The Iliad Book III, VI, XII

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The Iliad Book III, VI, XII

• ??? Cecilia H. C. Liu
• ??????????? ????
• Spring 2005

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The abduction of Helen. On the left, Aeneas, the
Trojan hero, leads the procession, holding his
shield. Next, Paris leads Helen away, grasping
her by the hand in the manner seen on the
preceding vase.
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• This gesture is typical on wedding vases, where
  the groom leads the bride away. Paris' shield
  hangs on the wall behind him. Note the chair leg
  on the far left, indicating that this is an
  interior scene. Helen occupies the center of the
  composition, and she is crowned by Eros (Love)
  flying by her head and Peitho (Persuasion) behind
  her. To Peitho's right stands Aphrodite, holding
  out her arms.

(The identity of the boy on the right is
unknown.)
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Paris
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• How does this scene compare with the seduction
  scene in Iliad Book III? Think about the
  differences and similarities in details, and also
  about what you can infer about Helen's attitude
  here from the character of her representation.

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Paris and Helen, with Eros between
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On the other side of this same vase, the meeting
of Menelaus and Helen after the fall of Troy is
shown.

• As in many representations of this scene,
  Menelaus draws his sword, intending to kill
  Helen. But, according to the legend, he caught
  sight of her breast and dropped his weapon.

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Two sides of this same vase
Full vase from Margaret R. Scherer, The Legends
of Troy in Art and Literature London Phaidon,
1963. 23, 98
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Color representation of Paris abducting Helen
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Color representation of Menelaus attacking Helen
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Study Questions

• What is Helen's status and position among the
  Trojans? Consider both what others say about her
  and what she says about herself in Books III and
  in Book VI.
• What do you think is the relationship between the
  duel at the beginning of Book III and the
  love-episode at the end of it? Think about the
  differences and analogies between love and war,
  and about how women figure in each of these
  enterprises in the Iliad.
• What is the relationship between Helen and Paris
  like? How does it compare with that between
  Achilles and Briseis or Agamemnon and Chryseis?
• What does Menelaus say about Helen in the course
  of Book III? How does this compare with what
  Paris says about her or to her?

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Hector conversing with Andromache before
departing for battle. (Bk. VI)
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• To the left of the couple are Helen and Paris,
  and to the right is Hector's squire, Kebriones,
  mounted on one horse and leading another for
  Hector. Paris is wearing winged shoes, presumably
  to indicate his arrival from the battlefield as
  described in Book III.

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Detail of the Panel Helen, Paris, Andromache,
Hector, Kebriones. Horses and bird
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Helen Paris Andromache
Hector
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• How does this scene correspond with the departure
  of Hector as depicted in Book VI?
• What is the effect of juxtaposing the two
  couples, and of collapsing together scenes from
  Books III and VI?
• What do you think about the differences in the
  representations of Helen and Andromache?

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• What are the various classes and groups of Trojan
  women to whom you are introduced in the course of
  Book VI? Who are they? What do they do? What is
  their relationship to men in the poem? What is
  their role and function as members of Trojan
  society?
• How would you characterize the relationship
  between Hector and Andromache? Try to think
  about it from the perspective of what you know so
  far about Homeric society, which you have seen
  both from the perspective of the Greek camp and
  the Trojan city.

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• What is the function of Skamandrios (Astyanax) in
  the scene between Hector and Andromache? Why do
  you think he is brought to the wall? Would the
  relationship between Hector and Andromache be
  different if they were not the parents of
  Astyanax?
• Why do you think the meeting between Hector and
  Andromache takes place at the walls of Troy
  rather than in their home? Where does Hector
  encounter the other members of his family whom he
  meets in the course of Book VI? Is there any
  significance to their locations?

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Achilles about to drag the body of Hector around
the walls of Troy. (Bk. XII)
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(No Transcript)
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• As he mounts his chariot he looks back at Priam
  and Hecuba, and Hecuba raises her hand to her
  head in a gesture of mourning. Iris rushes
  toward Achilles, but the standing charioteer is
  already urging the horses on. How does this
  representation differ from the scene narrated in
  the Iliad? On the right, the image of Patroclus
  leaps from his tomb. What do you think this
  means and what do you think it adds to the
  composition?

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Main Panel Priam and Hekabe, Achilles and
Hektor
Boston 63.473 Attic black figure hydria
archaic 520-510 bce
http//www.perseus.tufts.edu/
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Study Questions Book XXII, Book XXIV lines
850-912

• Compare and contrast the appeals to Hector by
  Priam and Hecuba in the opening section of Book
  XXII. How do they differ and how are they
  similar? Does the order in which they appear make
  any difference to their content? How does what
  each says help to characterize him or her, and
  how does it help you to understand the character
  of Hector?

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• Consider the lamentations of Priam and Hecuba on
  pages 555-56. What does each say and how does
  that compare with the earlier appeal of each?
  Does what each says here cause you to change your
  mind in any way about your answer to the first
  question above?
• Consider Andromache's lament and the introduction
  to it on pages 556-58. What does this passage
  contribute to the characterization of Andromache
  and to your understanding of her relationship
  with Hector?

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• Compare and contrast the lamentations of
  Andromache, Hecuba and Helen at the end of Book
  XXIV. How does each one add to the
  characterization of the figure in the Iliad?
  Do you find out anything here about any of them
  that you didn't know earlier? If so, what do you
  think is the significance of the postponement of
  the information? If not, what do you think the
  point is of repeating here, at this point in the
  poem, details that were given earlier?

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Images Reference

• Perseus Digital Library--Classical
  http//www.perseus.tufts.edu/cache/perscoll_Greco-
  Roman.html