body was his tendon where his mother held him as she dipped him into the waters of death.

16. Achilles Character
Despite having the strength of someone who is part god, Achilles central weakness is his anger / rage, which often gets him into trouble with other leaders.

17. Achilles Rage (as theme):
Achilles anger issues are a central theme in The Iliad, as is his ability to act with honor.
The first two lines of the Iliad read:
μῆνιν ἄειδε θεὰ Πηληϊάδεω Ἀχιλῆος
οὐλομένην, ἣ μυρί' Ἀχαιοῖς ἄλγε' ἔθηκεν,
Sing, Goddess, of the rage, of Peleus' son Achilles
the accursed rage, which brought pain to thousands of the Achaeans.

18. Paris Picks AphroditeHelen
Hera offered Paris ultimate , Athena promised to make him the wealthiest, and Aphrodite promised to give Paris Helen – the most beautiful woman alive
Paris, of course, picked Aphrodite, and she helped him to steal Helen from her husband.

19. A War Begins
This decision had many consequences. First, it turned the goddesses Athena and Hera against the Trojans. Second, it caused King Menelaus to enlists the help of his brother Agamemnon (King of Mycenae) and declare war against Troy.

21. The Greek state of Mycenae and their allies already had control of almost all the city-states in the Aegean Sea – except Troy. So Agamemnon saw it as a perfect opportunity to expand his empire and for his brother to avenge his loss.

22. A War Begins
Menelaus, and Agamemnon also enlist the help of two other Greek kings – Odysseus and Achilles. Achilles was somewhat reluctant to join in the fight. He had no interest in politics, but he was interested in making a name for himself as a great warrior.

23. Achilles and Agamemnon The Greeks

24. Hector and Paris – The Trojans

25. Hollywood’s Iliad

26. Terms to Know as we Begin

27. As You Read
Keep in mind the three key beliefs held by Homer’s Greek warriors.
The spoils of war won in combat were a measure of a Greek warrior’s honor and prestige. Losing material possessions was the equivalent of being publicly shamed, the worst insult a hero could suffer.
The Greeks believed that their gods actively intervened in the affairs of humans and even took sides in conflicts. At the same time, humans had free will and were responsible for their own actions.

28. An unburied corpse was considered an offense to the gods
An unburied corpse was considered an offense to the gods. The soul of a person whose body was not buried was doomed to wander the earth forever.
As the Iliad begins, the war between the Greeks and the Trojans has been at a stalemate for almost ten years. On the tenth day of a plague that has swept through the Greek forces, the hero Achilles calls an assembly of the entire army to discuss the crisis. This meeting leads to the quarrel between Achilles and Agamemnon that opens the epic.