Nestor tries to reconcile the quarrel. Achilles makes a final retort. Agamemnon’s men take Briseis from Achilles’ tent.
Nestor strikes me as a bit garrulous, the cliche of the old man who goes on and on about how things were better in his day. Continue reading
Achilles is tempted to attack Agamemnon, but Athena restrains him. He swears to retire to his tent. Old Nestor tries to make peace.
Athena is sent by Hera to hold Achilles back. She appears to him, but in line 198: Continue reading
In a council, Achilles and Agamemnon argue about their prizes, young women captured in raids.
One aspect of Homer that makes him easier to tackle than Attic Greek is his repetition. Of course, the Homeric epics were originally recited or sang, and were only written down later. Repetition helped the ancient bards as much as it helps the modern student. A notable form of repetition is the frequent use of the same epithets: Continue reading
“Sing, Muse, of the wrath of Achilles.” That’s the most popular translation of line 1 of the Iliad. And it’s a good one.
Lattimore goes for the more literal “Sing, goddess, the anger of Peleus’ son Achilleus.” Lattimore is my guide to the Iliad. His literal translation is wonderful for the mid-level student. Fagles is more flowing for the English reader, but when you want word-for-word, Lattimore is the man. Continue reading
I’ve been flailing around with ancient Greek for over three years; now is the year to get serious. Although my original goal was to read Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey in Homeric Greek, I started my study in the Fall of 2006 with Attic Greek, a quite different dialect. There are more textbooks for Attic; it is considered the most “elevated” dialect, and it is the language of classical Athens, writers like Plato, Xenophon, Aristotle, Lysias, Sophocles, etc. “It seemed like a good idea at the time.” Continue reading