>>7788870
reading Iliad right now. Not sure what to make of it. only a hundred pages into the lattimore. that trojan and achaian listing nearly did me in, and i can't remember any of them, so the book after it is a bit difficult without knowing which one is a greek or a trojan.

>>7788897
Don't worry about the names they aren't important just know the main sons of Priam and the dozen or so Achaean chiefs

I just finished the Illiad and am now onto the Odyssey, I don't know if I want to go into the Aeneid anyone got recs?

>>7789053
yeah, i've kinda figured it out through context, and a few recurring names. most of the guys killed seem like minions though. "and he threw a giant fucking rock at him and it broke his hip"

>>7788897
The whole roll call thing was designed to make different Greeks feel great about themselves, by having an ancestor or someone from their area participate in the war. It isn't really that significant to the contemporary reader.

>>7789211
okay. well, that makes sense. I kind of just skimmed through, trying to take note of interesting characteristics where i could. I'm enjoying the battle, though I feel like i'm missing something every time I come back to the book, maybe it's a bit more simple than i envisioned it? I'm sure there are subtle events that are relatable to the people at the time, but for the most part I'm just waiting for it to get back to Achilleus, since he's being a bit of an emo bitch right now. the battle descriptions are fun, the gods coming in and out suddenly give it an almost fantastic feel, like you're playing some giant MMO and people are teleporting out. speaking of, that was fucked up when Alexandros got defeated but Aphrodite pulled him away and had Menelaos' stolen wife cuck the shit out of him. Insult to injury really. I hope he gets his comeuppance for that.

>>7789244
Yeah, you sorta have to emphasise the intense drama/tragedy and feats of heroism in the books. One of my favourite scenes is when Ajax and Menelaus defend a body later in the poem, and the embassy with Achilles

>>7789244
It really is a simple story I enjoyed it much more on my second read though.