A Play about the Story of the Trojan War Written by Mr. Freewalt and his Seventh Grade Social Studies classes Based on the Iliad and the Odyssey, written by Homer c. 750 BC, The Aeneid, written by Virgil c. 19 BC, and various other sources Cast * Narrator 1 * Narrator 2 * Achilles: Greek soldier who is the greatest warrior in history. No man can stand against him, but his excessive confidence (called hubris) gets him into trouble. Son of Peleus and the sea nymph Thetis. Aeneas: Brave and powerful Trojan warrior. * Agamemnon: King of the Mycenaeans and commanderin-chief of the Greek armies. * Ajax: Hulking giant who is second only to Achilles in battlefield skills. * Aphrodite: Goddess of love; sides with the Trojans. Apollo: The sun god; sides with the Trojans. Ares: God of war; sides with the Trojans. Artemis: Goddess of archery and hunting; sides with the Trojans. Astyanax: Son of Hector; sacrificed at the end of the war. * Athena: Goddess of wisdom; favors the Greeks. Briseis: Beautiful captive of Achilles; is later taken by Agamemnon as his war bride, causing an argument. * Calchas: Prophet (soothsayer or seer). * Cassandra: Prophet (soothsayer or seer); daughter of Trojan king Priam and sister of Paris and Hector. Chryseis: Daughter of the god Apollo s priest; became a captive of Clytemnestra: Wife of Agamemnon and sister of Helen. * Diomedes: Greek warrior of great valor and ability. * Eris: Goddess of discord (lack of harmony / disagreement); she starts this whole thing. Hector: Bravest and most accomplished of the Trojan warriors; son of Priam and brother of Paris and Cassandra. * Hecuba: Wife of King Priam of Troy and mother of Paris, Hector, and Cassandra. * Helen: Wife of Menelaus and the most beautiful woman in the world. * Helenus: Prophet (soothsayer or seer); son of Trojan king Priam brother of Paris and Hector. Hephaestus: Blacksmith god; favors the Greeks. * Hera: Wife of Zeus and queen of the gods; favors the Greeks. * Hermes: The messenger god. Iphigenia: Daughter of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra. Laocoön: Tried to convince the Trojans to reject the Trojan Horse, but was crushed by snakes. Laodamia: Wife of Protesilaus, the first soldier to die in the war. * Menelaus: King of Sparta and brother of After his wife, Helen, the most beautiful woman in the world, was taken by a Trojan named Paris, the Greeks declared war on Troy. Nestor: Wise old king who advises * Odysseus: King of Ithaca and brilliant strategist; is quick-witted and is an imaginative strategist. * Paris: Trojan prince who took Helen from Menelaus; son of Priam and brother of Hector and Cassandra. * Patroclus: Greek warrior and beloved companion (perhaps cousin) of * Peleus: King who is the father of * Philoctetes: Greek warrior who was bitten by a snake and marooned by the army. He had the bow and arrows of Heracles, so he was later rescued to retrieve them. Polyxena: Daughter of King Priam; was sacrificed at the end of the war. Priam: King of Troy and father of Paris, Hector, and Cassandra. * Protesilaus: Greek warrior who was the first to fight and first to die in the war. * Sinon: Greek warrior who tried to convince the Trojans to accept the Trojan Horse into their city. Telephus: King of the Teuthranians. * Thetis: Sea nymph who is the mother of * Tyndareüs: King of Sparta; father of Helen. * Zeus: King of the gods; prefers to remain neutral in the war but joins the fight after a plea for help; plays both sides. 0
The Iliad Μῆνιν ἄειδε, θεὰ, Πηληϊάδεω Ἀχιλῆος οὐλομένην, ἣ μυρί Ἀχαιοῖς ἄλγε ἔθηκε, πολλὰς δ ἰφθίμους ψυχὰς Ἄϊδι προῒαψεν ἡρώων, αὐτοὺς δὲ ἑλώρια τεῦχε κύνεσσιν οἰωνοῖσί τε πᾶσι Διὸς δ ἐτελείετο βουλή ἐξ οὗ δὴ τὰ πρῶτα διαστήτην ἐρίσαντε Ἀτρεΐδης τε ἄναξ ἀνδρῶν καὶ δῖος Ἀχιλλεύς. Goddess, sing the rage of Peleus son Achilles, murderous, doomed, that cost the Achaeans countless loses, hurling down to the House of Death so many sturdy souls, great fighters souls, but made their bodies carrion, feasts for the dogs and birds, and the will of Zeus was moving toward its end. Begin, Muse, when the two first broke and clashed, Agamemnon lord of men and brilliant Act I, Scene 1 A Suitor for Helen Palace of young Princess Helen Sparta, Greece All the unmarried men of Greece gather in Sparta at the palace of King Tyndareüs. The suitors (men wanting to get married) are competing for the chance to marry Tyndareüs daughter, Helen. [Agamemnon, Diomedes, Odysseus, Menelaus, Patroclus, and Philoctetes are chatting] Philoctetes. I hope King Tyndareüs will choose me from among the other suitors to marry his daughter, Helen. She s the most beautiful young woman in Greece. You mean, the most beautiful woman in the world. I want to marry her as much as you do. Every suitor here wants to marry her. She lives in this beautiful palace here in Sparta with her father and mother, the king and queen, and her half-sister, Clytemnestra. Patroclus. Did you know that Helen is rumored to be one of the daughters of the great god Zeus? Diomedes. Only that could explain her amazing beauty. Quiet. Here comes the king. [Trumpets blare; enter King Tyndareüs] Tyndareüs. Listen to me, all you suitors who want to marry my daughter, Helen. There are many of you, but only one is worthy of marrying my daughter. I want to be sure that no matter who marries her, she and her new marriage will be safe. Safe? We all love Helen. Why are you worried? Tyndareüs. I am worried that if I choose any one of you to marry Helen, the rest of you may get jealous and start fighting each other or be angry with me. If I don t choose you to marry Helen, you might try to kill me for revenge. How can we prove to you that we will not harm Helen or her marriage to the suitor you choose? Tyndareüs. You must all swear an oath that whomever of you I choose to marry my daughter, the rest of you will protect Helen and her marriage to the point of giving your own life if necessary. Do you swear it? All men. Yes, we swear to fight to the death to protect Helen and her marriage, no matter which of us gets to marry her. Tyndareüs. Good! Now, to choose the best man to marry Helen, I will have you compete in athletic contests. I don t want a wimp marrying my Helen. May the best man win! [The suitors run, throw, and jump to see who s the best athlete.] Tyndareüs. Stop. I have decided that the best athlete is Menelaus, brother of King Agamemnon (ag-a- MEM-non) of Mycenae. You will marry Helen. [The other suitors look sad, but clap anyway and congratulate ] Excellent. Not only will I have a beautiful wife, but I will be king of Sparta too. Agamemnon, why don t you marry her sister, Clytemnestra. I might as well. She s no Helen, but Clytemnestra seems nice. 1
Act I, Scene 2 The Apple of Discord Wedding of Peleus and Thetis Mount Olympus The Trojan War has its roots in the marriage between the mortal king Peleus and a sea-nymph named Thetis. Peleus and Thetis invited many guests to their banquet; however, Eris, the goddess of discord (lack of harmony; disagreement), was not invited. This will prove to be a great mistake. [Peleus and Thetis are seated at the banquet table. Hera, Zeus, Athena, Aphrodite, and other guests are seated at the table or standing nearby, talking.] Peleus. Ah, how nice it is to see so many guests here at our wedding banquet. Thetis. Yes, of course. It looks like everyone we invited has arrived. I can t believe all the wonderful gifts we ve received. [Eris bursts in through the doors, fuming with rage.] Eris. How dare you celebrate and party without inviting me. Thetis. We beg your forgiveness. Please join us. Peleus. We meant you no disrespect. Eris. It is too late for your apologies. However, to show that I don t bear a grudge for having been left off the guest list, I too would like to present a wedding gift. This is for the fairest. [Eris pulls a golden apple from her pocket and tosses it onto the banquet table.] All women. The fairest? That s me! I m the most beautiful. [Hera grabs the apple.] [Athena grabs the apple from Hera.] Athena. Clearly as goddess of wisdom, I m the fairest. [Aphrodite grabs the apple from Athena.] Aphrodite. Clearly as goddess of love, I m the fairest. Hera. Zeus. Zeus, king of the gods, and my husband [wink] you choose which of us is the fairest. Don t get me involved in this. No matter which of you I choose as the fairest, I will suffer the scorn of the other two. Let us have an outsider choose. The fairest woman should be chosen by the handsomest man. Hermes, go to Troy and bring back the prince named Hermes. As you wish. Hermes (the messenger god) travels to Troy to summon Paris, and Paris agrees to act as the judge. [Enter Hermes and Hermes takes the apple from Aphrodite and gives it to ] Hermes. Zeus, king of the gods, I present to you Paris of Troy. Zeus. Hera. Paris, handsomest of men, I command you to judge among the goddesses here which of them is the fairest. Hmmm.. that s no easy task. Let me make it easier for you. If you choose me, I ll give you great power. You ll command a great kingdom and will be respected and feared. Athena. Paris, what good is power without wealth? If you choose me as fairest, I ll make you wealthy beyond your wildest dreams. Hera. Clearly as queen of the gods, I m the fairest. Aphrodite. Handsome Paris, you are a prince, so you already have power. Your princely status also 2
gives you great wealth. I offer something you don t have, the most beautiful woman in the world. If you choose me, I ll give her to you. [Paris hands the apple to Aphrodite.] acting as an ambassador from Troy to establish peaceful trade. [Paris, Menelaus, and Helen are at a large table, finishing lunch.] Aphrodite, I believe this golden apple belongs to you. I thank you for your kindness and for the fine meal. Act I, Scene 3 Abduction of Helen, Part I Palace of King Priam Troy Helen, wife of king Menelaus of Sparta, is the most beautiful woman in the world. So, by accepting Aphrodite s offer, Paris prepares to set off for Sparta to capture Helen. [Paris is packing his things. Enter twin prophets Cassandra and Helenus and Paris mother Hecuba.] Helen. You are welcome. It s our pleasure to have you here in Sparta. Yes, we hope you will enjoy the day here. Unfortunately, I have to sail to Crete to attend to some business, but Helen and our servants will provide for you whatever you wish. Good day. [Exit ] I hope you know, I m not here as an ambassador. I m here for you. Cassandra. Dear brother Paris, I foresee terrible suffering if you go through with this. Helenus. Yes, brother. I agree with Cassandra. What you are about to do will have terrible consequences for Troy. Hecuba. My son, you must listen to your sister and brother. They can see the future and know that what you will do is wrong. Think about it. You are planning to steal another man s wife. Cassandra. I remind you, do not ignore my prophecy. This has been arranged by the gods. What I plan to do is accept the offer Aphrodite made to me. Please do not interfere. Act I, Scene 4 Abduction of Helen, Part II Palace of King Menelaus Sparta, Greece Menelaus and Helen of Sparta welcome Paris kindly into their palace. They believe Paris is Helen. Helen. Helen. For me? But well it s strange that you say that. I had a dream, and in my dream the goddess of love, Aphrodite, said you would come for me. That is true. Aphrodite s spell over you is strong. Come with me to Troy. What about my husband? I do not love him. He is old, gruff, and a difficult person, but I know that if I leave he will seek revenge on both of us. Helen of Troy: The face that launched a thousand ships It is meant to be. We cannot change our fate. This is our destiny. It is arranged by the gods. OK. I will go. We might as well take whatever gold and jewels we can from this place. I ll gather the gold and jewels. Pack your things. 3
Act II, Scene 1 Greek Preparations for War Palace of King Agamemnon Mycenae, Greece Paris took Helen to Troy and married her. Needless to say, Menelaus was outraged to find what had happened and quickly went to visit his older brother Agamemnon, king of Mycenae. [Agamemnon is seated in his royal throne room. Enter ] Dear brother, it is good to see you. I am curious why you traveled all this way to see me. My wife Helen, she s gone! I don t know for sure what has happened, but she is gone and so is much of my treasure. That s terrible. I feel so badly for you. So, why have you come here personally to tell me this? Shouldn t you be looking for her? I think she s been kidnapped. I ask that you, the great king of Mycenae, will offer your powerful navy and the Greek army to help me get her back. You remember the oath you swore, don t you? Oath, what oath? Remember? The oath you and the other suitors swore to defend my marriage to Helen. You swore that oath when we competed for Helen s hand in marriage. Oh that oath. I meant that I wouldn t hold a grudge against the person who won Helen. That s all. If you don t help me, you ll have broken your oath. What do you say, brother? I guess I have no choice. I m going to war to help you. You should call all the other suitors to come here to help as well. If I have to go to war, they re coming with me! [The curtain falls and then rises to show the passage of time.] Menelaus calls upon the rest of Helen's former suitors. [Enter Odysseus, Diomedes, Patroclus, and Protesilaus. Menelaus addresses them.] Agamemnon and I want you to join us in our quest to rescue my wife Helen, who I believe has been kidnapped. You vowed an oath as a suitor to help defend my marriage to her. Now is the time for you to redeem your vow. Uh I can t help you. I need to go uh yes I need to go plow my fields. Yes, that s it. I need to get some salt and plant it in my fields. Yes, my oxen and I will plant salt in my fields, so I am too busy to help you. Sorry. Diomedes. Not so fast, You re the king of Ithaca, so we all know you re not insane. Don t try to get out of this. You swore the oath just as we did. Patroclus. I agree, Diomedes. Odysseus, you can t get out of it that easily. You re acting just like king Cinyras of Paphos, on the island of Cyprus. Protesilaus. Yes, I heard about him. He also tried to avoid going to war. He promised to send Agamemnon fifty ships for the Greek fleet. True to his word, Cinyras did send fifty ships. The first ship was commanded by his son. The other forty-nine, however, were toy clay ships, with tiny clay sailors. They broke apart soon after being placed in the ocean. Trust me, I m going to get back at king Cinyras for that one. Enough! No more avoiding it. We re going to war, and all of you are coming with us. Diomedes. What about Achilles? He was not one of Helen s suitors, but he s the best fighter in the world. We need him or we ll lose for sure. Patroclus. Yes, the prophet Calchas says that Troy will not be taken unless Achilles fights. Achilles and I are close friends. I ll get him to join the fight. 4
Act II, Scene 2 Leaving for Troy The Port of Aulis, Greece Agamemnon becomes commander-in-chief of the Greeks. He calls all the Greek armies together at a port called Aulis (OW-liss), where they prepare to sail to Troy. [Enter Agamemnon, Menelaus, Calchas, and ] It looks as though everyone is assembled. We are ready to sail. Let s go! King Agamemnon, a strong wind is blowing toward us. We cannot sail against the wind. We must wait for the wind to change. This is frustrating. Why must the wind keep us from leaving? Calchas. My king, I am a prophet. I know why the wind stops us. The goddess Artemis is angry with you. Artemis is angry with me? Why? What have I done to deserve this punishment? Calchas. You are a great hunter, my lord. You have hunted and killed many animals. However, you were careless on your last hunting trip. Careless? Me? How dare you!?! Calchas. I mean no disrespect. As I m sure you know, the goddess Artemis is a hunter as well. However, she is very fond of her sacred deer. Curse my accurate aim! I remember now that I killed a large and graceful deer on my last hunt. If that deer was one of the sacred deer of Artemis, we may never be allowed to leave this port. What can I do to make Artemis happy again and to get her to stop the wind from keeping us here? Calchas. In a dream, Artemis told me that the only way she will stop the wind and allow you to sail to Troy is for you to pay for the life of her sacred deer with the life of your own daughter. Sacrifice Iphigenia, my own daughter? No way! Wow! That is terrible. However, there may be no other way, my lord Artemis will not forgive or forget, unless you pay the price. He s right, brother. If you are to keep your oath and rescue Helen, there is no other way. I can t believe I m saying this, but send word to my wife Clytemnestra to bring my daughter Iphigenia here to Aulis. I have no choice. But sir, your daughter will not come if she knows she will be sacrificed. Yes, of course. Tell her that she will marry the famous young hero Achilles when she arrives. She will be sure to come then. As you wish. Act II, Scene 3 Finding Troy Onboard the Greek ships and at various islands When Iphigenia arrives at Aulis, she soon finds out that she had been tricked. Agamemnon ties her up, puts her on an altar, and kills her. This sacrifice pleases Artemis, the wind changes, and the Greek ships sail across the Aegean Sea toward Troy. [Enter Agamemnon, Menelaus, Ajax, Sinon, Protesilaus, Philoctetes, Patroclus, Achilles, and ] Patroclus. Does anyone smell that? What is that horrible smell? Ajax. I don t know what it is, but I think it s coming from Philoctetes. 5
Sinon. It s stinking up the whole ship. Protesilaus. I think I m going to be sick. Philoctetes. Sorry guys. I was bitten by a snake at the last island we visited. Since then, the wound has become infected. That looks really bad. All that puss and rotting flesh smells horrible. I can t stand the smell. I think we should kick him off the ship before we all end up barfing. Sinon. That s not very nice. We can t just leave him on some deserted island. Oh yes we can. He has to go. Philoctetes. What? What are you going to do with me? Ajax. Sorry Philoctetes, but I m with Let s drop Philoctetes off at the island of Lemnos. At least there he ll be safe and we can send a ship to pick him up later. The Greeks maroon Philoctetes on the island of Lemnos. This will later prove to be a mistake because Philoctetes possesses the bow and arrows of Heracles, which the Greeks will later need during the war. I m glad we got rid of Philoctetes and his stinky wound. Now all we have to do is find Troy. Yes, there are so many islands here in the Aegean Sea. This is taking forever. I think I know how to get to Troy. In our battle last month with the Teuthranians on the island of Mysia, I wounded their king, Telephus. Ajax. He was such a wimp. Anyway, his wound was not able to heal. King Telephus visited the oracle, which told him that only the person who injured him Ajax. You mean, you? Yes, Ajax, me. As I was saying, the oracle told king Telephus that only the person who injured him would be able to cure him. Patroclus. Is that why you met with the Teuthranians when we stopped at the island of Mysia the other day? Yes, I visited the Teuthranians and cured king Telephus. He told me how to get to Troy. Great. Then what are we waiting for? Protesilaus. I m ready to rescue Helen or die trying! Act III, Scene 1 The war begins Trojan War Battlefield Outside Troy Odysseus, known for his excellent speaking ability, and Menelaus were sent ahead of the rest of the ships as ambassadors to the palace of Priam (king of Troy and father of Paris). They demanded that Helen and the stolen treasure be returned. King Priam refused, and Odysseus and Menelaus returned to the Greek ships with the announcement that war was unavoidable. Homer's Iliad begins in the middle of the Trojan War, around the year 1250 BC, just at the end of the Bronze Age in Ancient Greece. The Greeks believed that the Trojan War lasted for ten years; and this story happens in the tenth year of the war, when both sides were really sick of being at war, and the Greeks were sick of being away from home. The first Greek to leap onto Trojan soil from the ships was Protesilaus. He also became the first to die as he was struck down by Hector, the son of King Priam, brother of Paris, and the lead soldier and hero of the Trojans. Protesilaus' wife Laodamia was so distraught with grief that Hermes brought Protesilaus back to life for a few hours. But when he had to return to the realm of Hades (the god of the underworld), his wife 6
Laodamia could not live with her grief and commits suicide. The first nine years of the war consisted of both war in Troy and war against the neighboring regions. The Greeks realized that Troy was being supplied by its neighboring kingdoms, so Greeks were sent to defeat these areas. Act III, Scene 2 The Quarrel Agamemnon s War tent Outside Troy Then in the tenth year, a dispute between Achilles and Agamemnon nearly threw the balance in favor of the Trojans. The Greeks had won a battle and were splitting up the booty (the stuff they had captured). Along with plenty of treasure, Achilles also claimed a woman named Briseis (brih-sayiss) to be his war-bride (a slave girl forced to marry a victorious warrior). Agamemnon took a woman named Chryseis (cry-say-iss), a daughter of Apollo's priest, as his war-bride. Chryseis father heard of her abduction and begged for her return, but Agamemnon refused to release her. Upon hearing about this, the god Apollo shot fiery arrows at the Greek Army, killing many Greeks. Then the prophet Calchas (KALL-chus) said that the only way to keep Apollo from killing more Greeks was to return Chryseis. Achilles wanted to keep Apollo happy, so he pressured Agamemnon to return her. At this point, Agamemnon agreed, but not before taking Achilles' war-bride, Briseis. Agamemnon claimed that his powerful position as king of Mycenae and commander-in-chief of the Greek army gave him the right to do whatever he wanted. Achilles was not pleased. When Briseis was taken by Agamemnon, Achilles was so angry at this insult that he refused to fight for the Greeks anymore and just sat in his tent and sulked. Without their best fighter, Achilles, the Greeks started losing battles. Act III, Scene 3 Achilles Returns / Death of Hector Trojan War Battlefield Outside Troy Finally Achilles' best friend (and perhaps cousin) Patroclus thought of an idea. Because Achilles refused to fight, causing the Greeks to have very low morale, Patroclus put on Achilles' famous armor and went out to fight, pretending to be Having Achilles back boosted the confidence of the Greek army, while completely depressing the Trojans. The Greeks won a big victory. Unfortunately, however, despite wearing the powerful armor of Achilles, Hector killed Patroclus during the battle. When Achilles heard that Patroclus was dead, he was ashamed of himself for abandoning his fellow soldiers and wanted to avenge Patroclus death. So, Achilles went to Hephaestus (the blacksmith god) to get new armor, and then he rejoined the battle. Now the Greeks really started to win. In an attempt to turn the tide, Hector (the hero of the Trojan army), decided to take on Achilles himself. Achilles and Hector fought a climactic battle. Aided by his new armor, Achilles defeated the mighty Hector. To avenge the death of Patroclus, Achilles dismembered Hector s body as a sign of disrespect. Homer s Iliad ends as Achilles returns the mangled body of Hector to King Priam of Troy, Hector s father. Achilles bandaging the wounded Patroclus Act III, Scene 4 Death of Achilles Trojan War Battlefield Outside Troy Now that he had killed Hector, Achilles knew that his own death was near because of a prophecy. Although Achilles was nearly invincible, he did have one weakness. When he was born, Achilles was dipped into the River Styx by his mother, the goddess Thetis, making him nearly invincible. Achilles was vulnerable only in one place, his heel, because when Thetis dipped him into the river, she held him by his heel and forgot to wet it in the Styx, leaving it vulnerable. Paris, wanting to avenge the death of his brother Hector, shot an arrow at The god Apollo, who still held a grudge against Agamemnon for taking Chryseis as his war-bride and for Achilles desecration of one of Apollo s temples, guided the arrow shot by Paris into the heel of Achilles, killing him. It is said that Achilles caused his own death because of his hubris (overconfidence and self-love). After the death of Achilles, both Odysseus and Ajax (a mighty Greek warrior) wanted the armor of The Greeks decided that Odysseus would receive the armor, causing Ajax to go mad and kill a flock of sheep. As he regained 7
his sanity, he realized what he had done and he killed himself. Act III, Scene 5 Ending the War Trojan War Battlefield Outside Troy Helenus, a prophet, had been captured by Helenus told the Greeks that Troy would not fall unless: a) Pyrrhus, Achilles' son, fought in the war, b) The bow and arrows of Hercules were used by the Greeks against the Trojans, c) The remains of Pelops, a famous hero, were brought to Troy, and d) The Palladium, a statue of Athena, was stolen from Troy. The remains of Pelops were obtained, and Odysseus sneaked though the Trojan defenses to steal the Palladium. Phoenix persuaded Pyrrhus, son of Achilles, to join the war. Philoctetes had the bow and arrows of Hercules, but had been left by the Greek fleet at Lemnos because of his smelly snake bite wound. When Philoctetes was rescued from Lemnos, he was bitter at having been abandoned, but was finally persuaded to rejoin the Greeks. He killed Paris with Hercules' arrows. offering to Athena, was safe, and would bring luck to the Trojans. Only two people, Laocoön and Cassandra, spoke out against the horse, but they were ignored. Laocoön tried to remind the Trojans of the treachery and deceit of the Greeks. As he finished his speech, two serpents crushed Laocoön to death. The Trojans thought this was a sign from the gods and quickly dragged the horse into the city. The Trojans, thinking they The Trojan Horse had won, partied through the night. That night, after most of Troy was asleep in a drunken stupor, Sinon released the Greeks within the horse and they let in the soldiers who had just sailed back. The Greeks ransacked Troy. By the time the Trojans were awake, Troy was already burning. The Greek army slaughtered the Trojans. By morning, Troy, once the proudest city in Asia, was in ruins. King Priam was killed as he huddled by Zeus' altar and Cassandra, the sister of Paris and Hector, was pulled from the statue of Athena and killed. The Greeks had finally won. Act III, Scene 6 The Trojan Horse City Gates of Troy The economy of Troy was virtually destroyed, but in order to defeat the city of Troy itself, the Greeks had to get into the city. Odysseus (some say with the aid of the goddess Athena) thought of a plan to make a hollow horse with soldiers inside. The rest of the Greeks were to sail behind the nearest island, making it appear like they had given up. Only one Greek, Sinon, would remain behind to tell the Trojans that the horse was an offering to Athena and it needed to be inside the walls of Troy. The artist Epeius designed and built the horse, and a number of the Greek warriors, along with Odysseus, climbed inside. The rest of the Greek fleet sailed away, according to plan, so as to deceive the Trojans. When the Trojans came to marvel at the huge creation, Sinon pretended to be angry with the Greeks, stating that they had deserted him. He assured the Trojans that the wooden horse was an The Aeneid, Book II, lines 254-267 et iam Argiua phalanx instructis nauibus ibat a Tenedo tacitae per amica silentia lunae litora nota petens, flammas cum regia puppis extulerat, fatisque deum defensus iniquis inclusos utero Danaos et pinea furtim laxat claustra Sinon. illos patefactus ad auras reddit equus laetique cauo se robore promunt inuadunt urbem somno uinoque sepultam; caeduntur uigiles, portisque patentibus omnis accipiunt socios atque agmina conscia iungunt. And now the Greek phalanx of battle-ready ships sailed from Tenedos, in the benign stillness of the silent moon, seeking the known shore, when the royal galley raised a torch, and Sinon, protected by the gods unjust doom, sets free the Greeks imprisoned by planks of pine, in the horses belly. Opened, it releases them to the air, and sliding down a lowered rope, They invade the city that s drowned in sleep and wine, kill the watchmen, welcome their comrades at the open gates, and link their clandestine ranks. After the War After the war, Polyxena, daughter of Priam and sister of Paris and Hector, was sacrificed at the tomb of Astyanax, son of Hector, was also sacrificed, signifying 8
the end of the war. Menelaus, who had been determined to kill Helen for leaving him, was so taken by Helen's beauty and seductiveness that he allowed her to live. The surviving Trojan women were divided among the Greek men as war-brides along with the other plunder. The Greeks then set sail for home, which, for some, proved as difficult and took as much time as the Trojan War. Aeneas Even after he got home, he had more trouble. He found that his house had been taken over by suitors who wanted to marry his wife, Penelope, thinking that Odysseus must be dead because he had been away so long. But with the help of his son Telemachus (tell-emah-cuss), Odysseus killed all the suitors and the slaves who had helped them, and finally went back to ruling the kingdom of Ithaca with his wife Penelope. Aeneas, a Trojan prince, managed to escape the destruction of Troy, and Virgil's Aeneid tells of his journey from Troy. Agamemnon Agamemnon is the first of a cycle of three plays written by the Greek playwright Aeschylus. When the play begins, King Agamemnon (brother of Menelaus and commanderin-chief of the Greek army) was still away at the Trojan War. His wife Clytemnestra and his young children, Orestes (a boy) and Electra (a girl) were at home in Mycenae. But Clytemnestra became very angry at Agamemnon for sacrificing their daughter Iphigenia. She became lovers with Agamemnon's cousin Aegisthus, and allowed Aegisthus to rule the kingdom while Agamemnon was away, instead of keeping it safe for her husband. When Agamemnon returned home, he acted very arrogantly. He refused to pay the gods the respect that they deserved for his victory. For instance, he walked on a red carpet to the door of his house, even though this should have been sacred to the gods. This is hubris, and the gods punished him for it. As soon as Agamemnon entered his house, Clytemnestra and her lover Aegisthus murdered him. Odysseus The Return of Agamemnon The Odyssey was written down by the Greek poet Homer and is the story of King Odysseus' return home from the Trojan War to his kingdom of Ithaca, a small island on the western side of Greece. Odysseus had a lot of trouble getting home, because the gods were angry at him and he did not respect their power. First he sailed from Troy with many ships, filled with the men from Ithaca who had followed him to war and all of the plunder they had taken from Troy. But he ran into trouble with the one-eyed Cyclops on the first island he stopped at on the way home, and continued to have trouble, especially with the god Poseidon, the rest of the way. Finally the goddess Athena helped him to get home. 9