Synopsis for the Illiad

Iliad Synopsis and Summary what is the story of the iliadWhen, after nine years of fighting with the Trojans, the Greeks (Achaeans) capture two young maidens, the Achaean leader Agamemnon takes them as war prizes. He keeps Chryseis and gives Briseis to Achilles. Chryseis’s father puts out a ransom for his daughter to come home, but Agamemnon refuses. Her father is a priest of the god Apollo, so Chryseis prays to Apollo who hears her and send a plague to the Achaean camp. Many Achaeans die from this plague, Agamemnon reluctantly sends Chryseis home. He then demands that Achilles give him Briseis. Achilles is insulted and furious and refuses to fight against the Trojans anymore. He enlists the services of Zeus, king of the gods, to slant the battling against the Achaeans so that they will lose the war.

With Zeus on the side of the Trojans and Achilles refusing to fight, the Achaeans begin to suffer grave losses in the war. There are many outstanding duels between figures such as Paris and Menelaus as well as Ajax and Hector. The Achaeans are continually beaten down until finally, a nighttime mission conducted by Odysseus and Diomedes allows them to uncover Trojan war plans. As much hope as this brings to the Achaeans, the Trojans are still able to beat the Achaean soldiers back until they reach the Achaean camp.

Achilles is concerned for his military comrades, but he is still too proud to take any action to help them. He creates a plan in which his friend Patroclus will take his place in battle using Achilles’s armor. Patroclus’s presence does help the Achaean army somewhat, but it can only last for so long before the Trojans regroup. Hector kills Patroclus in battle and steals Achilles’s armor. Achilles is filled with grief and rage after learning of his dear friend’s death. He agrees at this point to mend the rift between himself and Agamemnon and rejoins the battle. Thetis travels to Mount Olympus to plead with the gods for help in battle. The god Hephaestus forges Achilles a new set of armor and Achilles leads the Achaeans into battle the following day.

Hector and his men are camping outside the walls of Troy, but the Trojan army flees in terror when they see Achilles. Achilles is emboldened by his rage and kills many Trojan warriors. He even fights the river god, Xanthus, who is angered by how many bodies Achilles has caused to fall into his river. At last, Achilles reaches Hector and the two battle. The goddess Athena intervenes and tricks Hector into turning around mid-chase. It is at this point that Achilles is able to kill Hector. He drags Hector’s body behind his chariot across the battlefield back to the Achaean camp. The triumphant Achaeans have a celebration and funeral for Patroclus. For nine days, Achilles continues to drag Hector’s body behind his chariot in circles around Patroclus’s funeral bier. Finally, the gods insist that Hector have a burial. The god Hermes escorts Hector’s father to the Achaean camp. Achilles is moved by Hector’s father’s plea to have his son’s body and relinquishes it to the Trojans. Both sides agree to a truce and the war ends with the fall of Troy