The Iliad of Homer

Synopsis

"Sing, goddess, the anger of Peleus' son Achilleus / and its devastation." For sixty years, that's how Homer has begun the Iliad in English, in Richmond Lattimore's faithful translation-the gold standard for generations of students and general readers.

This long-awaited new edition of Lattimore's Iliad is designed to bring the book into the twenty-first century-while leaving the poem as firmly rooted in ancient Greece as ever. Lattimore's elegant, fluent verses-with their memorably phrased heroic epithets and remarkable fidelity to the Greek-remain unchanged, but classicist Richard Martin has added a wealth of supplementary materials designed to aid new generations of readers. A new introduction sets the poem in the wider context of Greek life, warfare, society, and poetry, while line-by-line notes at the back of the volume offer explanations of unfamiliar terms, information about the Greek gods and heroes, and literary appreciation. A glossary and maps round out the book.

The result is a volume that actively invites readers into Homer's poem, helping them to understand fully the worlds in which he and his heroes lived-and thus enabling them to marvel, as so many have for centuries, at Hektor and Ajax, Paris and Helen, and the devastating rage of Achilleus.

Summary

Chapter 1: The Rage of Achilles

* Summary: The story begins with the Greek army facing adversity during the Trojan War. Achilles, the greatest Greek warrior, refuses to fight after being slighted by King Agamemnon.
* Real Example: "Sing, goddess, the rage of Achilles, son of Peleus, the cursed rage that brought ten thousand woes upon the Achaeans..."

Chapter 2: The Dream of Agamemnon

* Summary: Zeus sends a dream to Agamemnon, telling him that Achilles must be persuaded to return to battle. Agamemnon offers Achilles rich gifts, but he refuses.
* Real Example: "He found the kings assembled in council by the stern shore of the sounding sea, troubled in mind and filled with...the words of Zeus."

Chapter 3: The Oath of the Gods

* Summary: The gods gather on Mount Olympus to discuss the outcome of the war. Zeus swears that Troy will be destroyed, while Hera vows to support the Greeks.
* Real Example: "Then Zeus...uttered his voice, and all Olympus was shaken...[and] all the immortal gods trembled before him..."

Chapter 4: The Battle Begins

* Summary: The Greek and Trojan armies engage in fierce combat. The Greeks initially have the upper hand, but the Trojan hero Hector rallies his troops.
* Real Example: "Now war's dread clangor rose on every side. Loud shouts ascend to heaven, and groans and cries of fainting souls..."

Chapter 5: The Embassy to Achilles

* Summary: Agamemnon sends an embassy to Achilles, offering him even greater gifts if he will return to battle. Achilles again refuses, declaring that he will only fight when Hector threatens his own ships.
* Real Example: "Nine chiefs, the messengers of Greece, went forth...and reached the tents of Peleus' son, where they found him sitting in gloomy silence..."

Chapter 6: The Death of Hector

* Summary: Hector leads a fierce attack on the Greek ships, but Achilles finally agrees to fight. After a duel that lasts for days, Achilles kills Hector and drags his body back to the Greek camp.
* Real Example: "Then the great Achilles, swollen with rage...cast a vengeful glance on Hector...and rushed at him with the swiftness of a storm..."

Chapter 7: The Burial of Hector

* Summary: The Trojans mourn Hector's death and beg for his body. Achilles agrees to release Hector's father, King Priam, so that he can bury his son.
* Real Example: "...the Greeks, with reverence for the sacred day, ceased the work of death...and all were melted into tears, in memory of their own friends..."

Chapter 8: The Return of Achilles

* Summary: Achilles returns to battle and leads the Greek army to victory. The Trojans are defeated, and Troy is burned to the ground.
* Real Example: "...the conquering Greeks advanced, and Troy's proud structures were wrapped in flames..."