Literature and history

come. Hello and welcome to literature and history.

Episode 10, Homer's Gods.

This is the second of three episodes on the ancient Greek epic poem about the Trojan War,

Homer's Iliad, most likely set down in its current form sometime in the late 700s,

BCE.

In this episode we'll cover the bloody sword-clashing helmet smashing center of the

Iliad books 9 through 16 and then I'll talk a little bit about Homer's

gods how we perceive them as modern readers,

and the ancient Greek reactions to the Homeric Pantheon.

If you're just jumping in and want to hear the story from the beginning. The previous program,

episode 9 introduces all the major characters, lays out the basic situation of the

war, and tells the story of the first eight books. Otherwise, here's a recap on the essentials. The Trojan

war is in its ninth year. The Greeks have gone from their homeland in the West

across the Aegean to the east, to modern day Turkey,

to recover the great Greek king Agamemnon's sister-in-law, Helen.

The whole epic starts with a very long scene of arrogant King Agamemnon making a bad tactical move.

To prove how important he was egotistical decisions. The Greek champion Achilles was heartbroken and furious and said

he'd no longer fight for the Greeks. Achilles even went to his mother, a sea nymph, called

Thetis, and asked her to help him make Agamem non-pay for the king's

pride and selfishness.

Achilles' mother then went to Zeus and persuaded Zeus to punish the Greeks. The Greeks to

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