People's Assembly. Thersites.
Immortal gods slept peacefully on the bright Olympus. Both the camp of the Greeks and the great Troy were plunged into a deep sleep. But Zeus-the thunderer did not close his eyes with sleep, - he was thinking about how to avenge the insult Achilles. Finally, the cloud-runner Zeus decided to send a false dream to Agamemnon. He called the god of sleep and sent him to the camp of the Greeks to Agamemnon, telling him:
- Rush on fast wings, a deceptive dream, and appear before Agamemnon. Tell him to lead the Greeks into battle. Tell him that today he will master the great Troy, as he begged Hera of all the gods does not help the Trojans. Three people are now facing death.
The god of sleep quickly rushed to earth, and taking the image of the elder Nestor, whom Agamemnon so revered, appeared to him in a dream and told him everything that the great thunderer ordered. Agamemnon woke up, but it still seemed to him that the words he had heard in his dream were still sounding. The king of Mycenae got up and quickly dressed in rich clothes, took a golden scepter in his hand and went to where the Greek ships were pulled ashore. At this time, the dawn was already burning brightly, foreshadowing the sunrise of the great sun god Helios. Agamemnon called the heralds and ordered them to summon all the soldiers to a national assembly. All the leaders were gathered by the mighty king of Mycenae to the ship of the elder Nestor and told them what a dream Zeus the Thunderer had sent him.
The leaders decided to prepare for battle. But before bringing troops into the field under the walls of Troy, Agamemnon wanted to test them; he decided to invite the people's assembly to return to their homeland. While the chiefs were conferring, the warriors were going to the meeting. Like swarms of bees flying out of mountain caves, countless crowds of warriors gathered. The People's Assembly was worried. With difficulty, the heralds established silence so that the kings, the descendants of Zeus, could address the people. Finally, crowds of people settled down, and silence was established. Agamemnon was the first to address the people, standing up from his seat with a scepter in his hands. He talked about the hardships of the war, that the Greeks fought fruitlessly near Troy; that they could not take the impregnable Troy, and would have to return home with nothing. It can be seen that the gods themselves wish the Greeks to return to their homeland. That's what Agamemnon said. The Greeks listened to Agamemnon's speech. The whole nation was stirred up like the sea when the winds Notes and Evr, having flown, high waves were raised on it, Everyone rushed to the ships with loud shouts. The earth trembled from the trampling of fleeing crowds of warriors rushing to the ships. Clouds of dust rose. Shouts rang out throughout the camp. Everyone is in a hurry to launch ships soon, everyone is eager to sail to their homeland.
The shouts of the warriors also reached the great Olympus. Hera, fearing that the Greeks would not leave the siege of Troy, sent to their camp Athena-Pallas to stop them. Like a storm, Athena rushed to the camp of the Greeks from Olympus. There she appeared Odyssey and told him.
- Noble son Laerta, did you all decide to flee from here to your homeland? Will you really leave for joy Priam and all the Trojans here are beautiful Elena? Hurry up, convince everyone not to leave Troy! Hearing the terrible voice of the goddess, Odysseus ran, throwing off his cloak, to the ships. Taking the scepter, the sign of supreme power, from Agamemnon, who met him, he began to convince everyone, both leaders and ordinary soldiers, not to launch ships into the water and called everyone back to the people's assembly. Odysseus struck with the scepter those of the warriors who were especially noisy and hurried to leave the coast of Troy as soon as possible. Everyone rushed back to where the people usually gathered. Crowds of people were shouting loudly, like the waves of the incessantly roaring sea, which beat against the rocky shore with a thunderous noise. Finally, everyone took their seats again and fell silent. Only one Thersites continued to scream. Thersites constantly allowed himself to boldly speak out against the kings. He especially hated Odysseus and the great son Thetis Achilles. Now Thersites screamed shrilly and reviled Agamemnon. He shouted that Agamemnon had had enough of booty and slaves, and that he had had enough of rich ransoms for noble Trojans who were being captured by ordinary soldiers. Thersites called everyone to hurry back to their homeland, and advised Agamemnon to leave alone near Troy. Let the son of Atreus find out whether the soldiers helped him in battle, whether they were loyal servants or not. He reviled Agamemnon's Thersites as best he could. He also reproached him for insulting Achilles, but he also called Achilles Thersites faint-hearted. The cunning Odysseus also heard this cry of Thersites. He approached Thersites and exclaimed menacingly:
- Don't you dare, you fool, vilify the tsars, don't you dare talk about returning to your homeland! Who knows how the case we started will end. Listen and remember that I will do what I say! If I hear you again, you madman, revile King Agamemnon, then let them take my head off my mighty shoulders, let them not call me father Telemachus, if I don't grab you, I won't tear you off all your clothes and, having beaten you, I will not drive you from the people's assembly to the ships, crying in pain.
So menacingly shouted Odysseus. He waved his scepter and struck Thersites on the back. Tears of pain rolled from Thersites' eyes like hail. A crimson stripe swelled on his back from the blow. He himself, trembling with fear, wrinkled up and wiped away the rolling tears with his hand. Everyone laughed loudly, looking at Thersites, and said:
- Odysseus performed many glorious deeds both in council and in battle, but this is the most glorious of his exploits. How he curbed the screamer! Now he will not dare to revile the kings beloved by Zeus anymore.
Odysseus made a speech to the people, I stood next to him, taking the form of a messenger, Pallas Athena. Odysseus urged the Greeks not to abandon the siege of Troy, he said that if they returned to their homeland without taking Troy, they would cover both Agamemnon and themselves with shame. Are they, like weak children or widowed women, out of cowardice will go home, have they really forgotten the predictions of Kalkhas, what should we wait for? Has everyone forgotten the sign that Zeus sent in Aulis? After all, it was only in the tenth year of the siege that the Greeks were destined to take Troy. With his speech, Odysseus again breathed into everyone a thirst for exploits. The Greeks greeted Odysseus' speech with loud shouts, and the neighborhood responded with loud echoes to these shouts. But then the divine elder Nestor stood up, and everything was quiet again. And Nestor advised to stay and fight the Trojans. During the battle, he advised to build troops by tribes and clans, so that the tribe would help the tribe, and the clan would help the clan. Then it will be clear which of the leaders or members of the tribe is timid and who is courageous. Then it will be clear why Troy has not yet been taken - whether at the behest of the immortal gods or because the leaders do not know the military business. Agamemnon agreed to this. He ordered the soldiers to go to dinner, and then prepare for a bloody battle, in which no one will be given rest for a single moment, and woe to the one who stays at the ships and evades the battle: he will be thrown into the prey of dogs and birds of prey. All the warriors shouted loudly, as loudly as the sea rumbles in a strong storm, when the wind drives waves as high as mountains. The people's assembly quickly dispersed. Everyone hurried to the tents. Bonfires began to smoke all over the camp. The Greeks were fortified with food before the battle. Everyone sacrificed to God and prayed to save him during the bloody battle. Agamemnon sacrificed to Zeus. He slaughtered a fat bull at the altar, around which the most famous heroes of the Greeks stood, and prayed to Zeus to give him victory; prayed to help him take possession of impregnable Troy and the palace of King Priam before night descended to earth; prayed to let him throw Hector into the dust by piercing his armor with a spear. But the great Zeus the thunderer did not heed the pleas of Agamemnon, he was preparing the king of Mycenae for many failures on this day. When the sacrifice was made and the sacrificial feast was over, the elder Nestor began to hurry the leaders to lead the troops to the battlefield.
The leaders hurried to their squads. The messengers began to call the warriors in a loud voice. The leaders formed squads in battle order and led them to the walls of Troy. The ground groaned from the trampling of warriors and horses. Occupied the entire valley Scamander troops. All the troops were eager to fight the Trojans. Pallas Athena was running wild among the troops. She excited the warriors to fight, inspiring them with unshakable courage. Leaders rode in chariots in front of the troops. All of them were surpassed by their formidable appearance of King Agamemnon, similar to the thunderer Zeus. The soldiers marched in order, row after row, to the walls of Troy.