"Sing, goddess, the wrath of Achilles, son of Peleus, that ruinous wrath which brought the Achaeans countless woes, and hurled down into Hades many strong souls of heroes, and gave their bodies to be a…"

"The gods can either give or take away."

"Fate is the same for the man who holds back, the same if he fights hard. We are all held in a single honor, the brave with the weaklings. A man dies still if he has done nothing, as one who has done m…"

"For the winner a large tripod made to stride a fire / and worth a dozen oxen, so the soldiers reckoned. / For the loser he led a woman through their midst, / worth four, they thought, and skilled in m…"

"It is not seemly for a man who is a guest to ask too many questions."