Week 2
Hour 1 Dorm Room. August 31st, 2018. 3–4 p.m.
Today, I attempted to read books one through three. I was not as engaged with the text as I should have been. For starters, I was trying to get caught up in class since I was just transferred into Greek Literature. Naturally, this caused me to believe I could do it all at once without much thought. I quickly learned that this was not the case, and that I really needed to pace myself and pay a lot of attention to the text. Before I discovered that I could change the format of the text and remove the Greek to English translation, I had a very hard time staying focused. Once I discovered that (which was about thirty minutes into the readings — I should have really became comfortable with the site before I began), I had an easier time reading the text. I read book one and was very confused, since it seemed to dive right into the story and not give much backround. I continued to read book two, but I was not as focused and attentive to the text as I should have been. I decided that I would reread the books tomorrow, so I can experience the book with a better focus.
Hours 2–4 Dorm room. September 1st, 2018. 10 a.m.to 11 p.m. (Book 2 )
I was really intrigued by Agamemnon’s choice to tell the soldiers that Zeus said that it was best to retreat to Greece, despite the fact that Zeus told him to continue fighting since victory was in the horizon. At first, his sentiment confused me since I did not understand why he would do that; as a leader, I would have expected him to be much more encouraging and enthusiastic knowing that one of the mightiest gods of Olympus told him that his army would win the war. I decided to read about it on sparknotes so I could comprehend his motivations behind doing so. Once I found out that he was testing his soldiers, I began to wonder what *exactly* he expected of them. If I was a leader of an army that fought for around nine years with no clear victory in sight, I would expect my troops to feel jaded. Honestly, I would have expected them to feel ready to go home before the first year of fighting was even accomplished. I feel like he should not have tested his soldiers like at all and just proceeded to continue fighting, especially since he knew victory was coming.
However, I do believe that Agamemnon’s decision to deceive his troops was one of the most important parts of the story so far. This action alone illustrated to the readers how the Greeks were not very confident in their abilities and were very unmotivated. It wasn’t until Odysseus begins to criticize them for being ready to leave and then encourages them to continue fighting that the soldiers are motivated to continue their efforts. I believe that the biggest takeaway from this interaction between Agamemnon, Odysseus, and his soldiers is to never give up since you never know how close you are to overcoming an obstacle, which is an important lesson for everyone to learn.
That interaction also illustrated the apparent disconnect Agamemnon had toward his army. Since he did not notice how unmotivated and tired his army was until he told them they were going home and saw how readily they began to leave, I doubt he was as effective of a leader as he may have thought he was. An effective leader is one who pays attention to the needs of the group and continues to motivate them, not one who lets them suffer in silence. Although Agamemnon was involuntarily put into the role of a leader due to his royal nature, it is evident that he is not the person who is best fit for the role. I am interested to see how (and if) his leadership capabilities are tested in the upcoming books.
Dorm Room. 7 p.m. to 8 p.m (Book 3)
I really enjoyed reading book three. I think Homer did a good job at describing the nature of Helen and Alexandros’s relationship and their individual personalities. Alexandros seems very confident in the beginning as he challeneges anyone to combat. Once he sees Menelaos step up, he quickly cowers in fear and it is only after his brother chastises him that he proceeds with the fight. Helen later notes how he said that he could beat Menelaos, which proves that his “confidence” is actually insecurity driven arrogance. The nature of their relationship is slightly confusing as well. Helen seems to not like Alexandros very much, wishing that he died during combat with Menelaos. Alexandros is somehow still filled with passion for her and they both decide to sleep together despite the fact that the soldiers are looking for him. The fact that they slept together despite Helen admitting that she wished that he died is something that truly baffles me and shows how much of an…interesting dymanic they have in their relationship.
Hours 5–7 September 2nd, 2018. Dorm Room. 10 a.m-12 p.m. (Books 4+5)
Book four was a good read. It was interesting to see how Agamemnon reacted when he saw that his brother was injured. It seemed like he was guilty and felt responsible for it, saying that it was his blood he sealed in oath. I felt like the readers saw a less prideful and more soft side of Agamemnon, which was slightly refereshing. Book five was sightly confusing for me, especially in the middle of the book. There was a lot going on and sometimes I became lost and had no idea what *exactly* was happening besides a lot of fighting. I had to reread book 5 in order to get a better understanding, and that was when it finally clicked in my mind that the gods interfered with the war according to which side their children fought (ex. Aphrodite aided the Trojans since her son Aineias was on the Trojan’s side). That realization helped me understand the story better since I could not understand how the gods chose which side to aid.
Questions (Books 2–4)
- I personally feel like Agamemnon isn’t fit to be a leader, so I would advise him to step down and have someone else who is more qualified (like Menelaos considering that this whole was is because of the fact that Alexandros stole Menelaos wife, Helen, away from him) lead the army. Since Agamemnon is so prideful, I doubt he would take me seriously or he would be very offended that I insulted his leadership abilities and yell at me.
- I can see that Agamemnon feels a mix of guilt and responsibility after his brother is wounded. I can also sense that he is very scared of losing his brother, who is not only a great fighter but also a big help to the Achaians. He also seems to feel a sort of vengeance (before he realizes that the wound is not fatal) toward the Trojan forces, stating that they must “pay a great penalty” and that their wives and children wil basically not be exempt from revenge.
- The love between Paris and Helen is not very relatable to me. Their love seems very odd, since I am not sure if she even “loves” him as much as he does to her. I get the feeling that Helen is not very happy and is only with Paris since she doesn’t have much of a choice. Paris’ love towards Helen seems overwhelmingly passionate and intense. I, personally, cannot relate to having a passionate or one sided love affair.
(Book 5)
- Diomedes was granted a lot of strength and power by Athene and used that strength to aid the Achaian forces. Using that power, he kills many Trojans and also manages to injure some gods. Athene only gives him permission to hurt Aphrodite but once other gods become involved, he ends up hurting Ares as well. Homer emphasizes his greatness by going into long accounts of who Diomedes injures and how. He also mentions the interactions between Diomedes and Athene throughout the book. Basically, much of the book is focused on the actions of Diomedes and not the war as a whole. This narration is similar to many action movies today, considering that most action movies have a protagonist in which the whole movie revolves around. When the movie is not directly showing the protagonists, there is always something going on that directly involves them. In this sense, Diomedes is the protagonist of Book 5 since much of the attention is on him and even when Homer turns the dialogue from the battlfield to the gods and goddesses, it involves Diomedes in some way.