Greek Terminology of The Iliad

Aristeia  Excellence  Prowess as a warrior  Aristos – to be the best; man of excellence  Arete - excellence in battle, sport or council

Hubris  Excess pride or arrogance; this was Odysseus’ flaw at the beginning of his journey home. Why? What did he do?  And how was he changed by the end?  May show disrespect for gods and man (or their relatives)

Kleos  Glory  Often implying fame or immortality (in memory of others)  Achieved as a result of one’s time (acts of excellence meriting honor)

Polis  A social community or city-state  Troy as an example  It is a complex hierarchical society built around the notion of citizenship  Legal equality, male citizenship  Temple of Apollo, Thermon

City States - Polis

Xenia and Philos  Hospitality  Related to the tie between guests and hosts  Involves obligation and giving of gifts  Remember when this happened in The Odyssey ? Philos – friendship, used particularly to indicate family and friendship ties with those of the same group, usually implies explicit or implicit expectations of reciprocity

Time pronounced “tee-may”  Honor  Value  Public acknowledgement of one’s value, glory through awarding prizes  Acclaim for achieving excellence in battle, sport of council  Personal time can conflict with the time of one’s community

Epic Poem a LONG narrative poem (it tells a story) on a great and serious subject that -is told in an elevated, formal style (fancy words, very serious, almost ceremonial) - has a heroic or quasi-divine character on whose actions depend the fate of something huge like a nation or the whole human race or the universe.

 Traditional epics developed from the Oral Tradition, which means historical and legendary tales passed down through generations of story-telling.  They are often during a period of expansion and warfare.  Classical Epic poems: the Illiad, the Odyssey; Anglo- Saxon epic: Beowulf  Later ones written in deliberate imitation of those above: Virgil’s Aeneid, Milton’s Paradise Lost

There are all sorts of rules/conventions these types of tales must follow:  hero has to be of great national or cosmic importance. In the Greek ones, he is usually related to the gods somehow (Achilles, Aeneas)  the setting must be VAST. So the hero will often go on a long journey that takes years, during which he visits many different lands.  There must be superhuman deeds in battle (Achilles, Odysseus, Beowulf)  Gods and/or supernatural folks take an active interest or even participate and offer advice

All of the previous traits are part of the archetypal hero’s journey, which you should already know. The most important ones for our purpose: the hero has to have a “descent into darkness,” which in the Greek Tales usually means a trip to the Underworld; he also must grow as a character during this journey and return home changed. Odysseus learns from his adventures. He had to experience all these things to become who he is. As Tennyson puts Odysseus’ thoughts, “Much have I seen and known…and drunk delight of battle with my peers, far on the ringing plains of windy Troy. I am a part of all that I have met;”

Rules for the Writing Style  narrator begins with an invocation to the muse. He’s asking for inspiration so he can tell his tale better. There are 9 muses; one of them (Calliope) is the muse of epic poetry.  story begins in medias res, in the middle of the action, and then the narrative has flashbacks to catch up to where you began, and then it moves on from there.

Other Elements of Style That You’ll Notice:  Epics reflect the important conventions of their time, like the importance of the patriarchal lineage (who’s your daddy?) or xenia, Greek hospitality  Because these stories were performed, there are lots of repetitive clues and wordplay to keep the characters straight, like Homeric Epithets (Grey- eyed goddess…what else?)