The Batrachomyomachia (Battle of the Frogs and the Mice) is an ancient Greek parody of the Homeric poems, and was formerly attributed to Homer himself. The short epic novel is very similar to the account in the Illiad of the war between Greeks and Trojans. Once again in a series of unfortunate, minor events lead to a large-scale confrontation of epic proportions. It all begins when the mouse, Crumb-snatcher, meets the frog king, Puff-jaw, at the edge of a big lake. Puff-jaw dives to safety, and the mouse drowns on his back after having cursed the frogs. News of Crumb-snatcher's death reaches the mice, and after a moving funeral oration by his father, Bread-nibber, the mice decide to go to war. The frogs hear of the mobilization and prepare for war as well. On Mount Olympus, the gods discuss whether to intervene or not, but Athena will not support any of the combatants.
The battle starts evenly and lasts throughout the day, but in the end the mice have the upper hand. Zeus who watches from afar becomes increasingly apprehensive about the possibility of the frog's defeat, so he strikes the mice with his thunderbolt. Still they fight on, but they are stricken with panic when Zeus unleashes the crabs to fight alongside the frogs. The unfamiliar sight of these heavily armed and tank-like creatures causes the mice to flee, and the war to end.
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