Choose a Specific character and event or scene in the Iliad or Odyssey and write

a critique about it. you may use any form of literary analysis, make sure to note
what kind you used.

Menelaus had it pretty good. He was king of the powerful Achaean land of Sparta, and
his wife was Helen, called Helen of Troy. Helen, the half-mortal daughter of Zeus and
Leda, is considered the most beautiful woman ever. So many people want to marry her
that each suitor make a promise to uphold the rights of the man finally chosen. And
Menelaus is the one chosen. Menelaus is rarely mentioned in the fighting scenes in The
Iliad, with characters like Achilles, Agamemnon, and the Trojan Prince Hector taking up
most of the battle glory. He's often described with the term ''war-loving,'' and much is
made of his father Atreus and his connections to Agamemnon. Menelaus is steady, a
good warrior but largely overlooked in homer's epic. Menelaus does fight one major
battle with Paris, the man who stole his wife away. Homer's ''Iliad'' is an epic poem with
a broad story, but it's also filled with creative lines and poetic turns of phrase.
Write an analysis on the character, provide the following: 1) background, 2)
description and 3) specific events/ that defined him/her.

Background

 Menelaus

Menelaus is a good soldier and a steady man, but in The Iliad, he is overshadowed by
the glory of his older brother Agamemnon and the Achaean hero Achilles. When
Menelaus' wife Helen is stolen by the Trojan prince Paris, the Achaean king’s band
together to try to get her back, and the Trojan War begins. Menelaus, in Greek
mythology, king of Sparta and younger son of Atreus, king of Mycenae; the abduction of
his wife, Helen, led to the Trojan War. During the war Menelaus served under his elder
brother Agamemnon, the commander in chief of the Greek forces.
Description

After the fall of Troy, Menelaus recovered Helen and brought her home. Menelaus was
a prominent figure in the Iliad and the Odyssey, where he was promised a place in
Elysium after his death because he was married to a daughter of Zeus. The poet
Stesichorus flourished 6th century BCE introduced a refinement to the story that was
used by Euripides in his play Helen: it was a phantom that was taken to Troy, while the
real Helen went to Egypt, from where she was rescued by Menelaus after he had been
wrecked on his way home from Troy and the phantom Helen had disappeared.
Specific Events that defined him

In Book 4, while the Greeks and Trojans squabble over the duel's winner, Athena
inspires the Trojan Pandarus to shoot Menelaus with his bow and arrow. However,
Athena never intended for Menelaus to die and she protects him from the arrow of
Pandarus. Menelaus is wounded in the abdomen, and the fighting resumes.
Choose an event or scene in the story that made you choose that character, write
an analysis on the chosen event or scene.

Menelaus is a good soldier and a steady man, but in The Iliad, he is overshadowed by
the glory of his older brother Agamemnon and the Achaean hero Achilles. When
Menelaus' wife Helen is stolen by the Trojan prince Paris, the Achaean king’s band
together to try to get her back, and the Trojan War begins.
Lastly, explain how you related to the character and why did you choose Him

Menelaus. King of Sparta; the younger brother of Agamemnon. While it is the abduction
of his wife, Helen, by the Trojan prince Paris that sparks the Trojan War, Menelaus
proves quieter, less imposing, and less arrogant than Agamemnon. Though he has a
stout heart, Menelaus is not among the mightiest Achaean warriors. Menelaus was a
prominent figure in the Iliad and the Odyssey, where he was promised a place in
Elysium after his death because he was married to a daughter of Zeus. He's often
described with the term ''war-loving,'' and much is made of his father (Atreus) As a
student it's all about being a challenger in every situation you can overcome every goal
you planned for.