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Achilles Being Dipped into the River Styx
Before Achilles was born his mother, Thetis, (one of the Nereids) was favored by Zeus, the king of the Olympians. One day a prophet foretold that Thetis’ son would grow up to be greater than his father. This immediately made Zeus back off and leave Thetis alone because he wanted to be more powerful than his son. Zeus then set Thetis up with King Peleus and the two of them wed and had a son, who they named Achilles. When Achilles was still a baby his mother covered his body in ambrosia and dipped him into the river Styx headfirst to make him nearly invincible. His entire body, except for his heel, where his mother held onto him to keep him from washing away, was unable to be injured. That child was now an almost immortal child who, if he was in battle, could not be killed or injured. Later in Achilles' life, when he was a teenager the prophet Calchas foresaw that the city of Troy could not be taken without Achilles’ help to conquer it. When Thetis heard this prophecy she was mortally afraid for her son. She knew that if her son went to fight against Troy with the Greeks he would die very quickly, on the other end of a Trojan spear. To make sure that Achilles would not be taken to Troy to fight and die, Thetis took Achilles to the court of the Lycomedes in Scyros and dressed him as a young woman to protect him from the armies that would want his help to win against Troy. While Achilles was in Lycomedes he had an affair, and then a son with Deidamiea (the daughter of Lycomedes); and then he named his newborn son Pyrrhus.
Odysseus, (the Greek) had heard about the prophecy about Achilles and had heard he might have been hiding in the court of Lycomedes. The Greek army had wanted to conquer Troy but they couldn’t do so without the help of Achilles. Then Odysseus came up with a clever plan to lure Achilles out of the packs of young women in the court. In a pile of women’s clothes he put a sword and shield. When Achilles was the only “woman” to be interested in the sword and shield Odysseus unveiled him as a warrior. Achilles then went willingly to fight with Odysseus at Troy. When he left he brought his tutor Phoenix and his best friend Patroclus to fight beside him in Troy.
Odysseus, (the Greek) had heard about the prophecy about Achilles and had heard he might have been hiding in the court of Lycomedes. The Greek army had wanted to conquer Troy but they couldn’t do so without the help of Achilles. Then Odysseus came up with a clever plan to lure Achilles out of the packs of young women in the court. In a pile of women’s clothes he put a sword and shield. When Achilles was the only “woman” to be interested in the sword and shield Odysseus unveiled him as a warrior. Achilles then went willingly to fight with Odysseus at Troy. When he left he brought his tutor Phoenix and his best friend Patroclus to fight beside him in Troy.