A Catalogue of Bits

(more than) 83 Posts on the Iliad

When I started posting on the Iliad last year, I was a bit unsure I would finish the project of a few posts per book, designed both for first time and experienced readers of the Iliad. Once I finished the project in April, this year, I found myself a little worn out and at a loss about what to do next. I am happy with my plan to post less, but to emphasize new or less well-known scholarship on the poem. But I also don’t want to just abandon 83 posts!

I was chatting with my friend (and fellow Homerist) Justin Arft last week and he compared Painful Signs (favorably) to introductory books on epic and suggested I could repackage this project as a book. This compliment made me remember that books can be a pain and that they can’t be updated easily. Also, I wanted this project to be open and available to anyone interested in the Iliad.

One of the problems with the post format, however, is that it is hard to follow in a linear fashion or to find something specifically. So, I have created this ‘table of contents’ below. I will update posts periodically as new things occur to me, as friends suggest changes, or when typos become two hard to ignore. I have put this “table of contents” on sententiae antiquae as well, to provide a more stable home for the list.

If additional posts are desired for any given book; or, if there is a subset of Homeric scholarship you’d like covered, don’t hesitate to let me know.

As always, this project is free. But any funds it produces are sent monthly to Classics-adjacent non-profits.

Introductory Material

1. All the (Epic) Rage: Free Tools for Reading Homer’s Iliad

2. Polysymphonic: How to Listen to Homer

3. The Plan, and Imperfect Translations: What the substack is for and how it will proceed

4. 99 Homeric Problems: On the ‘Homeric Question’ and other similar issues

5. Reading and Teaching Homer: Some practical advice on encountering Homer alone or in the classroom

6. Major Themes for Reading and Teaching the Iliad: A summary of five themes emphasized in the substack: (1) Politics, (2) Heroism; (3) Gods and Humans); (4) Family & Friends; (5) Narrative Traditions. 

Iliad 1

1. The Politics of Rage: Some Reading Guidelines for Iliad 1: Politics

2. Speaking of Centaurs: Paradeigmatic Problems in Iliad 1: On paradeigmata in book 1 and the Iliad

3. Prophet of Evils: Reading Iphigenia Into and Out of the Iliad: A first post on the Iliad’s relationship with other myths

4. Managing Achilles: Narrativization and Mind Reading in Iliad 1: A discussion of Athena’s conversation with Achilles as he considers killing Agamemnon

Iliad 2

1. From Poetics to Politics: Repairing Achaean Politics in Book 2 of the Iliad: Introduction to Iliad 2, the Diapeira and the Catalog of Ships

2. Thersites’ Body: Description, Characterization, and Physiognomy in Iliad 2: Disability Studies and Homer; Politics

3. Testing the Greeks (And their Audience): returning to Iliad 2: A deeper dive into Agamemnon’s test at the beginning of book 2 using speech act theory

Iliad 3

1. (Re-)Starting the Trojan War: Iliad 3 and Helen as Our Guide: the Iliad and narrative traditions; Helen and the teikhoskopia

2. Heroic Appearances: Or, What Did Helen Look Like?: Physiognomy, part 2; Helen; Beauty

3. Suffering So Long for this Woman!: Various Ancient Attitudes towards Helen: More On Helen

4. Long Ago, Far Away: The Iliad and the So-Called Epic Cycle After the Canon: The Epic Cycle, Neoanalysis, Star Wars, and Homer

5. The Dance-off of the Pygmies and Cranes: A discussion of the first simile in Iliad 3

Iliad 4

1. Backing Up the Future: Characterization and Rivalry in Iliad 4: The Epipolesis, Agamemnon, and Rivalry

2. Better than our Fathers!: Theban Epic Fragments and the Homeric Iliad: Inter-mythical rivalries; Agamemnon, Diomedes and Glaukos;

3. The Rage of Hera in a Dehumanized World: The Divine Council at the Beginning of Iliad 4: Structure of Iliad 4; Zeus’ plans; vengeance and theology

Iliad 5

1. Seeing (and Wounding) the Gods: Reading Iliad 5: On Theomachy, Homeric Gods, Aristeia, and Diomedes as a character

2. Two Ways to Decline Zeus: Paradigm, Text, and Story in Iliad 5: Dione’s story in Iliad 5; Homeric Language, previous myths; paradeigmata again

3. Does Homer Make Sh*t up?: Aphrodite’s Mom in Iliad 5 On innovation and tradition in Homer in generally; a discussion of Dione as Aphrodite’s mother in book 5

Iliad 6

1. Structure and Stories: Reading Iliad 6: Killings and Homeric ‘obituaries’; the structure of Book 6

2. War Crimes: Iliad 6, Infanticide, and the Mykonos Vase: Homeric Violence; Child killing; enslavement; sexual violence

3. Mind Reading and Stolen Wits: The Encounter of Diomedes and Glaukos in Iliad 6

4. No Space for Dionysus: Story and Meaning in Iliad 6

Iliad 7

1. Divine Plots and Human Plans: Reading Iliad 7: Homeric decision making and free will (“double determination”)

2. Erasing the Past: The Achaean Wall and Homeric Fame: Time and permanence in Homer; The Greek Fortifications and Fame

3. Give Helen Back!: Trojan Politics in Book 7 of the Iliad: Trojan Politics and the assemblies of Book 7

4. Ashamed and Afraid: The Rhetoric of Kleos in Iliad 7

Iliad 8

1. Tyranny and the Plot: Introducing Iliad 8: Zeus’ control over the plot of the poem; performance divisions for the epic

2. Wishing the Impossible: Hektor in Iliad 8: Hektor’s character in the Iliad (part 1)

3. Stranded in Iliad 8 with Nestor and Diomedes: On Reading the Iliad and Neoanalysis: Neoanalysis and other models for reading the Iliad

4. Talking to Horses: Characterizing Hektor in Iliad 8

Iliad 9

1. Life, Death, and all the Words Between: Iliad 9 and the Language of Achilles: Achilles: Character Language; Heroism

2. Two Is Company! The Duals of Iliad 9 and Homeric Interpretation: Duals; Homeric Innovation and traditional language

3. Achilles Sings the Hero Within: Stories and Narrative Blends in Iliad 9: Paradeigmata, again; cognitive approaches to reading the Iliad

4. The Purpose of Speech: Dissent and Freedom of Speech in the Achaean Assembly in Iliad 9

Iliad 10

1. Night Raids and Gimmick Episodes: Learning to Love Iliad 10: The Doloneia and the authenticity of Book 10; ‘Gimmick Episodes’; Television and Homer

2. Homeric Redshirts and Iliad 10: Introducing Dolon: Dolon as a character; throwaway figures; physiognomy, again; Television and Homer

3. Dolon and Achilles; Dolon AS Achilles: Politics and Iliad 10: Trojan Politics, redux; Correlations between Achilles and Dolon

4. How Could I Overlook Odysseus!? Theme and Fit in Iliad 10

Iliad 11

1. Time, Feet, and Serious Wounds: Starting to Read Iliad 11: “Monro’s law”; Diomedes’ Foot wound

2. The Beginning of His Trouble: Characterizing Achilles in Iliad 11

3. Insidious Inception?: Nestor’s Speech to Patroklos in Iliad 11: Homeric Rhetoric; Persuasion; Paradeigmata, again

4. Dawn, Reestablishing Space and Time: Beginning Iliad 11

Iliad 12

1. Looking Up and Out: Starting to Read Iliad 12: The Achaean Wall, again; Kleos; Impermanence; Bird Omens; Hektor and Polydamas; “Don’t Look Up!”

2. Why Must We Fight and Die?: Reading Sarpedon’s Speech to Glaukos in Iliad 12: Heroism; Noblesse Oblige; Kleos

3. Scarcity and the Iliad: Thinking about Similes in Book 12: Similes in Homer; Cognitive models for reading, 2

4. Hektor and the Beast: Similes in Iliad 12: More on Similes and Hektor as a trapped beast

Iliad 13

1. The Iliad‘s Longest Day: Starting to Make Sense of Book 13: Time and the Iliad; Temporal Structure; Chronology

2. Epic Narratives and their Local Sidekicks: On Cretans in Iliad 13: Epic, epichoric, and Panhellenic; Crete

3. A Heroic Tale Curtailed: Homeric Digressions and Iliad 13: Digressions/paranarratives or inset tales; Idomeneus; Kassandra

4. Poseidon, Divine Hypocrite: Impersonation and Interpretation in Iliad 13: Divine intervention, human agency, determinism, double determination

Iliad 14

1. What A Dangerous Thing to Say! Politics and Absurdity in Iliad 14: Dios Apate seduction of Zeus); Politics; Diomedes

2. Where Did Homeric Book Divisions Come From? Thinking about the thematic Unity of book 14: Book divisions, Homeric performance; textualization

3. Falling Asleep after Sex and Other Cosmic Problems: The Seduction of Zeus in Iliad 14: The Dios Apate; the Homeric Hymn to Aphrodite

4. Can’t Find a Better Plan: Agamemnon and Structural Politics in Iliad 14

Iliad 15

1. Zeus and ‘Righting’ the Divine Constitution: An Introduction to Reading Iliad 15: Divine Politics and Homeric Gods; Hesiod’s Theogony

2. Brothers, Sisters, Wives, and Divine (Dis)Order: Setting things Straight in Iliad 15: Homeric gods; Zeus and Poseidon; Successions; Politics

3. The Powerful Mind of Zeus: Revitalizing Hektor and the Iliad‘s Plot: Hektor, Zeus, and the Plot of the Iliad

4. Anger and Rage Among the Corpses: On the Doublet χόλος καὶ μῆνις in Iliad 15: Doublets, the plot, Ares and Achilles

Iliad 16

1. There’s Plenty of Crying in Epic: Introducing Book 16: Achilles and Patroklos (Patrochilles); surrogacy

2. Even Zeus Suffers: The Death of Sarpedon and the Beginning of Universal Human Rights: Death and Funeral rites; Mortals and gods

3. Merely the Third To Kill Me: Hektor, Patroklos, and the End of Iliad 16: Apostrophe; prophecy; narrative traditions

4. Crying Like a Girl: Similes at the Beginning of Book 16: Similes, again; reception, women, misogyny

Iliad 17

1. Rescuing the Bod(ies): Thinking about the Epic Cycle, Neoanalysis, and Introducing Iliad17: The Epic Cycle, again. Neoanalysis reanalyzed

2. A Doublet Disposed: Time Travel Paradoxes and the Death of Euphorbus: Time travel and Homer; Television and Homer, again; “All You Zombies”; Digressions

3. Always Second Best (Or Worst): Characterizing Hektor in Iliad 17: Hektor; Warrior prowess;  poinê (payback)

4. Everything is Compared to Everything: Menelaos as a Lion in Iliad 17: similes, cognitive blending, mirroring

Iliad 18

1. Things to Do in Ilium When You’re Dead: Introducing Iliad 18: Chronology, again; Achilles’ first lament; Burden on the earth; the Kypria (Cypria)

2. The Personal Political: Hektor, Polydamas, and Trojan Politics in Iliad 18: Characterizing Hektor, again; Trojan Politics (Re)redux; Character speech

3. The Power to Control the World: Achilles’ Shield and Homeric Ekphrasis: Ecphrasis; Achilles’ Shield; “Willow”; Palazzo Pubblico; Hesiodic Aspis

4. Schrödinger’s Companion: Productive Dissonance in Iliad 18: Dissonance, speech introductions, denial, grief

Iliad 19

1. People Are Going to Tell Our Story: Introducing Iliad 19: Paradeigmata, again; cognitive approaches to reading, again; Achilles and Agamemnon; Politics

2. That Other Me: Achilles’ Lament for Patroklos in Iliad 19: Achilles and Patroklos, again; Achilles’ Second Lament; Surrogacy; Cognitive approaches to reading, again; Briseis

3. Dead and Gentle Forever: Briseis’ Lament for Patroklos in Iliad 19: Briseis; Laments; Scholia; Patroklos

4. Achilles’ New Delight: Reactions to Weapons and Fun with the Homeric Scholia: scholia; weapons; character reactions

Iliad 20

1. Concerns For Those About To Die: Introducing Iliad 20: Zeus; Gods and humans; Zeus’s will

2. Spears and Stones will Break Your Bones But Words Will Always Shape You: Aeneas’ Speech to Achilles in Iliad 20: Flyting; Insults; Aeneas and Achilles

3. The Gamemaster’s Anger and Fear: Homeric Contrafactuals and Rescuing Aeneas: Counter-to-fact statements in Homer; Batman; Zeus and the Plot of the Iliad; Aeneas

4. Yo, Achilles: Apostrophe in Iliad 20: apostrophe; narratology

Iliad 21

1. What Do You Do With a Problem Like Achilles? Introducing Iliad 21: Achilles; Sacrifice; narrative judgment

2. You’re Gonna Die Too, Friend: Achilles’ Speech to Lykaon in Iliad 21: Achilles and Lykaon; Surrogacy; Death; Gilgamesh and Iliad

3. They’re Just Not That Into Us: On Mortals and Gods in Iliad 21: Gods and mortals; Cosmic history; Hesiod

4. Zero Sum Demands: Retributive and Reparative Justice in Iliad 21: game theory; ransom; exchange, justice; poinē; apoina

Iliad 22

1. Hektor’s Body and the Burden: Introducing Iliad 22: Trauma and Homer; Characterizing Hektor, again; Fight or Flight

2. Laying My Burdens Down: Hektor Sweet-talks Achilles in Iliad 22: Hektor and Achilles; The Lions of Al-Rassan;  PTSD

3. A New Widow and Her Orphan: Andromache’s Lament for Hektor in Iliad 22: Women in Homer; Andromache; Laments; Astyanax; PTSD; Trauma

4. Running from the Better Man: Type-Scenes and the Chase in Iliad 22: Type-scenes; productive dissonance

Iliad 23

1. That Mare is Mine! Introducing Iliad 23: Funeral games; Politics; Athletic Contests

2. Rage Won’t Raise the Dead: The Ghost of Patroklos in Iliad 23: Achilles and Patroklos, again; tragedy; peripeteia

3. Achilles’ Wicked Deeds: Framing Human Sacrifice in Iliad 23: Human sacrifice; grief; death

4. Heroic Welfare: Abundance and Scarcity in the Funeral Games of Iliad 23: materialism; scarcity; funeral games; economy

Iliad 24

1. Disfiguring the Fallow Earth: Introducing Iliad 24: Divine Politics; the trial of Achilles; Apollo; Hesiod’s Theogony

2. “As If He Were Going to His Death”: Priam and Katabasis in Iliad 24: Katabasis; Ransom; Structural echoes; Hermes and Orphism

3. “Blow Up Your TV”: Thetis, Achilles, and Life and Death in Iliad 24: Thetis and grief; Gilgamesh; John Prine

4. Priam And Achilles, Pity and Fear: A ‘tragic’ end to Homer’s Iliad: Cognitive approaches to Homer; Tragedy and Epic; Aristotle

5. Starving Then Stoned: Achilles’ Story of Niobe in Iliad 24: Paradeigmata, again; cognitive approaches to reading

6. “Better off Dead”: Helen’s Lament for Hektor in Iliad 24: Laments; Praise; Memory; Helen

7. The Burial of Horse-Taming Hektor: Ending the Iliad: Hektor; Aithiopis; Ending Epic; Ibycus; Pindar; Kleos

8. A Restless night of Grief: Or, How the Scholia are Wrong about Iliad 24: embodiment; Sappho; Lament