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English 240: Ancient Literature Homer, The Iliad Al Drake | Cyber Cafe M/W 10-11 | ajdrake@ajdrake.com General Study Questions on The Iliad: 1. How does Homer establish the significance of the story he is about to tell? How does he maintain interest in the tale as it unfolds? Keep in mind that "suspense" is not a key factor in Greek literature since the audience usually knows from the outset how things will turn out. 2. How would you characterize the narrator, the fictive "Homer" whose voice we imagine as singing the verses of The Iliad? What relation to the story does this narrator maintain? 3. What direct or indirect references to the craft or performance of poetry do you find in this epic? What do they tell us about the importance of poetry in Homer's day? In responding, consider also indirect references such as the ones the text makes to weaving and singing. 4. What qualities does the text hold up as heroic? Keep track of heroic qualities and the episodes in which they are most evident and necessary. Are there different kinds of heroism? If so, what is the distinction between them? 5. What kinds of behavior are treated as contemptible? Keep track of these qualities and the characters who embody them. Find episodes where contemptible behavior occurs. 6. How does the poem represent mortal women? What qualities do they possess, and how do they compare in status and quality to the epic's men? 7. How do Homer's gods think and behave? How do their actions and motivations differ from the conception of god in other religions of which you have knowledge? What role do the Homeric gods play in human affairs, and what is the responsibility of humans towards them? 8. Keep track of the epic's structure -- make a diagram or chart that illustrates the main episodes and their relation to one another. The Iliad Book 1 9. What does the invocation say the poem as a whole will emphasize? 10. What first impression does this book give us of the gods? How much of a role do they play in human affairs? What seems to motivate their actions? 11. Agamemnon commands the Achaean hosts against Troy, but manages to enrage Achilles. What does he do to spark Achille's fury, and what seems to motivate him when he does it? 12. Achilles is of course the hero of The Iliad. How would you size up his conduct at this point? To what extent do you take Achilles' wrath (menis) as purely heroic? Whatever your response, what does the term mean to you? What do you suppose it means to Homer? 13. From the outset of The Iliad, the gods intervene in human actions, with Zeus at the center of the whole affair. How does this most powerful of gods see the war between the Trojans and Greeks? In what way is his power over the other gods limited? Book 2 14. Why does Zeus send Agamemnon a dream urging him to attack the Trojans? What surprise awaits Agamemnon when he does this, and why? 15. How do Odysseus and Nestor keep the troops in line? What can you say about the Greek warrior ideal on the basis of this effort to maintain discipline? What role does Thersites play with regard to this ideal? 16. The "Catalogue of Ships" is probably not among the most fascinating passages in The Iliad for a modern reader, but what signficance might it have had for Homer's audience? Why do you suppose Homer spends so much time providing an "accurate" descriptive list of this sort? Book 3 17. Before the battle is joined, Paris agrees to fight alone with Menelaus (Helen's wronged Spartan husband). What happens when Paris is on the point of losing, and how does this outcome complicate the heroic scheme of The Iliad? 18. How does Homer present Helen, the former Spartan queen with "the face that launched a thousand ships" here in the third book? What is remarkable about Helen? Book 4 19. What game is Zeus playing in this book with Hera and Athene, both of whom thirst for the destruction of Troy's army and indeed the entire city? What is the cause of their anger? (See Book 24) Why doesn't Homer just tell us the cause here in the fourth book? 20. After Pandarus breaks the truce and wounds Menelaus, Agamemnon harangues his troops. How does Diomedes distinguish himself in this regard? Book 5 21. Apollo and Ares support Aeneas and his Trojans, while Hera and Athena take the Greeks' side. Diomedes even manages to wound Aphrodite. What relationship does Homer posit in The Iliad between humans and gods? Does the presence of the gods exalt the human characters, or diminish them? Explain. Book 6 22. The Lycian Glaucus and the Greek Diomedes meet in no-man's land during battle, converse at length, and affirm their friendly ties. This is obviously not a realistic exchange, so what purpose does such an episode serve? 23. What is going on in Troy when Hector returns there? How do Paris and Helen respond to Hector's summons to return to battle? 24. When Hector catches up with his wife Andromache, what is her view of his part in the war? To what extent do Hector's heroic words comfort her? Book 7 25. What agreement do Athena and Apollo arrive at concerning the current fighting between Greeks and Trojans? How do the mortals find out about this agreement? Given the fact that Hector's challenge is not entirely of his own making, how does he distinguish himself in issuing it? Book 8 26. How does Hera try to subvert the will of Zeus in this book? What plan does Zeus finally reveal? 27. Why might Homer be unconcerned about offering advance notice to his audience—what makes his narrative compelling in spite of such openness about what is coming next? Book 9 28. What change in attitude does Agamemnon undergo in this book? How do his lieutenants react? What rhetorical approaches do Odysseus, Ajax, and Phoenix respectively make to assuage Achilles' anger? Book 10 29. Here another side of the Greek warrior ethos shows—characterize this other side with reference to the actions and words of Odysseus and Diomedes, who have been sent to find out what the Trojans are up to. How do they deal with the spy Dolon? How does the narrative handle this bloody scene--does it seem to approve? Explain. Book 11 30. What is the balance between the Trojans and Greeks at this point in the war? What role does Zeus play in orchestrating the action in this book? And what role does Nestor play in advancing the action? Book 12 31. While Patroclus and Nestor were talking, the Achaeans retreated from the battle. What advice does Polydamus, son of Trojan commander Panthous, offer Hector? How does Hector respond to this advice, and why? 32. How does Homer describe the violence of battle in this book? What seems to be the primary aim of his descriptions--is he being realistic, presenting an ideal, or both? Book 13 to be continued... Book 14 Book 15 Book 16 Book 17 Book 18 Book 19 Book 20 Book 21 Book 22 Book 23 Book 24 Edition: Homer. The Iliad. Trans. Robert Fagles. New York: Penguin, 1990.
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