Zum Inhalt springen
The Library
of Alexandria
AnmeldenTry 3 months free3 months free

The Iliad, Book 4 summary

Book 4 of 24 · 20 min to read the book

In Book 4, Jove permits Minerva to provoke a Trojan breach of the truce, and Pandarus wounds Menelaus without killing him. As Machaon treats the wound, Agamemnon rallies and rebukes his captains, and the armies clash again, turning the possibility of peace into renewed bloodshed.

What happens

  1. Juno rejects peace, and Jove agrees to send Minerva to make the Trojans violate their oaths.
  2. Disguised as Laodocus, Minerva persuades Pandarus to shoot Menelaus, then diverts the arrow so that it only grazes his skin.
  3. Agamemnon fears for his brother, but Menelaus reassures him, and Machaon removes the arrow and treats the wound.
  4. Agamemnon inspects his army, praising ready leaders and provoking angry answers from Ulysses and Sthenelus with his rebukes.
  5. Diomed silences Sthenelus and accepts Agamemnon’s duty to urge the army forward.
  6. The armies collide, gods encourage both sides, and many warriors die amid struggles over bodies and armor.

Free for 3 months

Get the full summary of The Iliad, free

  • 200,000+ classics as eBooks, audiobooks and 15-minute summaries, and print and large print at cost
  • Up to 5 readers in your home on one plan
Starten Sie 90 Tage kostenlosNothing to pay today. 0,14 USD a day in the first year, then 0,27 USD a day.

In this book

AgamemnonJove

What to notice

Diomed turns away from wounded pride toward action. He accepts the commander’s responsibility to press the army forward rather than prolonging Sthenelus’s argument.

Quick check

Why does Minerva approach Pandarus in disguise?

Free for 3 months

Get the full summary of The Iliad, free

  • 200,000+ classics as eBooks, audiobooks and 15-minute summaries, and print and large print at cost
  • Up to 5 readers in your home on one plan
Starten Sie 90 Tage kostenlosNothing to pay today. 0,14 USD a day in the first year, then 0,27 USD a day.
200,000+ classics to read, hear and hold

15-minute summaries today, eBooks and audiobooks as each book opens, and printed books, large print included, at cost.

Try 3 months free