Reading Diary A: Iliad

This week for Reading Diary A I decided to read from the Iliad in the Classical section of the Untextbook. This reading is divided into sections so I am going to divide my favorite parts by each section.

How the War with Troy Began

I enjoy how many of the stories from this time start with a romantic quarrel. I find it hard to believe that they tried to break down the wall for 9 years but I know its fiction.

The Quarrel

I really liked the story element when the priest asks Apollo for help and he backs him up. I really enjoy when the “little” guy as they say has help from a stronger power.

I really enjoyed this quote: "Drunkard with the eyes of a dog and the heart of a deer, hear what I tell you now. See this sceptre that I have in my hand. Once it was the branch of a tree; now a king carries it in his hand. As surely as it will never more shoot forth in leaves, so surely will the Greeks one day miss Achilles. And you, when you see your people falling by the swords of the Trojans, will be sorry that you have done this wrong to the bravest man in your army." I liked the metaphors the author used to describe the men.

What Thetis Did for Her Son

I enjoy how the author wrote Hera. She makes her strong and able to speak up for herself, which is nice because women especially in this time period aren’t always written that way.

Hector and Andromache

This section is hard for me to follow. The flow of the story is harder to follow and the quotes are a little confusing. Another quote I like from Hector, "Dear wife, leave these things to me; I will look after them. One thing I cannot bear, that any son or daughter of Troy should see me skulking from battle. I hate the very thought of it; I must always be in front. Alas! I know that Priam and the people of Priam and this holy city of Troy will perish. But it is not for Troy, or for the people of Troy, nor even for my father and my mother, that I care so much; it is for you, when I think how some Greek will carry you away captive, and you be set to spin or to carry water from the spring in a distant land. And someone will say: 'see that slave woman there! She was the wife of Hector, who was the bravest of the Trojans.' " I love the way the author writes the emotion when Hector leaves. It shows he cares about his family but also fighting for his country.

Athena Repressing the Fury of Achillies
 taken from the Un-textbook website. 

The Embassy of Achilles

I love the quote “the god who shakes the earth”; its so simple but shows the power of god. I enjoy the plot element of reaching out to someone from Achilles past to convince him to fight in the war. I think people enjoy when people from the past come back to stories it connect them to the character like they knew them when they were young.

The Deeds and Death of Patroclus

I like the character Sarpedon; he is what I think they mimicked Hercules after. I enjoy the story line of god and mortal women. People like stories where one person is on a lower level than the other like Cinderella. People love a good story of rising up. There are so many stories where a stone kills or hurts someone; this is so unbelievable to me.