Heroes of Troy: 6. Wooden horse
It turns out Achilles isn't immortal after all...and he's killed by a stray arrow. Then various other Greeks and Trojans also cop it...but still there's no end to the fighting. However, Odysseus - 'the quiet one' - has a cunning plan...
...a big head and a wee, sticky-out tail!The Soldier on the horse
The Old Soldier returns to the prophecy that Achilles will die at Troy - specifically that he will be killed by Paris. Achilles's mother dipped him in the River Styx as a child and it is this which protects him. But she held him by the heel and Paris - who is no great fighter - lets go a flukey arrow which just happens to hit Achilles's heel. Achilles dies and although Paris goes the same way shortly after, the Greeks have gone 'from favourites to rank outsiders'. They're down to their last hero: Odysseus. However, Odysseus has a plan. He calls a meeting of the Greek chiefs and explains that they will build an enormous wooden horse which they will place outside the gates of Troy as 'a leaving present', while the whole Greek army pretends to depart. Only inside the hollow horse will be a group of the fiercest Greek warriors...
In this episode
| Name | Reminder |
|---|---|
| River Styx | In Greek mythology the River Styx formed the boundary between the Earth and the Underworld. Achilles's mother dipped him in the River Styx hoping to make him immortal |
| Paris | Son of King Priam; kills Achilles with a flukey arrow but also dies himself |
| Helen | Wife to King Menelaus - and without reason to stay in Troy after the death of Paris |
| Odysseus | Greek demi-god; the 'quiet one'; hatches the plan to end the war with the wooden horse |
| Agamemnon | Leader of the Greek army; supports Odysseus's plan to end the war |
Extended vocal warm-up
Join David Grant to sing the extended vocal warm-up
Story questions
Why is Achilles believed to be immortal?
His mother dipped him in the River Styx
Why does it turn out that Achilles is NOT immortal?
His mother held him by the heel so his heel never received the protection - it is his 'Achilles heel'
How does Achilles die and who is responsible?
Paris let's fly a flukey arrow and catches Achilles on the heel - the Greek hero dies
What more do we learn about Helen in this episode?
That she only went to Troy with Paris because she had been bewitched by the gods...and now that Paris is dead she has little reason to remain in Troy
What is Odysseus's plan to end the war?
He wants the Greeks to build an enormous, hollow, wooden horse. They will leave the horse outside the gates of Troy and the entire Greek army will appear to sail away. However, inside the horse will be some Greek soldiers and once they are inside Troy they will emerge from the horse and open the city gates, allowing the hiding Greek army to enter. As the Old Soldier says: 'Biff, bash, bosh, war over. Simple!'
Resources
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Heroes of Troy - Notes
Information on the episodes (pdf)
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Lyrics - Wooden horse
Download / print the lyrics (pdf)
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Music - Wooden horse
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Story transcript
Download / print Episode 6 (pdf)
