James Baquet

    We have discussed the story of Homer’s “Iliad” and “Odyssey.” But like the Chinese chengyu — proverbs which make reference to ancient stories — there are many allusions in English based on characters and events in Homer’s works.

    Take, for example, the very name of “The Odyssey” itself. Based on the name of the character Odysseus and telling of his journey home from the Trojan War, the word can be used to describe any long series of adventures and wanderings: “When he arrived in port, his odyssey was not over; he still had many days of travel ahead.”

    If you’re wondering, the word “Iliad” seems to have no modern usage. It is based on “Ilium,” another name for Troy.

    Achilles is the great hero (or anti-hero) of “The Iliad.” Many will know that he had a weak spot. When he was a baby, his mother dipped him in the River Styx to protect him from harm. But she held him by the heel, which was left unprotected. Sure enough, he was shot in the heel with an arrow and died as a result. Today, “Achilles’ heel” can be used to describe any weak point in an overall strong person or plan.

    “Trojan” is an adjective form of “Troy.” “The Iliad” depicts the Trojans as brave warriors. We use the term “Trojan” to name something strong, such as a football team or a long-lasting battery.

    Even more familiar is the use of “Trojan” in the term “Trojan Horse.” This was a trick used by the Greeks at the end of the war. Some men hid inside a giant horse made of wood and others placed it at the gates of Troy. It was taken inside, and that night the men came out and opened the city gates for the Greek army.

    The phrase is now used to describe similar tricks. For example, a virus placed in a computer to be activated later is called a “Trojan Horse.” This incident also gave us a proverb: “Beware of Greeks bearing gifts.”

    Incidentally, the episode of the Trojan Horse is not in “The Iliad.” It is briefly mentioned in “The Odyssey,” but the full story is found in Virgil’s “Aeneid,” which was written hundreds of years after Homer.

    Vocabulary:

    Which word above means:

    1. passing references

    2. one in a series of events

    3. the boundary between Earth and the Underworld in Greek mythology

    4. the usual way of doing something

    5. short popular sayings supposed to contain wisdom

    6. aimless journeys

    7. refer

    8. main character in a story who doesn’t act nobly

    9. the back part of the foot

    10. lowered briefly into a liquid