#priam ithaca

[caincorner]

my baby girl who deserves to be assassinated

#oc #priam ithaca #caincornerart

[katerinaaqu]

Continuing from Part 2

Guilt (P3 + Footnotes)

"Odysseus" Meriones approached him, "Are you alright?"

Odysseus winced in pain. He hadn't realized he had clenched his fist so hard that it hurt him. He unclenched it.

"Yes..." he whispered, "Yes, I'm fine..."

Odysseus moaned. That baby...the look at that infant's face...Astyanax was gone...he had given his place to Telemachus. Priam's slain face was Laërtes...mourning Andromache was his wife... He grasped his head with both hands.

"Damn you Neoptolemus! Damn you Helen for starting it! Damn you Menelaus for dragging me into this... Damn you Palamedes! Damn you all! Why should I have taken this blood upon me?! Why did it have to be me?!"

He sighed.

"Polites...I want to be alone for a little while..."

"Do you think that is wise...?" Polites asked with hidden meaning.

"Wise!" Odysseus voiced like an echo, "No, perhaps not but I got tired of being wise for now..."

Polites sighed.

"At least add some water to your wine...please Odysseus"

Odysseus dismissed him with a move of his hand. He wasn't much in the mood for anything at that moment. He knew war wouldn't be pleasant but these events of just one night were taking the cake. He was exhausted; sleepless for two nights and a full day and right now the Sacker of Cities, the Man of Many Ways was terrified. He collapsed again and his tears overflowed from his eyes, wetting the table below. He grasped his wet hair with his fingers as if he was ready to uproot them.

"Gods! Please Athena, please, I beg of you...if you love me...p-protect my son! Let the miasma fall on me! Not him! I-I...I just wanted to g-go home! I just wanted to see them again...my Penelope...my Telemachus...! I-I never meant for this to happen! P-Please...! I beg of you if you love me...p-protect my son! Don't let the gods' wrath fall upon their heads! P-Please...! F-Forgive me! I...I just...I just wanted to go home!"

He couldn't decide what to pray for first... Words cascaded out of his mouth without any coherent way or syntax. He only prayed desperately, wetting with his tears the table. Sun was already setting and Troy was taken...but at what cost...

*

Menelaus and Agamemnon entered Odysseus's hut one after the other.

"I gotta give it to you, Odysseus!" Agamemnon said, "You WERE telling the truth when you said you could take Troy in one night!"

Odysseus was collapsed upon his chair, looking at them with an unreadable expression to his face. The jug was resting empty somewhere after the feet of his seat.

"Hm..." he hummed, "That's me. I am the trickster, remember? I lie, I scheme and I trick. That is what I do"

Agamemnon raised a brow.

"Are you drunk?!" He asked in disbelief

"One more shame to add to the events of this night..." Odysseus replied bitterly.

"Shame? I do not understand. We finally sacked the city. You can finally go home."

"Home..." Odysseus whispered, "I wonder...what shall I say to Penelope when she asks? Or Telemachus? If he asks 'father what did you do and you were away?', 'I was at war, my son', 'did you fight honorably and sack many cities?'... What shall I say for what we've done...?"

"I do not understand you Odysseus. It was your idea"

"Yeah somehow I do not doubt it..." Odysseus mumbled bitterly, "I was wrong, Agamemnon. This was not what I imagined...what I planned..."

He sighed shifting his position a bit to his chair.

"Priam is dead, you know that..."

"Yeah, like we expected to-..."

"On the altar. On the freaking altar, Agamemnon..."

"Yeah I heard..."

"Imagine that happening to any of us...in our homelands. If one cannot respect the holy laws then what?"

He played a bit with his empty cup.

"Priam murdered on the altar...Cassandra raped mercilessly and now Ajax looks for shelter to the very same altar he dragged her out of, to avoid being stoned to death..." the king of Ithaca rubbed the bridge of his nose, "...death...death and fire everywhere..."

"Odysseus..." spoke Menelaus, "I understand that you are grieving, it was not easy or pleasant but..."

"The boy...he was the same age as my son! Thrown off the wall..."

"Odysseus" Agamemnon spoke again, "I honestly don't understand you. Others would fly from joy with your glory. You had a good plan and it worked. Thanks to you we can all go home."

Odysseus's eyes became bottomless. Even Agamemnon had to lower his gaze against it.

"The blasphemy put us under the anger of gods, Agamemnon. Remember that. Listen..."

Agamemnon seemed like indeed trying to listen something.

"The Trojans are not the only ones mourning. We lost many good men too. We lost Achilles. Or have you forgotten?"

Agamemnon sighed deeply.

"His loss...was tragic indeed" he finally said, "we had our differences but his loss was a great price..."

"Quite so..." Odysseus whispered, "was it really worth it? The price we had to pay to sack Troy?"

He shifted his weight to his chair lethargically. He rubbed his forehead with his free hand for a second. The dizziness bad settled for real in his brain. He leaned his head back again, earning a small cracking sound from his neck.

"And since we are at it, I have a question for you, Agamemnon, son of Atreus, the first among the Greeks... What did the Trojans REALLY do to us to deserve such an end?"

"You're drunk! You don't know what you're talking about!"

Odysseus snorted humorlessly.

"Oh, I am drunk, alright. But I know exactly what I am talking about. And you do too. They took Helen, sure, or at least one of them did. But their real crime against us was that they protected their lands...from us. That's what we would have done as well..."

Agamemnon was ready to speak again but Menelaus stopped him.

"Brother, that's enough"

He then turned ti Odysseus sympathetically.

"Look, Odysseus, I understand that it hurts and I am sorry too that I put you through that indirectly, but please do not melt away. No matter what the actions of others was not your choice."

Odysseus said nothing. He only sighed.

"Will you join us at the games later? You are the hero of the day. Your presence is asked for."

Odysseus scoffed.

"Oh I will be there, alright. I never miss a good party!"

Menelaus smiled sadly.

"Thank you, Odysseus...for everything. I really mean it... I will see you later, when you sober up a little..."

He looked at his friend and added;

"And...we shall mention none...of this" he pointed at him indicating his condition.

Odysseus soullessly nodded as if wanting to attempt some humor.

"Thanks...I appreciate it"

Agamemnon was ready to say something but apparently he decided against it. He only sighed and turned to leave before finally asking;

"Will you come to take a pick from the spoils? You deserve it given it was thanks to you we got in"

The tired king made a dismissive move with his hand.

"No. I'm fine with whatever. Just include me to the next lottery" he replied indifferently

"Are you sure? You deserve a better share"

Odysseus smiled humorlessly.

"Last time I chose and defended my choice, we lost Aias the Telamonian. I think we lost enough for one decade, don't you think?"

It was a failure of attempt for humor and he knew it but Agamemnon only sighed.

"Suit yourself" he said defeated, heading for the exit

Menelaus was about to do the same but apparently something made him stop and turn around.

"Odysseus?"

"Hm?"

"Thank you...truly... You gave me back my honor

Odysseus snorted again.

"With the cost of mine..." he whispered bitterly, "Not that anyone ever thought I had any..."

The king of Sparta, though, shook his head negatively.

"To me you will always be the greatest of all Greeks"

The man who endured all torments looked up and for the first tike a small smile rose to his dry lips. That word of kindness was what he needed for his tormented heart to feel some sort of hope. At least there was finally one who neither blamed him nor glorified him. Menelaus saw his torment and responded. That was enough.

"Thank you..." he whispered

Menelaus nodded his head in return.

"Now rest, my friend. We have a long way before us...we are going home..."

Home...the tormented king of Ithaca thought. Yes, finally they could go home. After 10 endless years they could finally embrace their families. Just few more months of journey and Odysseus could finally go home... All he had to do was to learn to live with what he did... He watched both the kings through his cloudy vision, getting out of his tent and Polites coming back in.

"I am sorry, Odysseus! I couldn't stop them!"

Odysseus dismissed him with a hand gesture once more.

"Don't sweat it, Polites. Stopping a king seems impossible. Gods help us with two!"

Polites smiled softly. At least he would gain some of his humor back, he thought.

"Help me get to my bed, Polites..." sighed Odysseus hoarsely, "I need to rest... I am very tired..."

~~~~

Oh gosh what have I done?! Hehehehe well not sorry...not really! 😆 I hope you enjoyed this ride.

As you see I tried incorporating some of the Epic Cycle to the situation but I did tamper around with the timeliness. The Epic Cycle is a lovely mess anyways and holds many contradictions with the homeric poems but it includes many things.

Now the fragmentary poem Iliou Persis is sven mentioned how Odysseus throws Astyanax off the walls but most sources have Neoptolemus donit and I do agree with those more. Now in Trojan Women by Eurypedes the messenger Talthybius tells Andromache that Odysseus schemed so that her son would be thrown off the walls and that he persuaded the Greeks they couldn't raise the baby. Odysseus doesn't strike much as a baby killer in Odyssey or even the Iliad although he is known for being cruel in his punishments (see the excecution of the 50 conspiring slave girls) but nowhere jn Odyssey does Odysseus refer to that fact even if he does speak of his regrets for other actions of his and if he HAD thrown Astyanax off the walls himself I doubt he wouldn't have made any reference to it so I believe that Iliou Persis should he treated like Telegony when it comes to the homeric poems; a bit contradictory to the homeric epics (unless there is some lost fragment that tells us how Odysseus went on a rampage he could not remember lol 😆 ) so I made a mixture of all the above to show how Odysseus "killed" Astyanax or subconsciously persuaded the Greeks to do it and I added the role of Talthybius here too.

Iliou Persis seems to also be the most violent form when it comes to the Greek side such as that they offer Priam's daughter Polyxene to Achilles's tomb as a sacrifice, thus causing the rage of Athena (I swear the thing was written by a Trojan lol 😆) Eurypedes mentions how Polyxene was offered as slave to Achilles symbolically so she should serve his tomb. I also added the detail of Odysseus trying to persuade Neoptolemus to choose her as his price to speak Andromache but his attempts are a failure.

Drunkenness was severely discouraged in ancient geeece thus the concern in Polites's words when Odysseus uses it as a coping mechanism for the traumatic events of the night. Moreover the Greeks always mixed their wine with water (thus having the modern name for wine in Greek κρασί which comes from the verb in ancient greek which means "to mix") the wine that was not watered was called άκρατον and it was qlmost never consumed unless dipped in bread. The analogy between wine and water depended.

In this story I depict Neoptolemus as somehow a nemesis to Odysseus. Similar to what Agamemnon or Hector were for Achilles. I have no idea why but the idea stuck with me especially since the two are the two candidates for the murder of Astyanax. Somehow I imagined them again as the polar opposites thus the two of them having tension.

Odysseus mentions Thersites who was beaten really badly by him in the Iliad. In other sources it is mentioned that Odysseus has him stoned to death after Theraites attempts treason. In this story Thersites was already dead.

I know that for Palamedes the most famous version of his end comes from Hygenius who writes how Odysseus frames him for treason. However Pausanias mentions from the Epic Cycle that Palamedes drowned at a fishing expedition and that "he believes the murderers were Odysseus and Diomedes". 🤔 somehow I wanted to use a lesser known version plus give a bit room to doubt for instance did Palamedes really fell by accident and Odysseus is guilty for not helping? Or perhaps Odysseus pushed him? Maybe he held him under? Dunno. Leave it to your imagination. I know is not so spicy as the framing story but bare with me hehehe

Talthybius here simply hears "it was Odysseus who planned it" thus sending that information yo Andromache without the rest of the details..

Astyanax uttering a word was totally random. If he were an infant a few months old or almost a year old in Iliad that means he would be around 1 to 1.5 years old when Troy fell so I thought it would be more impactful if the poor baby uttered a word before his end.

The interaction with Andromache was placed there for the dramatics and the impact. When Andromache screams "MY BOY!" I was inspired by the series "The Tudors" when Anne Boleyn laments her final miscarriage (by the way I think Natalie Dormer would make an amazing Andromache!)

The story with Palamedes was also added to make the connection between two mothers and their impact to Odysseus. Plus I thought it would make more sense if Odysseus was furious not only for being embarrassed or that he has to go to war but because Palamedes put his son in danger. (Of course Penelope would be part of that scheme!)

Odysseus refusing to participate at the choice of spoils was just a random detail but as a general rule from Eurypedes it seems that he eats the old Ekavi (Hecuba) as his slave (probably she would be to serve Penelope( so I imagined Odysseus wouldn't want to choose but getting whatever would be lucky for him to further implicate that he wouldn't want anything further to do with the war. He also mentions the incident when Telamonian Aias (aka the great Ajax) went mad when Odysseus won Achilles's armor from him and then he killed himself in shame.

I also wanted to portray the friendship between Menelaus and Odysseus which seems to be really strong since Menelaus always talks with the warmest words for Odysseus.

For further questions and analysis please ask me to the comment section or reblog etc!

I wanna also tag some of my best friends commenters rebloggers etc! Thank you guys! Sorry if I forget anyone!

@loco-bird @aaronofithaca05 @tunguszka20 @doob-or-something @jarondont @prompted-wordsmith @simugeuge @fangirlofallthefanthings

#greek mythology #odysseus #the odyssey #the iliad #greek myth #odyssey #the odyssey 1997 #polytalas the one who suffers too much #polytalas #post iliad technically? #iliad fanfic #iliad fanfiction #sacking of troy #massacre of troy #odysseus was severely traumatized #trauma #odysseus of ithaca #polites #agamemnon #menelaus #tagamemnon #homeric poems inspirations #homeric poems #homeric epics #homer #odysseus and penelope #epic

[incorrecthomer]

my tags

#incorrect iliad

#incorrect odyssey

#incorrect oresteia

#ithaca royals - Odysseus, Penelope + Telemachus

#mycenaean royals - Agamemnon, Clytemnestra + their children

#spartan royals - Helen, Menelaus + Hermione

#troyan royals - Priam + his children + Hecuba

#atreides bros - Agamemnon + Menelaus

#princesses of sparta - Helen, Clytemnestra + Penelope

#odysseuss dudes - Odysseus` crew

#achilles gang - Achilles, Patroclus, Briseis, Antilochus, Ajax + Teucer

#odysseus x penelope

#agamemnon x clytemnestra

#clytemnestra x aegisthus

#helen x menelaus

#helen x paris

#apollo x cassandra

#achilles x patroclus

#achilles&agamemnon

#odysseus&diomedes

#odysseus&ajax

#odysseus&poseidon

#incorrecthomer - not quotes

[death-before-ilion]

Chronological framework of the Second Trojan War (1193-1184)

A rough chronology of the Second Trojan War, including events leading to it. This will be fleshed out as I develop the biographies of the main characters. Comments & criticism are welcome.

1215 | MARRIAGE OF PELEUS & THETIS on the slopes of Mount Pelion. Eris throws the apple of discord at their wedding feast and the goddesses quarrel for the prize of being the fairest. Zeus takes the apple and declares that the matter shall be settled later.

1214 | OATH OF TYNDAREUS in Sparta. Tyndareus announces it is time for his daughter Helen to marry. Many suitors show up. Tyndareus makes them swear an oath to assist Helen's chosen husband in time of need. Menelaus is chosen and marries Helen.

1209 | JUDGMENT OF PARIS on the slopes of Mount Ida. Zeus, impressed by Paris's fairness, sends him Hera, Athena and Aphrodite, for him to judge which is the fairest. Paris chooses Aphrodite, thus gaining the promise of the love of Helen.

1204 | PARIS ABDUCTS HELEN. Paris and Aeneas, with a contingent of men, visit Sparta. Menelaus welcomes him but must leave for Crete for his grandfather King Catreus's funeral. Helen is smitten with love and leaves with Paris, taking her treasury with her. They detour south of Crete, and go to Cyprus and Phoenicia. Menelaus invokes the oath of Tyndareus and summons his allies. Calchas predicts a war with Troy and that Achilles will be needed to win it. Thetis fears for her son's life and hides him in Scyros.

1200 | FIRST GATHERING OF THE FLEETS in Aulis. Calchas predicts the war against Troy will last ten years. EXPEDITION TO MYSIA. Thersander, king of Thebes, is slain. Telephus is wounded by Achilles. The Greek fleet is dispersed by a storm. Many ships are lost and the Greeks take time to recover.

1193 | SECOND GATHERING OF THE FLEETS in Aulis. Achilles heals Telephus, who reveals the way to Troy. Sacrifice of Iphigenia. Philoctetes is left in Lemnos. Achilles slays Tenes. Failed diplomacy attempt by Menelaus & Odysseus. Protesilaus is slain by Hector. THE WAR BEGINS. Cycnus is slain by Achilles.

1193-1185 | The Greeks, especially Achilles and Ajax the greater, carry out multiple campaigns around Troy to cut Troy off from supplies and allies. Many cities are sacked in both Thrace and Asia Minor. During that time, the Greek beachhead near Troy is fortified but never fully manned. Ajax the greater manages to secure and exploit farmland on the Thracian peninsula for the benefit of the Greeks.

1191 | Achilles ambushes and kills Troilus, young son of Priam, because of a prophecy saying that if he reached the age of 20, Troy would never fall.

1190 | Death of Palamedes. His father Nauplius, denied justice, encourages the Greek wives to be unfaithful.

1188 | A small earthquake hits Troy, killing Paris's sons.

1187 | Ajax the greater and Achilles play a game of petteia on the battlefield, saved in extremis by Athena.

1186 | Lack of supplies and mutiny among the Greeks. Intervention of the Wine Growers.

1185 | THE WRATH OF ACHILLES. Deaths of Patroclus and Hector. Intervention of the Amazons.

1184 | Intervention of the Ethiopians. Death of Achilles. The Trojan horse and the FALL OF TROY. Athena is angered against the Greeks.

1184-1175 | THE RETURNS. Many Greek commanders suffer tragedy and turmoil during their return from Troy.

1177 | Aeneas reaches Carthage.

1175 | Odysseus reaches his home in Ithaca at last, ending the longest of the returns.

#classical mythology #greek mythology #ancient greece #greek gods #greek heroes #mythology #trojan war #chronology #paris #achilles #ajax #helen

[johaerys-writes]

Do you know the approximate ages of all the main characters in The Iliad?

Hi anon! I haven't looked into this topic before tbh, and I feel like researching it thoroughly will take up a lot of time, so these are just off the top of my head!

Achilles was a teenager when Agamemnon called the men of Hellas to sail to Troy. By the time of the Iliad, he must be in his late 20s.

Patroclus is described as being slightly older, and therefore wiser, than Achilles and is sent to Troy to counsel him. So he must be in his early 30s in the Iliad.

Ajax is Achilles' cousin, and is said to have been trained by Chiron too. But I'm not sure if they trained at the same time? Telamon, Ajax's father, is the elder brother of Peleus, so if we assume that both these men had their kids at about the same age, then Ajax would be at least a few years older than Achilles. Maybe Ajax was sent to Chiron first, and then Achilles followed. I'm really not sure haha. But I would say he must be about mid to late 30s.

The sacrifice of Iphigenia is one of those myths that not everyone accepts as part of the Iliad, but I am one of those that believe that it should be read into the greater myth of the Iliad and the Epic Cycle (for various reasons that I will not go into now lol). Agamemnon and Clytemnestra had four kids, and Iphigenia was the oldest, who at the start of the Trojan war was at marrying age (let's say about 15). That means that Agamemnon must have been at the very least in his mid 30s when the war started (although men generally married older than the women). So in the Iliad he should be at least mid to late 40s.

Menelaus is Agamemnon's younger brother, so.... let's say he's late 30s, early 40s when the Iliad starts? Give or take?? My impression is that he's a quite a bit younger than Agamemnon but I don't remember a specific passage about it right now.

Odysseus left Ithaca after Penelope had just had Telemachus, so that would have been in the first or second year of their marriage. He must have been at least in his 20s when that happened, let's say mid to late twenties. He must be mid to late 30s in the Iliad.

Nestor is described as having seen two generations of men, and that he's still ruling as king in the third age, so I would assume he's FUCK old lmao. Probably 70s-80s in the Iliad, I would say.

Hector is Priam's oldest son by Hecuba, and he has 19 siblings by the same mother. The youngest son, Polydorus, is old enough to meet Achilles on the battlefield in the Iliad. I'm not sure in which order the children were born, but if we assume that Hector has at least a 10 year age difference with Polydorus, and that Polydorus is at least 15 in the Iliad, then we're already looking at a man who is in his mid to late 20s at the very least. But he's most definitely much older than that, because...

Helen's daughter, Hermione, is quite young when Helen leaves with Paris, but I'm not sure how old exactly. What we do know is that Helen spends 10 years in Troy before the Achaeans arrive, and then there's 10 more years of the war, so at the time of the Iliad she must be... late 30s? At least? And Paris is probably around the same age as her. And if Paris is in his late 30s, and he's Hector's younger brother, then Hector is even older than him. Which means that Hector is probably in his early 40s.

Priam has a ton of children, and he is generally described in the Iliad as a kindly and mild-mannered old man, so I would place him about Nestor's age. Virgil in his Aeneid has Priam be in his 80s when Troy is sacked, and I think that estimation is correct.

I think these are the main characters?? Don't think I've missed anyone lol. As I said, these are off the top of my head so if anyone has any corrections or additions they're welcome to add them <3

#the iliad #homer's iliad #we really go into fucky territory with some of these i think #many contradictory accounts over Hecuba and how many children/sons she had #i also didn't mention andromache and briseis bc there's not much to suggest their ages i don't think? other than them being quite young #i would say mid to late twenties in the iliad #given that andromache's only child is a baby and i thiiiiink briseis had been freshly married when the achaeans sacked lyrnessus? #anywho feel free to correct me if i'm wrong! #tagamemnon

[deathlessathanasia]

"Within this theoretical framework, I focus on Athena and Hermes in the imaginative world of early Greek poetry and myth. Given that these two Olympians have no apparent similarities in character or realms of interest and function, nevertheless in Homer and the mythic tradition they display an unexpected degree of overlap. Here are some striking points of similarity.

1) In the Olympian Council that opens the Odyssey, Zeus decides to send Athena to Ithaca and Hermes to Ogygia in exactly parallel roles to stir father and son into action.

2) Both Athena and Hermes speed to these missions with winged sandals as their characteristic attribute”.

3) Both have the power to bestow invisibility on their favorites or to use invisibility strategically’. Thus there is a close parallel between Athena’s covering Odysseus with a mist of invisibility to guide him safely to Alkinoos and Arete in Odyssey 7, and Hermes’ making Priam invisible to guide him safely to Achilles in Iliad 24.

4) In Odyssey 10, a section of the narrative where Athena has dropped out of her role as Odysseus’ divine helper‘, Hermes intervenes in what is normally Athena's role to give the hero protection against Kirke’s powers”.

To these instances from early epic we may add an example from a myth that is clearly very old: In the hero Perseus’ quest against the Gorgon, Athena and Hermes join forces as a pair of divine helpers, and are in a sense redundant‘. …

The first implication of these parallels is that some of the powers of Athena and Hermes are alternate and related versions of the same quality. For example, each god embodies the kind of clever intelligence or μῆτις that manifests itself in the clever ruse and the winning strategy. For Hermes this quality leans toward the ‘night-time’ realm of stealth and theft, cunning deception, and successful guidance to the underworld"”. while for Athena it leans toward the ‘day-time’ realm of good judgement, quick thinking, and successful guidance on the battlefield. While pulling in opposite directions, the two gods’ interests share a common center. Consider the qualities singled out for praise in Athena’s statement to Odysseus at Od. 13. 330 ff.: I can never abandon you, she says, for all your unfortunate state, because "you are so clever at speech, strong-minded, and intelligent", οὕνεκ᾽ ἐπητής ἐσσι Kal ἀγχίνοος καὶ ἐχέφρων.

These qualities come close to the very ones that distinguished Odysseus’ grandfather Autolykos as described at Od. 19. 395-398, 407-409; a man who used sharp practice (κλεπτοσύνη) and clever use of speech to gain advantage over everyone he met, so as to make himself strongly disliked by human society but a favorite of the god Hermes. It was Hermes who granted Autolykos these sharp qualities of mind (θεὸς δέ οἱ αὑτὸς ἔδωκεν ‘Eppeias) and who stood by him as his divine patron (ὁ δέ οἱ πρόφρων ἅμ᾽ ὀπήδει}, Thus each deity, Athena and Hermes, has followed and fostered the career of a favourite mortal who was an ideal embodiment of the qualities essential to that deity, and the mortals happen to be grandfather and grandson. They share a strong family resemblance in mental acuity, but the grandfather leans toward the negative and is therefore "hated by many" (πολλοῖσιν. ὀδυσσάμενος, 19. 407), while the grandson leans toward the positive, a greatly admired Achaean hero whose ‘shadow’ side, and the ‘odium’ it provokes, remain largely hidden, but frequently hinted at and hauntingly emblematic in the very name he bears (τῷ δ᾽ Ὀδυσεὺς ὄνομ᾽ ἔστω ἐπώνυμον) "ἢ Thus we have another parallel between Athena and Hermes to add to the five listed above: both are patrons of one member of the grandfather-grandson pair Autolykos-Odysseus, their patronage based on a shared interest in metis, the cunning use of intelligence. Yet we might say that much like Hesiod’s distinction between good eris and bad eris, these deities embody an intriguing distinction between good and bad metis: the first is the metis of successful campaigners, while the second is the metis of swindlers, equivalent to dolos."

- J. Russo, Athena and Hermes in Early Greek Poetry: Doubling and Complementarity, in Poesia e religione in Grecia. Studi in onore di G. Aurelio Privitera

#hermes #athena #athene #mētis #metis #quotes #excerpts

[thrudgelmir2333]

Saint Seiya Lance's Role - Chapter 96 is out!

Betaread by EpicElly Title: Atlae's Inferno Link: Fanfiction.net Archive of our Own Wordcount: 37.5k Summary:

Sunk into the world of Talos, Atlae and Ithaca are told of the terrible cosmic imbalance that the armor has perceived in the incoming Holy War. The Cloth of Destruction claims Atlae must take over Ithaca's place and become the mightiest warrior on the planet, but after seeing the chaos that the armor has caused with its colossal strength, Atlae fears not just for the safety of Shamballah, but of Ithaca as well. Meanwhile, at the ruins of the Sea Dragon, the former Gold Saint of Sagittarius Priam confronts Serpens Azrael, in an attempt to rescue his underling Daese. Azrael, however, has good reason to want the two of them to suffer, and little to listen to Priam's pleas for compassion.

Preview:

#saint seiya #os cavaleiros do zodiaco #los caballeros del zodiaco #fanfic #gold saints #writers on tumblr #lost canvas

[g4lileogalilei]

Heinrich Schliemann

1822: He was born in Neubukow, the 6th of January.

1831: When his mother dies, Heinrich was sent to live with his uncle Friedrich.

1836: He left school and became a grocer's apprentice in Fürstenberg in the Holtz shop.

1844: he found work as a clerk and accountant for a local trading company, B. H. Schröder & Co in Amsterdam.

1846: Thanks to his knowledge of Russian, the company sent him as a commercial agent to St. Petersburg.

1850: He moves briefly to California, where he runs some mines and increases his wealth by lending money to adventurers looking for gold. He obtains US citizenship.

1852: He returns to St. Petersburg where he marries Ekaterina Petrovna Lyschin, establishes his own company linked to the indigo trade.

1868: He travels to Asia Minor to visit the sites mentioned in the Iliad.

1869: He publishes a book entitled Ithaka, der Peloponnes und Troja.

1871: Excavations begin on a mound within the Hissarlik site

1872: pottery and other important finds are found.

1873: The remains of a city of enormous importance, Homeric Troy, are found.

1873: An extraordinary discovery occurs: a golden treasure with more than 9,000 jewels, which Schliemann said was Priam's treasure.

1874: He publishes another book Trojanische Alterthümer.

1874: He moved to Mycenae where he began excavations in an area identified through the study of the writings of the geographer Pausanias

1875: He published the book Troja und seine Ruinen.

1876: He finds several tholos tombs with burials of notable importance: among these one contains a treasure even larger than that of Priam, where the famous funerary mask known as the Mask of Agamemnon stands out among the quantity of gold.

1878: He digs unsuccessfully at Ithaca.

1879: He find the agora of Mycenae.

1880: He undertakes the first excavation campaign at Orchomenos in Boeotia.

1882-93: He resumes the third excavation campaign at Hissarlik.

1884: He undertakes excavations in Tiryns, where the famous palace originates.

1888: He undertakes the fourth Hissarlik campaign.

1890: He died in Naples.

#studyblr #heinrich schliemann #agamemnon #trojan war #the illiad

[caincorner]

watch yourself

#oc #thalia flayer #priam ithaca #Experimenting with reducing the amount of tags I use cuz idc anymore #And just tagging their names #enjoy them #caincornerart

[higgity-heck]

why do you hate Heinrich Schliemann??

it’s 1868, and you’re a horrible businessman who thinks he’s an archaeologist. and for some reason, people in 2022 call you the ‘father of archaeology’

heinrich schliemann is FASCINATED by Greek mythology and the works of homer, and fancies himself enough of an expert to go gallivanting around the greek islands and to turkey in search of troy. frank calvert, local expert and archaeologist, shares with him that he believes hisarlik to be the most likely site for the historical troy. by 1870, Schliemann has excavated the site at hisarlik and claimed SOLE credit for the discovery, despite only digging there after being heavily persuaded by calvert.

by 1869, he’s been awarded a phd by the university of Rostock for his topographical analysis of Ithaca - the vast majority of which were simply translations of another authors work. we’re beginning to see a pattern here.

more taken by the homeric stories of treasures buried at troy than any historical investigation, Schliemann immediately sets to finding such prizes. he confidently misidentifies several riches with the self-assurance only a rich man in an unfamiliar field can muster, naming them the mask of agamemnon and Helen’s jewels. he writes that his wife sofia carried several of the treasures out of the dig site in her shawl, which was bullshit. he smuggled them out of turkey instead of handing them over to turkish officials, which he was later sued for. what fun.

(the inconsistency of his documentation of his findings are also a common theme, which in archaeology is a Big Fucking Deal. none of the items he claimed were king priams treasure were noted in his documentation. big red flag)

additionally, his lifelong obsession with the Iliad led to him attempting to identify the layer of the city itself. in this, he was about 1000 years too early, as his contemporaries easily identified. which would be fine, if we weren’t taking into account the actual troy that was a few layers above his misidentified one. so how did he go about his excavating?

HE BLEW UP TROY. WITH FUCKING DYNAMITE.

so in his highly subjective desire to uncover evidence of a homeric troy, not only did he steal priceless artefacts from a historical site, document his findings extremely sketchily and take the credit for another man’s groundbreaking discovery, he blew up what was most likely the actual, historical troy. in naming his discoveries as helen’s jewels and prisms treasure, he put his own spin on anything he found just to make it link into his theories about the Iliad. also, for the purpose of showboating when showing off to the public.

father of archaeology my ass.

#JUSTICE FOR FRANK CALVERT #archaeology #heinrich schliemann #history #mythology #greek mythology

[pandaemoniumpancakes]

[...] human nature, but different people are warmed at heart by different things

Archilochus, from ‘Fragment 25′ in Greek Iambic Poetry, trans. Douglas E. Gerber. 

   τις ἀνθρώπου φυή,/ ἀλλ᾿ ἄλλος ἄλλωι καρδίην ἰαίνεται

   ✼ ἰαίνεται, ἰαίνω, to heat, warm; to relax by warmth; (more frequently) to warm, cheer. 

                         ❧

   “You dogs, you thought that I should never again come home from the land of the Trojans, seeing that you wasted my house, and lay with the maidservants by force, and while I was still alive covertly courted my wife, having no fear of the gods, who hold broad heaven, or that any indignation of men would follow. Now over you one and all have the cords of destruction been made fast.

   So he spoke, and at his words pale fear seized them all, and each man gazed about to see how he might escape utter destruction; Eurymachus alone answered him and said:

  If you are indeed Odysseus of Ithaca, come home again, this that you say is just regarding all that the Achaeans have done—many deeds of wanton folly in the halls and many in the field. But he now lies dead who was to blame for everything, namely Antinous; for it was he who set on foot these deeds, not so much through desire or need of the marriage, but with another purpose, which the son of Cronus did not bring to pass for him, that in the land of well-ordered Ithaca he might be king, and might lie in wait for your son and kill him. But now he lies killed, as was his due, but spare the people that are your own; and we will hereafter go about the land and get you recompense for all that has been drunk and eaten in your halls, and will bring in requital, each man for himself, the worth of twenty oxen, and pay you back in bronze and gold until your heart is soothed [εἰς �� κε σὸν κῆρ ἰανθῇεἰς, “until thy heart be warmed”, trans. A. T. Murray]; but till then no one could blame you for being wrathful.” 

   (Homer, from Book XXII in Odyssey, lines 35-59, trans. A. T. Murray and George E. Dimock)

                         ❧

  αἶψα μάλ᾿ ἐς στρατὸν ἐλθὲ καὶ υἱέι σῷ ἐπίτειλον·/ σκύζεσθαί οἱ εἰπὲ θεούς, ἐμὲ δ᾿ ἔξοχα πάντων/ ἀθανάτων κεχολῶσθαι, ὅτι φρεσὶ μαινομένῃσιν/ Ἕκτορ᾿ ἔχει παρὰ νηυσὶ κορωνίσιν οὐδ᾿ ἀπέλυσεν,/ αἴ κέν πως ἐμέ τε δείσῃ ἀπό θ᾿ Ἕκτορα λύσῃ./ αὐτὰρ ἐγὼ Πριάμῳ μεγαλήτορι Ἶριν ἐφήσω/ λύσασθαι φίλον υἱόν, ἰόντ᾿ ἐπὶ νῆας Ἀχαιῶν,/ δῶρα δ᾿ Ἀχιλλῆι φερέμεν, τά κε θυμὸν ἰήνῃ.

   “Go quickly to the army and declare to your son my charge. Say to him that the gods are angered with him, and that I above all immortals am filled with wrath, because in the fury of his heart he holds Hector at the beaked ships and gave him not back, in the hope that he may be seized with fear of me and give Hector back. But I will send Iris to great-hearted Priam, to tell him to go to the ships of the Achaeans to ransom his dear son, and to bring gifts to Achilles that will warm his heart. [θυμὸν ἰήνῃ, “make glad his heart”, trans. A. T. Murray]” 

  (Homer, from Book XXIV in Iliad, lines 112-19, trans. A. T. Murray and William F. Wyatt)

   ✼ θυμὸν, θυμός, soul, as the seat of emotion, feeling, and thought; life, breath; will, temper, passion, disposition; from PIE *dʰuh₂mós, smoke, cognate with Proto-Slavic: *dỳmъ—θυμός, Ancient Greek concept of spiritedness (as in a spirited stallion or spirited debate), indicating a physical association with breath or blood, also used to express the human desire for recognition. 

                        ❧

   ✼ ἐλελεῦ, a cry of pain or lament, woe, alas; ἐλελελεῦ, war cry; ὀλολῡ́ζω, (esp. of women) to cry aloud to the gods in prayer or thanksgiving, either with jubilant voice or in lamentation; onomatopoeic reduplicated formation, with the same ending of ἰύζω, to shout, yell; similar formations, genetically cognate or of identical structure, are Latin ululō, to howl, Sanskrit उलूलि (ulūli), a howling, crying aloud, Lithuanian uluti, howl, all with u; beside these stands this verb, with dissimilation ο-υ or perhaps ablauting to ἐλελεῦ, woe, alas.

   “Similar to Giambattista Vico, Herder contrasts grammar with sound, and static form with living contents. The language of the first humans was natural and living, it was not an intellectual gift of God but has been produced by humans themselves [...]

   Insisting on the living character of language as a product of human life, Herder meets the same difficulties as Vico, finding himself confronted with a circular reflection. Vico had asked how man could find his language without knowing already what language is. The first humans could not have agreed on something (on words) which they did not yet know [Sc. N., Sec. 412]. Herder speaks of a ‘Kreisel’ (circle) implying that “without language the human being has no reason, and without reason no language. Without language and reason he is incapable of any divine instruction, and yet without divine instruction he has no reason and language...” [Abhandlung über den Ursprung der Sprache (On the Origin of Language): 121]. A conventional way out of this dilemma would be to postulate that language has been received directly from God, a path taken by Herder's opponent Sussmilch. However, for Herder there is an other solution, which appears in the form of a “divine economy,” a kind of Platonic idea showing man how to make the first step out of primitiveness. In the Ideen zur Philosophie der Geschichte der Menschheit Herder writes: “A divine economy has certainly ruled over the human species from it's first origin, and conducted him into his course the readiest way.” [from Outlines of a Philosophy of the History of Man: 230] However, the gift of God represents only a directive idea helping man to orientate his mind towards civilization; in their elaborated forms, language and culture should be considered as the works of humans and not as divine gifts: “But the more the human powers have been exercised, the less did they require his superior assistance, or the less were they susceptible of it.” [ibid.]    Herder is uncompromising in maintaining his theory of language as a “natural invention.” He looks for arguments within the conditions of the human mind aside from any ‘outside’ religious inspirations. ‘Besonnenheit’ which corresponds more or less exactly to the term ‘self-reflexivity’ used by contemporary philosophers, implies not only that the subject thinks, but also that it thinks that it thinks: “Certainly as I know that I think, yet know not my thinking faculty; as certainly do I see and feel that I live, though I know now what the vital principle is” [ibid.: 321–22]. Faculties like speaking and thinking could arise only from this self-referring rupture. It is the Besonnenheit which makes possible the logical impossibly of creating within one cultural act a cultural phenomenon like language. Language is not metaphysical or divine at all: “All our science of metaphysics is properly metaphysics, that is an abstracted systematic index of names following observations of experience. As a method, and an index, it may be very useful [...] but considered in itself, and according to the nature of things, it affords not a single perfect and essential idea, not a single intrinsic truth.” [ibid.: 421]” 

   (Thorsten Botz-Bornstein, from ‘'Art', Habitus, and Style in Herder, Humboldt, Hamann, and Vossler- Hermeneutics and Linguistics’)

#archilochus #homer #odyssey #iliad #thumos #herder #language

[teaandspite]

The Iliad Summarized, With Apologies to Don McLean

(To the tune of American Pie)

A long, long time ago I can still remember How my homeland used to make me smile And I knew if I could just try That I could raise my people high And maybe they’d be happy for a while But Helen’s capture made me shiver The messages that they’d deliver War lies on the doorstep I couldn’t take one more step I can’t remember if I cried When I heard about his stolen bride But I must go out with the tide I guess we will abide

So bye, bye my dear Ithacan isle, Hate to leave you but I need to Won’t be back for a while And the armies of Greece will fight and die by the pile But as for me, I’ll survive by my guile But me, I’ll survive by my guile

Will Troy fall for Paris’ love And do you believe the gods above If the seer tells you so? And do you believe that they control Each man and woman’s earthly role And can you teach me the best way to know Well I know that on Apollo’s whim Chryseis it’s said, belongs to him Agamemnon wants his dues Achilles just can’t refusevSo with Brieseis Agamemnon was stuck Left Achilles pining for a [CENSORED] But I knew we were out of luck I guess we will abide

I started saying bye, bye my dear Ithacan isle, Hate to leave you but I need to Won’t be back for a while And the armies of Greece will fight and die by the pilevBut as for me, I’ll survive by my guile But me, I’ll survive by my guile

Now for ten years, we’ve been on our own And Achilles sits alone to moan But that’s not how it ought to be When Patrokles fought at the gates of Troy In a suit he borrowed for the ploy And in his wrath he killed fifty-three Oh but while the Greek was looking down Apollo smote him ‘bout his crown The ships had all been burned The armor not returned And while the boats collapsed to smoke and sparks The walls of Troy our one landmark And we sang dirges in the dark The day Patrokles died.

We were saying bye, bye my dear Ithacan isle, Hate to leave you but I need to Won’t be back for a while And the armies of Greece will fight and die by the pile But as for me, I’ll survive by my guile

Helter skelter in a summer swelter Hector will find no place of shelter Three times round and falling fast He landed hard on the grass Achilles will not let this pass And Priam’s boy has found himself quite out-classed Now for nine days it dawned crystal clear Dragged Hector round the funeral bier His vengeance to enhance Poor man never had a chance Then Priam chose to take the field Achilles at last was made to yield Do you recall what was revealed? The day both armies cried

I was singing bye, bye my dear Ithacan isle, Hate to leave you but I need to Won’t be back for a while And the armies of Greece will fight and die by the pile But as for me, I’ll survive by my guile But me, I’ll survive by my guile

Oh and there we were all in one place A generation far from grace With no time left to start again So come on, Ajax be nimble, Ajax be quick Our leader’s dead from Apollo’s trick >‘Cause Paris was his ankle’s early end Oh, and as I saw the troops engage My hands were clenched in fists of rage The Trojan horse will rise

I met a seer who sang the blues And I asked her for some happy news But she just smiled and turned away I thought of sweet Ithaca’s shore Where I’d departed many years before Penelope, I swore I’ll be back that way And in the streets, the children screamed The lovers died and Cassandra dreamed But not a word was spoken The stone walls all were broken Left the three things I despise the most The sea, the war, the soldier’s ghost I took my crew back toward the coast I guess we will abide

I was singing bye, bye my dear Ithacan isle, Hate to leave you but I need to Won’t be back for a while And the armies of Greece will fight and die by the pile But as for me, I’ll survive by my guile But me, I’ll survive by my guile

#essay tag #song parody #the illiad #american pie #odysseus #greek mythology #filk music #don mclean #odyssey #I wrote this in 2013 for a college assignment #some things never change #I can't sing so there's no audio version

[littlemissblogger]

‘Battle of Troy’ Based on Troy (2004) movie

Troy is an ancient city situated on the northeast coast of Turkey. The Trojan war is a famous war, held between Troy and Sparta in Greek mythology. Homer was an author who had written one of the greatest epic poem in history named ‘Iliad’. The Trojan war was fully described in the ‘Iliad’. A brief history of Trojan war according to Troy movie (2004) is described below:

Troy was a peaceful country. Priam was the king of Troy who was very benevolent. Priam had two notable sons and they were- Hector and Paris. Hector was the greatest warrior in the Trojan army. He was a great leader, son and father. Paris was very attractive and lovable. But he wasn’t as much responsible as his elder brother Hector. On the other hand, Sparta was another ancient city in Greece. Sparta was an imoportant site in Mycenae. Mycenaean period was the most powerful period then. Menelaus was the Spartan king. Menelaus’s elder brother Agamemnon was the king of Mycenae. Agamemnon was a powerful warrior but not a good person. Menelaus was mostly a follower of his elder brother but was not as victorious as his brother. Menelaus was married to Helen, who was a beautiful lady. Helen never loved Menelaus and neither did he. Achilles was the bravest and best warrior of Sparta. Achilles was strong and careless.

Once Spartan king Menelaus invited Trojan princes Hector and Paris and were making a peaceful treaty between sparta and Troy. There, Paris fell in love with Helen and so did she. But Helen told Paris that she couldn’t be with him as she was married to Menelaus. paris made a plan to be with Helen. The next day Hector and Paris left for Troy and paris according to his plan smuggled Helen to Troy. In the middle of the journey, Paris showed Helen to Hector and explained about their affair. Hector felt embarraced of Paris. But consequently Paris convinced Hector and finally took Helen to Troy.

Meanwhile, Agamemnon and Menelaus discovered the runaway of Helen with Paris. Menelaus became furious and told Agamemnon that he wanted a revenge. Agamemnon liked that and planned to attack Troy and control the most important coastal city of Asia. Then Agamemnon commanded all the kings of Greece to gather their armies against Troy. And as Troy was a very powerful city, Agamemnon wanted to hire Achilles, the best warrior. As achilles wanted to be remembered in the history, he joined the war between Troy and Sp[arta with his young cousin Patroclus.

Hector and Paris arrived at Troy with Helen. Priam, king of Troy accepted Helen wisely as his daughter in law and named her ‘Helen of Troy. The next day Spartan army arrived at the beach of Troy and began to destroy the apollo temples of Troy. There, Briseis, cousin of Hector and Paris was praying.Achilles took Briseis and returned to the Spartan camp. agamemnon wanted to have Briseis but Achilles protested and there created a feud between them. So Achilles denied to go to the battle next day.

The next day Paris challenged Menelaus. There held a duel between them. Paris used the sword of Troy in the battle. But as Paris was very weak and he had never been to any battle, Menelaus easily took away Paris’s shield. Menelaus injured Paris in the thigh and he fell to his knees and scrawled to his brother and could not stand back again. Hector caught hold of Paris and disagreed with Menelaus and Agamemnon tom let Paris return to the battle again. Menelaus became violent saying that the rules of war had been violeted and attemted to kill Paris. Then Hector killed Menelaus immediately. Agamemnon became shocked at his brother’s sudden death and ordered the Greek armies to attack Trojans then and then. Then a great fight betweeen trojan and Greek started. In the fight Hector killed one of the powerful warrior of Grreek, Ajax. After that Greek army soon returned to their ships. Trojan King Priam started to gather his councilors to plan about attacking the Greeks. The Trojan armies were very good at archeries. So, Priam ordered his archers to attack the Greeks in the next day at day break. The Trojan archers threw flame arrows to the Greek camps. And then Hector and his armies surronded the Greek camp and attacked the Greeks. Then Patroclus was in the armor of Achilles to inspire the Greek armies as Achilles denied to fight. Hector thought Patroclus to be Achilles and killed him. When he removed the helmet, he realized that the one he killed wasn’t Achilles but his cousin Patroclus. Achilles heard about the death of his cousin and became raged in anger.

The next day Achilles challenged Hector for a dual. Hector got prepared for the battle. Hector was sure of his demise and so he in the previous night showed his wife Andromache a secret tunnel out of Troy. He also told her to rescue as much Trojans as she could when there would be a full battle in the city of Troy. 

There held a great dual between Achilles and Hector. Both of them were so courageous and strong. But eventually Achilles killed Hector and took his body with him to the Greek camp. At this Praim got hurt. So, in the middle of the night, Priam went to the Greek camp in disguise and rerquested Achilles to return his son’s death body to him as his son deserved an honour of proper burial. achilles was pleased with the courage of Priam and returned his son’s body and Briseis to Priam and told him that Hector was the best warrior Achilles ever fighted. And then Achilles announced a 12 days off of the battle for Hector’s funeral. Agamemnon became angry at that. At that time Odysseus, king of Ithaca, planned to build a great Trojan horse and told Agamemnon that they could attack troy by hiding in that horse.

The Trojan thought the Trojan horse to be a blessing from the sea God Poseidon ans accepted that. At the dead of the night, The Greeks came out of the horse and began to destroy Troy. At that time, Hector’s wife Andromache led Paris and otherTrojans through the secret tunnel. Paris left Helen telling that he would come with Briseis and went to find Briseis. On the other hand, Achilles kept searching the Troy for Briseis as he fell in love with her. Priam watched the Greeks destroying all the Trojan religiousa datatues and claimed that Greeks had no respect for the God. Then,Agamemnon killed Praimand caught hold of Briseis and tried to enslave her. But at that time, Briseis killed Agamemnon with a blade she was hiding in her back. Then Achilles came running and found Brisies there. Paris found them both, shooted Achilles with arrows several times in the heels and killed him. Briseis burst into tears but Paris took her with him and left for the tunnel out of Troy. At last Odysseus found Achilles’s body and arranged a funeral for him.

The battle of troy was a great battle but none of the side won the battle as both of the king got  killed. The beautiful city Of Troy got destroyed because of jealousy, stubbornness and love.

#troy #troy 2004 #movie #movie reviews #orlando bloom #brad pitt #eric bana #diane kruger #rose byrne #greek mythology #greek #iliad #literature #classics

[lyresung]

oh hell yea it’s time! hit that ♥️ button and/or reply if you would like a starter! these will vary greatly in length, might be lyric-based but who knows honestly what these’ll look like. but yea, this is mutuals only, and multis please specify muse. i have no verses page set up yet because i’m a disaster so no matter what verse your character is in, i’ll figure out how to make it work! muses listed below for convenience 

ctimene of ithaca : greek mythology, sister of odysseus

the fates : greek mythology / hadestown

hector of troy : greek mythology / the iliad / tfoac, son of priam

helen of sparta : greek mythology / the iliad / tfoac, started the trojan war basically

juniper : pjo series, nymph at chb

menelaus of sparta : greek mythology / the iliad / tfoac, husband of helen of sparta/troy

orpheus : greek mythology / hadestown, tiny poet boy

meg giry : phantom of the opera musical, dancer

percy jackson : pjo/hoo series / tlt musical, demigod son of poseidon

grover underwood : pjo series, satyr

#starter call

[akhilleuskcsmcs]

Headcanon

By the time Odysseus encounters Achilles in the Underworld in his journey back to Ithaca, Achilles is full of regrets, obviously the first is Patroclus’ death but his second biggest regret is his treatment of Hektor's body. He doesn't regret fighting and killing him, hell, he would've done it anyway. But what he does regret is dragging Hektor's body around Troy, he obviously didn't think that in the heat of the moment while he was still running on his world-shattering anger, but later, when he and Priam talked, that's when it hit him, that there's NO glory for that kind of act, he earned no glory by disrespecting Hektor's corpse like that. Sure, Achilles still wants glory even as a servant but... Doing that again? Disrespecting an opponent as worthy as Hektor was? No, he's not doing that again. At most, he thought it was a pyrrhic victory. Sure, he killed Hektor and avenged Patroclus but at what cost? He literally dared the Olympians to kill him, to stop him, and lo and behold, Apollo did just that by granting Paris the skill to shoot his heel and deactivate his immortality. 

#( Headcanon ) #Sure #He's still as cocky and confident as he was when he was alive #And he may NEVER voice this #But he does regret it

[chrstnwrites-blog]

BLOG #2:

Rustam and Sohrab, Troy: The Iliad and The Odyssey

Rustam and Sohrab

The Shahnama written by Ferdowsi is all about the epic of the Persian kings. Consisting of almost 50,000 "distichs" or couplets, the story of Rustam and Sohrab lies in here.

Sohrab's account is all about his journey on his search for his father, Rustam. Rustam was said to be one of the greatest warriors of Persia. He was a noble men to all, but an awful father to his son. Rustam is not aware that he has a son. So when Sohrab challenged him to a fight, he fought his own son which such pride. Rustam wore a clad plain armor during their match, resulting in the unawareness of Sohrab having a duel with the man he was searching for his whole life.

Filicide is plainly visible in this story. The term 'filicide' is defined as the act of killing one's son or daughter. In my perspective, no son or daughter deserves to be harmed by his or her own mother and/or father. Every child deserve all the love, care, comfort and support of his or her parent. Whether the mother or father is aware that it is his or her son or daughter, or not... no one deserves to die in the hands of his own flesh and blood.

As I quote Emily Bronte's famous quotation from Wuthering Heights, "proud people breed sad sorrows for themselves."  Rustam made his own sorrow. Upon reading the story of Rustam and Sohrab, I realized that pride will take us nowhere. It will only bring us to our greatest downfall and worst destruction.

A great warrior must not just be great in wars, but also great in fighting off battles within the family.

Troy: The Iliad

Troy, also known as Homer’s Iliad, is a Greek epic poem that revolves around the story of Achilles’ heroic adventure on and during the Trojan War. Achilles, son of Peleus and Thetis, was the most famous of the Greek heroes that fought the Trojan War. When an infant, he was plunged by his mother in the river of Styx making him invulnerable except for his heel which where she held him.

Achilles’ heroic doings during the Trojan War made it possible for the Greeks to defeat the Trojans. He was really good with using spears as his weapon, especially long-distanced one. Achilles can definitely kill a hundred people with only a sword on his right hand, and a shield on his left.

With Odysseus most brilliant invention, the Greeks made it possible to enter the gates of Troy without destroying its walls. Taking the war inside Troy, Paris shot Achilles’ heel with an arrow, killing him in the process. The moment Achilles’ body dropped to the ground, the Achaeans (Greeks) foundation was also shook.

…

I am a hopeless romantic type of person and I find Achilles and Briseis’ love story, a romantic one. Even under different circumstances and tragic ending, their bittersweet encounter, for me, is very romantic and sparks flies.

Another thing, Patroclus’ friendship with Achilles gave out a very valuable meaning to me. I even browsed the internet for their memes and it gave me a good laugh. On a serious note, their friendship or so-called ‘bromance’ relationship is something that we cannot often see in a Greek myth. This only shows us that friendship blooms even for the most nefarious and imbecile person in the entire universe.

And I must not forget to tell you that the conversation of Priam and Achilles made me shed a tear. It was very heartbreaking that until now, I can still hear Priam’s voice on my head. How he kneeled and begged to get Hector’s body from Achilles. How his voice trembles while uttering words laced with a fatherly love made me realize some things (too personal and sentimental to share hahaha). It made me wonder if all father can overpower their pride, and kneel, cry and beg for their children. Just wondering…

The Odyssey

The Odyssey is the sequel of the Iliad that tells the story of Odysseus’ ten-year voyage after his victorious participation in the Trojan War.

Ulysses, most commonly referred to and known as Odysseus, is the sole center of Homer’s The Odyssey. As the inventor of the wooden horse, he was believed to be the wiliest of the Greek leaders. Together with the other mighty heroes of the Greek forces, they killed many Trojans including King Priam.

Odysseus, King of Ithaca, is a man of great resourcefulness. He was always prepared for every situation, making a good use with everything around him. With the goddess Athena on his back, he survived all challenges thrown by the god Poseidon. Odysseus’ love for his wife Penelope, and son Telemachus cannot be measured by great waves and winds. Even the distance of the constellation Orion can never be used to measure his love for his family.

Odysseus built his own world with his bare hands and sweat, so when he returned home after so many painful days and helpless nights, he did not thought twice of killing Penelope’s arrogant and self-centered suitors. Odysseus kept true to his promise, that he would come back alive for Penelope and Telemachus. Penelope and Odysseus’ love for each other can be compared to Cupid and Psyche’s love affair. The way they trust and hold on to each other’s promises is a must-have ingredient in a certain relationship.

After reading and watching the Iliad and Odyssey, I am more astonished with the strong-willed Odysseus than the courageous Achilles. I believe his cleverness and wittiness drove him back to Ithaca, not his boat.