The Iliad: Book 1 Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis
Rhyme Scheme: ABCDEFDDGDDHIJKLMGMN OMPQRDSTHDKMMUKVFWXN YKZUHUA2ZQB2QC2D2E2K F2C2KG2KGH2QDFKSC2UK I2NDKFUDD2KMKG2J2UK2 KSKGQC2KL2M2SMN2HKO2 GP2Q2NC2P2KMPDMKKMR2 S2SNL2IA2GT2H| Sing O goddess the anger of Achilles son of Peleus that brought | A |
| countless ills upon the Achaeans Many a brave soul did it send | B |
| hurrying down to Hades and many a hero did it yield a prey to dogs | C |
| and vultures for so were the counsels of Jove fulfilled from the | D |
| day on which the son of Atreus king of men and great Achilles first | E |
| fell out with one another | F |
| And which of the gods was it that set them on to quarrel It was the | D |
| son of Jove and Leto for he was angry with the king and sent a | D |
| pestilence upon the host to plague the people because the son of | G |
| Atreus had dishonoured Chryses his priest Now Chryses had come to the | D |
| ships of the Achaeans to free his daughter and had brought with him a | D |
| great ransom moreover he bore in his hand the sceptre of Apollo | H |
| wreathed with a suppliant's wreath and he besought the Achaeans but | I |
| most of all the two sons of Atreus who were their chiefs | J |
| Sons of Atreus he cried and all other Achaeans may the gods | K |
| who dwell in Olympus grant you to sack the city of Priam and to reach | L |
| your homes in safety but free my daughter and accept a ransom for | M |
| her in reverence to Apollo son of Jove | G |
| On this the rest of the Achaeans with one voice were for | M |
| respecting the priest and taking the ransom that he offered but not | N |
| so Agamemnon who spoke fiercely to him and sent him roughly away | O |
| Old man said he let me not find you tarrying about our ships nor | M |
| yet coming hereafter Your sceptre of the god and your wreath shall | P |
| profit you nothing I will not free her She shall grow old in my | Q |
| house at Argos far from her own home busying herself with her loom | R |
| and visiting my couch so go and do not provoke me or it shall be the | D |
| worse for you | S |
| The old man feared him and obeyed Not a word he spoke but went | T |
| by the shore of the sounding sea and prayed apart to King Apollo | H |
| whom lovely Leto had borne Hear me he cried O god of the | D |
| silver bow that protectest Chryse and holy Cilla and rulest Tenedos | K |
| with thy might hear me oh thou of Sminthe If I have ever decked your | M |
| temple with garlands or burned your thigh bones in fat of bulls or | M |
| goats grant my prayer and let your arrows avenge these my tears upon | U |
| the Danaans | K |
| Thus did he pray and Apollo heard his prayer He came down | V |
| furious from the summits of Olympus with his bow and his quiver | F |
| upon his shoulder and the arrows rattled on his back with the rage | W |
| that trembled within him He sat himself down away from the ships with | X |
| a face as dark as night and his silver bow rang death as he shot | N |
| his arrow in the midst of them First he smote their mules and their | Y |
| hounds but presently he aimed his shafts at the people themselves | K |
| and all day long the pyres of the dead were burning | Z |
| For nine whole days he shot his arrows among the people but upon | U |
| the tenth day Achilles called them in assembly moved thereto by Juno | H |
| who saw the Achaeans in their death throes and had compassion upon | U |
| them Then when they were got together he rose and spoke among them | A2 |
| Son of Atreus said he I deem that we should now turn roving | Z |
| home if we would escape destruction for we are being cut down by | Q |
| war and pestilence at once Let us ask some priest or prophet or some | B2 |
| reader of dreams for dreams too are of Jove who can tell us why | Q |
| Phoebus Apollo is so angry and say whether it is for some vow that we | C2 |
| have broken or hecatomb that we have not offered and whether he will | D2 |
| accept the savour of lambs and goats without blemish so as to take | E2 |
| away the plague from us | K |
| With these words he sat down and Calchas son of Thestor wisest | F2 |
| of augurs who knew things past present and to come rose to speak He | C2 |
| it was who had guided the Achaeans with their fleet to Ilius | K |
| through the prophesyings with which Phoebus Apollo had inspired him | G2 |
| With all sincerity and goodwill he addressed them thus | K |
| Achilles loved of heaven you bid me tell you about the anger of | G |
| King Apollo I will therefore do so but consider first and swear that | H2 |
| you will stand by me heartily in word and deed for I know that I | Q |
| shall offend one who rules the Argives with might to whom all the | D |
| Achaeans are in subjection A plain man cannot stand against the anger | F |
| of a king who if he swallow his displeasure now will yet nurse | K |
| revenge till he has wreaked it Consider therefore whether or no you | S |
| will protect me | C2 |
| And Achilles answered Fear not but speak as it is borne in upon | U |
| you from heaven for by Apollo Calchas to whom you pray and whose | K |
| oracles you reveal to us not a Danaan at our ships shall lay his hand | I2 |
| upon you while I yet live to look upon the face of the earth no not | N |
| though you name Agamemnon himself who is by far the foremost of the | D |
| Achaeans | K |
| Thereon the seer spoke boldly The god he said is angry neither | F |
| about vow nor hecatomb but for his priest's sake whom Agamemnon | U |
| has dishonoured in that he would not free his daughter nor take a | D |
| ransom for her therefore has he sent these evils upon us and will | D2 |
| yet send others He will not deliver the Danaans from this | K |
| pestilence till Agamemnon has restored the girl without fee or | M |
| ransom to her father and has sent a holy hecatomb to Chryse Thus | K |
| we may perhaps appease him | G2 |
| With these words he sat down and Agamemnon rose in anger His heart | J2 |
| was black with rage and his eyes flashed fire as he scowled on | U |
| Calchas and said Seer of evil you never yet prophesied smooth | K2 |
| things concerning me but have ever loved to foretell that which was | K |
| evil You have brought me neither comfort nor performance and now you | S |
| come seeing among Danaans and saying that Apollo has plagued us | K |
| because I would not take a ransom for this girl the daughter of | G |
| Chryses I have set my heart on keeping her in my own house for I | Q |
| love her better even than my own wife Clytemnestra whose peer she | C2 |
| is alike in form and feature in understanding and accomplishments | K |
| Still I will give her up if I must for I would have the people | L2 |
| live not die but you must find me a prize instead or I alone | M2 |
| among the Argives shall be without one This is not well for you | S |
| behold all of you that my prize is to go elsewhither | M |
| And Achilles answered Most noble son of Atreus covetous beyond | N2 |
| all mankind how shall the Achaeans find you another prize We have no | H |
| common store from which to take one Those we took from the cities | K |
| have been awarded we cannot disallow the awards that have been made | O2 |
| already Give this girl therefore to the god and if ever Jove | G |
| grants us to sack the city of Troy we will requite you three and | P2 |
| fourfold | Q2 |
| Then Agamemnon said Achilles valiant though you be you shall not | N |
| thus outwit me You shall not overreach and you shall not persuade me | C2 |
| Are you to keep your own prize while I sit tamely under my loss and | P2 |
| give up the girl at your bidding Let the Achaeans find me a prize | K |
| in fair exchange to my liking or I will come and take your own or | M |
| that of Ajax or of Ulysses and he to whomsoever I may come shall | P |
| rue my coming But of this we will take thought hereafter for the | D |
| present let us draw a ship into the sea and find a crew for her | M |
| expressly let us put a hecatomb on board and let us send Chryseis | K |
| also further let some chief man among us be in command either Ajax | K |
| or Idomeneus or yourself son of Peleus mighty warrior that you are | M |
| that we may offer sacrifice and appease the the anger of the god | R2 |
| Achilles scowled at him and answered You are steeped in | S2 |
| insolence and lust of gain With what heart can any of the Achaeans do | S |
| your bidding either on foray or in open fighting I came not | N |
| warring here for any ill the Trojans had done me I have no quarrel | L2 |
| with them They have not raided my cattle nor my horses nor cut | I |
| down my harvests on the rich plains of Phthia for between me and them | A2 |
| there is a great space both mountain and sounding sea We have | G |
| followed you Sir Insolence for your pleasure not ours to gain | T2 |
| satisfaction fro | H |
Homer
(1)
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