Critically evaluate Homer's Iliad as a primary epic - CU English Honours Notes
Iliad as a primary epic
An epic has
been generally described as a long narrative poem, on a grand scale, about the
deeds of warriors and heroes, kings and Gods. It is majestic both in theme
and style. It is a polygonal heroic story incorporating myth, legend, folktale,
religion, and historical events of national or universal significance,
involving action of broad sweep and grandeur. Epics are mostly of national
significance in the sense that they embody the history and aspirations of a
nation in a lofty or grandiose manner. An epic is a cultural mirror with a
fixed ideological stance, often reflecting the best and the noblest principles
of a nation’s ethos.
“The Iliad” is
an epic poem by the ancient Greek poet Homer, which recounts some of the significant
events of the final weeks of the Trojan War and the Greek siege of the city of
Troy. Written in the mid-8th Century BC, “The Iliad” is usually considered to
be the earliest work in the whole Western literary tradition, and one of the
best known and loved stories of all time. Through its portrayal of the epic
subject matter of the Trojan War, the stirring scenes of bloody battle, the
wrath of Achilles and the constant interventions of the gods, it explores
themes of glory, wrath, homecoming and fate, and has provided subjects and
stories for many other later Greek, Roman and Renaissance writings.
Epic poetry
falls into two distinct categories: primary and secondary epic. The Iliad
belongs to the former. A primary epic begins in medias res. In Medias Res
is Latin for "it begins in the middle of things" and then has
flashbacks to explain action leading up to that point. In The Iliad, for example, the story begins
after the war between the combined forces of Greece and the forces of the
walled city of Troy and their allies has been in progress for nearly ten years.
Like other
primary epics, The Iliad also begins with an invocation to a god or
gods. The poet, who in those days would have been reciting the epic to an
audience, say, at a banquet, began by calling for a blessing--for a god or gods
to attend this effort of his. They probably literally believed that the called
upon god or muse came into them and, therefore, that it was not the poet who
recited, but the god in the poet's body. Poet's, then, were considered very
sacred, for they could call down a god and have the god in them, at least
temporarily. We continue to have remnants of this belief, of course. We often
think of poets or of any true artist as being different or touched by a special
hand. In the case of the beginning of THE ILIAD, the poet says something
like
"Sing, goddess of epic poetry, the story of the anger of Achilles."
In a primary epic the theme is usually stated at the beginning of the epic,
because these poems are so long and so complex, although the basic stories
would have been familiar to the audiences, the poet would begin with announcing
what the recitation was to be about. The theme or central interest of The Iliad
is the wrath of Achilles, which is stated at the beginning of the poem.
A primary epic
usually has many epithets. These epithets are re-namings of the characters,
gods, or things by stock phrases. An example is the re-naming of Agamemnon and
Menelaus as "Atreus' two sons" or "the twin eagles." It is
important for us to notice these epithets, first, because they add description,
and second, because we get confused about who is doing what if do not recognize
the epithets as well as the names.
In a primary
epic, there are catalogues of things and characters; there are many lists, both
long and short. Just as the Old Testament has catalogues of genealogies--you
remember all those begets--just so do ancient epics keep track of the lists of
history. In one book of THE ILIAD, for example, there is a list of the
ships that sailed from Greece to Troy.
There are long
and formal speeches by many characters. You will not have any trouble spotting
these. Sometimes they happen in the heat of battle and other seemingly
inappropriate times, but more often they occur at various kinds of meetings, as
in an assembly of the chieftains.
In a primary
epic, Gods intervene in the affairs of human beings in these stories. For
example, in Book I of THE ILIAD, Achilles, getting very angry at Agamemnon,
starts to pull out his dagger to kill him. Suddenly, a goddess rushes to the
side of Achilles to warn him not to be so hasty.
The setting of
an epic is vast. The setting of The Iliad is also vast encompassing
both the Greek and Trojan islands.
Epics use the
epic simile. An epic simile is a long comparison of two things that are in
different classes. They make vivid an image and describe or clarify. An example
can be found in the long comparison of Paris Alexander, a Trojan prince, to a
fine horse that has been manger fed a long time in a stable. When released to
pasture, it races out with quick, sure strides, neck arched, knees high, mane
flowing, proud it its beauty and strength, to race to drink from a clear
flowing stream. So Paris ran to battle.
The heroes
embody the values of their civilization. The physical strength and stamina of
Achilles, for example, is made much of. The lifting of the latch of the door of
his stockade requires the strength of three soldiers, but Achilles lifts it
with one hand. His spear, thrown so lightly, is eighteen feet long. He is a
power machine. Today, we all know, a tiny female can have more killing power
than Achilles ever dreamed of. We have created compensations--weapons.
Thus, we see that as an epic The Iliad fulfills almost all the requirements of a primary epic.
