The document summarizes key events and themes from Book 1 of Homer's epic poem The Iliad. It begins by describing how the Greek army captures women from the city of Chryse, including Chryseis. This leads to a plague inflicted by Apollo. To end the plague, Chryseis must be returned, angering Agamemnon, who argues with Achilles and takes Briseis from him. Achilles then refuses to fight, causing the Greeks to struggle in battle without him. Thetis persuades Zeus to support the Trojans in retaliation against Agamemnon.

1. The Beginning of a long series

2. The story takes place almost ten years after the start of the Trojan War. The Greek army captures 2 beautiful ladies from
Chryse, a city they pillaged. The two ladies, Chryseis and Briseis, are taken by the leader of the Greek army, Agamemnon,
and by the strongest warrior, Achilles. Eventually one of the women must be returned because of a plague to the Greek
army, and Agamemnon wants the woman Achilles has taken. Because of this conflict between the two, Achilles decides he
will not fight in the war any longer. The Trojans end the stalemate with the Greek by attacking them, however this time,
they have Zeus as their aide. Achilles' best friend Patroclus decide to fight in the war taking his place, but he ends up
being killed, mistaken for Achilles. Out of rage Achilles joins the war and finally kills Hector, the strongest warrior of the
Trojans. After he is killed, the gods feel he needs a proper burial. Achilles agrees, and the Greek army and Trojan army
come to a truce once again.
Sources
http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/iliad/
http://www.cliffsnotes.com/WileyCDA/LitNote/The-Iliad.id-26.html
http://www.shmoop.com/iliad/summary.html
Background information

3. Begins 9 years after Trojan war
Achean- captures Chryesis and Briseis
Chryseis father "Chryses" prays to Apollo to get his daughter back
Apollo sends a plague on Greek army
Achillies calls to Calchas to find the way to end the plague "soothsayer"
Agamemnon gets mad and says he'll return Chryseis only if Achillies gives up Briseis to him for compensation
Achilles being a proud warrior gets angry and threatens Agamemnon that he withdraw from battle. Agamemnon counters
by saying he will go to Achilles tent and get Briseis himself
Great Athena appears and calms the situation down.
Agamemnon finally send back Chryesis and takes Briseis
Achilles not liking this prays to Thetis to ask Zeus to punish Achaeans
Chryseis returns and Chryses prays to relieve the Greek camp of the plague
As expected the plague is lifted
Odyseus who navigated the ship that returned Chryseis, returns to the camp
Achillies refuses to battle and Zeus agrees reluctantly to help the Trojans
Hera "Zeus's wife" Discovers that Zeus is helping the Trojans and is so angry that she almost starts a war among gods.
However Hephaestus convinces her not to fight over mortals and disarms the situation
The Basic Rundown of Book 1

4. Epithets : any word or phrase applied to a person or thing to describe an
attributed quality.
Examples :"Odysseus is polutlos 'much-suffering' and polumytis 'of many
devices, crafty'.. "
Examples : athena , meaning grey-eyed . athena is called " thea glaukopis
Athene 'goddess grey-eyed Athena " .
LiteraryTerm : a literary term is are terms to describe whats going on , like
setting metaphors similes and imagery etc
Examples :
The word Iliad means "a poem about Ilion [another name for Troy]."
another literary term is that the iliad is an epic poem ,a epic poem is a long
poem which tells a story involving gods, heroes and heroic exploits.
Epithets and LiteraryTerms

5. 1.When the poem begins, who is singing? What is the subject of the poem of
song?
- The poet, who declares himself to be the medium through which one or
many of the Muses speak.The narrator speaks in the third person. An
omniscient narrator (he has access to every character’s mind), he frequently
gives insight into the thoughts and feelings of even minor characters, gods
and mortals alike.
Study questions

6. 2. With whom does Achilles quarrel? What god's anger casued the situation
that led to the quarrel. Why is the god angry?
- Achilles quarrels with chryses by refusing the ransom for his daughter.This
causes Chryses to pray to Apollo which leads to the plague. It is revealed
that the plague as a vengeful and strategic move by Chryses and Apollo.
Study questions

7. 3.Who are the two brothers who command te Greek army?
- Achilles and Menelaus
Study questions

8. 4.A plague has struck the Greek army. how is it described?
- It is described as that the fatal plaguw that swept through the army caused
the men to die.
Study questions

9. 5. What must the greek do to placate Appolo?
-Give Chryses daughter back to him.
Study questions

10. 6. What compensation does agamemnon demand?
- Agamemnon flies into a rage and says that he will return Chryseis only if
Achilles gives him Briseis as compensation.
Study questions

11. 7. Who stops Achilles from drawing his sword on Agamemnon?
-goddess Athena, sent by Hera, the queen of the gods
Study questions

12. 8. Where do the gods live?
- Up in the skies on Mount Olympus
Study questions

13. 9. What revenge does Achilles swear he will have?
- Achilles swears that he Agamemnon will pay for his arrogance with life
and that this will never happen and never again join the Achaeans in fighting
against the Trojans.
Study questions

14. 10. Who tries to make peace? Is he successful?
-Nestor, the wisest Greek commanders and counselors, advises Agamemnon
and Achilles to concede to each other, but both refuses.
Study questions

15. 11. What does Agamemnon order the heralds to do? Are they able to do it ,
why?
-He sends the heralds to have Briseis escorted from Achilles’ tent.
Study questions

16. 12. To whom does Achilles complain? What does he say? Does it seem
acceptable for a hero to weep? Why does he want the Greeks to begin losing
the war?
- He wants the greek to lose the war to get revenge on Argamemnon.
Study questions

17. 13. Where does Thetis say that Zeus and the other gods have gone? What will
she ask when they return?
-Zeus was on a thirteen-day period of feasting with the Aethiopians.Thetis
will ask him to punish the Achaeans and help the trojans win the war.
Study questions

18. 14. How do the Achaeans worship Apollp when they take Chrysies home?
- They return the maiden and makes sacrifices to Apollo.
Study questions

19. 15. What happens when Thetis goes to zues?
-Achilles has refused to participate in battle, and, after twelve days, Thetis
makes her appeal to Zeus, as promised. Zeus is reluctant to help the Trojans,
for his wife, Hera, favors the Greeks, but he finally agrees.
Study questions

20. 16. Do Achilles and Agamemnon seem mature when they argue? What is the
significance?
-They do not seem mature at all , because they are fighting over a girl.
Study questions

21. 17. What position do women and even goddesses have in the world Homer
describes?
-They are very important because they can affect everything the men do.
They can make the slightest differences in the world of homer.
Study questions

22. The glory and celebration of war
The characters win eternal glory, the story contains epic
war deities such as Athena
Military glory over family values
The characters prize marital values and honor, but not
near as they respect the glory of triumph.
The impermanence of human life and its creations, the
gods treat the human race as lesser beings (because
they are)
Themes of Iliad Book 1