Legend & Myth Literature

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the Trojan War were compiled in an epic poem called the Iliad by the author Homer. They are …. And so the Trojan War would shake both heaven and earth. …

The Trojan War
An epic poem is a long narrative that relates the deeds of heroes. Many of the stories of the Trojan War were compiled in an epic poem called the Iliad by the author Homer. They are among the oldest stories in literature. While these tales are clearly mythological, historians believe there really was a Trojan War and that it took place about 1200 B.C. near the coast of Turkey. It might have been a trade war between different groups of Greek-speaking people for control of waters leading into the Black Sea. The struggle began when Eris [AIR-is], goddess of discord and quarreling, was not invited to the wedding of the hero Peleus [PEE-lee-uhs] and the sea-nymph Thetis [THEE-tis]. Eris threw among the revelers a golden apple inscribed "for the fairest." It rolled right up to where three goddesses were sitting: Hera [HEE-ruh], Athena [uh-THEEN-uh], and Aphrodite [afroh-DIE-tee]. Of course, each goddess claimed it. Zeus [ZOOS] refused to be the judge of this Olympian beauty contest. He knew no matter how he decided he would never hear the end of it from the others. He told the goddesses to have Hermes [HER-meez] escort them to a mountain near Troy were Paris, a son of King Priam [PRY-uhm], was watching the sheep. The king had sent him away because he had been warned that someday this boy would bring grief and ruin on his country. Paris was supposed to be a good judge of feminine beauty. The goddesses agreed, and Zeus warned them to abide by Paris’s choice, however it went. Hermes escorted them to the high pastures of Troy where the shepherd-prince watched his flocks. Each goddess promised Paris something if he would favor her. Hera offered him kingly power, Athena promised wisdom and glory in war, but Aphrodite, the Love Goddess, offered him the most beautiful woman in the world for his wife. Paris cared nothing for power and glory and, least of all, wisdom. He was young and shallow-minded. He awarded the golden apple to Aphrodite. The most beautiful woman in the world, Helen of Sparta, was the daughter of Zeus and Princess Leda [LEE-duh]. Of course, every prince in Greece wanted to marry her. Her mother’s new husband, King Tendareus [tin-DAR-ee-uhs] of Sparta, had to choose among the suitors. He was afraid that whoever he chose would have to fight for Helen against all the rest. To prevent this, he made them all take an oath that they would accept his decision and support the cause of Helen’s husband if any wrong were committed against him because of this marriage. The suitors, each thinking he might be the one chosen, swore the oath and promised solemnly to punish any man who interfered with the marriage. Tyndareus then chose Menelaus [men-eh-LAY-uhs], brother of Agamemnon [ag-uh-MEM-non], King of Mycenae, and made Menelaus a king of Sparta, too. Meanwhile, Aphrodite led Paris directly to Sparta. Menelaus and Helen received the Trojan Prince graciously. They trusted him so completely that Menelaus went off on an expedition to Crete, leaving his wife to entertain their guest. The ties between host and guest among the Greeks were sacred, but Paris violated that trust, with the help of Aphrodite, who turned her arts on Helen and made her fall madly in love with the boy. When Menelaus got back he found his guest gone and his wife with him. Here the oath and pact of the suitors went into effect. The brother of the injured husband, King Agamemnon of Mycenae, as commander in chief, was able to rally nearly all of the Greek kings to bring Helen back. Agamemnon gathered together hundreds of ships and set sail for Troy. The ships carried many men brave in battle and some wise in counsel. Chief among them was Achilles [uh-KILLeez], the greatest warrior and champion of all the Greeks. The Greek kings and army were strong, but so were the defenders of Troy. King Priam and Queen Hecuba [HEH-kue-buh] had many valiant sons ready both for attack and defense. But first and foremost there was Prince Hector [HEK-ter]. He was not only brave but noble ­ in every way a match for Achilles. In a sense, the whole outcome of the war hung on when, where, and

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