Step 1 Consider the corpus of Greek myth. Choose a myth that has a particular meaning for you. This will be the topic of your paper. Step 2 Use the course materials and do some further research on you

The Trojan War is one of the most famous classical myths of ancient Greek culture. The myth extends its roots into a contemporary society where it has impacted many social, political and economic aspects. In Greek mythology, there is conflict, enmity, and strife between Greek and Troy. The bloodshed began after Helen, a wife to Menelaus the Spartan had been abducted by Paris, the prince of Troy.[1] When Menelaus ordered the return of his beloved wife the Trojans declined his demand. Menelaus then convinced his brother, Agamemnon to lead the Greek army into a war with Troy. The strife continued for nine years with the Greeks ravaging the entire cities surrounding Troy except for the City itself[2]. Later, in the tenth year, the Greeks ended the war by building a large wooden structure called the ‘Trojan Horse’ which they used to deceive, invade and destroy Troy. This paper uses the story of the Trojan horse and its implications in modern times.

After ten years of combat, the Greeks were not able to penetrate the walls of Troy, despite endless trying and their victory over the surrounding cities. The city was fortified under the protection, command, and governance of Hector. The commander of the Greek army, Agamemnon was still not willing to leave the battle until he had served justice for his brother, Menelaus and restored the honor of all Greek. Then Odysseus, who was very famous for his brilliant ideas and crafty plans, came up with a suggestion. He urged Agamemnon and other Greek commanders to build a large hollow wooden horse in which some soldiers will be hiding and then ambush the Trojans. They agreed to build a gigantic wooden horse and left it out of the gates of Troy.  The Greek soldiers burned down all their camps then sailed away pretending to have abandoned the wooden horse. When the Trojans saw the wooden horse, they were very happy because they thought that the Greeks had surrendered and offered them a gift. They brought the Trojan horse into the wall of the city. However, they were warned by Loacoon who was then a Trojan priest against bringing the wooden horse into Troy. He also informed the Trojans that it was a trap and should be destroyed. He wanted the Trojans to burn the wooden but Sinon, a very influential man in Troy interrupted and argued that the death Achilles had humiliated the Greeks and he had anticipated that they would not stay for long in their shores after the incident. Besides, he explained that the large wooden horse might be a gift that the Greeks have offered to Athena, who was the Olympian goddess of war and Wisdom. Meanwhile, Odysseus and some of his fellow Greek soldiers remained quiet in the Trojan horse[3]. They remained concealed in the Trojan horse until nightfall when all the Trojans were asleep. Later, they came out killed the sleeping Trojan soldiers and opened the gates of Troy for the Greek army. The Trojans were defeated and their city destroyed thus ending the Trojan War.

Greek mythology has been used for many centuries to teach society critical lessons about human beings. In modern society, a Trojan horse could be anybody that intends to harm or destroy other people from within[4]. Society is full of deceitful people who use lies to influence others. The Trojans were tricked to believe that they had won the war but in reality, they brought Greek soldiers into their city alongside the gigantic wooden horse. In modern times, people orchestrate lies to win metaphorical battles. Such people usually pose as friends when they are indeed enemies. Their victims let them into their lives thinking that they are harmless or beneficial. In the end they Trojan horses learn their weaknesses thereby destroying them from within. These people are the contemporary Greeks that come with that are crafted in different forms. They sometimes lure others into thinking that they are cultivating a fruitful relationship but harm them in the future.

            The term Trojan horse is also used in computing to describe some malicious computer programs. Such deceptive programs are usually hidden within other programs and can do all sorts of tasks that have not been authorized by the user[5]. Most of these malicious programs are downloaded from the internet by individuals only to find out that they conduct tasks that are very different from what was promised before downloading the program. As the use of the internet grows exponentially, hackers also use these Trojan horses to steal data from users and commit different cybercrimes. The malicious computer programs can be compared to the Trojan horse in classical mythology because they drive people into believing that they are beneficial and later cause harm to their computers.

The Trojan horse classical myth is therefore still relevant to contemporary society as it was many centuries ago when it was told by the Greeks. The myth helps in explaining how people can use deceptive measures to destroy others from within the same way the Greek army gained entry into Troy using the Trojan horse that was originally crafted as a Gift to Athena, the goddess of wisdom and war.

Bibliography

Fontes, Justine, and Ron Fontes. The Trojan Horse: The Fall of Troy [A Greek Myth]. Millbrook Press, 2017.

Gumpert, Matthew. "Beware of Greeks bearing gifts: Metaphors as viruses in discourses on the Greek crisis." Journal of Greek Media & Culture 3, no. 1 (2017): 43.

Kumar, Munna, Bimal Kumar Mishra, and T. C. Panda. "Predator-prey models on the interaction between computer worms, Trojan horse and antivirus software inside a computer system." International Journal of Security and Its Applications 10, no. 1 (2016): 182.

Zamierowski, David S. "Embedded “Extra” Scenario Material—Babushka Doll or Trojan Horse?." (2016): 475

[1] Fontes, Justine, and Ron Fontes. The Trojan Horse: The Fall of Troy [A Greek Myth]. Millbrook Press, 2017.

[2] Zamierowski, David S. "Embedded “Extra” Scenario Material—Babushka Doll or Trojan Horse?." (2016): 475

[3]  Zamierowski, 77.

[4] Gumpert, Matthew. "Beware of Greeks bearing gifts: Metaphors as viruses in discourses on the Greek crisis." Journal of Greek Media & Culture 3, no. 1 (2017): 43.

[5] Kumar, Munna, Bimal Kumar Mishra, and T. C. Panda. "Predator-prey models on the interaction between computer worms, Trojan horse and antivirus software inside a computer system." International Journal of Security and Its Applications 10, no. 1 (2016): 182.