The Iliad

Homer

Jun 2026 · Parolita Libro · Narrated by James Taylor and Helen Pyle

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14 hr 16 min

Unabridged

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About this audiobook

The Iliad is one of the oldest works of Western literature, dating back to classical antiquity. Homer's epic poem belongs in a collection called the Epic Cycle, which includes The Odyssey. Written in an early literary dialect of ancient Greek, both poems were originally composed in dactylic hexameters. This meter is beautiful in the original but can sound awkward in modern English; Eric McMillan humorously described it as resembling "pumpkins rolling on a barn floor."

This epic poem begins with the Achaean army sacking the city of Chryse and capturing two maidens as prizes of war. One of the maidens, Chryseis, is given to Agamemnon, the leader of the Achaeans, and the other maiden, Briseis, was given to the army's best warrior, Achilles. Chryseis' father, the city's priest, prays to the god Apollo and asks for a plague on the Achaean army. To stop this plague, Agamemnon returns Chryseis to her father, but then orders Achilles to give him Briseis as compensation. Achilles refuses.

The Iliad is one of the oldest works of Western literature, dating back to classical antiquity. Homer's epic poem belongs in a collection called the Epic Cycle, which includes The Odyssey. Written in an early literary dialect of ancient Greek, both poems were originally composed in dactylic hexam...

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About the author

Homer is the author of The Iliad and The Odyssey, the two greatest Greek epic poems. Nothing is known about Homer personally; it is not even known for certain whether there is only one true author of these two works. Homer is thought to have been an Ionian from the 9th or 8th century B.C. While historians argue over the man, his impact on literature, history, and philosophy is so significant as to be almost immeasurable. The Iliad relates the tale of the Trojan War, about the war between Greece and Troy, brought about by the kidnapping of the beautiful Greek princess, Helen, by Paris. It tells of the exploits of such legendary figures as Achilles, Ajax, and Odysseus. The Odyssey recounts the subsequent return of the Greek hero Odysseus after the defeat of the Trojans. On his return trip, Odysseus braves such terrors as the Cyclops, a one-eyed monster; the Sirens, beautiful temptresses; and Scylla and Charybdis, a deadly rock and whirlpool. Waiting for him at home is his wife who has remained faithful during his years in the war. Both the Iliad and the Odyssey have had numerous adaptations, including several film versions of each.

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