Iliad

**Read Ἰλιάς at the source, before centuries of translation made its language familiar in other forms.**

## The Work and Its World

The Iliad, preserved here as Ἰλιάς, is one of the works through which ancient Greek literature and thought continue to speak to later centuries. Achilles' wrath turns the last weeks of the Trojan War into an epic meditation on glory, grief, mortality, and reconciliation.

The Iliad (/ˈɪliəd/ ⓘ ILL-ee-əd; Ancient Greek: Ἰλιάς, romanized: Iliás [iːliás]; lit. '[a poem] about Ilion (Troy)') is one of two major surviving ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. Like the Odyssey, the poem is divided into 24 books and was written in dactylic hexameter. It contains 15,693 lines in its standard edition. The Iliad is often regarded as the first substantial piece of European literature and is central to the study of classical philology.

Set towards the end of the Trojan War, a 10-year siege of the city of Troy by a coalition of Mycenaean Greek states, the poem depicts significant events in the war's final weeks. In particular, it traces the anger (μῆνις) of Achilles, a celebrated warrior, from a fierce quarrel between him and King Agamemnon, to the death of the Trojan prince Hector. The narrative moves between wide battleground scenes and more personal interactions. Contrary to popular belief, the Iliad does not depict the fall of Troy nor mention the Trojan Horse used by the Greeks to conquer the city, which are attributed to later sources.

The Iliad and the Odyssey were likely composed in Homeric Greek, a literary mixture of Ionic Greek and other dialects, around the 8th century BC though some modern scholars have argued for a mid-7th-century BC date. The poem's composition, historicity, and authorship are extensively debated (the Homeric Question), with Homeric scholars likewise debating whether the Iliad and the Odyssey were composed independently, and whether they survived via an oral or also written tradition. The poem's formulae, use of similes, and epithets are often explored by scholars. The Iliad was widely esteemed by the ancient Greeks and formed part of their standard education; the poem's conflation of different regional dialects, and its depiction of various Greek factions uniting to fight Troy, gave it strong resonance across the Hellenistic world. It was performed by professional reciters known as rhapsodes at Greek festivals such as the Panathenaia.

Critical themes in the Iliad include kleos (glory), pride, fate, and wrath. Despite being predominantly known for its tragic and serious themes, the poem also contains instances of comedy and humor. It is frequently described as a "heroic" epic, centred around issues such as war, violence, and the heroic code. The poem contains detailed descriptions of ancient warfare, including battle tactics and equipment. However, it also explores social and domestic aspects of ancient culture in scenes behind the walls of Troy and in the Greek camp. Additionally, the Olympian gods play a major role, aiding their favoured warriors and cities on the battlefield and intervening in personal disputes. Their anthropomorphic characterisation in the poem humanised them for Ancient Greek audiences, giving a concrete sense of their cultural and religious tradition.

The story begins with an invocation to the Muse. The events take place towards the end of the Trojan War, fought between the Trojans and the besieging Achaeans (Homer interchangeably refers to the Greeks as "Achaeans", "Argives" or "Danaans"). The Achaean forces consist of armies from many different Greek kingdoms, led by their respective kings or princes. Agamemnon, king of Mycenae, acts as commander for these united armies.

## Why It Still Matters

Approaching The Iliad in its original language brings the reader closer to choices of rhythm, argument, image, and dramatic emphasis that translations must inevitably interpret. The work is not important only because it is old: it remains a living point of reference for writers, philosophers, historians, theatre makers, and readers confronting related questions today.

## Author and Legacy

Homer is the traditional author of the Iliad and Odyssey; these poems became foundational texts of Greek education and European literary tradition.

Homer (/ˈhoʊmər/; Ancient Greek: Ὅμηρος [hómɛːros], Hómēros; possibly born c. the 8th century BC) was an ancient Greek poet who is widely credited as the author of the Iliad and the Odyssey, two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Although his life and authorship remain obscure, Homer was revered in ancient Greek society and is considered one of the most influential authors in history.

The Iliad centers on a quarrel between King Agamemnon and the warrior Achilles during the last year of the Trojan War. The Odyssey chronicles the ten-year journey of Odysseus, king of Ithaca, back to his home after the fall of Troy. The epics depict man's struggle, the Odyssey especially so, as Odysseus perseveres through the punishment of the gods. The poems are in Homeric Greek, also known as Epic Greek, a literary language that shows a mixture of features of the Ionic and Aeolic dialects from different centuries; the predominant influence is Eastern Ionic. Most researchers believe that the poems were originally transmitted orally. Despite being predominantly known for their tragic and serious themes, the Homeric poems also contain instances of comedy and laughter.

The Homeric poems shaped aspects of ancient Greek culture and education, fostering ideals of heroism, glory, and honor. To Plato, Homer was in simple words the one who "has educated Greece" (τὴν Ἑλλάδα πεπαίδευκεν, tēn Helláda pepaídeuken). In Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy, Virgil refers to Homer as "Poet sovereign", king of all poets; in the preface to his translation of the Iliad, Alexander Pope acknowledges that Homer has always been considered the "greatest of poets". From antiquity to the present day, Homeric epics have inspired many famous works of literature, music, art, and film.

The question of by whom, when, where, and under what circumstances the Iliad and Odyssey were composed continues to be debated. Scholars generally regard the two poems as the works of separate authors. It is thought that the poems were composed at some point around the late eighth or early seventh century BC. Many accounts of Homer's life circulated in classical antiquity, the most widespread that he was a blind bard from Ionia, a region including the central part of the western coast of Anatolia in present-day Turkey, and the Greek islands of Chios and Samos. Modern scholars consider these accounts legendary.

In this collection, the author's importance is approached through The Iliad. The work shows how a particular genre or method could become a durable instrument for examining human action, public life, knowledge, memory, and the demands of justice.