The Iliad

A story that centres on the critical events in four days of the tenth and final year of the war between the Greeks and the Trojans. It describes how the quarrel of Agamemnon and Achilleus sets in motion a tragic sequence of events, which leads to Achilleus' killing of Hektor and determines the ultimate fate of Troy.

The  greatest literary achievement of Greek civilization—an epic poem without rival in world literature and a cornerstone of Western culture

The story of the Iliad centers on the critical events in the last year of the Trojan War, which lead to Achilles''s killing of Hektor and determine the fate of Troy. But Homer''s theme is not simply war or heroism. With compassion and humanity, he presents a universal and tragic view of the world, of human life lived under the shadow of suffering and death, set against a vast and largely unpitying divine background. The Iliad is the first of the great tragedies. This prose translation features an excellent introduction and textual commentary by the translator, Martin Hammond. 

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