Introduction to Greek and Roman Civilization Study Guide The Iliad Characters o Achaeans Son of the sea nymph Thetis The most powerful warrior in The Iliad Homeland Phthia King of Mycenae and leader of the Achaean army brother of King Menelaus of Sparta Achilles beloved friend companion and advisor Patroclus grew up alongside the great warrior in Phthia A fine warrior and the cleverest of the Achaean commanders Main character of the Odyssey Achilles Agamemnon Patroclus Odysseus Diomedes Great Ajax Little Ajax Nestor Idomeneus Calchas Peleus Phoenix Hector Priam Hecuba Paris Helen Aeneas Andromache Astyanax Polydamas Glaucus The youngest of the Achaean commanders An Achaean commander Great Ajax An Achaean commander King of Pylos and the oldest Achaean commander Menelaus King of Sparta King of Crete and a respected commander Idomeneus leads a charge against the Trojans in Book 1 3 Machaon A healer The Myrmidons o The Trojans An important soothsayer Calchas s identification of the cause of the plague ravaging the Achaean army fuels the fire of the main argument Achilles father Priam powerfully invokes the memory of Peleus when he convinces Achilles to return Hector s corpse to the Trojans in Book 2 4 A kindly old warrior Phoenix helped raise Achilles while he himself was still a young man The soldiers under Achilles command hailing from Achilles homeland Phthia A son of King Priam and Queen Hecuba Hector is the mightiest warrior in the Trojan army King of Troy and husband of Hecuba Queen of Troy wife of Priam and mother of Hector and Paris Paris s abduction of the beautiful Helen wife of Menelaus sparked the Trojan War Reputed to be the most beautiful woman in the ancient world Helen was stolen from her husband Menelaus and taken to Troy by Paris A Trojan nobleman the son of Aphrodite and a mighty warrior The Romans believed that Aeneas later founded their city Main Character in the Aeneid Hector s loving wife Hector and Andromache s infant son A young Trojan commander Polydamas sometimes figures as a foil for Hector proving cool headed and prudent when Hector charges ahead o Gods and Immortals Zeus A powerful Trojan warrior Glaucus nearly fights a duel with Diomedes The men s exchange of armor after they realize that their families are friends illustrates the value that ancients placed on kinship and camaraderie Agenor delays Achilles long enough for the Trojan army to flee inside Troy s walls A Trojan sent to spy on the Achaean camp in Book 1 0 A Trojan archer Pandarus s shot at Menelaus in Book 4 breaks the temporary truce between the two sides A Trojan nobleman advisor to King Priam and father of many Trojan warriors a priest of Apollo in a Trojan allied town A war prize of Achilles When Agamemnon is forced to return Chryseis to her father he appropriates Briseis as compensation A priest of Apollo in a Trojan allied town the father of Chryseis whom Agamemnon takes as a war prize Zeus claims neutrality in the mortals conflict and often tries to keep the other gods from participating in it However he throws his weight behind the Trojan side for much of the battle after the sulking Achilles has his mother Thetis begs Works with Athena to crush the Trojans Like Hera Athena passionately hates the Trojans and often gives the Achaeans valuable aid A sea nymph and the devoted mother of Achilles Thetis gets Zeus to help the Trojans and punish the Achaeans at the request of her angry son He supports the Trojans and often intervenes in the war on their behalf She supports Paris and the Trojans throughout the war Poseidon holds a long standing grudge against the Trojans because they never paid him for helping them to build their city He therefore supports the Achaeans in the war He helps the Achaeans by forging a new set of armor for Achilles and by rescuing Achilles during his fight with a river god Artemis supports the Trojans in the war Ares generally supports the Trojans in the war Agenor Dolon Pandarus Antenor Chryseis Briseis Chryses Hera Athena Thetis Apollo Aphrodite Poseidon Hephaestus Artemis Ares Hermes S u m m e r y o He messenger of the gods Hermes escorts Priam to Achilles tent in Book 2 4 Achaeans sack a Trojan allied town and capture two beautiful maidens Chryseis and Briseis Agamemnon commander in chief of the Achaean army takes Chryseis as his prize Achilles one of the Achaeans most valuable warriors claims Briseis Chryseis s father a man named Chryses who serves as a priest of the god Apollo begs Agamemnon to return his daughter and offers to pay an enormous ransom When Agamemnon refuses Chryses prays to Apollo for help Apollo sends a plague upon the Greek camp causing the death of many soldiers After ten days of suffering Achilles calls an assembly of the Achaean army and asks for a soothsayer to reveal the cause of the plague Calchas reveals the plague as a vengeful and strategic move by Chryses and Apollo Agamemnon flies into a rage and says that he will return Chryseis only if Achilles gives him Briseis as compensation Agamemnon s demand humiliates and infuriates the proud Achilles The men argue and Achilles threatens to withdraw from battle That night Agamemnon puts Chryseis on a ship back to her father and sends heralds to have Briseis escorted from Achilles tent Achilles prays to his mother the sea nymph Thetis to ask Zeus king of the gods to punish the Achaeans Ever since his quarrel with Agamemnon Achilles has refused to participate in battle Zeus sends a false dream to Agamemnon in which a figure in the form of Nestor persuades Agamemnon that he can take Troy if he launches a full scale assault on the city s walls He tests them and says they are going home and when they flee for the ships Odysseus calls them back and reminds them of the prophecy o o o o o o o o o o The Trojan army marches from the city gates and advances to meet the Achaeans Paris the Trojan prince who precipitated the war by stealing the beautiful Helen from her husband Menelaus challenges the Achaeans to single combat with any of their warriors During the battle Aphrodite removes Paris from the battlefield to his room An archer convinced by Athena wounds Menelaus After the Battle Hector goes back to troy and asks his mother to pray to Athena and goes to see his wife and boy Hector approaches the Achaean line and offers himself to anyone who will fight him Only Menelaus has the courage to step forward but Agamemnon talks him out of it knowing full well that Menelaus is no match for Hector