Book 1 summary

Proem: Homer invokes the Muse, the goddess of memory, to ‘sing’ through him; he announces his theme as the anger of Achilles

· Chryses, priest of Apollo, offers a ransom in return for his daughter Chryseis

· Agamemnon rejects this; Apollo is angered and sends a plague on the Greeks

· 9 days later, Hera prompts Achilles to call an assembly; he asks Calchas, the augur, to explain the plague; Achilles promises to protect Calchas if anyone is angry

· Calchas explains that Apollo is angry at Agamemnon for his insult

· Agamemnon agrees to return Chryseis but demands an alternative prize in return

· Achilles accuses Agamemnon of being a poor leader, as he gets the best prizes but stays in camp and doesn’t do most of the fighting

· Agamemnon says that Achilles is only a great warrior because a god made him one; he declares he will take Achilles’ own prize, a girl called Briseis

· Achilles is about to attack/kill Agamemnon but Athene, sent by Hera, prevents him

· Achilles threatens to abandon the fighting, along with all his men; he says that the Greeks will soon miss him when they are all dying

· Nestor attempts to reconcile the two men, hoping they will listen to him because he is older and more experienced than them; but he fails

· Achilles leaves with Patroclus and his army, the Myrmidons

· The army purify themselves and offer sacrifices

· Agamemnon’s heralds come and take Briseis away from Achilles

· Achilles weeps and calls on his mother Thetis to ask Zeus for help on his behalf; he wants Zeus to help the Trojans defeat the Greeks in battle and kill them

· Thetis weeps and mourns the fact that Achilles is destined to an early death

· Odysseus and others return Chryseis along with an offering of cattle/oxen for sacrifice; they make sacrifices to Apollo and feast

· The Olympians are away in Ethiopia for 12 days but when they return, Thetis goes to Zeus and supplicates him

· She requests that Zeus allow the Trojans to win the battles for a while so that the Greeks will realise how valuable Achilles is to them

· Zeus is reluctant to help but agrees; he and Hera argue as she supports the Greeks

· Zeus threatens to physically hurt Hera so that she stops arguing with him

· Hephaestus restores the peace by encouraging Hera to make peace with Zeus again; he reminds them of the time Zeus threw him off Mount Olympus

· Hephaestus serves wine to the gods and they all laugh at him bustling about; they enjoy drinking, feasting and music until night time when they retire to bed