7. A prologue:
the judgment of paris
and the abduction of
helen
8. Ryuzaki: Just like any good story, the Trojan War began with a prologue. After all, every war starts with a
reason.
9. Raito: That’s right. It all began at the marriage ceremony of Peleus and Thetis. All except the Goddess of
Discord named Eris was allowed to enter by Hermes. Out of anger, she threw her gift, a
golden apple with the words “For the Fairest” inscribed on it. This apple became a source
of conflict between the three goddesses: Hera, Athena and Aphrodite.
10. Ryuzaki: All the three felt that each of them deserved the apple. None of the gods wanted to judge because
choosing one would ensure the wrath of the other two. Zeus then decreed that this quarrel
over the golden apple was to be settled by a mortal man named Paris, living the life of a
shepherd at that time, unaware that his true parents were the rulers of the mighty city
of Troy.
11. Raito: Hermes told Paris about the conflict of the three goddesses, and declared about the instruction of
Zeus about choosing. The three goddesses appeared naked to him, but he was still unable
to choose. Finally, they bribed him: Hera offered him control over Asia and political power;
Athena offered him wisdom, skill in battle, and the abilities of a great warrior, while
Aphrodite offered the love of the most beautiful women in the world.
12. Ryuzaki: Paris awarded the golden apple to Aphrodite, and after several adventures, he returned to Troy,
where he was recognized by his royal family. At that time, the most beautiful woman
is named Helen of Sparta. Because of Aphrodite's power, Helen would do whatever Paris
wanted, thus when he arrived at Sparta, he soon persuaded her to leave her husband and
return with him to Troy, which she did.
13. Raito: Peleus and Thetis bore a son, who was named Achilles, and he was destined to play a major role in
the Trojan War. But there are some noteworthy stories of his life before the war began:
first is the scene by Rubens showing the popular legend that his mother Thetis dipped him
into the river Styx, which made him invulnerable to harm, except for the spot on his heel
where she held him, hence the term 'Achilles' heel'.
14. Ryuzaki: Achilles' life was spent on the island of Scyros, where he dressed and lived a girl among girls. This
was because his mother had some knowledge of the future and knew he would die
young if he joined the war, and had hidden him there to prevent that from happening.
15. Ryuzaki: But the Greeks were suspicious, for they had reason to believe he was there somewhere among the
girls of Scyros, and Odysseus devised a way to expose him: a chest of gifts was offered to
the young ladies, but included among the feminine things was a set of armor and weapons.
Then they noticed how one 'girl' was fascinated by only those items, and thus his disguise
was exposed. .
16. Raito: After she left with Paris, Helen's husband Menelaus turned to his brother Agamemnon, the powerful
ruler of Mycenae. Agamemnon had then called out to all the cities and regions of Greece
to supply men and ships for a mass attack against Troy unless they returned Helen. There
Achaean kings and princes were the past suitors of Helen, and upon Helen's marriage to
Menelaus had taken the oath to come to Menelaus' aid in case any harm befell Helen.
17. Ryuzaki: The place for the rendezvous was a small coastal city called Aulis, and it was there that Agamemnon
incurred the wrath of the goddess Artemis by killing one of her sacred deer. The angry
goddess would not allow the proper winds to blow to sail to Troy unless Agamemnon was
punished by sacrificing his own daughter Iphigeneia. Reluctantly, Agamemnon sent to
Mycenae for Iphigeneia to come to Aulis, but only after her arrival does she discover the
real reason she had been summoned there.
18.
19. Before we continue, I shall
Introduce to you another hero of the
Trojan War. Hector was the Prince of
Troy, the son of King Priam and heir
to the Trojan throne. He is known as
one of the greatest warriors in all of
antiquity, the first among Troy, and
the leader of the city's defenses
during one of the most epic wars
ever fought. Throughout his life he
was admired by friend and foe alike
for his courage, his strength, his
nobility and his devotion not only to
his people, but to his family, his
friends and his deities.
20. According to the Iliad, Hector did
not approve of war between
the Greeks and the Trojans.
For ten years the Achaeans besieged
Troy and their allies in the east.
Hector commanded the Trojan army,
with a number of subordinates
including Polydamas, and his
brothers Deiphobus, Helenus and
Paris. However, by all accounts
Hector was the best warrior the
Trojans and all their allies could
field, and his fighting prowess was
admired by Greeks and his own
people alike.
21. Ryuzaki: Calchas had prophesized that the first Achaean to land on Troy would be the first one to die.
Therefore everyone hesitated to land on Troy when they reached the shores. Eventually,
Protesilaus of the Phylaceans landed first and Achilles was the second to set foot on the
shores of Troy. Protesilaus and Achilles killed several Trojans upon landing, but then
Protesilaus was killed by Hector, the son of Priam, the King of Troy and the brother of Paris.
22. Raito: Achilles was amongst the most aggressive of the Achaeans and he raided, looted and conquered
several of the outer territories of Troy. The war lingered on and on, without stopping. Plots
within plots and politics ruled the scene. The soldiers were tired at the end of the nine
years and wanted to go back home and were on the verge of mutiny. It was only because of
the army of Achilles, were they forced to stay back.
23. Ryuzaki: However, towards the end of the almost mutiny, Agamemnon took Briseis, the concubine of Achilles.
Achilles therefore refused to participate in the war. The Achaeans were relatively
successful even after Achilles withdrew from the war. There was a fight between Menalaus
and Paris, which ended with Aphrodite snatching the almost defeated Paris from the
battlefield.
24. Raito: Diomedes, an Achaean hero, won repute amongst his people by killing Pandaros, a Trojan hero,
nearly wounding Aeneas and also for wounding the gods Aphrodite and Ares. But then the
Trojans were enraged enough to drive the Achaeans back to their camp. The next day, the
Trojans entered the Achaean camp and were about the burn down the Achaean ships.
25. Ryuzaki: The Achaeans then began to request Achilles to return into the fight. Finally, Patroclus, a relative of
Achilles, went into the war wearing Achilles' clothes and armor. He was killed by Hector
who thought he was killing Achilles. Enraged by the death of Patroclus, Achilles joined the
war again with one goal: to kill Hector.
26. Raito: Hector now wears Achilles' arms, so Thetis asks Hephaestus to make a new set for her son. Achilles
receives his new armor and summons the Achaeans to assembly in preparation for
combat. He announces the end of his anger, and urges the men to marshal for battle at
once.
27. Ryuzaki: Zeus assembles the gods on Olympus and gives them leave to rejoin the fighting, in part to keep
Achilles from storming the city walls contrary to his destiny. Achilles' savage slaughter of
enemy warriors intensifies until he literally chokes the River Skamandros with their
corpses. Up to now the gods have left Achilles on his own, but when he calls out for help
against this elemental force of nature, Hera sends Hephaestus to overcome the flooding
river with fire.
28. Raito: Gripped by fear, Hector takes flight and Achilles chases him in a grim life or death race around the
circuit of the city. When Athena appears near Hector in the form of his brother, he takes
courage. As Priam and Hekabe look on in horror, Achilles rushes upon Hector and drives
the spear though the soft part of his neck, the only spot left vulnerable by his own glorious
armor. But after killing him, Achilles was still enraged, and abused the body of Hector by
dragging it behind his chariot around the walls of Troy.
29. Ryuzaki: Hector's father Priam, the king of Troy, came to the tent of Achilles to beg for the return of his son's
body. Achilles initially ignored his request, not even looking at Priam. But finally, out of
pity he released his anger and allowed Priam to take the body back to Troy for burial, the
concluding scene of the Iliad. The fall of Troy was inevitable now that Hector was dead.
37. Raito: Helenus left the city but was captured by Odysseus. Helenus was the son of Priam and Hecuba, but
he was also a seer, like his sister, Cassandra. The Greeks somehow managed to persuade
the seer to reveal the weakness of Troy. The Greeks learnt from Helenus, that Troy would
not fall, while the Palladium, image or statue of Athena, remained within Troy's walls. One
night, Odysseus and Diomedes slipped into Troy and stole the Palladium.
38. Ryuzaki: Still seeking to gain entrance into Troy, clever Odysseus (some say with the aid of Athena) ordered a
large wooden horse to be built. Its insides were to be hollow so that soldiers could hide
within it.
39. Raito: Once the statue had been built by the artist Epeius, a number of the Greek warriors, along with
Odysseus, climbed inside. The rest of the Greek fleet sailed away, so as to deceive the
Trojans. A Greek spy, Sinon, was deliberately left behind, who would try to convince the
Trojans that the Greeks had sailed home, and that Trojans should bring the horse inside
their walls. It is also stated that the horse was a gift for the goddess Athena.
40. Ryuzaki: The Trojan seers, Cassandra and Laocoön (Laocoon) tried to warn them not to listen to Sinon, but a
sea-monster send by Poseidon, killed Laocoön and his two sons. The sea god's intervention
had convinced the Trojans that they had won the war, so they brought the wooden horse
within Troy's walls.
41. Raito: The Trojans decided to keep the horse and turned to a night of mad revelry and celebration. They
feasted, drank hard, and fell asleep.
42. Ryuzaki: During the night, the Achaeans stationed inside the horse opened the trap door, crept down,
opened the gates, and let in their countrymen who had only pretended to slip away. The
Achaeans then torched Troy, killing the men and taking the women prisoner. Helen, now
middle aged, but still a beauty, was reunited with her husband Menelaus.
43. Raito: And thus ended the tale of the Trojan War.
44. Raito: And...That’s it! We hope you enjoyed the report!
45. Ryuzaki: Yes. For comments and inquires, please tell G#11. After all, this is her report.
