Historians correctly regard Homer's Iliad as one of the greatest books of Western civilization. Besides its greatness as literature, it was enormously influential in the rise of Greek civilization. But most people understandably have little knowledge or appreciation of this work. This course sets the historical context for the Iliad (by explaining the key role of "Heroic Age" barbarian invaders of Greece); it closely examines the story and elucidates key aspects of it (for example, the presentation of the heroes as honorable and the gods as ridiculous); and it explains Homer's historical meaning and influence.