0 Prologue

Prologue The immortal gods and goddesses of Mount Olympus ruled over the lives of mortal humans on earth. Zeus, the god of thunder, was the leader of the gods. His brothers Poseidon, god of the sea, and Hades, god of the underworld, had the power to shake the ocean and the earth. But they were not as mighty as Zeus. Hera, Zeus's wife; Athena, goddess of war; and Aphrodite, goddess of love, could change the weather from sunny to stormy. But they were not as mighty as Zeus. Ares, the god of war, and Apollo, the sun god and master archer, could change the outcome of a battle. But they were not as mighty as Zeus. The king of gods could see all. He held the fate of the world in his

奥林匹斯山上不朽的神和女神统治着地球上凡人的生活。 宙斯，雷电之神，是众神的领袖。 他的兄弟海神波塞冬和冥界之神哈得斯有震天动地的力量。 但他们没有宙斯那么强大。 赫拉，宙斯的妻子；雅典娜，战争女神；爱神阿芙罗狄蒂可以把天气从晴天变成暴风雨。 但他们没有宙斯那么强大。 战神阿瑞斯和太阳神、弓箭手阿波罗可以改变战争的结果。 但他们没有宙斯那么强大。 众神之王可以看到一切。 他掌握着世界的命运

hands. Now, dear reader, you will hear the tale of Achilles and his rage. Achilles was not a god like Zeus. But he was a mighty and powerful man. He was a swift runner and a brave warrior. He was a hero of the Trojan War, which is the war this story is about. Achilles was part of the Achaean army, from Greece. The Achaean army battled the Trojan army near their home city of Troy. Achilles held much rage in his heart. That rage caused many deaths among both Achaeans and Trojans. But this story does not start with Achilles. It starts many years earlier with a fight among three goddesses. The gods were hosting a banquet at their home on Mount Olympus. They feasted and drank. They sang and told stories. During the meal, Eris, goddess of trouble, left an apple on the table. She had placed a sign next to the apple. This sign said, "For the

的手。现在，亲爱的读者，你将听到阿喀琉斯和他的愤怒的故事。 阿喀琉斯不是宙斯那样的神。 但他是一个强大有力的人。 他跑得很快，是个勇敢的战士。 他是特洛伊战争的英雄，这就是这个故事所讲述的战争。 阿喀琉斯是来自希腊的亚该亚军队的一部分。 亚该亚军队在他们的家乡特洛伊城附近与特洛伊军队作战。 阿喀琉斯心中充满了愤怒。 这场愤怒在亚该亚人和特洛伊人中造成了许多人死亡。 但是这个故事并不是从阿喀琉斯开始的。 故事开始于许多年前，三位女神之间的一场争斗。 众神在奥林匹斯山上的家中举行宴会。 他们大吃大喝。他们唱歌、讲故事。 吃饭时，麻烦女神厄里斯在桌子上留下了一个苹果。 她在苹果旁边放了一个牌子。 牌子上写着：“为了……

fairest." Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite all tried to take the apple. Each goddess claimed to be the fairest. They fought over this apple. They asked Zeus to decide who should have the apple, but he refused. He sent the goddesses to visit Paris, prince of the city of Troy. Paris would judge who was the fairest. Each goddess offered Paris something so that he would call her the fairest. Hera offered him political power. Athena offered him wisdom and strength in battle. Aphrodite offered him the love of the most beautiful woman in the world. Paris chose Aphrodite as the fairest. Aphrodite sent Paris to the city of Sparta, where Helen lived. Helen was the most beautiful woman in the world. Aphrodite made this woman fall in love with Paris. But Helen was already married to a man named Menelaus. Under Aphrodite's spell, Helen left her husband and went back to Troy with

美丽的。”赫拉、雅典娜和阿芙罗狄蒂都想拿走苹果。 每个女神都声称自己是最美丽的。 他们为这个苹果打架。 他们要求宙斯决定谁应该得到苹果，但他拒绝了。 他派女神们去拜访特洛伊城的王子帕里斯。 帕里斯将评出谁最公平。 每一位女神都给帕里斯一些东西，以便他称她为最美丽的女神。 赫拉给了他政治权力。 雅典娜赐予他战斗中的智慧和力量。 阿芙罗狄蒂给了他世界上最美丽的女人的爱。 帕里斯选择阿芙罗狄蒂为最美丽的女神。 阿芙罗狄蒂把帕里斯送到了海伦居住的斯巴达城。 海伦是世界上最美丽的女人。 阿芙罗狄蒂让这个女人爱上了帕里斯。 但海伦已经嫁给了一个名叫墨涅劳斯的男人。 在阿芙罗狄蒂的魔咒下，海伦离开了她的丈夫，带着她的妻子回到了特洛伊

Paris. Hera and Athena never forgave Paris, or the city of Troy, for not choosing either of them as the fairest. From that moment onward, the two goddesses had great hatred for Troy. Menelaus felt great hatred for the man who stole his wife. Menelaus's brother, King Agamemnon, declared war on the people of Troy. He wanted revenge—to honor his brother and punish the Trojans. Agamemnon's bravest generals—Menelaus, Nestor, Odysseus, Diomedes, Ajax, and Achilles—joined him in the war. They agreed to follow the king in his quest to destroy Troy and bring Helen home. Each general brought his own ships with troops of soldiers and chariots to drive into battle. Achilles was joined by his closest friend, Patroclus. This mighty group was known as the Achaean army.

巴黎。赫拉和雅典娜永远不会原谅帕里斯和特洛伊城，因为他们没有选择他们中的任何一个作为最美丽的人。 从那一刻起，两位女神对特洛伊产生了强烈的仇恨。 墨涅劳斯对那个偷走他妻子的人深恶痛绝。 墨涅劳斯的兄弟阿伽门农国王向特洛伊人民宣战。 他想要报复——尊重他的兄弟，惩罚特洛伊人。 阿伽门农最勇敢的将军们——墨涅劳斯、内斯特、奥德修斯、狄俄墨得斯、阿贾克斯和阿基里斯——都加入了战争。 他们同意跟随国王去摧毁特洛伊，把海伦带回家。 每个将军都带着自己的船、军队和战车去战斗。 阿喀琉斯和他最亲密的朋友普特洛克勒斯在一起。 这支强大的军队被称为亚该亚军队。

The Achaeans fought against the Trojans for nine years. With each battle they moved closer to the city of Troy. But the men were tired after so many years of fighting. They wanted to go home. King Priam of Troy guarded his city while his oldest son, Hector, led his army. Paris, Priam's younger son, and Aeneas, Aphrodite's son, fought alongside Hector. The Trojan army was strong. That army—led by Pisander, Dolon, Sarpedon, and Teucer— was mighty and brave. The walls of the city were secure. No other army had broken through the gates. The Trojans feared only Achilles, the greatest Achaean fighter. Achilles was a great warrior and a man of legend. He was the son of a sea goddess named Thetis and a mortal man named Peleus. He was favored by the gods. He was both loved and feared by men—and for good reason. It was Achilles who set this story in

亚该亚人与特洛伊人战斗了九年。 每打一仗，他们就离特洛伊城越来越近。 但是经过这么多年的战斗，士兵们都累了。 他们想回家。特洛伊国王普里阿摩斯守卫着他的城市，而他的大儿子赫克托耳则领导着他的军队。 皮安姆的小儿子帕里斯和阿芙罗狄蒂的儿子埃涅阿斯与赫克托耳并肩作战。 特洛伊军队很强大。 这支由皮桑德、多隆、萨皮顿和托尔领导的军队强大而勇敢。 这座城市的城墙很安全。 没有别的军队突破城门。 特洛伊人只害怕最伟大的亚该亚战士阿喀琉斯。 阿喀琉斯是一位伟大的战士，也是一位传奇人物。 他是海女神忒提斯和凡人珀琉斯的儿子。 他受到众神的眷顾。 人们对他又爱又怕——这是有充分理由的。 是阿喀琉斯设定了这个故事