Iliad and Odyssey

The Iliad and the Odyssey (both pronounced with the stress on the first syllable and with short vowels, 'ILL-y-ad' (IPA: /'ɪl ɪ æd/) and 'Odd-i-si', /'ɒd ɪ sɪ/) are two epic poems probably composed in the 8th century BCE. In the ancient world it was generally believed that the two poems were the work of a single poet, Homer, a native of the Aegean island of Chios.

The events narrated in the Iliad take place during the Trojan War, i.e., the war which the Greeks waged against the city of Troy in Asia Minor. (Ilias, Ilios, and Ilion are all Greek names for the city of Troy). The Iliad (the '[story] about Troy') is about the anger of the Greek hero Achilles and its consequences. Achilles is enraged at the perceived insult inflicted on him by the Greek commander Agamemnon, who has taken from him Briseis, a young woman he had captured in an attack on a neighbouring city. He refuses to fight alongside the Greek forces or to allow the men under his command to fight. This results in a number of Greek defeats; and Agamemnon seeks to placate Achilles, but with only limited success. Achilles still refuses to fight himself, but allows his friend Patroclus to lead his men against the Trojans. Patroclus is killed in the fighting, and the next day Achilles, beside himself with grief, goes out to battle, defeats the Trojans, and kills Hector, the son of the Trojan king Priam.

The Odyssey is an account of the homeward journey of the Greek hero Odysseus after the fall of Troy. In the course of his ten-year voyage Odysseus' adventures include - amongst many others - imprisonment by the one-eyed giant Polyphemus; a visit to the goddess Circe, who turns his men into pigs; a journey to the underworld to consult the ghost of the prophet Tiresias; and seven years in thrall to the nymph Calypso. The poem ends with Odysseus' arrival at his home on the island of Ithaca and his killing of the suitors who in his absence and presumed death have been paying court to his wife Penelope.

Nowadays the word 'odyssey' (without an initial capital letter) is used more generally to mean: a long and eventful journey.

See further Homer

For some help with the pronunciation of Greek names see Pronunciation of Greek Proper Names. .