The Iliad

Books 1-4

Reading Check

1. He has arrived to pay a ransom for his daughter Chryseis. (Book 1)

2. “the best of the Achaeans” (Book 1)

3. Athena (Book 1)

4. Paris (Book 3)

5. They sacrifice a lot to him. (Book 4)

Short Answer

1. Achilles becomes angry that Agamemnon takes Briseis from him. (Book 1)

2. Ideas about honor drive many of the characters’ decisions. As an example, students could list Agamemnon’s sense of honor in being the leader of the Greek army, Achilles’s sense of honor being diminished by his prize being taken, Chryses’s honor being disrespected when the Achaeans at first refuse to return his daughter, Odysseus’s rhetoric of disgrace in convincing the Achaeans to stay, and Hector’s insults toward Paris. (Books 1-4)

3. Helen’s leaving her husband and coming to Troy sparked the war. (Book 3)

4. Since Paris disappeared in the middle of the duel, Agamemnon declares Menelaus the leader by default, meaning that the Trojans have to return Helen. (Book 3)

Books 5-8

Reading Check

1. He can see all of the gods on the battlefield.