Resumo de The Rage Of Achilles

Homer The Rage of Achilles This is the a member of the Penguin 60s series of excerpts from classic writings, in this case, of the world?s greatest war story, Homer?s Iliad (means story of Ilium). The Iliad does not tell the whole story of the Trojan War, which had in any case been told by many bards for many years. Paris, son of King Priam of Troy, has taken the wife of Menelaus, some say with her consent, some say without. Menelaus and his brother, King Agamemnon, lead a force from Greece to go to Troy and attack it. They defeat various other surrounding cities and communities, but are unable to break down Troy?s resistance. In the fighting, they conquer, among other people, the daughter of the Trojan priest. This beautiful young lady is given to King Agamemnon as a war prize. When the girl?s father comes with ransom money to pay for his daughter?s freedom, Agamemnon rejects the ransom money and says he prefers the girl (he already has troubles back home-before leaving home ten years earlier, he sacrificed his own daughter to the gods to try to win success for the battle, and his wife is furious with him, so maybe he plans to trade her in for this newer model.)After the Trojan priest goes back to Troy, a plague sweeps through the Greek camp, which the Greeks attribute to the Trojan priest?s powers, although historically, soldiers in tight army camps with poor sanitation and nutrition frequently have epidemics sweep through.The Greeks come to their greatest warrior, Achilles, and they and especially he demand that Agamemnon give back the girl. Agamemnon is furious, but he gives her back, but as consolation takes the girl that was given to Achilles. Now Achilles is furious and refuses to fight.As the Trojans, led by their best fighter, Hector, begin to prevail, and as they press the fight closer and closer to the Greek ships on the shore, various people plead with Achilles to fight, but he pouts in his tent and refuses. Then his best friend and his charioteer volunteers to fight. Achilles lets the man have his armor.Hector, recognizing the armor, singles out the warrior and kills him, then strips the body for the armor. The two sides are still fighting over the body when Achilles hears his best friend has been killed. He roars from his tent and comes toward the battle. The worn-out warriors step back, the Greeks gain the body, and that day?s fighting is over.The Trojans are divided in counsel-some say they should withdraw inside the walls because Achilles is extremely powerful and now extremely angry. But Hector refuses, and a majority follow him. Meanwhile, Achilles has new armor made. When it is ready, he goes into battle, chases after Hector, and the rest of the Trojans have retreated inside the wall. Hector tries to run, then after a while stands his ground, but Achilles kills him with a blade thrust between the collarbone and the shoulderbone. Hector dies, and Achilles drags his body around the city while Hector?s family grieves. Achilles then holds grand games in honor of his fallen friend.The book focuses on how rage can make a man inactive and sullen, or active and merciless.If you want to know what happens next: Achilles dies soon after Hector does, with an arrow through his heel. Then Odysseus thinks up the idea of the Trojan horse, which works. The Trojans pull it inside the walls, the Greeks inside the horse climb out and open the city gates, and the Greeks outside join them in a slaughter and destruction of Troy.In the aftermath, a Trojan survivor, Aeneus, carries his aged father on his back away from the burning city. Aeneus has many travels, as had Odysseus, and eventually founds Rome. The story of Odysseus? travels is called the Odyssey, also written by Homer. The story of Aeneus? travels is called the Aeneid, written by Virgil.Reading this excerpt is less good than reading the full Iliad. I?ve done both. Go for the full story.

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