H.E.P - Episode 13: Iliad Book 12

In this episode we cover the teichomachia, or the battle around the walls of the Greeks. This book contains some great similes and we also hear a great speech from Sarpedon on why the heroes fight, which connects both Hector and Achilles. Hector is on display this book, and it all points to his moment of triumph when he picks up a big rock. His breach of the wall is contrasted with the beginning of the book when we are told how the gods destroyed the wall after the war. I touch on why this happens, and why we are privy to its destruction in the first place. Sources for this episode: * Maitland, Judith. “Poseidon, Walls, and Narrative Complexity in the Homeric Iliad.” The Classical Quarterly, vol. 49, no. 1, 1999, pp. 1–13. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/639485. Accessed 25 June 2025.* PORTER, JAMES I. “Making and Unmaking: The Achaean Wall and the Limits of Fictionality in Homeric Criticism.” Transactions of the American Philological Association (1974-), vol. 141, no. 1, 2011, pp. 1–36. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/41289734. Accessed 25 June 2025.* Scholia quote came from the blog SENTENTIAE ANTIQUAE, here: https://sententiaeantiquae.com/2017/09/11/tension-and-precarity-the-iliads-simile-of-the-weaving-woman/* (if you like Homer go check out Joel’s blog and also substack, he’s really good) This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit homericepicpodcast.substack.com