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Calchas is the Greek army’s chief priest. Though he conveys information from the gods, he’s deferential to Agamemnon and afraid of his wrath. When prodded by Achilles, he’s the one to break the news about Artemis’s anger and Apollo’s plague, both of which demand large sacrifices from Agamemnon—the death of his daughter and the loss of his pride, respectively.
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Calchas Character Timeline in The Song of Achilles
The timeline below shows where the character Calchas appears in The Song of Achilles. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 18
...the weather remains too still. Finally, Agamemnon speaks to the chief priest, a man named Calchas. Calchas says that the army offended Artemis somehow, and they need to make a sacrifice...
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...an excited Iphigenia arrives. The marketplace has been set up for the wedding—Agamemnon, Odysseus, Diomedes, Calchas, and Achilles wait on a dais. Iphigenia is barely fourteen; when she hugs her father,...
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Chapter 25
...is about to claim her, but Agamemnon does first, to the displeasure of the priest Calchas. Less than a month later, the girl’s father—a high priest of Apollo—comes to ransom her...
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...need to figure out what they’ve done to make the gods angry, and he summons Calchas, pretending that Agamemnon recommended he do so. Calchas is afraid to speak, worried that his...
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