Transcript Aeneas in the Iliad

Paris throws his spear
but it does not
penetrate the shield of
Menelaus. Menelaus
strikes the helmet of
Paris and begins to
drag him by the
horsehair of his helmet
to the Greek lines.
Just when Menelaus
is about to take Paris
into the Greek lines,
Venus touches the
chin strap of Paris’
helmet and frees him.
She then wraps him in
a mist and spirits him
away to Helen’s
perfumed bed chamber.
The Greeks claim victory
and call the Trojans cheaters.
Helen and Paris in their bedroom
Notice Paris’ mitra, his little hat. People
from the East were supposed to be more
effeminate and they wore little hats that
show how wussy they are.
Juno (Hera) and Minerva (Athena) did not want Troy to
survive, so Minerva prompted Pandarus, the most famous
Trojan archer to shoot an arrow at Menelaus.
Minerva deflects the arrow so that it only wounds Menelaus.
The ensuing battle lasted for 2 full
days.
-Patroclus, Achilles’ best friend and lover, comes and begs
Achilles to allow him to go out on the field dressed in
Achilles’ armor. Achilles was such a fierce warrior that
even the sight of his armor was enough to strike terror in
the
Trojans.
-When Achilles hears that the
Trojans are burning the ships,
he allows Patroclus to go out
to the field.
-Patroclus kills many men, but
eventually he meets up with
Hector, the best Greek warrior.
Achilles and Patroclus
-Hector kills Patroclus and seizes his armor. He also attempts to
seize the body of Patroclus, but when Achilles hears that Hector
wants to desecrate Patroclus’ body, he goes out to the trenches,
yells three times, and with one look scatters the Trojans.
-Achilles is devastated by Patroclus’ death. He says:
“It was all for nothing, what I said that day when I tried to hearten the hero Menoetius,
telling him I would bring his glorious son home to Opoeis with his share of the spoils
after I had sacked Ilium (Troy). Zeus does not fulfill a man’s every thought. We two are
fated to redden the selfsame earth with our blood, right here in Troy. I will never return
home to be welcomed by my old father, Peleus, or Thetis, my mother. And since I will
pass under the earth after you, Patroclus, I will not bury you until I have brought here
the armor and head of Hector, who killed you, great soul. And I will cut the
throats of twelve Trojan princes before your pyre in my wrath (menis)...”
-Achilles gets Patroclus’ body
and mourns and mourns over
him.
-Achilles wants to enter the battle
in order to avenge Patroclus’
death, but he has no armor.
-He complains to his mamma,
Thetis, and she has Hephaestus
make more armor for Achilles,
basically making Achilles entirely
unstoppable.
Achilles receiving his god-armor.
-Achilles goes into battle and, after killing a lot of people and
almost getting himself killed by the river-god Skamander, meets
Hector in battle.
-When he sees Achilles, Hector is seized by fear and runs 3
times
around the walls of Troy with Achilles in pursuit. Finally, Hector
turns around and
runs at Achilles.
-Since Hector is
wearing Achilles’ old
armor, Achilles knows
its weaknesses. There
is a chink in the armor
at the neck, and so he
stabs Hector through the
throat.
Achilles and Hector in battle.
-Before he dies, Hector begs Achilles not to desecrate his
body
and to return him to his father. Achilles, not yet having satisfied
his menis, refuses.
-After he dies, Achilles then slits Hector's heels, and takes the
girdle that Ajax, another warrior, gave him and passed it
through the slits of the heels.
-He fastens the girdle to his chariot and drives his fallen
enemy through the dust to the Danaan (Greek) camp.
-This is terrible by any standards,
but for the ancients, not being
buried properly meant a great deal
of pain in the Underworld.
-Achilles continues to drag Hector around and generally
defile
him for a few days, until he completes the funeral rites of
Patroclus.
Achilles says:
“I hail you Patroclus, even in Hades!
I am fulfilling all that I promised before,
To drag Hector here and feed him raw to the dogs,
And to cut the throats of 12 fine Trojan boys
Before your pyre, in my rage at your murder.”
He spoke and treated glorious Hector foully,
Stretching him out in the dust before the bier
Of Menoetius’ son (Patroclus)
Achilles guarding the body of Hector.
-Despite this long abuse, the gods protected Hector’s body
and
Hector remained intact and unharmed.
-Priam, Hector’s father and a very old man, is crushed by
Hector’s death. He wants Hector’s body back so that he can
be buried.
-The gods pity him and so Zeus sends Iris, the rainbow
messenger
goddess, down to tell him that he must go to the Greek ships
and ransom Hector himself, taking only one attendent and a lot
of gold and precious objects with him as ransom.
-Hermes (Mercury) disguises himself and meets Priam as he is
watering his horses on the way to the Greek ships. He serves
as
a guide and puts the Greek guards to sleep so that they can
reach Achilles.
When Priam enters, Homer says the following
happens:
Great Priam entered unnoticed. He stood
Close to Achilles, and touching his knees,
He kissed the dread and murderous hands
That had killed so many of his sons...
But Priam spoke, a prayer of entreaty:
“Remember your father, godlike Achilles.
He and I are both on the doorstep
Of old age. He may well be now
Surrounded by enemies wearing him down
And have no one to protect him from harm.
But then he hears that you are still alive
And his heart rejoices, and he hopes all his days
To see his dear son come back from Troy.
But what is left for me? I had the finest sons
In all wide Troy, and not one of them is left...
And the only one who could save the city
You’ve just now killed as he fought for his country,
My Hector. It is for him I have come to the Greek ships,
To get him back from you. I’ve brought
A fortune in ransom. Respect the gods, Achilles.
Think of your own father, and pity me.
I am more pitiable. I have borne what no man
Who has walked this earth has ever yet borne.
I have kissed the hands of the man who killed my son.”
Priam begs for Hector’s body.
-Achilles, thinking about his own father, is moved to pity
and
gives Priam the body of Hector.
-Priam returns to Troy. The Iliad ends with the funeral
games
that Priam holds for Hector.
Aenea
s
-Aeneas was a Trojan soldier who fought under the command
of Hector and he is mentioned several times in the Iliad
-Aeneas was the son of Aphrodite (Venus) and Anchises; the
story
of their relationship is told in the Homeric Hymn to Aphrodite
The heads of
Aphrodite and
Anchises
The Affair of Aphrodite and
Anchises
-Zeus was fed up with Aphrodite causing him to fall in love with
mortal women
-as retaliation, he causes Aphrodite to fall in love with the mortal
shepherd, Anchises, knowing that the relationship will cause her
great pain because, although they may be okay for a while, he will
eventually grow old
and die
• Aphrodite, struck by this
love, goes about making
herself beautiful and then
approaches Anchises
disguised as an unwed
maiden
-Anchises is struck by Aphrodite’s beauty and, despite her
disguise, addresses her as a goddess, saying:
“Hail, my Lady, you who come here to this home, whichever of the blessed ones you are,
Artemis or Leto or golden Aphrodite
or Themis of noble birth or bright-eyed Athena.
95 Or perhaps you are one of the Kharites, you who have come here. They are the ones
who keep company with all the gods and are called immortal.
Or you are one of those Nymphs who range over beautiful groves,
or one of those Nymphs who inhabit this beautiful mountain,
and the fountainheads of rivers and grassy meadows.
100 For you, on some high peak, in a spot with a view going all round,
I will set up an altar, and I will perform for you beautiful sacrifices
every year as the season [hôrâ] comes round. And I wish that you in turn may have a kindly-disposed thûmos towards me.
Grant that I become a man who is distinguished among the Trojans.
Make the genealogy that comes after me become a flourishing one. And make me
105 live a very long life and see the light of the sun,
blessed [olbios] in the midst of the people. And let me arrive at the threshold of old age.”
-Aphrodite denies that she is a
goddess and weaves an elaborate
lie, declaring herself to be a
princess who was carried to
Mount Ida by Hermes to be the
lawful wife of Anchises. She even
brings a dowry and asks to meet
Anchises’ parents. She also
apologizes that she is
inexperienced in love-making
which is funny considering all
we know about her.
-Anchises gives in quite readily.
After it’s all over, Aphrodite
causes Anchises to fall asleep and she shows herself forth in her
full glory.
-Aphrodite goes on to tell Anchises that Aeneas will be raised
until adolescence by nymphs on Mount Ida and that once he
is old enough, he will be brought to him. As soon as Anchises
receives Aeneas, he should take him to Ilium (Troy).
-She also warns him not to mention
that she is Aeneas’ mother,
otherwise she’ll strike him down
with lightning. I’m pretty sure
he didn’t follow this order.
Anchises and Aphrodite
Aeneas in the Iliad
Aeneas is a minor character in the Iliad.
The major scene is as follows:
Aeneas comes up against Diomedes, one of the greatest of the
Greek warriors. Diomedes is too much for Aeneas. Diomedes
picks up a huge rock and hurls it at Aeneas. It crushes his
pelvis.
Aeneas would’ve died, but Aphrodite, his mother, comes and
whisks him away.
While Aeneas is being whisked, Diomedes comes up from behind
and actually nicks Aphrodite on her wrist, causing her to bleed.
Aphrodite shrieks and drops Aeneas. Apollo comes and rescues him,
carrying him off to Pergamos to be healed.
In this painting, Diomedes is harming Aeneas’ hip with
a spear, not a rock, as in the Iliad. Aphrodite is grabbing
on to her son and Athena is spurring on Diomedes.
Aeneas’ Destiny
-Aeneas is destined to “found” Rome.
What does this mean and how does it fit
in with Romulus and Remus? There
appears to be two founding myths. How
does Vergil resolve them?
-Saying Aeneas is destined to found
Rome is not strictly true.
Actually, he’s destined to establish the
Trojans in Italy, founding a place called
Lavinium, named after his Italian bride,
Lavinia.
-Aeneas’ son, Iulus / Ascanius, does not
found Rome either, he founds the city of
Alba Longa, which is just northeast of
Lavinium
-Aeneas’ descendents,
Romulus and Remus,
are the ones who
found the actual city
-their mother, Rhea Silvia,
sometimes called Ilia (from
Ilium) is descended from
the offspring of Lavinia and
Aeneas. Aeneas founds the
Roman people and many
customs, but not the actual city.
Aeneas – Lavinia
:
Silvius
:
11 generations
:
Numitor
:
Rhea Silvia – Mars
:
Romulus / Remus