

This leads to a plague on the Greeks.Īchilles dishonors Agamemnon by refusing to give him Briseis. This angers the leader, who has also angered the Gods. In a famous episode, Achilles attempts to save Briseis, a young woman, from Agamemnon. Achilles is a great warrior and demonstrates his skill numerous times. The two join the Greeks, led by Agamemnon, and go to war against the Trojans.

Patroclus is forced to join the war against Troy, and Achilles determines that he’s going to accompany him. Patroclus accompanies him there for a time until they are discovered. He’s forced to marry a woman, Deidamia, who has his son, Neoptolemus. Thetis is particularly afraid for her son, remembering a prophecy that foretold his death there. It may come to war, he believes, and he may be called to fight.Īgamemnon leads the charge against Troy and calls on the Greeks to join his campaign. The oath Patroclus took as a child comes back to him. Thetis expresses her belief that Patroclus is not of high enough birth to be a suitable companion for her son.Įventually, it comes to light that Paris of Troy has kidnapped Helen, taking her home with him. Patroclus falls in love with Achilles, and the two start a relationship, despite Achilles’ mother’s disapproval. It’s at this time that he first meets Achilles. This event resulted in his exile to Phthia. Patroclus describes accidentally killing another young boy, one of noble birth.

The remaining young men take a blood oath in defense of her choice. Helen does not select the young Patroclus, but instead Menelaus. Patroclus narrates these events with the insight of a grown man, looking back on how his father was continually disappointed in him. ‘ The Song of Achilles‘ opens with Patroclus, a Greek prince, son of Menoetius, being presented to Helen, daughter of King Tyndareus (and the future Helen of Troy) as a suitor. Spoiler alert: important details of the novel are revealed below. Achilles’ fate, foretold in a foreboding prophecy, plays out in a tragic series of events. They avoid the negative influence of Achilles’ mother and eventually have to go to war together, assisting Agamemnon as he attempts to retrieve his brother Menelaus’s wife, Helen, from Troy. ‘ The Song of Achilles‘ follows Patroclus, a Greek prince, who falls in love with the famed warrior, Achilles. ‘Spoiler-free’ Summary of The Song of Achilles
