Lines 380-400
χωόμενος δ' ὁ γέρων πάλιν ὤχετο· τοῖο δ' Ἀπόλλων
εὐξαμένου ἤκουσεν, ἐπεὶ μάλα οἱ φίλος ἦεν,
ἧκε δ' ἐπ' Ἀργείοισι κακὸν βέλος· οἱ δέ νυ λαοὶ
θνῆκον ἐπασσύτεροι, τὰ δ' ἐπῴχετο κῆλα θεοῖο
πάντῃ ἀνὰ στρατὸν εὐρὺν Ἀχαιῶν. ἄμμι δὲ μάντις
εὖ εἰδὼς ἀγόρευε θεοπροπίας ἑκάτοιο.
αὐτίκ' ἐγὼ πρῶτος κελόμην θεὸν ἱλάσκεσθαι·
Ἀτρεΐωνα δ' ἔπειτα χόλος λάβεν, αἶψα δ' ἀναστὰς
ἠπείλησει μῦθον, ὃ δὴ τετελεσμένος ἐστίν.
τὴν μὲν γὰρ σὺν νηὶ θοῇ ἑλίκωπες Ἀχαιοὶ
ἐς Χρύσην πέμπουσιν, ἄγουσι δὲ δῶρα ἄνακτι·
τὴν δὲ νέον κλισίηθεν ἔβαν κήρυκες ἄγοντες
κούρην Βρισῆος, τήν μοι δόσαν υἷες Ἀχαιῶν.
ἀλλὰ σύ, εἰ δύνασαί γε, περίσχεο παιδὸς ἑῆος·
ἐλθοῦς' Οὐλυμπόνδε Δία λίσαι, εἴ ποτε δή τι
ἢ ἔπει, ὤνησας κραδίην Διὸς ἡε καὶ ἔργῳ.
πολλάκι γάρ σεο πατρὸς ἐνι μεγάροισιν ἄκουσα
εὐχομένης, ὅτ' ἔφησα κελαινεφέι Κρονίωνι
οἴη ἐν ἀφανάτοισιν ἀεικέα λοιγὸν ἀμῦναι,
ὁππότε μιν ξυνδῆσαι Ὀλύμπιοι ἤθελον ἄλλοι,
Ἥρη τ' ἠδὲ Ποσειδάων καὶ Παλλὰς Ἀθήνη.
And that old man went off enraged; then Apollo
Hearkened to his prayer, since he was so dear to him,
And he sent his evil darts against the Argives,
Then the armies perished in quick succession,
And the arrows of the god ravaged them everywhere
Throughout the broad camp of the Achaeans.
Then a seer who sees well revealed to us
The oracles of the god who strikes at will.
Immediately I urged first to appease the god;
But thereupon a rage took hold of Atreus' son,
And straightaway, standing up, he threatened a command,
Now it is fulfilled. For the bright eyed Achaeans
Send the girl to Chrysa along with a fast ship,
And they bring gifts for the high lord;
Then just now the heralds who led off Briseus' girl,
Whom the sons of the Achaeans gave me,
Came to this tent.
But you, if you are able, protect your child;
Go to Olympus and beg of Zeus, if ever you assisted
Zeus' heart whether in word or deed.
For many times in the palace of my father
I hearkened to you boasting, when you alone
Among the immortals spoke to
The son of Cronos, wrapped in dark and angry clouds,
To avert his grievous destruction when the other Olympians
Sought to bind him hand and foot,
Hera, and Poseidon, as well as Pallas Athena.
Achilles finishes telling his mother all his troubles and then begins an interesting story which has to be one of the earliest accounts of any aspect of Greek mythology. Begging her to go to Zeus in order to win back his honor he recounts the assistance that his mother Thetis had given the father of gods and men when the other Olympian deities had rebelled against him.
Showing posts with label son of Atreus. Show all posts
Showing posts with label son of Atreus. Show all posts
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Day 51: A Recap From Achilles to His Mother
Lines 359-79
καρπαλίμως δ' ἀνέδυ πολιῆς ἁλὸς ἠύτ' ὀμίχλη,
καί ῥα πάροιθ' αὐτοῖο καθέζετο δάκρυ χέοντος,
χειρί τέ μιν κατέρεξεν, ἔπος τ' ἔφατ' ἔκ τ' ὀνόμαζεν·
"τέκνον, τί κλαίεις; τί δέ σε φρένας ἵκετο πένθος;
ἐξαύδα, μὴ κεῦθε νόῳ, ἵνα εἴδομεν ἄμφω."
τὴν δὲ βαρὺ στενάχων προσέφη πόδας ὠκὺς Ἀχιλλεύς·
"οἶσθα· τί ἦ τοι ταῦτα ἰδυίῃ πάντ' ἀγορεύω;
ᾠχόμεθ' ἐς Θήβην, ἱερὴν πόλιν Ἠετίωνος,
τὴν δὲ διεπράθομέν τε καὶ ἤγομεν ἐνθάδε πάντα.
καὶ τὰ μὲν εὖ δάσσαντο μετὰ σφίσιν υἷες Ἀχαιῶν,
ἐκ δ' ἕλον Ἀτρεΐδῃ Χρυσηίδα καλλιπάρῃον.
Χρύσης δ' αὖθ' ἱερεὺς ἑκατηβόλου Ἀπόλλωνος
ἦλθε θοὰς ἐπὶ νῆας Ἀχαιῶν χαλκοχιτώνων
λυσόμενός τε θύγατρα φέρων τ' ἀπερείσι ἄποινα,
στέμματ' ἔχων ἐν χερσὶν ἑκηβόλου Ἀπόλλωνος
χρυσέῳ ἀνὰ σκήπτρῳ, καὶ ἐλίσσετο πάντας Ἀχαιούς,
Ἀτρεΐδα δὲ μάλιστα δύω, κοσμήτορε λαῶν.
ἔνθ' ἄλλοι μὲν πάντες ἐπευφήμησαν Ἀχαιοὶ
αἰδεῖσθαι θ' ἱερῆα καὶ ἀγλαὰ δέχθαι ἄποινα.
ἀλλ' οὐκ Ἀτρεΐδῃ Ἀγαμέμνονι ἥνδανε θυμῷ,
ἀλλὰ κακῶς ἀφίει, κρατερὸν δ' ἐπὶ μῦθον ἔτελλεν.
Then swiftly she dove up from the hoary salt brined sea
Like the mist, and sat down before him and his streaming tears,
And caressed him with her hands speaking out a word addressing him:
"My child, why do you weep? And what grief comes up in your spirit?
Speak up, do not hide your mind, so that we both may know."
And swift footed Achilles addressed her, groaning heavily:
"You know. Indeed why do I tell this to you who know all?
We went to Thebe, Eetion's sacred city, and plundered it,
Then we brought it all here. And first the sons of the Achaeans
Divided it fairly among themselves, and they took out fair cheeked Chryseis
For Atreus' son. But then Chryses, the priest of far shooting Apollo,
Came to the fast ships of the bronze clad Achaeans,
And was seeking to free his daughter bearing countless ransoms,
Holiding in his hands the wreaths of Apollo who strikes from afar
Along with a golden scepter, and he was begging all the Achaeans,
But most of all the two sons of Atreus, commanders of the armies.
Then all the Achaeans shouted their assent, revering the priest,
And accepting his shining ransoms. But this did not please Atreus's son,
Agamemnon in his soul, and he sent him off evilly, and imparted on him
A harsh command.
Achilles divine mother rises like a mist from the sea to comfort the mighty warrior's wounded pride. Caressing him with her immortal fingers she seeks to stop his tears and her son's heart. This bit of commentary is an extension of the last, because once again it is hard to imagine a scene like this included in, say, a movie about the Second World War, whether the man's mother was a goddess or not. But it is sung here in the Iliad without any commentary or reproach against Achilles' character. In fact this moment is celebrated because Achilles' tears get his mother to produce a series of events that initially increases his honor and presitige, even though it leads to disaster in the end.
It is interesting to note that Achilles words in describing the happenings that led to his sorrow here are almost an exact repetition of what the narrator describes during the first fifty lines, with only slight variation to fit the meter at the beginning. This must have been an oral device originally toprovide a break for the wandering bard's hard pressed memory.
καρπαλίμως δ' ἀνέδυ πολιῆς ἁλὸς ἠύτ' ὀμίχλη,
καί ῥα πάροιθ' αὐτοῖο καθέζετο δάκρυ χέοντος,
χειρί τέ μιν κατέρεξεν, ἔπος τ' ἔφατ' ἔκ τ' ὀνόμαζεν·
"τέκνον, τί κλαίεις; τί δέ σε φρένας ἵκετο πένθος;
ἐξαύδα, μὴ κεῦθε νόῳ, ἵνα εἴδομεν ἄμφω."
τὴν δὲ βαρὺ στενάχων προσέφη πόδας ὠκὺς Ἀχιλλεύς·
"οἶσθα· τί ἦ τοι ταῦτα ἰδυίῃ πάντ' ἀγορεύω;
ᾠχόμεθ' ἐς Θήβην, ἱερὴν πόλιν Ἠετίωνος,
τὴν δὲ διεπράθομέν τε καὶ ἤγομεν ἐνθάδε πάντα.
καὶ τὰ μὲν εὖ δάσσαντο μετὰ σφίσιν υἷες Ἀχαιῶν,
ἐκ δ' ἕλον Ἀτρεΐδῃ Χρυσηίδα καλλιπάρῃον.
Χρύσης δ' αὖθ' ἱερεὺς ἑκατηβόλου Ἀπόλλωνος
ἦλθε θοὰς ἐπὶ νῆας Ἀχαιῶν χαλκοχιτώνων
λυσόμενός τε θύγατρα φέρων τ' ἀπερείσι ἄποινα,
στέμματ' ἔχων ἐν χερσὶν ἑκηβόλου Ἀπόλλωνος
χρυσέῳ ἀνὰ σκήπτρῳ, καὶ ἐλίσσετο πάντας Ἀχαιούς,
Ἀτρεΐδα δὲ μάλιστα δύω, κοσμήτορε λαῶν.
ἔνθ' ἄλλοι μὲν πάντες ἐπευφήμησαν Ἀχαιοὶ
αἰδεῖσθαι θ' ἱερῆα καὶ ἀγλαὰ δέχθαι ἄποινα.
ἀλλ' οὐκ Ἀτρεΐδῃ Ἀγαμέμνονι ἥνδανε θυμῷ,
ἀλλὰ κακῶς ἀφίει, κρατερὸν δ' ἐπὶ μῦθον ἔτελλεν.
Then swiftly she dove up from the hoary salt brined sea
Like the mist, and sat down before him and his streaming tears,
And caressed him with her hands speaking out a word addressing him:
"My child, why do you weep? And what grief comes up in your spirit?
Speak up, do not hide your mind, so that we both may know."
And swift footed Achilles addressed her, groaning heavily:
"You know. Indeed why do I tell this to you who know all?
We went to Thebe, Eetion's sacred city, and plundered it,
Then we brought it all here. And first the sons of the Achaeans
Divided it fairly among themselves, and they took out fair cheeked Chryseis
For Atreus' son. But then Chryses, the priest of far shooting Apollo,
Came to the fast ships of the bronze clad Achaeans,
And was seeking to free his daughter bearing countless ransoms,
Holiding in his hands the wreaths of Apollo who strikes from afar
Along with a golden scepter, and he was begging all the Achaeans,
But most of all the two sons of Atreus, commanders of the armies.
Then all the Achaeans shouted their assent, revering the priest,
And accepting his shining ransoms. But this did not please Atreus's son,
Agamemnon in his soul, and he sent him off evilly, and imparted on him
A harsh command.
Achilles divine mother rises like a mist from the sea to comfort the mighty warrior's wounded pride. Caressing him with her immortal fingers she seeks to stop his tears and her son's heart. This bit of commentary is an extension of the last, because once again it is hard to imagine a scene like this included in, say, a movie about the Second World War, whether the man's mother was a goddess or not. But it is sung here in the Iliad without any commentary or reproach against Achilles' character. In fact this moment is celebrated because Achilles' tears get his mother to produce a series of events that initially increases his honor and presitige, even though it leads to disaster in the end.
It is interesting to note that Achilles words in describing the happenings that led to his sorrow here are almost an exact repetition of what the narrator describes during the first fifty lines, with only slight variation to fit the meter at the beginning. This must have been an oral device originally toprovide a break for the wandering bard's hard pressed memory.
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Day 47: To Wash Their Filth Into the Briny Deep
Lines 304-14
ὧς τώ γ' ἀντιβίοισι μαχησαμένω ἐπέεσσιν
ἀνστήτην, λῦσαν δ' ἀγορὴν παρὰ νηυσὶν Ἀχαιῶν.
Πηλεΐδης μὲν ἐπὶ κλισίας καὶ νῆας ἐίσας
ἤιε σύν τε Μενοιτιάδῃ καὶ οἷς ἑτάροισιν,
Ἀτρεΐδης δ' ἄρα νῆα θοὴν ἅλαδε προέρυσσεν,
ἐς δ' ἐρέτας ἔκρινεν ἐείκοσιν, ἐς δ' ἑκατόμβησν
βῆσε θεῷ, ἀνὰ δὲ Χρυσηίδα καλλιπάρῃον
εἶσεν ἄγνων· ἐν δ' ἀρχὸς ἔβη πολύμητις Ὀδυσσεύς.
οἱ μὲν ἔπειτ' ἀναβάντες ἐπέπλεον ὑγρὰ κέλευθα,
λαοὺς δ' Ἀτρεΐδης ἀπολυμαίνεσθαι ἄνωγεν.
οἱ δ' ἀπελυμαίνοντο καὶ εὶς ἅλα λύματ' ἔβαλλον,
Thus the two who battled fiercely with hostile words
stood up, then they broke up the assembly by the ships of the Achaeans.
The son of Peleus went to the huts and the well beaked ships
Along with both Menoetius' son and his comrades,
While Atreus' son launched a fast ship into the salt brined sea,
Picking out twenty oarsmen, and sending forth a hecatomb
To the god along with fair cheeked Chryseis who he led on board
And seated there; and wily Odysseus went as pilot.
And going up they thereupon sailed on their watery way,
Then the son of Atreus ordered the men to purify themselves.
So they cleansed themselves, and hurled their filth into the briny deep,
There is a brief period of peace here, beautifully illustrated by the poet with Agamemnon bending to the will of Apollo and sending back the maiden, along with a hecatomb as recompense for his misdeed, and also Odysseus who can be sure to ease any uncomfortable situation with honeyed words or even lies. This is followed by the armies purifying themselves by washing off the filth of the plague in the briny sea. One is almost tempted to forget, during these few lines, the horrible exchange of hostile words in the preceding 200 lines of poetry but of course we will be brought back to them forthwith.
ὧς τώ γ' ἀντιβίοισι μαχησαμένω ἐπέεσσιν
ἀνστήτην, λῦσαν δ' ἀγορὴν παρὰ νηυσὶν Ἀχαιῶν.
Πηλεΐδης μὲν ἐπὶ κλισίας καὶ νῆας ἐίσας
ἤιε σύν τε Μενοιτιάδῃ καὶ οἷς ἑτάροισιν,
Ἀτρεΐδης δ' ἄρα νῆα θοὴν ἅλαδε προέρυσσεν,
ἐς δ' ἐρέτας ἔκρινεν ἐείκοσιν, ἐς δ' ἑκατόμβησν
βῆσε θεῷ, ἀνὰ δὲ Χρυσηίδα καλλιπάρῃον
εἶσεν ἄγνων· ἐν δ' ἀρχὸς ἔβη πολύμητις Ὀδυσσεύς.
οἱ μὲν ἔπειτ' ἀναβάντες ἐπέπλεον ὑγρὰ κέλευθα,
λαοὺς δ' Ἀτρεΐδης ἀπολυμαίνεσθαι ἄνωγεν.
οἱ δ' ἀπελυμαίνοντο καὶ εὶς ἅλα λύματ' ἔβαλλον,
Thus the two who battled fiercely with hostile words
stood up, then they broke up the assembly by the ships of the Achaeans.
The son of Peleus went to the huts and the well beaked ships
Along with both Menoetius' son and his comrades,
While Atreus' son launched a fast ship into the salt brined sea,
Picking out twenty oarsmen, and sending forth a hecatomb
To the god along with fair cheeked Chryseis who he led on board
And seated there; and wily Odysseus went as pilot.
And going up they thereupon sailed on their watery way,
Then the son of Atreus ordered the men to purify themselves.
So they cleansed themselves, and hurled their filth into the briny deep,
There is a brief period of peace here, beautifully illustrated by the poet with Agamemnon bending to the will of Apollo and sending back the maiden, along with a hecatomb as recompense for his misdeed, and also Odysseus who can be sure to ease any uncomfortable situation with honeyed words or even lies. This is followed by the armies purifying themselves by washing off the filth of the plague in the briny sea. One is almost tempted to forget, during these few lines, the horrible exchange of hostile words in the preceding 200 lines of poetry but of course we will be brought back to them forthwith.
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Day 45: The Limits of Good Advice
Lines 269-89
καὶ μὲν τοῖσιν ἐγὼ μεθομίλεον ἐκ Πύλου ἐλθών,
τηλόθεν ἐξ ἀπίης γαίης· καλέσαντο γὰρ αὐτοί·
καὶ μαχόμην κατ' ἔμ' αὐτὸν ἐγώ· κείνοισι δ' ἂν οὔ τις
τῶν, οἳ νῦν βροτοί εἰσιν ἐπιχθόνιοι, μαχέοιτο.
καὶ μέν μευ βουλέων ξύνιεν πείθοντό τε μύθῳ.
ἀλλὰ πίθεσθε καὶ ὔμμες, ἐπεὶ πείθεσθαι ἀμεινον.
μήτε σὺ τόνδ' ἀγαθός περ ἐὼν ἀποαίρεο κούρην,
ἀλλ' ἔα, ὥς οἱ πρῶτα δόσαν γέρας υἷες Ἀχαιῶν.
μήτε σύ, Πηλεΐδη, θέλ' ἐριζέμεναι βασιλῆι
ἀντιβίην, ἐπεὶ οὔ ποθ' ὁμοίης ἔμμορε τιμῆς
σκηπροῦχος βασιλεύς, ᾧ τε Ζεὺς κῦδος ἔδωκεν.
εἰ δὲ σὺ καρτερός ἐσσι, θεὰ δέ σε γείνατο μήτηρ,
ἀλλ' ὁδε φέρτερός ἐστιν, ἐπεὶ πλεόνεσσιν ἀνάσσει.
Ἀτρεΐδη, σὺ δε παῦε τεὸν μένος· αὐτὰρ ἐγώ γε
λίσσομ' Ἀχιλλῆι μεθέμεν χόλον ὅς μέγα πᾶσιν
ἕρκος Ἀχαιοῖσιν πέλεται πολέμοιο κακοῖο."
τὸν δ' ἀπαμειβόμενος προσέφη κρείων Ἀγαμέμνων·
"ναὶ δὴ ταῦτα γε πάντα, γέρον, κατὰ μοῖραν ἔειπες
ἀλλ' ὅδ' ἀνὴρ ἐθέλει περὶ πάντων ἔμμεναι ἄλλων,
πάντων μὲν κρατέειν ἐθέλει, πάντεσσι δ' ανάσσειν,
πᾶσι δὲ σημαίνειν, ἅ τιν' οὐ πείσεσθαι ὀίω.
And certainly I consorted with these, coming from far Pylos,
From a distant land, for they themselves called me there,
And I myself did battle; but none of the mortal men
Who live now on earth would fight with these.
And of course those men hearkened to my counsels
And would heed my word. But obey this, since the better man hearkens to;
And you, do not deprive this one so brave of the maiden,
But let it be, since the sons of the Achaeans
Gave the prize to him first. And you, son of Peleus,
Do not seek to strive with the king in antagonism,
Since never has a scepter bearing king, to whom Zeus
Gave glory, received a similar share of honor.
And even if you are the stronger, since a goddess mother bore you,
But this one is more powerful, since he rules over many.
And you, son of Atreus, check your rage; moreover I beg it,
For Achilles' sake, give up this rage, against one who is a mighty bulwark
For all the Achaeans against evil war."
And in reply, the lord Agamemnon addressed him:
"Surely old man you have spoken all this as is fitting,
But this man desires to be above all others, certainly
He wishes to hold sway over all, and to rule all,
And to command all, I think there is one who does not obey.
An amazing scene on so many levels. First, we see the limits of wisdom, if such a thing can be said, or least of good advice. Nestor starts telling the two clashing heroes that better men than they have followed his advice so these two better do it. And he proceeds to tell them exactly what to do. One can talk all one wants about Nestor's beautiful counsels and his supposed magical ability with words, but the fact is here that this personification of ancient wisdom does not succeed, and in fact fails miserably, for Agamemnon returns straightaway to his quarrel with Achilles the moment that the old king is done speaking. One could think of better ways that Nestor could have handled the situation, such as telling a story from his youth about how such a petty conflict had destroyed a vast enterprise, but he did not do that since he was a king and not a poet. There is a certain haughtiness to his position here: I am recognized as the wisest of the wise, and have always been recognized as such by better men than you two, so you had better do what I say. How would one expect two exceedingly proud men who have just been quarrelling to react?
Time for a random historical meandering here: I was thinking over this whole experience of haughtiness and arrogance and how they are unmistakably condemned in this poem, and I was comparing them in my mind with the tales of the Israelites in the Hebrew Bible, some of which was written contemporaneously with the Iliad and the Odyssey, where those who exhibit these same qualities find equal censure. While I was mulling this over in my mind I started to ponder those late Bronze Age stellae, or monuments, left behind by the monarchs of that time, above all by the pharaohs of Egypt where by reading them one would think that Pharaoh had destroyed an entire enemy army all by himself. These things would be set up if the battle was a draw, such as Kadesh, or even if it resulted in a defeat. The king would smite an entire enemy army and wipe them from the face of the earth, only for that army to magically reincarnate the next year and for the king to smite them once again. The kingdoms of the Bronze Age fell suddenly, at the beginning of the twelfth century B.C. and I wonder if some memory of their collapse as a condemnation for this arrogance transmitted to Homer's age and on into the classical world that was to follow? For one never sees this open display of ridiculous bombast among the great powers again on a consistent basis, not even by the Romans whose empire made these Bronze Age "great kings" look like petty tribal warlords in comparison.
καὶ μὲν τοῖσιν ἐγὼ μεθομίλεον ἐκ Πύλου ἐλθών,
τηλόθεν ἐξ ἀπίης γαίης· καλέσαντο γὰρ αὐτοί·
καὶ μαχόμην κατ' ἔμ' αὐτὸν ἐγώ· κείνοισι δ' ἂν οὔ τις
τῶν, οἳ νῦν βροτοί εἰσιν ἐπιχθόνιοι, μαχέοιτο.
καὶ μέν μευ βουλέων ξύνιεν πείθοντό τε μύθῳ.
ἀλλὰ πίθεσθε καὶ ὔμμες, ἐπεὶ πείθεσθαι ἀμεινον.
μήτε σὺ τόνδ' ἀγαθός περ ἐὼν ἀποαίρεο κούρην,
ἀλλ' ἔα, ὥς οἱ πρῶτα δόσαν γέρας υἷες Ἀχαιῶν.
μήτε σύ, Πηλεΐδη, θέλ' ἐριζέμεναι βασιλῆι
ἀντιβίην, ἐπεὶ οὔ ποθ' ὁμοίης ἔμμορε τιμῆς
σκηπροῦχος βασιλεύς, ᾧ τε Ζεὺς κῦδος ἔδωκεν.
εἰ δὲ σὺ καρτερός ἐσσι, θεὰ δέ σε γείνατο μήτηρ,
ἀλλ' ὁδε φέρτερός ἐστιν, ἐπεὶ πλεόνεσσιν ἀνάσσει.
Ἀτρεΐδη, σὺ δε παῦε τεὸν μένος· αὐτὰρ ἐγώ γε
λίσσομ' Ἀχιλλῆι μεθέμεν χόλον ὅς μέγα πᾶσιν
ἕρκος Ἀχαιοῖσιν πέλεται πολέμοιο κακοῖο."
τὸν δ' ἀπαμειβόμενος προσέφη κρείων Ἀγαμέμνων·
"ναὶ δὴ ταῦτα γε πάντα, γέρον, κατὰ μοῖραν ἔειπες
ἀλλ' ὅδ' ἀνὴρ ἐθέλει περὶ πάντων ἔμμεναι ἄλλων,
πάντων μὲν κρατέειν ἐθέλει, πάντεσσι δ' ανάσσειν,
πᾶσι δὲ σημαίνειν, ἅ τιν' οὐ πείσεσθαι ὀίω.
And certainly I consorted with these, coming from far Pylos,
From a distant land, for they themselves called me there,
And I myself did battle; but none of the mortal men
Who live now on earth would fight with these.
And of course those men hearkened to my counsels
And would heed my word. But obey this, since the better man hearkens to;
And you, do not deprive this one so brave of the maiden,
But let it be, since the sons of the Achaeans
Gave the prize to him first. And you, son of Peleus,
Do not seek to strive with the king in antagonism,
Since never has a scepter bearing king, to whom Zeus
Gave glory, received a similar share of honor.
And even if you are the stronger, since a goddess mother bore you,
But this one is more powerful, since he rules over many.
And you, son of Atreus, check your rage; moreover I beg it,
For Achilles' sake, give up this rage, against one who is a mighty bulwark
For all the Achaeans against evil war."
And in reply, the lord Agamemnon addressed him:
"Surely old man you have spoken all this as is fitting,
But this man desires to be above all others, certainly
He wishes to hold sway over all, and to rule all,
And to command all, I think there is one who does not obey.
An amazing scene on so many levels. First, we see the limits of wisdom, if such a thing can be said, or least of good advice. Nestor starts telling the two clashing heroes that better men than they have followed his advice so these two better do it. And he proceeds to tell them exactly what to do. One can talk all one wants about Nestor's beautiful counsels and his supposed magical ability with words, but the fact is here that this personification of ancient wisdom does not succeed, and in fact fails miserably, for Agamemnon returns straightaway to his quarrel with Achilles the moment that the old king is done speaking. One could think of better ways that Nestor could have handled the situation, such as telling a story from his youth about how such a petty conflict had destroyed a vast enterprise, but he did not do that since he was a king and not a poet. There is a certain haughtiness to his position here: I am recognized as the wisest of the wise, and have always been recognized as such by better men than you two, so you had better do what I say. How would one expect two exceedingly proud men who have just been quarrelling to react?
Time for a random historical meandering here: I was thinking over this whole experience of haughtiness and arrogance and how they are unmistakably condemned in this poem, and I was comparing them in my mind with the tales of the Israelites in the Hebrew Bible, some of which was written contemporaneously with the Iliad and the Odyssey, where those who exhibit these same qualities find equal censure. While I was mulling this over in my mind I started to ponder those late Bronze Age stellae, or monuments, left behind by the monarchs of that time, above all by the pharaohs of Egypt where by reading them one would think that Pharaoh had destroyed an entire enemy army all by himself. These things would be set up if the battle was a draw, such as Kadesh, or even if it resulted in a defeat. The king would smite an entire enemy army and wipe them from the face of the earth, only for that army to magically reincarnate the next year and for the king to smite them once again. The kingdoms of the Bronze Age fell suddenly, at the beginning of the twelfth century B.C. and I wonder if some memory of their collapse as a condemnation for this arrogance transmitted to Homer's age and on into the classical world that was to follow? For one never sees this open display of ridiculous bombast among the great powers again on a consistent basis, not even by the Romans whose empire made these Bronze Age "great kings" look like petty tribal warlords in comparison.
Monday, November 16, 2009
Day 17: The Words of Achilles
Lines 59-63
"Ἀτρεῑδη, νῦν ἄμμε πάλιν πλαγχθέντας ὀίω
ἂψ ἀπονοστήσειν, εἴ κε θανατόν γε φύγοιμεν
εἰ δὴ ὁμοῦ πόλεμός τε δαμᾷ καὶ λοιμὸς Ἀχαιούς.
ἀλλ' ἄγε δή τινα μάντιν ἐρείομεν ἣ ἱερῆα
ἢ καὶ ὀνειροπόλον, καὶ γάρ τ' ὄναρ ἐκ Διός ἐστιν,
"Son of Atreus, I now believe us beaten back
Toward home, may it be that we escape death
While plague and war subdue the Achaeans.
But come now, let us ask some seer or holy man
Or interpreter of dreams, for the dream is from Zeus,
A desperate Achilles begins his plea to Agamemnon for a resolution to the crisis. I often wonder why the Trojans did not launch a full scale attack at this point and push their Achaean foes into the sea. I'm guessing that Homer would give an answer that not even Zeus could fathom the whims of fate...
"Ἀτρεῑδη, νῦν ἄμμε πάλιν πλαγχθέντας ὀίω
ἂψ ἀπονοστήσειν, εἴ κε θανατόν γε φύγοιμεν
εἰ δὴ ὁμοῦ πόλεμός τε δαμᾷ καὶ λοιμὸς Ἀχαιούς.
ἀλλ' ἄγε δή τινα μάντιν ἐρείομεν ἣ ἱερῆα
ἢ καὶ ὀνειροπόλον, καὶ γάρ τ' ὄναρ ἐκ Διός ἐστιν,
"Son of Atreus, I now believe us beaten back
Toward home, may it be that we escape death
While plague and war subdue the Achaeans.
But come now, let us ask some seer or holy man
Or interpreter of dreams, for the dream is from Zeus,
A desperate Achilles begins his plea to Agamemnon for a resolution to the crisis. I often wonder why the Trojans did not launch a full scale attack at this point and push their Achaean foes into the sea. I'm guessing that Homer would give an answer that not even Zeus could fathom the whims of fate...
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Day 10: Agamemnon and the Priest
Lines 22-27
ἔνθ' ἄλλοι μὲν πάντες ἐπευφήμησαν' Αχαιοὶ
αἰδεῖσθαι θ' ἱερῆα καὶ ἀλγαὰ δέχθαι ἄποινα
ἀλλ' οὐκ Ἀτρείδῃ Ἀγαμέμνονι ἥνδανε θυμῷ
ἀλλὰ κακῶς ἀφίει, κρατερὸν δ'ἐπὶ μῦθον ἔτελλεν
"μή σε, γέρον, κοίλῃσιν ἐγὼ παρὰ νηυσὶ κιχήω
ἣ νῦν δηθύνοντ' ἢ ὕστερον αὖτις ἰόντα
Then all the other Achaeans shouted their assent
Revering the priest, and accepting his shining ransoms,
But not Agamemnon, this did not please the mind of the son of Atreus
And he sent him away with cruel malice, imparting a harsh command:
"No old man, let me not come upon you by the hollow ships,
lingering now, or coming back another time
ἔνθ' ἄλλοι μὲν πάντες ἐπευφήμησαν' Αχαιοὶ
αἰδεῖσθαι θ' ἱερῆα καὶ ἀλγαὰ δέχθαι ἄποινα
ἀλλ' οὐκ Ἀτρείδῃ Ἀγαμέμνονι ἥνδανε θυμῷ
ἀλλὰ κακῶς ἀφίει, κρατερὸν δ'ἐπὶ μῦθον ἔτελλεν
"μή σε, γέρον, κοίλῃσιν ἐγὼ παρὰ νηυσὶ κιχήω
ἣ νῦν δηθύνοντ' ἢ ὕστερον αὖτις ἰόντα
Then all the other Achaeans shouted their assent
Revering the priest, and accepting his shining ransoms,
But not Agamemnon, this did not please the mind of the son of Atreus
And he sent him away with cruel malice, imparting a harsh command:
"No old man, let me not come upon you by the hollow ships,
lingering now, or coming back another time
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Day 5: Chryses Comes to the Fast Ships
Lines 11-16
οὔνεκα τόν Χρύσην ἠτίμασεν ἀρητῆρα
Ἀτρείδης. ὁ γὰρ ἦλθε θοὰς ἐπὶ νῆας Ἀχαιῶν
λυσόμενος τε θὺγατέρα φέρων τ'ἀπερείσι ἄποινα
στέμματ'ἔχων ἐν χερσὶν ἑκηβόλου Ἀπόλλωνος
χρυσεῳ ἀνὰ σκήπτρῳ, καὶ ἐλίσσετο πάντας Ἀχαιους
Ἀτρείδα δὲ μάλιστα δύω, κοσμήτορε λαῶν
Because the son of Atreus dishonored that famous priest
Chryses. For he came to the fast ships of the Achaeans
desiring to free his daughter and bearing innumerable ransoms,
wreaths in hand of the Freeshooter, Apollo,
along with a golden scepter, and he kept begging all the Achaeans,
especially the two sons of Atreus, marshallers of the armies
My one short comment tonight before I retreat to the country of dreams after a long and taxing evening: Homer's language is stark and brutal. I love Fagles English translation, but even he does not match the effect of reading those first lines in the original and I can already see that the small amount of effort that I've put into this has definitely been worth it. I cannot wait to see what I discover tomorrow...
οὔνεκα τόν Χρύσην ἠτίμασεν ἀρητῆρα
Ἀτρείδης. ὁ γὰρ ἦλθε θοὰς ἐπὶ νῆας Ἀχαιῶν
λυσόμενος τε θὺγατέρα φέρων τ'ἀπερείσι ἄποινα
στέμματ'ἔχων ἐν χερσὶν ἑκηβόλου Ἀπόλλωνος
χρυσεῳ ἀνὰ σκήπτρῳ, καὶ ἐλίσσετο πάντας Ἀχαιους
Ἀτρείδα δὲ μάλιστα δύω, κοσμήτορε λαῶν
Because the son of Atreus dishonored that famous priest
Chryses. For he came to the fast ships of the Achaeans
desiring to free his daughter and bearing innumerable ransoms,
wreaths in hand of the Freeshooter, Apollo,
along with a golden scepter, and he kept begging all the Achaeans,
especially the two sons of Atreus, marshallers of the armies
My one short comment tonight before I retreat to the country of dreams after a long and taxing evening: Homer's language is stark and brutal. I love Fagles English translation, but even he does not match the effect of reading those first lines in the original and I can already see that the small amount of effort that I've put into this has definitely been worth it. I cannot wait to see what I discover tomorrow...
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Day 4: Achilles, Agamemnon, and the son of Leto and Zeus
Lines 6-10
ἐξ οὗ δὴ τὰ πρῶτα διαστήτην ἐρίσαντε
Ἀτρείδης τε ἄναξ ἀνδρῶν καὶ δῖος Ἀχιλλεύς
τίς τ'ἄρ σφωε θεῶν ἔριδι ξυνέηκε μάχεσθαι;
Λητοῦς καὶ Διὸς υἱός. ὁ γὰρ βασιλῆι χολωθεὶς
νοῦσον ἀνὰ στρατὸν ὦρσε κακήν, ὀλέκοντο δὲ λαοί,
From the time when the two first stood apart and quarelled
The son of Atreus and lord of men, and divine Achilles.
Which then of the gods brought these two to battle and strife?
Zeus' and Leto's son. For being enraged by the king
he incited an evil plague in the camp, the armies perishing
ἐξ οὗ δὴ τὰ πρῶτα διαστήτην ἐρίσαντε
Ἀτρείδης τε ἄναξ ἀνδρῶν καὶ δῖος Ἀχιλλεύς
τίς τ'ἄρ σφωε θεῶν ἔριδι ξυνέηκε μάχεσθαι;
Λητοῦς καὶ Διὸς υἱός. ὁ γὰρ βασιλῆι χολωθεὶς
νοῦσον ἀνὰ στρατὸν ὦρσε κακήν, ὀλέκοντο δὲ λαοί,
From the time when the two first stood apart and quarelled
The son of Atreus and lord of men, and divine Achilles.
Which then of the gods brought these two to battle and strife?
Zeus' and Leto's son. For being enraged by the king
he incited an evil plague in the camp, the armies perishing
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