Show Notes
In this episode, we give an overview of the Trojan War and its importance in ancient Greek culture. We cover the ancient sources, the epic cycle, the importance of Homer, the *first* sack of Troy by Heracles (and the Trojan king Laomedon), and the first failed attempt of the Greeks to even find Troy and their eventual discovery of a guide to lead them to the actual location of the city. It was one very messed up war.
More from The Greek Myth Files
In this episode we cover a significant moment in the Iliad when Phoinix, Achilles' caretaker when the hero was young, tells his charge of the myth of Meleagros (Meleager) in the hopes that he would do the right thing.
In this special episode, I give my thoughts about the movie: big and epic in scope, the movie is worthy of the original in its power and basic story. Obviously, as a myth scholar, I have thoughts. So, here they are!
In this episode we cover the action in the Iliad, which treats just a couple of months in the tenth year of the war. We focus on the central character, Achilles, and his famous rage after being insulted and retreating from the war. He loses his honor and friend before finding redemption at the end.
In this episode we consider the complex history of the Homeric epic poem, the Iliad. Who was Homer? When did he live? Did he exist? Were oral poets able to tell such a long story (it takes about a day to narrate the whole)? Was writing necessary for such a tight and coherent structure? After giving an account what the ancient Greeks thought (who did not agree), we trace the different ways that modern scholars have analyzed the text and offer a modern theory of its evolution.
In this episode we treat the hero's life outside the Iliad, his unusual conception, his parents, and his time under the tutelage of the Centaur Cheiron.