Translated by Ian Johnston Vancouver Island University

 

6The Achaean forces abandoned Philoctetes on Lemnos, because they could not stand his cries of agony or the smell of his wound.  However, later in the narrative of the war (although not in the Iliad) Philoctetes’ bow becomes an essential weapon in the capture of Troy. 

7 Typhoeus was a primordial monster who attempted to overthrow the Olympian gods.  Zeus buried him alive under Mount Etna in Sicily.

8The Pygmies in Greek mythology were a race of small people who were constantly at war with the cranes who migrated to their territory (they should not be confused with the actual African pygmies about whom the Greeks had no sure knowledge). 

9Alexander was another name for Paris.

10At this point the narrator unexpectedly addresses one of the characters in the story with the word “you.”  While this feature of the style is not particularly common, it does occur from time to time. 

11Cheiron (or Chiron) in Greek mythology was a centaur (a creature with the torso, arms, and head of human being and the body and legs of a horse).  He was famous for his intelligence and knowledge of medicine. 

12The Cadmeans are the citizens of Thebes, taking their name from Cadmus, the founder of the city.

13Tritogeneia is a common epithet for Athena.  Its precise meaning is unclear (“Trito born”?). 

14Ganymede, a young prince of Troy, was so beautiful that Zeus fell in love with him and abducted him to be his cupbearer and erotic companion on Olympus.    

15Hercules killed a sea monster threatening Troy after Laomedon, the king of Troy and father of  Priam, agreed to give him the horses Zeus had presented to Laomedon in exchange for Ganymede if he was successful.  However, Laomedon reneged on their agreement.  Hercules returned some time later with an army, captured Troy, and killed Laomedon and all his sons except Priam. 

16The Graces in Greek mythology were three goddesses of charm and beauty.  In some accounts they are daughters of Zeus. 

17Athena was reported to have sprung full grown from the head of Zeus; hence, the idea here that Zeus gave birth to her. 

18This passage has been much discussed because it is the only reference in the entire poem to something that sounds very much like writing. 

19Pergamus is the name for the citadel of Troy, a high point of the city. 

20As a punishment for rebelling against Zeus, Apollo and Poseidon were condemned to serving a mortal man for wages.  They built the walls of Troy for Laomedon, king of Troy.

21The ends of the line of ships would be the most exposed to enemy attacks.  Hence, these places indicate the warrior prowess of Achilles and Ajax. 

22Zeus overthrew his father Cronos and the immortal Titans (including Iapetus) and imprisoned them deep in the earth. 

23Meleager’s mother wanted him dead because he had killed her brothers in the quarrel over the wild boar.

24Autolycus, the one who originally stole the cap, was Odysseus’ maternal grandfather, so in a roundabout manner, the cap has come back to the family.

25The number of those killed in Odysseus’ report doesn’t quite match the earlier details, which indicate the number of the dead as fourteen, including Dolon.  

26Hercules attacked Pylos because king Neleus would not give him absolution for killing Iphitus.  Hercules killed all of Neleus’ sons except Nestor and ransacked the kingdom.  For this action the Delphic Oracle told Hercules he had to serve Omphale, queen of Lydia.

27In a fit of insanity brought about by Hera, Hercules killed his wife and children.  When he asked the Delphic Oracle how he could atone for this act, the oracle told him to serve Eurystheus, king of Mycenae for twelve years.  Eurystheus, with Hera’s help, set Hercules the famous twelve labours of Hercules.

28Protesilaus, as we learn in Book 2, was the first Achaean leader to jump on shore when the Argive fleet arrived at Troy.  He was killed as he did so.

29In Greek mythology, the Harpies were hostile flying monsters with the head and torso of a woman and with the tail, legs, wings, and talons of birds.

30The Chimera was a destructive monster with a composite body made up of different animals.  For a description of the Chimera and the story of its death at the hands of Bellerophon, see 6.228 ff. above.  

31In some Greek myths, Hephaestus, child of Hera and Zeus, was born deformed in his legs. As a result Hera threw him away from Mount Olympus. He landed in the Ocean where Thetis and Eurynome, sea goddesses, raised him. 

32The phrase about not bathing in Ocean’s stream refers to the fact that at the latitude of Greece, these stars do not disappear below the horizon. 

33The Song of Linos is a traditional harvest song. 

34Daedalus was a legendary craftsman of surpassing skill.  He created the famous Labyrinth in Crete and, according to this comment, a dancing ground for Ariadne, a princess of Crete. 

35Achilles’ mother, Thetis, tried to hide him, so that he would not be asked to join the warrior expedition to Troy.  She dressed Achilles as a woman and left him with Lycomedes, king of Scyros. Achilles had a affair with Deidamea, a princess of Scyros, and she gave birth to a son, Neoptolemus. After the death of Achilles, Neoptolemus played an important role in the final defeat of Troy.

36Callicolone is a hill near Troy. 

37Aidoneus is an alternative name for Hades, god of the underworld. 

38This is the earliest surviving mention of the myth that Aeneas escaped Troy and continued the Trojan race elsewhere, a story that forms the basis of Virgil’s Aeneid.