The Illiad Book 1

I thought that reading Book 1 of the Illiad was much more enjoyable than the other three literary works we have read so far. It seemed to follow the formula of most ancient epics, which is something we also went over in class this week. The poem begins with Homer invoking the muses to assist him in telling the story about the rage of Achilles during the Trojan War. An invocation to the muses is characteristic of how mostly all epics begin. All throughout Book 1, there is constant quarrel (rage) between two of the main characters, Achilles and Agamemnon. Agamemnon has abducted the daughter of a god’s priest, Chryseis, and has refused to return her to her father (Chryses) despite the generous ransom he has offered. Enraged Chryses’ prays to Apollo and asks for divine intervention in the form of plague and terror on the Archaen army. These first few events lead to, and are mainly the cause of what occurs throughout the rest of the epic.
It was interesting to see the struggle for supremacy between both Agamemnon and Achilles, and to see how they both prioritized their individual glories over the well-being of the Archaen army, ultimately jeopardizing the efforts in war.