Idan Lavian The Iliad book 1 3 Book 1 The story starts with a muse telling us about the rage of Achilles the greatest Greek hero to fight in the Trojan War The war began when a town that is allied with the Trojans captured two beautiful maidens Chryseis and Briseis The allied town was called Achaea Agamemnon leader of the Achaean army takes Chryseis as his prize Chryses Chryseis father 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 on the city bringing death of many soldiers After ten days of suffering Achilles finds out that the cause of the plague is Chryses Agamemnon said that he will return Chryseis only if Achilles gives him Briseis to keep Agamemnon and Achilles fell into an argument and before anyone got killed Athena came down to prevent them fighting They decided that Briseis should be in Agamemnon s hands and Chryseis returns to her father Achilles prays to his mother the sea nymph Thetis to ask Zeus king of the gods to punish the Achaeans He tell her what happened between him and Agamemnon and she promises to take the matter up with Zeus who owes her a favor Odysseus a commander of the Achaean army is bringing back Chryseis home Chryses overjoyed to see his daughter prays to the god to lift the plague from the Achaean city When the plague ended ever since their argument Achilles has refuses to participate in battle with Agamemnon After twelve days Thetis makes her appeal to Zeus as promised Even thought his wife Hera favors the Greeks he agrees to help Achilles Book 3 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 When Menelaus steps forward Paris got scared and stepped back Hector Paris s brother and the leader of the Trojan forces rebukes Paris for his cowardice From his rebuke Paris agrees to a duel with Menelaus They declare that the contest will bring peace between Trojans and Achaeans and who gets Helen for a wife As Paris and Menelaus prepare for their duel Helen comes to the battlefield to see what is going on In the battle Menelaus wounds Paris very badly and is about to kill him Suddenly Aphrodite came and teleported Paris to Priam s palace along with Helen In the battlefield everyone thinks that Menelaus won the fight and now Agamemnon says that he wants Helen back to Achaea