books, tv, movies, music, articles, Crete 2020

The Iliad

/ August 4, 2019July 11, 2019

Having never read this is school (I was a terrible student) I was a little intimidated to just jump into a 500-page poem so I researched various translations and started with Robert Graves because it was in clear regular prose sentences. It was a pretty straightforward and enjoyable read and went very quickly. I then went to the award-winning, and more “poetic,” translation by Robert Fagles. Having the context and the confidence I really liked reading the latter. It felt much more like what I envision Homer performing live in Athens 2800 years ago.

(Our library had multiple copies of multiple translations so check there first and save yourself the purchase $$.) 

Overview

You might recognize the Iliad as the precursor to the Odyssey, as the story of the Trojan War, or perhaps as the basis for a Brad Pitt movie 15 years ago. Either way, you’ll get no judgment from us. 

First performed by Homer and later written down around 700 BC, the Iliad is significant because it is one of the first works of western civilization and, some argue, the greatest war story ever told. It has had a lasting impact on how we in the west live and think and is also a super entertaining read. 

The poem takes us to the shores of Troy (present-day western Turkey) in the 9th year of a war between the Greeks and the Trojans. The story is broken into 24 “books,” like chapters, though probably just what could fit on an ancient scroll. Remember, even when written down, these poems were performed live, in theatres, in broad daylight for a live audience. Homer was writing about these events as taking place in his distant past as well, possibly 400+ years prior to his performances.

Agamemnon, king of Mycenae, leads the Greeks, including Achilles, the greatest warrior who’s ever lived. These mighty men are about to have a monumental fight between them over a captured slave girl named Briseis.

Very quickly Achilles feels he has been dishonored by Agamemnon taking his slave girl (Homer and ancient Greece is very misogynistic) and refuses to fight. Epic battles again King Priam’s forces led by an admirable Hector occur throughout the story. Odysseus, Ajax, Diomedes are there for the Greeks; Paris, Helen, and others for the Trojans. The gods on Mount Olympus, superhuman in power but subhuman in morals, also play favorites and interfere with the battles.

I won’t spoil the ending for you but prepare for some bloody warfare and a lot of trash talking on both sides. Ancient Greece was a reputation-based culture based on shame so honor and how others perceive you was as good as fact. Therefore you’ll see a lot of questionable decision making on each side but is somehow is still relevant to our day (like duty to family and country). 

Highlights 

  • Fagles translation has an introduction by Bernard Knox that really sets the stage and was fascinating to read before the poem itself
  • Agamemnon really hates Achilles but clearly needs him to win the war and sack Troy (Book 1)
  • Achilles, whose mother was the goddess Thetis, has twin fates (Book 9) 
    • die young in Troy but name will live on forever, or
    • return home to rule for many years with loving family but name to be lost to the ages
  • when heroes die they often have prophecies in their dying breath, letting the reader know what’s coming (and who dies next)
  • King Priam, with the help of the god Hermes, sneaks into Achilles camp to retrieve Hectors mutilated body, and says to Achilles “I have endured what no one on earth has ever done before, I put to my lips the hands of the man who killed my son.” (Book 24)
  • (no Achilles “heel”)
  • (no Trojan horse!!)

Challenges

Even if you go in with the mindset that you’re only going to understand about 80% of what’s there it’s quite a relaxing read. Some of the places and names were beyond me, some passages a bit repetitive, but otherwise not a slog read at all. 

To me the context of the story was what let me know what was happening. I think the freshness of the Fagles translation really made it a fun read. 

for Travel

Greek mythology is everywhere in Europe. Every subsequent age has borrowed from or been inspired by the Greeks. Roman architecture, religion, literature, arts, etc. For those familiar with Judeo-Christian doctrine you’ll also recognize very similar themes and influences in early works. 

Obviously for us to visit Greece, specifically Crete in 2020, it’s pretty neat to have a Cretan king, Idomeneus, be part of the story. But for anyone going to Rome, Vienna, Munich, Paris, Madrid, etc. much of European art address these exact stories and characters. Those artists read the same works and were inspired just like modern readers. 

Family and the kids

I tried a few different children’s versions of the Iliad with our 6 and 4 year old but it fell flat each time. The language was often flowery and strange and I just couldn’t get past the subject matter of stolen spouses, slaves, and violence. Our 4 year old does like the story of the Trojan horse (not found in the Iliad, by the way) so we would just read that story over and over again. 

As mentioned above, it was a misogynistic culture and women are treated as property and have absolutely no rights. So, at what age to begin discussing this with kids is of course up to you. We don’t have a lot of screen time and zero video games so our kids are quite sensitive to these topics and it might be a few years. We can discuss “battles” in the abstract but the more graphic violence and sexual implications might have to wait until 10, 12 or older. 

That being said, if you feel like your middle or highschooler can handle those topics the reading itself shouldn’t be prohibitive. Even better, read it with them!

In the meantime, you can always share sanitized versions of the stories with the kids. Who Agamemnon and Menelaus were, where they came from, why Achilles is the greatest warrior to ever live…and then sits out most of the war, can all be discussed quite easily at dinner or family walks. 

talk soon,

Dan

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