A Thousand Ships

Calliope is the Muse of epic poetry, and her chapters are narrated in the first person. She is annoyed as a bent old man prays to her, giving no consideration to whether Calliope is “in the mood to be a muse today” (1). She wonders what he can possibly believe has not yet been said in epic. Noticing a brooch he is wearing, she decides that she will only assist him when he surrenders it as an offering. 

Creusa is the wife of Trojan prince Aeneas and mother of their son Euryleon. Her chapter, narrated in third person, contrasts her memories of Troy during the war with her experiences trying to flee the burning city.

Creusa wakes up to find the city invaded and in flames; her husband and son are gone. She recalls years earlier, when Aeneas had divulged Priam’s order: If Troy were to fall, Aeneas should flee with his family to build a new city. Certain that Aeneas must have gone to find his father and is expecting her to meet him at the city’s gates.

Seeing the city in flames, Creusa recalls the previous day’s celebration. The Greeks seemed to have left Troy’s shores days earlier, leaving behind a giant wooden horse, apparently as an offering to the gods, according to Sinon, a Greek soldier.