Iliad, Books IV-VI

It always amazes me how within this epic leaders come to a truce, only to have the peace shattered so quickly. It isn’t that different from today I suppose. Also I kept focusing on just a small part of Book IV. Every generation always seems to think their generation is the best. Even in ancient Greece, soldiers are proclaiming “we are far, far greater than our fathers” (Book IV, line 471). The rising have very little appreciation for their elders. Technology and more education rarely produce wisdom.
It’s been a while since I’ve looked in epic similes. If I recall, they are extended metaphors/similes. There were several which might qualify, but one of my favorites was in Book V comparing Diocles’ two sons to two young lions (Book V, lines 637-641). Its emphasis on the brutality of these lions creates incredible insight into the pair’s combat style. These lions ravage and maul until they are hacked down.
Book VI features Helen in a completely different light (as close to the TMZ version as ancient Greece had). Her regrets and self-deprecation always startle me. Paris is in the room; he can hear EVERYTHING. After ten years of listening to your wife say, “I never should have left my first husband,” and “he was such a better man” I cannot understand why Paris and the Trojans do not sent her on the next plane packing. Different times, perhaps.
The Iliad really should be Hector. Throughout the entire work, he remains constant. He is a devoted husband and father and I love reading this chapter to see how he interacts with his beloved Andromache and their young son. Troy’s under attack, Hector’s life is in jeopardy, yet Hector’s primary concern is for his wife. Her agony and subsequent slavery gives him the most grief (Book VI, line 539-540). I’m not a romantic person, but this gets me every time.

Iliad, Books I-III

This isn’t my first time reading The Iliad. Each time I begin it, I am always amazed at the many reasons why people go to war and choose to fight. Achilles notes that “The Trojans never did me damage, not in the least” (Book I, line 180). His purpose in fighting was to secure more glory and riches for Agamemnon. Honor and disgrace play large roles in this decision to battle enemies. The Achaens make no efforts to hide their true aim: they wish to plunder Troy (Book II, line 156). In the end, Mother Earth embraces her children within her arms, leaving wives and children behind (Book II, line 798). These are some of the victims in the war, the ones who suffer.
The portrayal of Helen has always fascinated me. I’ve never really understood her. She had a really good thing going on with Menelaus. Then Paris comes, and Menelaus is suddenly not good enough. She throws away her old life with no regard to any of the consequences. If Hollywood were to present this story it would have Paris and Helen living happily ever after. But Homer shows his audience the honeymoon is over. Paris and Helen both regret the current situation. Helen is “lashing out at her husband” (Book III, line 499) and just rips her lover to shreds. But Helen’s contempt is not enough to cool Paris; his physical appetite has been whetted. Their entire relationship has been built upon sex. This dysfunctional couple seems to be the polar opposite of Hector and Andromache which is represented in Book VI.