Notes Class 9 Chapter 2.4 Kumarbharati English Maharashtra Board

Notes For All Chapters – Kumarbharati English Class 9

The Fall of Troy

Introduction to Epics

Epics: Long poems about heroes or wars, tell a nation’s early history, sung before written.

Famous Epics:

• Indian: Ramayana, Mahabharata (Sanskrit).
• European: Iliad, Odyssey (Greek).

Authors:

• Unknown, passed by singers.
• Homer: Blind poet, wrote Iliad and Odyssey (900 BCE), “Father of European Poetry.”

Part I: The Story Begins

Troy:

• Rich city in Asia Minor, near Aegean-Black Sea route.
• Good for trade (sea) and farming (Mount Ida, rivers, fertile land).
• Strong walls, gates open in peace, closed in war.

The War:

• Cause: Paris (Trojan prince) took Helen (wife of Greek king Menelaus).
• Duration: 10 years.
• Greeks attacked, Trojans defended.
• Events:
  • Daily battles, big fights, or hero duels.
  • Heroes killed:
    • Hector (Trojan) by Achilles (9 years defending).
    • Achilles (Greek) by arrow in heel.
    • Paris by arrow.
• Both sides tired, war continued.

Part II: The Fall of Troy

The Trick:

• Odysseus’s plan: Build a big wooden horse.
  • Heroes hid inside (Menelaus, Odysseus).
  • Greeks burned tents, pretended to sail away, returned at night.

Trojans’ Mistake:

• Saw horse, thought Greeks left.
• Greek liar said it’s a sea-god offering, too big to take in.
• Trojans broke wall, dragged horse in, ignored priest’s warning.

The Attack:

• Trojans slept after celebrating.
• Greeks came out of horse, opened gates, army entered.
• Burned Troy, killed many.

The End:

• Troy destroyed (palaces, houses burned).
• Fate:
  • King Priam, sons killed.
  • Hector’s family enslaved.
  • Helen forgiven by Menelaus, returned home.

Key Characters

• Homer: Wrote Iliad.
• Paris: Took Helen, started war.
• Helen: Menelaus’s wife, taken to Troy.
• Menelaus: Greek king, attacked Troy.
• Hector: Trojan leader, killed by Achilles.
• Achilles: Greek hero, killed Hector, died by heel shot.
• Odysseus: Planned wooden horse.
• Priam: Troy’s king, killed.

Important Points

• Troy’s Strength: Trade, farming, walls, hills.
• War Cause: Paris took Helen.
• Troy’s Fall: Trick, not force; Trojans’ overconfidence.