Verse

Iliad

Book 11, Line 401 by Samuel Butler (English)

Odysseus was now alone; not one of the Argives stood by him, for they were all panic-stricken. "Alas," said he to himself in his dismay, "what will become of me? It is ill if I turn and flee before these odds, but it will be worse if I am left alone and taken prisoner, for the son of Kronos has struck the rest of the Danaans with panic. But why talk to myself in this way? Well do I know that though cowards quit the field, a hero, whether he wound or be wounded, must stand firm and hold his own."

IliadBook 11, Line 401Samuel ButlerEnglishVerse permalinkRead in Book 11

HomerProseID iliad-iliad-butler-en-prose-11-401

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Samuel Butler's public-domain English prose Iliad via Perseus canonical TEI; prose segments are assigned to their source line span.