4/25 The Trojan War

Story

what is the story about Achilles’ fight?

• many have come from around the world and have come to one place to basically die

• exinction-level event

• Achilles is a violent enemy to the Trojans

  • he came in combat with one of the children of Eos and Tithonus

    • they were both demi-god and sons of a goddess, so their fight lasted for days since they were similar in skills

    • they fought so hard that the dust under their feet made everything hard to see

    • Zeus had to interfere because they cannot come to terms with a winner by themselves, so he took both of their souls and weighed it. since Eos and Tithonus’ child had the heavier soul and sunk, Athena was ordered to give Achilles an extra boost of strength to kill them

The Choice of Achilles

what is Thetis’ request?

• she goes to Zeus and tells him the countless times she has saved him, so the least he can do it make sure Achilles will receive glory when he dies

The Choice of Achilles

what is the mythic variants?

mythic variant is that he has a choice

• he chooses short but glorious life over a long but inglorious life

  • kleos → fame and glory

  • he cannot be disrespected regardless of how he dies

  • he will tolerate no ridicule

inconsistency if he had ever had a choice

• more psychological with how humans rationalize with themselves and that humans have a choice with their actions

• theological is that he already knows what choice he will make

• homeric hymns → he is mortal and is going to die anyways

in the Odyssey, there is a perspective of Odysseus going to the underworld, and Achilles regrets his choice and wants to be alive on Earth even if he was a poor peasant

Achilles at war

why does he withdraw from the war at a certain point?

• his woman was taken away from him by Aganmemnom

• he cries and starts speaking poetry

• this allows the Trojans to get closer and closer, so the Greeks begged Achilles to come back to fight with them

  • he refuses to come back and fight no matter what gifts that give him because his kelos is tarnishes

Achilles at war

who is Patroklos? what were earlier and later traditions of his and Achilles’ relationship?

• he accidentally killed a man and went to Achilles’ father to get purified of his sin

• they became very close friends that they even want their bones to be in the same jar when they die

• earlier traditions were that they were close friends among soldiers as brotherhood

Achilles at war

what was Patroklos’ trick? did it work?

• he dons Achilles’ armor to encourage the Greeks because his armor is so recognizable

• this did not work because Apollo comes behind Patroklos and pushes him with his hand

• Patroklos fell and the helmet falls off, and people realize that it is not him

• the enemy, Trojan Hector, kills him and takes the armor and puts it on

Achilles at war

what did Achilles do in response?

• he is so enraged with bloodlust that he takes revenge and kills so many people

• he eventually chases Hector and kills him

  • Hector has his armor on, so in a sense, Achilles is fighting his double

• he then threads Hector’s foot and ties him to his chariot to drag him around even further

• Hector’s father begs Achilles to return his son’s body, and Achilles gives the body back

The Amazons enter the war

who is Memnon?

• son of Eos

• similar to Achilles?

  • part-divine and part-human

  • both fought with weapons made by Hephaestus

  • killed by Achilles

The Amazons enter the war

who is Penthesilea? why did they enter the war?

• queen of the Amazons

• war-like tribe of women do not usually get involved in squirmishes like this but they entered because of Queen Penthesilea’s mistake

• she accidentally killed her sister instead of an animal, and the ghost of the sister said the only way to purify or cleanse what she has done is for Penthesilea to kill a bunch of people → so where else to go if not Troy?

The Amazons enter the war

whose name is Penthesilea’s close to?

• similar to Achilles

  • “grief to the people”

  • they are also similar in strength and they go in combat

    • since Achilles is enraged, he only kills people who are “doubles of him” or people who are also capable to kill a lot of people

The Amazons enter the war

what happens when Penthesilea dies?

• during the final combat with Achilles

  • in the late version, Achilles fell in love with her when her helmet lifted, but it was too late because the spear was already in motion and he kills her

The death of Achilles

how does Achilles die? who helps with his death

• he was shot with an arrow to his ankle

  • rises the question: how does one die from an injury to the ankle? one solution is comparing it to how Talos died when all the blood leaked out of his ankle

• he was shot by Paris, which is ironic because he was the one hiding in his home from fear and inability of combat

• Apollo in a way is Achilles’ double and he did not like Achilles, so he guides the arrow with an extra boost to kill Achilles

how does Paris die?

• they heard a random guy who got bitten by a snake ten years ago will give the solution of how to sack Troy

  • they go and the guy have the bow and arrows of Herakles

  • the arrow struck Paris dead

The Trojan Horse

how did the Trojan Horse come to be?

• Odysseus and Athena sends a messenger to the Trojans to tell them a story that Athena is angry with the Greeks, and that the Trojans can go home peacefully

• but before they leave, they should accept the gift of the Trojan Horse

• Laokoon said “I don’t trust gifts sent by the Greeks,” and he was about to throw a spear at the horse to prove is it hollow, but then Poseidon sent snakes that kill Laokoon

The Trojan Horse

what happens with the Trojan Horse? who helped?

• soldiers emerged

• Troy burns

• Helen helped the Greeks by telling Odysseus the plan

  • she is also the voice that imitated the wives of the soldiers that it is time to get out of the horse

• this is the end for Troy