FROM Book 1: The Quarrel

Transcription

1 FROM Book 1: The Quarrel [As Book 1 of Homer's epic opens, a terrible disease is raging through the Greek ip. It has been caused by the god Apollo, who is angry at Agamemnon, chief of -"'-- Greek army. During a foray into a nearby town, the Greeks had taken several rives, among them a beautiful young girl named Chryseis, whose father is a :;JTIestof Apollo. The girl had been awarded to Agamemnon as a prize., Chryseis' father had made his way into the Greek camp and offered Agamemnon rich ransom - his daughter's release, but the vain and selfish Greek chieftain had sent him ~~<iy Apollo, disgusted at the treatment of one of his priests, rained shafts of tilence down upon the Greeks.] For nine days the deadly shafts Of the god sped through the army, but on the tenth day The white-armed goddess Hera put into the heart Of Achilles to call the men to the place of assembly, For it distressed her to see the Danaans dying. 5 When they were assembled and seated, fleet-footed Achilles Stood up in their midst, and spoke: "Now, 0 son Of Atreus,o it seems that we shall be baffled and driven Back home, if indeed we escape with our lives from the war And pestilence too that plague the Achaeans. But come, 10 Let us consult some prophet or priest, or some reader Of dreams-for even a dream is from Zeus-someone Who may be able to tell us why Phoebus Apollo Rages so fiercely. If it is because of a hecatomb o Or vow unperformed, perhaps the god will accept 15 The savor of sacrificed lambs and goats without blemish And change his mind about plaguing us all this way." When he had spoken and sat down again, up stood Calchas, son of Thestor, he who was far The best reader of ominous birds,o who knew what was 20 And had been and things that were to be, and who had By means of the keen prophetic vision given To him by Apollo guided the Achaean ships To Ilium. Now, with all good intentions, he addressed The assembly: "Zeus-loved Achilles, you bid me explain 25 The wrath of far-smiting Apollo. Therefore I will. But first you must make up your mind and swear to defend me, Swear that you'll be both willing and quick with word And hand. For I fear I am going to anger a man Who rules with might over all the Argives, and from whom 30. son of Atreus: that is, Agamemnon. 14. hecatomb: a great sacrifice to the'gods, origy a hundred oxen. 20. ominous birds: birds believed to bear omens. site of excerpts from The l/iad of Homer, translated by Ennis Rees, copyright 1963 by Ennis Rees. Reprinted by.,sion of Random House, Inc. HOMER 55

2 The Achaeans take orders. A king, you know, is always More lordly when angry at a low-ranking man. Even If he swallows his wrath at the time, in his heart he nurses it Still, till he has his revenge. So decide whether you Will protect me." Then swift Achilles answered him thus: 35 "Be bold, and tell us what you can of the god's mind and will, For by Zeus-loved Apollo I swear to you that so long As I live on earth and have my sight, no one Shall hurt you here by the hollow ships, no one In the Danaan host, though you mean Agamemnon himself, 4 Who claims to be far the best of all the Achaeans." At this the peerless prophet took heart, and spoke: "It's not for a hecatomb or broken vow that he blames us, But because Agamemnon insulted his priest by not Accepting the ransom and giving the man his daughter. 45 Thus the far-smiting god has given us woes, And will continue to give them. He will not remove This loathsome plague till we return to her father His wide-eyed daughter-nor can we accept any ransom- And we must carry to Chryse a holy hecatomb. 5 Only then can we hope to change the mind of Apollo." When he had spoken and sat down again, the son Of Atreus, the wide-ruling wager of war Agamemnon, Stood up in a rage among them. His black heart boiled With wrath and his eyes were like fire when it blazes. Fixing 55 Calchas with an evil scowl, he railed at him thus: "Prophet of misery! you've still got your first good thing To foretell for me. Unhappy events you always Enjoy predicting, but never yet have you prophesied Anything pleasant, much less brought it to pass. 60 And now in the midst of this Danaan meeting you go on Spouting your oracles, telling the men it's because Of me that the far-darting god is inflicting these woes Upon them, because I refused the royal ransom For the darling daughter of Chryses, since I much prefer 65 To have her at home with me. I would rather have her, In fact, then Clytemnestra, my wife. For this girl is quite Her equal, just as tall and good looking, just as Smart and clever with her hands. Even so, I want To give the girl back, if that is the thing to do. 7 I prefer the men safe and well, not sick and dying. But you must prepare a prize for me at once. For me to be the only Argive here Without some gift of honor would hardly be right! As you can see, my prize is going elsewhere." 75 Then Achilles, noble and strong, answered him thus: "Renowned son of Atreus, most covetous of men, how Can the gallant Achaeans give you a prize? If there Is some large public treasure, we've yet to learn where it is, And the plunder we took from the cities we sacked has already GREEK LITERATURE

3 Been divided. Nor can we rightly take these things back From the people. But you, give up the girl as the god Demands. We Achaeans will recompense you three And four times over, if Zeus ever wills that we sack The well-walled city of Troy." And lordly Agamemnon 85 Spoke in reply: "Though you be, 0 godlike Achilles, A man of great valor, don't try to outwit me like that, For I'll not be persuaded or gotten the best of by you! Do you tell me to give the girl back so that you can keep What you've got while I sit here with nothing? If the gallant 90 Achaeans give me a prize to my liking, and equal To the one I am losing, all right-but if they do not, Then'I myself will come and take your gift Of honor, or that of Ajax, or I'll seize and bear off The prize of Odysseus. Wrathful indeed will be 95 The man to whom I make that visit! But this We can think about later. Right now let us launch a black ship. On the sacred sea, get enough rowers together, And put on board a hecatomb along with the girl, The lovely Chryseis herself. And let one of our leaders 100 Take charge, either Ajax, or Idomeneus, or godly Odysseus, Or, son of Peleus, you yourself, most dreaded Of men, that so you may offer gifts and appease The far-working god." Then swift Achilles, scowling At him, replied: "You greedy-minded shamelessness lo5 Incarnate! how can any decent Achaean want to Take orders from you, to go where you tell him to go Or battle his best with hostile men? I didn't Come here to fight because of the Trojan spearmen. They've never done me any harm, never rustled my cattle 110 Or horses, or plundered in fertile PhthiaO a harvest Of mine, for between here and there lie a great many things- Shadowy mountains and crashing sea. But we Came here with you, the incredibly shameless, in an effort To gratify you! to get satisfaction for Menelaus 115 And you! covetous cur that you are. All this You turn your back on and choose to forget, and now You threaten to take my prize of prestige, the gift I got from the sons of Achaeans and for which I labored So much. Whenever we warriors sack a populous 120 Trojan city, my share of the booty is never Equal to yours. True, I get more, much more, Than my share of chaotic battle, but when it comes To dividing the loot, your portion is always far larger Than mine. Worn out with fighting, I go back to my ships 125 And with me take some pitiful little prize Allotted to me-little, but mine. Now, though, 111. Phthia (thi';:l): Achilles' home in northern Greece. HOMER 57

4 I'll go back to Phthia, for I would much rather take all My beaked ships and go home than stay on here in disgrace To heap up wealth for you!". And the king of men 13 0 Agamemnon answered him thus: "Go on and run,.if you feel the urge so strongly. I do not beg you To stay on my account. I've others here Who honor and respect me, including the best of all counselors, Zeus himself. Of all the god-nurtured leaders, 135 You are most hateful to me, for strife is always Dear to your heart, and battles and fighting. And if You're so full of valor, that's the gift of a god. So take your ships and your men and go lord it over The Myrmidonso at home. I have no regard for you, 140 Nor do I care how angry you are. But see now How you like this. Since Phoebus Apollo is taking Chryseis from me, I'm returning her with a ship And men of mine-but I myself will come To your lodge and take your prize, the lovely Briseis, 145 That once and for all you may know how greatly I Exceed you in power and excellence, and another man Will think twice before calling himself my equal and right In my presence comparing himself with me!" He spoke, And the pain from his words went deep in the son of Peleus, 150 Rending the heart in his shaggy breast two ways As to what he should do, whether to draw the sharp sword By his thigh, break up the meeting, and kill the son Of Atreus, or swallow his rage and control his temper. While he was thus divided in mind and heart, 155 With that huge sword of his half drawn from the scabbard, Pallas Athena came down from the sky, sent By white-armed Hera, the goddess whose heart held equal Love and concern for both of the angry men. Standing behind him, she caught the son of Peleus 160 By a handful of tawny hair and made herself visible To him alone, nor could any of the others see her. Astonished, Achilles turned, and as he looked In the blazing blue eyes of the goddess he knew her at once For Pallas Athena, and his words came winged with surprise: 165 "Why, 0 daughter of aegis-bearing Zeus,o do you come again Now? Can it be that you wanted to witness the hubris And gross overreaching of Atreus' son Agamemnon? Well let me say this, and believe me I mean what I say. That arrogant pride of his may shortly cost him 170 His life!" 140. Myrmidons: the people of Phthia, followers of Achilles aegis-bearing Zeus: the aegis (e'jis) was the breastplate of Zeus. It was made from the hide of a goat that had suckled Zeus (from the Greek aigis, meaning "goatskin"). 58 GREEK LITERATURE

5 And the bright-eyed goddess Athena replied: "I came down from the sky to help you control Your wrath, if only you will obey, and the goddess White-armed Hera sent me, for her heart holds equal Love and concern for both of you. So come, 175 No fighting, and don't draw your sword. Wound him with words Instead, and tell him just how it will be. And now I say this to you, and I too mean what I say. On account of this arrogant insult, splendid gifts Worth three times as much as what you may lose will one day 180 Be given to you. So hold yourself back, and obey us." ' Then Achilles, swift of foot, answered her thus: "No man, 0 goddess, can ignore the word of two Such powers, no matter how wrathful his heart may be. To obey is surely better. The gods hear all 185 The prayers of him who heeds them." He spoke, and restrained His mighty hand on the silver hilt. Then obeying The word of Athena he thrust the long blade back into The scabbard. And the goddess left for Olympus and the palace Of aegis-bearing Zeus, to mingle with the other gods there. 190 And again Achilles, wrathful as ever, spoke violent Words to the son of Atreus: "You drunken sot! With the greedy eyes of a dog and the heart of a deer! You never have courage enough to arm yourself For battle along with the rest of us, or go 195 With the best Achaeans on a crafty ambush. You'd rather Die than do either! You much prefer to go Through this huge camp and seize for yourself the gift Of anyone here who disagrees with you, you wretched Devourer of what we win! And truly, the men 200 You rule are also worthless, or this, 0 son Of Atreus, would be the last of your arrogant insults. But I'll make something clear right now, and swear a great oath. I swear by this staff I hold-which no longer has bud Or leaf since it left its stump in the mountains, nor ever 205 Grows green again and blooms since the sharp bronze stripped it Of foliage and bark, but which now the sons of Achaeans Bear in their hands, they who are judges among us And uphold the laws of God-by this staff I swear A great oath that surely someday a desperate need 210 For Achilles shall come upon all the sons of Achaeans, Nor will you be able to help them at all, no matter How grieved you are, when man-killing Hector is cutting them Down by the dozen. Then, I say, you'll rend Your heart with wrath and remorse for failing to honor 2 15 The best Achaean of all!" So saying, Achilles Dashed to the ground the staff with its studs of bright gold, And sat down, while opposite him the son of Atreus Went on venting his rage. Then among them up stood HOMER 59

6 Nestor, the silver-tongued speaker of Pylos,Ofrom whose 220 Lips the words flowed sweeter than honey. Since he First saw the light, two generations of mortal Men had come and gone in sacred Pylos, And now among the third he was the king. In an effort to help, he addressed the assembly: 225 "For shame! Surely now great grief comes on the land Of Achaea. But think how glad it would make King Priam And all of his sons along with the other Trojans To learn of this wrangling between you-you that among The Danaans stand first in counsel and warfare. But listen 23 To me. Both of you are younger than I, And in other days I have campaigned with mightier Men than you, nor did they ever belittle Or disregard me. Never since have I seen such warriors, Nor ever again shall I see such heroes as Peirithous 235 Was and Dryas, marshaler of men, and Caeneus And Exadius and Polyphemus, godlike in his might, and that equal Of the immortal gods, Theseus, son of Aegeus. Of all men reared on earth, these were the strongest. The strongest, I say, and with the strongest they fought- 24 With the monstrous mountain Centaurs, and the slaughter they there Performed was terrible indeed. I came a long way From distant Pylos and mingled with those very men, For I came at their summons. And in the war I did My personal share of the fighting. There are today 245 No mortals alive on earth who would be fit To fight with those men. Still, they listened to me And took my advice. And you too would do better to harken And heed. You, Agamemnon, are a man of great power, But don't try taking that girl away. Leave her 25 Alone, the prize of him to whom the Achaeans Gave her. And you, 0 son of Peleus, do not Presume to pit your might in strife against A sceptered king, who derives his power from Zeus And therefore has no common glory. You 255 Are the son of a goddess and valiant indeed, yet he Is the mightier man, since he rules over more people. Check your rage, AtridesO-in fact, I beg you To extinguish the wrath of yours against Achilles, Who in the moil of horrible war is the mightiest 260 Mainstay we Achaeans have." And ruling Agamemnon Replied: "All that you say, 0 aged one, Is just and wise enough, but this man wants To be higher than anyone else. He wants to rule Over all-to be king, I tell you, and give orders to all Well I know one, at least, who won't take orders 220. Pylos: a city in southern Greece Atrides (d trl'dez): son of Atreus; that is, Agamemnon. 60 GREEK LITERATURE

7 From him! So the immortal gods made him A mighty spearman-does that give him the right To go around spouting insults?" Then the gifted Achilles Interrupted, saying: "Indeed, for if I yielded 270 To you in all things, no matter what you commanded, I would be called a coward and good for nothing. So boss the others about, but give no more orders To me! I'm through with doing what you say. And here Is something else that you will do well to remember. 275 I will not fight with you or anyone else For the girl, since you do but take what you gave. But of all That I'll have left by that swift black ship of mine, I warn you not to take away anything else! Go on and try, if you like, so that all may learn 280 I mean business-and see how soon your black blood covers My spear!" When the violent words had all been spoken, The two men arose and broke up the meeting beside The Achaean ships. Achilles strode off to his shelters And well-balanced ships along with Patroclus and all 285. The rest of his comrades. But the son of Atreus ordered Others to drag a swift ship down into the sea And he picked out twenty oarsmen. Then they drove on board For the god the hecatomb of cattle and brought Chryseis Of the lovely cheeks and put her aboard. And Odysseus, 290 Resourceful as ever, mounted the deck and took charge. When all were embarked and sailing the foamy sea-lanes, Atreus' son commanded the army to wash, And they purified themselves in the salt sea-water and offered To Apollo appeasing hecatombs of bulls and goats 295 By the shore of the unresting sea. And the plentiful smoke Curled up in the sky and eddying with it the savor. While the men were busy with offerings throughout the camp, Agamemnon proceeded to fulfill his threat to Achilles. He called his heralds and nimble squires, Talthybius 300 And Eurybates, and spoke to them thus: "Go to the lodge Of Peleus' son Achilles, take the hand Of the beautiful-cheeked Briseis, and bring her to me. And if he refuses to give her, I myself will go With more men and take her, which will be far more painful for him." 305 With this harsh order he sent them away on their mission, And they, reluctant, walked off along the beach Of the desolate sea till they came to the shelters and ships Of the Myrmidons. They found Achilles sitting by his lodge And black ship, nor was he glad to see them. Frozen 310 With fear and embarrassment, they stood in awe of the prince, Unable to speak a word or ask a question. But he knew very well what they wanted and spoke to them, saying: "Come here, good heralds, and welcome. You bear the words Of God and men, and my quarrel is not with you, 315 HOMER 61

8 But Agamemnon, who sent you here for the girl Briseis. So come, god-sprung Patroclus, bring out the girl And give her to these men to take back with them. And in That day when I shall be desperately needed to save The Achaeans from shameful destruction, these two shall witness 3 20 For me before blissful gods and mortal men And the stupid king himself. For surely his rage Will be the ruin of him yet. If he wants his Achaeans to fight With both success and survivors, he had better try looking Before as well as behind!" He spoke, and Patroclus Obeyed his dear friend. He led from the lodge Briseis, Lovely of face, and gave her to go with the men. And back they went down the line of Achaean ships And with them the unwilling girl. Now Achilles, weeping, Withdrew from his comrades, and sitting down by himself 330 On the beach by the silvery surf he looked out over The wine-dark sea, stretched out his arms, and fervently Prayed to his own dear mother: "Since, 0 Mother,. You bore me, though only to live for a few short years, Surely Olympian Zeus should have given me honor, 335 But now that high-thundering god has given me quite The reverse. For truly the son of Atreus, imperial Agamemnon, has grossly insulted me. He has robbed me Of my gift of honor and now he keeps her himself!" Thus in tears he spoke, and far down in the sea, 340 Sitting by her ancient father, his goddess mother Heard him. And quickly she left the gray sea like a mist And sank down in front of her weeping son, gently Caressed him, called him by name, and said: "My child, Why are you crying? What sorrow has entered your heart? 345 Keep it in no longer. Speak out, and share it with me." Then moaning, swift-footed Achilles spoke to her thus: "You know. Why should I tell it to one who already Knows all about it? We went out to Thebe, the sacred City of Eetion,O destroyed and plundered it all, 350 And brought the booty back here. This the sons Of Achaeans divided farily among them, and they chose For the son of Atreus the fair-cheeked daughter of Chryses. But he, as a priest of far-smiting Apollo, came To the speedy ships of the gallant bronze-clad Achaeans 355 To ransom his daughter, and the ransom he bore was boundless. In suppliant hands on a staff of gold he carried The fillets of far-darting Apollo, and he pleaded with all The Achaeans, especially with the two sons of Atreus, Marshalers of many: "'0 sons of Atreus and you other Eetion (ihni'on): king of Thebe (the'be), a city near Troy. 62 GREEK LITERATURE

9 'ell-greavedo Achaeans, may the gods who live on Olympus _-\llow you to sack the city of Priam and reach Your homes in safety, But reverence the son of Zeus, Apollo who strikes from afar-take this ransom And return my precious daughter.' 6 "All the other Achaeans 3 5 upported the priest and shouted to reverence him And accept the splendid ransom. But Atreus' son A.gamemnon was far from pleased. Roughly he sent him Away, threatening him harshly. And back he went,.-\ very angry old man, and Apollo, who loves him dearly, 370 Sent a shaft of sickness against the Argives. His arrows flew through the wide Achaean camp, And more and' more people were dying. Then a prophet whom we Could depend on told us the mind and will of the god Who smites from afar, and I was the first to suggest 375 That we try to appease him. At this a great rage gripped Agamemnon, and he uttered a threat that has now been fulfilled. For already the quick-eyed Achaeans are taking one girl To Chryse aboard a swift ship along with gifts For the god, and heralds have come to my lodge and taken 380 The other, Briseis, my gift from the sons of Achaeans. But if you really have power, protect your own son. If you ever did or said anything that gladdened The heart of Zeus, go now to Olympus and plead With him. Many times in the halls of my father I have heard you Glory in telling how you were the only immortal. To help lord Zeus of the dark and lowering sky And rescue him from shame when other Olympians- Hera, Poseidon, and Pallas Athena-plotted To bind him fast. Then, 0 goddess, you came 390 And untied him, but first with all speed you summoned to lofty Olympus him of the hundred hands, known as Briareus to the gods, but Aegaeon to all mankind, A monster even more powerful than his father Poseidon. He crouched by the side of Cronos' son,o exulting 395 In his reputation, and the blessed gods were afraid Of him and made no attempt to bind Zeus again. Go sit by his side and remind him of this, and embrace His knees in earnest prayer for him to support The Trojans; but as for their foes, the Achaeans, may he trap them 4 0 Between the sterns of their ships and litter the beach With dead and dying men, that all may share The reward of their king, and that Atreus' son, imperial Agamemnon, may know how blind he was to give No honor at all to the bravest and best of Achaeans!" 405 Then Thetis, weeping, replied: "My child, my child, Why did I raise you to all this misery? I only 361. Wen-greaved: well-protected by armor. Greaves were worn on the legs to protect the area below the knees Cronos' son: Zeus. HOMER 63

10 Wish that you might have stayed by your ships and escaped All grief and tears, for the life allotted to you Is short, not long at all. And now not only Will you die young, but you have to sutter as well, And more than anyone else. Hence, back home In our halls, I bore you to a fate most miserable. But I Will go in person to snowy Olympus and tell This grievance of yours to Zeus, the lover of lightning, In hope of his help. Meanwhile, you remain By the swift seagoing ships, and go on in your wrath Against the Achaeans and your utter refusal to fight. For yesterday Zeus departed for the stream of Oceanuso To attend a feast of the excellent Ethiopians, and all 4 20 The other gods went with him. In twelve days he Will be back on Olympus, and then to the brazen-floored palace Of Zeus I will go, and embrace his knees in prayer. I believe I shall win him over." With this she left him There on the beach, resentful and brooding on account of The fair-gowned woman they had forcefully, spitefully Taken from him. [Without Achilles' help, the Greeks are at a grave disadvantage against the Trojans, who are led by their great warrior Hector. As Book 3 opens, the Greek and Trojan armies confront each other on the dusty plain outside Troy.] FROM Book 3: The Duel When each battalion had been drawn up with its captain, The Trojans advanced with clamor and clang like the noise Of birds, the clangor of cranes that rises toward heaven When they flee the storms of winter and floods of beating Rain and fly with loud cries toward the stream of Oceanus 5 To offer in battle at dawn terrible slaughter And death to men of the Pygmies.o The Achaeans, however, Came on with no cries at all, but breathing might And full of resolve to aid and defend one another. As when the South Wind covers the peaks of a mountain IO With a mist no shepherd loves, but that thieves prefer To night, since through it a man can see but a stone's throw Ahead, so now from beneath their feet a thick Dust cloud arose as swiftly they went on the double Across the plain. When the two advancing armies 15 Drew near each other, out from the Trojan ranks Stepped godlike Paris, also called Alexander, 419. Oceanus: a sea thought to surround the earth. Near it, supposedly, lived the Ethiopians. 7. cranes... Pygmies: It was believed that the cranes were at war with the Pygmies, a race of tiny men. The Greek word pygme means the length of the arm from the elbow to knuckles. 64 GREEK LITERATURE