The Iliad and the Epic Cycle

Aristotle, Poetics 1459a Compared with all other poets Homer may seem divinely inspired, in that even with the Trojan war, which has a beginning and an end, he did not endeavor to compose a poem about it as a whole, since it would have been either too long to be taken in all at once or, if he had moderated the length, he would have complicated it by the variety of incidents. As it is, he takes one part of the story only and uses many incidents from other parts, such as the Catalogue of Ships and other incidents with which he diversifies his poetry. The others, on the contrary, all write about a single hero or about a single period or about a single action with a great many parts, the authors, [1459b] for example, of the Cypria and the Little Iliad. The result is that out of an Iliad or an Odyssey only one tragedy can be made, or two at most, whereas several have been made out of the Cypria, and out of the Little Iliad more than eight, e.g. The Award of Arms, Philoctetes, Neoptolemus, Eurypylus, The Begging, The Laconian Women, The Sack of Troy, and Sailing of the Fleet, and Sinon, too, and The Trojan Women.

Poems of the Epic CycleTheogony

Titanomachy Oedipodia

Thebais Epigoni Cypria Iliad

Aethiopis Little Iliad Iliu Persis

NostoiOdyssey

Telegonia

Cypria: wedding of Peleus and Thetis, Judgement of Paris, Rape of Helen, Sacrifice of Iphigenia

Judgement of Paris =Alexander

Iliad, Aethiopis: death of Achilles

Little Iliad - Sophocles, Philoctetes [1425] And then, chosen out as foremost among the warriors in prowess, with my bow you shall sever Paris, the cause of these evils, from life.

Iliu Persis Destruction of Troy: sack of Troy (Euripides’ Trojan Women)

Nostoi

Euripides, Andromache, Hecuba, HelenAeschylus, Agamemnon

HH 17 Sing, clear-voiced Muse, of Castor and Polydeuces, the Tyndaridae, who sprang from Olympian Zeus. Beneath the heights of Taygetus stately Leda bore them, when the

dark-clouded Son of Cronos had secretly bent her to his will. [5] Hail, children of Tyndareus, riders upon swift horses!

Preparations for the War1200 ships summoned to Aulis

sacrifice of Iphigenia, Lucretius: tantum religio potuit

suadere malorum

menin aeide thea Peleïadeo AchileosThe wrath of Achilles is my theme RieuAnger be now your song, immortal one Fitzgerald Sing, goddess, the anger of Peleus’ son Achilles Lattimore Rage, Goddess, sing the rage of Peleus’ son Achilles. Fagles

The wrath of Achilles, Peleus’ son, sing, O goddess, a ruinous wrath, which put countless woes upon the Achaeans and hurled many mighty souls to Hades, and made them a feast for dogs and a banquet for birds, and the will of Zeus was accomplished, from the time when first Agamemnon and Achilles stood opposed in strife (contending).

Eris menis of Apollo 75 (87) Danaans, Argives

1.8 Who then of the gods was it that brought these two together to contend (quarrel)? The son of Leto and Zeus; for he in anger against the king roused throughout the host an evil pestilence. and the people began to perish, [10] because upon his priest Chryses the son of Atreus had wrought dishonour.

timê

Be bold, and speak out whatever oracle you know; [85] for by Apollo, dear to Zeus, to whom you, Calchas, pray when you reveal oracles to the Danaans, no one, while I live and have sight on the earth, shall lay heavy hands on you beside the hollow ships, no one of the whole host of the Danaans, [90] not even if you name Agamemnon, who now claims to be far the best of the Achaeans.”

1.115 (135) Yet even so will I give her back, if that is better; I would rather the people be safe than perish. But provide me with a prize of honour (geras) forthwith, lest I alone of the Argives be without one, since that would not be proper. For you all see this, that my prize goes elsewhere.”

1.240 (283) You will not be able to do anything, grieved though you may be, while many men fall in death before Hector, slayer of men. And you will tear your heart, angry that you did not honour the best of the Achaeans.

248 Nestor, sweet of speech, the clear-voiced orator of the Pylians,

Such warriors have I never since seen, nor shall I see, as Peirithous was and Dryas, shepherd of the people, and Caeneus and Exadius and godlike Polyphemus, and Theseus, son of Aegeus, a man like the immortals. [265] Mightiest were these of men reared upon the earth; mightiest were they, and with the mightiest they fought, the mountain-dwelling centaurs, and they destroyed them terribly.

278 it is no common honour (timê) that is the portion of a sceptre-holding king, to whom Zeus gives glory (kudos).

Centauromachy

Achilles to Thetis:[395] (470) For often I have heard you glorying in the halls of my father, and declaring that you alone among the immortals warded off shameful ruin from the son of Cronos, lord of the dark clouds, on the day when the other Olympians wished to put him in bonds, even Hera and Poseidon and Pallas Athene. [400] But you came, goddess, and freed him from his bonds, when you had quickly called to high Olympus him of the hundred hands, whom the gods call Briereus, but all men Aegaeon; for he is mightier than his father. He sat down by the side of the son of Cronos, exulting in his glory, [405] and the blessed gods were seized with fear of him, and did not bind Zeus.

458-71 sacrifice (545) 497-502 suppliancy (596)

(626) Come, I will bow my head to you, that thou may be certain, for this from me is the surest token among the immortals; [525] no word of mine may be recalled, nor is false, nor unfulfilled, to which I bow my head.

Hephaestus:Then he poured wine for all the other gods from left to right, drawing forth sweet nectar from the bowl. And unquenchable laughter arose among the blessed gods, as they saw Hephaestus puffing through the palace. [600] Thus the whole day long till the setting of the sun they feasted, nor did their heart lack anything of the equal feast, nor of the beauteous lyre, that Apollo held, nor yet of the Muses, who sang, replying one to the other with sweet voices.

3.45 (53) Was it in such strength as this that you sailed over the main in your seafaring ships, when you gathered your trusty comrades, and, coming to an alien folk, brought back a comely woman from a distant land, even a daughter-in-law of warriors who wield the spear, [50] but to your father and city and all the people a grievous bane — to your foes a joy, but to your own self a hanging down of the head?

3.150 (187) We cannot rage at her, it is no wonder that Trojans and Achaeans under arms should have for so long borne the pains of war for one like this.

(199) You art in no way to blame in my eyes; it is the gods, I think, that are to blame, [165] who roused against me the tearful war of the Achaeans

3.190 Teichoscopy: Who is this huge warrior, this man of Achaea so valiant and so tall. Verily there be others that are even taller by a

head, but so comely a man have mine eyes never yet beheld, [170] neither one so royal: he is like unto one that is a king.

Tell me also about this man, dear child, who he is. He is shorter by a head than Agamemnon, son of Atreus, but I see that he is broader in the shoulders and chest. His

arms lie on the fruitful earth, and he like a ram is going up and down the ranks of warriors.

(271) Who then is this other Achaean warrior, valiant and tall, towering above the Argives with his head and broad shoulders? [226]

3 (282) But two marshallers of the host can I not see, Castor, tamer of horses, and the goodly boxer, Polydeuces (Pollux), even mine own brethren, whom the same

mother bore. Either they followed not with the host from lovely Lacedaemon, [240] or though they followed here in their seafaring ships, they have now no heart to enter into the battle of warriors for fear of the words of shame and the

many curses that are mine.” So said she; but they before now were fast held in the life-giving earth there in

Lacedaemon, in their dear native land.

[351] “Zeus, our king, grant that I may avenge me on him that was first to do me wrong, even on goodly Alexander, and subdue thou him beneath my hands; that many a one even of men yet to be may shudder to work evil to his host, that hath shown him friendship.” (408)

3.426 You’ve come back from the war? Would you had perished there, vanquished by a valiant man that was my former lord. [430] It was your boast before that you were a better man than Menelaus, dear to Ares, in the might of your hands and with your spear. But go now, challenge Menelaus, dear to Ares, again to do battle with you, man to man. But, no, I of myself bid you to refrain, and not war again against fair-haired Menelaus, [435] nor fight with him in your folly, lest you be vanquished by his spear.”

arete = human excellence