How well do you know Tydeus in The Iliad?

• The Iliad incorporates elements of Theban myth and tradition into its narrative.
• The story of Tydeus is used as an example for Diomedes' actions and heroism.
• The Iliad subverts the theme of generational decline by portraying Diomedes as better than his father.
• The Iliad focuses on individual heroism rather than collective action in the story of Tydeus.
• Agamemnon uses the story of Tydeus to spur his men into action.
• The Iliad emphasizes the collective nature of the Achaean army and the idea of friendship among them.
• The Iliad challenges the idea of individual exceptionalism and promotes the idea of collective action.
• The Iliad's handling of Theban myth reflects its own metapoetic concerns and aims to be the best siege story.
• The Iliad selectively adopts and adapts motifs, themes, characters, and story patterns from Theban tradition to advance its own narrative concerns.
• The Iliad's appropriation of Theban myth and its revision of its status vis-à-vis the earlier Theban cycle are indications of its antagonistic relationship with previous poetry.
• Agamemnon compares his gathering of allies with Tydeus and Polyneikes, but the language of epic upon which he draws opens up his words to an alternative hearing.
• The closer social bond of philia underpins the Achaean coalition.
• Agamemnon constructs Tydeus as a certain kind of model for Diomedes, but his main presentation of Tydeus’ deeds reveal disharmonious tones.
• The ambush tends to be configured as incongruous with the Iliadic focus on face-to-face combat on the battlefield.
• Tydeus’ defeat of an ambush has the tone of epic acclaim, but as a direct lesson to his son Diomedes, it is harder to discern its relevance to or indeed value for this epic.
• Sthenelos affirms important distinctions in both situation and outcome to expose the inaptness of Agamemnon’s criticism of Diomedes.
• Diomedes observes that the king enjoys a symbiotic relationship with his army, linking Agamemnon’s fate closely to that of the Achaeans as a whole.
• Agamemnon’s heroic record depends on the collective.
• The cumulative tone of Diomedes’ aristeia in Book 5 becomes successively more difficult to read.
• The Iliad credits Diomedes’ inheritance for a martial prowess whose excesses must be policed by the gods.
• The Iliad explores the story of Diomedes and his reflections on his father, Tydeus.
• Diomedes goes through stages of denial, imitation, re-vision, and qualified acceptance of his father.
• The epic alters the character of Tydeus inherited from tradition to fit better in the Iliad's world.
• Diomedes invokes his father twice and provides additional information about him.
• Diomedes and Odysseus work together to overcome the Trojan spy, Dolon.
• Diomedes' actions are framed as being performed in the service of the Achaean collective.
• Diomedes reaffirms the collective will to continue to prosecute the siege of Troy.
• Diomedes' night mission marks the beginning of his recuperation of his father.
• The nighttime adventure redeploys Tydeus' qualities in a way that complements and builds on the poem's dynamics.
• The disharmony between Agamemnon's tale of Tydeus and the Iliad's articulation of collective political activity is addressed directly.

Do you know everything there is to know about the portrayal of Tydeus in Homer's epic poem, The Iliad? Test your knowledge with this quiz! From the incorporation of Theban myth into the narrative, to the subversion of generational decline, to the emphasis on individual heroism versus collective action, this quiz covers a wide range of topics related to Tydeus and his role in the epic. Whether you're a seasoned Homer scholar or just a fan of ancient Greek literature,