The Iliad Book 1

      The Iliad Book 1 is the story of the rage of a demi-god named Achilles. It starts because Agamemnon takes the daughter of a priest of Apollo. The priest comes bringing a ransom to get his daughter back, but Agamemnon disregards it because it would hurt his "arete" which means honor. Letting go of his prize would hurt his honor because one of the things that the Ancient Greeks valued was possessions. The word they used for this was "Time" which was how much "stuff" you owned. Giving up this "Time" would hurt Agamemnon's "Arete". The priest then prays to Apollo, and Apollo, in a rage, comes down from the heavens ready to destroy, and fires a plague on the people of Agamemnon. There is then a debate between Agamemnon, Achilles, and other powerful figures as to what should happen. This turns into a very heated argument where Achilles and Agamemnon try to destroy each others image by insulting them. This is an attack on each other's "Kleos" which is a word meaning your story (how people will remember you when you are dead). They are trying to destroy each other's "Kleos" which will make people remember them as bad which is a very serious thing for the Ancient Greeks. There are many conflicting views, and Achilles ends up leaving Agamemnon because he does not want to give up his prize. Agamemnon, in return takes Achilles wife. Odysseus then brings the girl, and many sacrifices to make amends with Apollo, which he accepts. Zeus then is driven to war with Hera.