Mythology of the Iliad and the Odyssey by Karen Bornemann Spies Read Free Book Online

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INTRODUCTION
    Most of the details about the sack, or destruction, of Troy were recorded in epics which no longer exist. However, in the
Trojan Women
(415 B.C. ), Greek dramatist Euripides (480? B.C. –406 B.C. ) portrayed Troy’s destruction through the eyes of Hecuba, queen of Troy; Cassandra, Trojan prophetess; and Andromache, Hector’s widow. The Roman poet Virgil (70 B.C. –19 B.C. ) depicted the capture and destruction of Troy in his epic,
Aeneid
(30 B.C. –19 B.C. ). The
Aeneid
is considered one of the most important pieces of literature produced in ancient Rome.
    The Greeks finally captured the city by trickery, using a plan Odysseus suggested, building a wooden horse to smuggle inside the gates of Troy. The horse is not discussed in the
Iliad
, but many details about it are mentioned in both Book 4 and Book 8 in the
Odyssey
, from which this story is taken. In Book 8, the bard, Demodocus, sings of Odysseus’ heroism in planning the creation of the Trojan horse and leading the Greek warriors who were concealed inside. Odysseus himself describes the horse to the ghost of Achilles in the Underworld. He also tells how Achilles’ son, Neoptolemus, was the only Greek warrior who waited fearlessly inside the horse. Details about Achilles’ death and funeral come from Book 24, where Agamemnon’s ghost talks to Achilles’ ghost and Thetis mourns her son.
    Thetis held funeral games in honor of her deceased son. Such games were a tradition in ancient Greece when a great warrior or nobleman died. Warriors and princes competed against one another in events such as foot races, chariot races, and wrestling.
    Ajax, son of Telamon, is an important character in this story. He was always the last of the Greeks to give ground to the Trojans in any battle. He led the fight to recover the body of Patroclus. But even this courage was not enough to win him the honor he expected from his fellow warriors.

The Trojan Horse
    Seeking revenge for the death of Patroclus, Achilles charged the Trojan forces and drove them back toward the city gates. Apollo, who supported the Trojans, warned Achilles. “Watch out, Achilles, for although you are a mighty warrior, you are still just a mortal man.” Achilles ignored Apollo and fought on with savagery.
    Atop the safety of the city walls, Paris sat with his bow and arrows. He drew a single feathered arrow from his quiver, or case for carrying arrows, and inserted it in his bow. When Paris let the arrow fly, Apollo, the god of archery, used his great powers to guide the arrow so that it hit Achilles in his heel. This was the one spot on his body where Achilles was vulnerable. Achilles fell back on top of the bodies of many slain warriors. Soon his eyes, too, misted over in death, and he died, just as was fated. Ajax carried his body from the battlefield while mighty Odysseus held back the Trojans.
    The body was placed atop a funeral pyre, and the Greeks shaved their heads to show their sadness. Achilles’ mother, Thetis, came up from the sea with her nymphs to mourn Achilles for seventeen days. Many of the Greek heroes paraded around the funeral pyre, adorned in their armor. Achilles’ body was anointed with oil and honey. Then on the eighteenth day, the pyre was set ablaze until Achilles’ body had burned down to ashes.
    Thetis mixed the ashes and bones of Achilles in a golden, two-handled urn along with those of his friend Patroclus, just as Patroclus had asked. Over the urn, a noble tomb was built, visible from far out at sea. Then, Thetis held funeral games in honor of her dead son.
    In the Greek army, the armor of a deceased warrior was given to the mightiest surviving warrior. Both Odysseus and Ajax claimed this prize and spoke before the assembled Achaean armies.
    “I claim the honor of receiving the gleaming armor of Achilles,” said Odysseus, who was known not only for his strength but also for his powers of persuasion and his craftiness.
    Athena, who presided over the