Odyssey, Book 8 and 9
Posted: Wed Jul 30, 2014 3:50 pm
Book 8
-
Does it mean that Athena cheated the game?192. λᾶος ὑπὸ ῥιπῆς: ὁ δ᾽ ὑπέρπτατο σήματα πάντων
193. ῥίμφα θέων ἀπὸ χειρός. ἔθηκε δὲ τέρματ᾽ Ἀθήνη
194. ἀνδρὶ δέμας ἐικυῖα, ἔπος τ᾽ ἔφατ᾽ ἔκ τ᾽ ὀνόμαζεν: -
I would expect πάντας instead of πάντα, because ἄεθλοι is214. πάντα γὰρ οὐ κακός εἰμι, μετ᾽ ἀνδράσιν ὅσσοι ἄεθλοι:
masculine. -
Why is τόξων plural?225. οἵ ῥα καὶ ἀθανάτοισιν ἐρίζεσκον περὶ τόξων. -
Could you analyze the third verse? Here is my best try:349. τὸν δ᾽ αὖτε προσέειπε περικλυτὸς ἀμφιγυήεις:
350. "μή με, Ποσείδαον γαιήοχε, ταῦτα κέλευε:
351. δειλαί τοι δειλῶν γε καὶ ἐγγύαι ἐγγυάασθαι.
352. πῶς ἂν ἐγώ σε δέοιμι μετ᾽ ἀθανάτοισι θεοῖσιν,
353. εἴ κεν Ἄρης οἴχοιτο χρέος καὶ δεσμὸν ἀλύξας;"
When it is about the δειλῶν, even pledges are evil (δειλαί γε καὶ
ἐγγύαι). But I don't know what to do with the infinitive
ἐγγυάασθαι. Is it an epexegetical infinitive?
Cambridge G&L just book called the attention over the polyptote of
δειλῶν and ἐγγύαι-ἐγγυάασθαι, but didn't give any further explanation. -
I didn't grasp the meaning of the last verse. Is οἷα used adverbially?362. ἡ δ᾽ ἄρα Κύπρον ἵκανε φιλομμειδὴς Ἀφροδίτη,
363. ἐς Πάφον: ἔνθα δέ οἱ τέμενος βωμός τε θυήεις.
364. ἔνθα δέ μιν Χάριτες λοῦσαν καὶ χρῖσαν ἐλαίῳ
365. ἀμβρότῳ, οἷα θεοὺς ἐπενήνοθεν αἰὲν ἐόντας,
What is the meaning of ἐπενήνοθεν? I understand that the last is a
defective and difficult form, but I just want to get a notion of the
meaning of the verse as a whole. -
χυμένη -> χευαμένη (from the first aorist ἔχευα).527. ἀμφ᾽ αὐτῷ χυμένη λίγα κωκύει: οἱ δέ τ᾽ ὄπισθε -
Which is that ὄρος that he is talking about? Is it something that will564. ἀλλὰ τόδ᾽ ὥς ποτε πατρὸς ἐγὼν εἰπόντος ἄκουσα
565. Ναυσιθόου, ὃς ἔφασκε Ποσειδάων᾽ ἀγάσασθαι
566. ἡμῖν, οὕνεκα πομποὶ ἀπήμονές εἰμεν ἁπάντων.
567. φῆ ποτὲ Φαιήκων ἀνδρῶν ἐυεργέα νῆα
568. ἐκ πομπῆς ἀνιοῦσαν ἐν ἠεροειδέι πόντῳ
569. ῥαισέμεναι, μέγα δ᾽ ἧμιν ὄρος πόλει ἀμφικαλύψειν.
570. ὣς ἀγόρευ᾽ ὁ γέρων: τὰ δέ κεν θεὸς ἢ τελέσειεν
571. ἤ κ᾽ ἀτέλεστ᾽ εἴη, ὥς οἱ φίλον ἔπλετο θυμῷ:
happen later? According to Cambridge G&L scholars, this passage is
repeated on book 13 and thus Homer is somehow anticipating the bad
ending that this trip will have to the Phaenicians. That's fine, but I
was thinking about a shipwreck, so it called my attention that
the presage seems to involve the city of the Phaenicians (πόλει
ἀμφικαλύψειν), and not just the πόμπη that they will send for
Odysseus.
-
I'm not sure about verse 25. From LSJ, I infer that πανυπερτάτη is21. ναιετάω δ᾽ Ἰθάκην ἐυδείελον: ἐν δ᾽ ὄρος αὐτῇ
22. Νήριτον εἰνοσίφυλλον, ἀριπρεπές: ἀμφὶ δὲ νῆσοι
23. πολλαὶ ναιετάουσι μάλα σχεδὸν ἀλλήλῃσι,
24. Δουλίχιόν τε Σάμη τε καὶ ὑλήεσσα Ζάκυνθος.
25. αὐτὴ δὲ χθαμαλὴ πανυπερτάτη εἰν ἁλὶ κεῖται
26. πρὸς ζόφον, αἱ δέ τ᾽ ἄνευθε πρὸς ἠῶ τ᾽ ἠέλιόν τε,
27. τρηχεῖ᾽, ἀλλ᾽ ἀγαθὴ κουροτρόφος: οὔ τοι ἐγώ γε
28. ἧς γαίης δύναμαι γλυκερώτερον ἄλλο ἰδέσθαι.
referring to the altitude of the island, and χθαμαλὴ to its distance
from the continent. So Ithaca is very visible (for the men of
continent), because it is the highest and nearest island, am I right? -
Should not be ἄστε᾽ ἔπ᾽ (because of the anastrophe)?125. οὐ γὰρ Κυκλώπεσσι νέες πάρα μιλτοπάρῃοι,
124. οὐδ᾽ ἄνδρες νηῶν ἔνι τέκτονες, οἵ κε κάμοιεν
125. νῆας ἐυσσέλμους, αἵ κεν τελέοιεν ἕκαστα
126. ἄστε᾽ ἐπ᾽ ἀνθρώπων ἱκνεύμεναι, οἷά τε πολλὰ
127. ἄνδρες ἐπ᾽ ἀλλήλους νηυσὶν περόωσι θάλασσαν:
This is how I translated: "The Cyclops do not have ships, nor they
have men skilled in ships (νηῶν ἔνι τέκτονες) to fabricate ships (οἵ
κε κάμοιεν νῆας). Ships that may come to the cities of men (ἄστε᾽ ἔπ᾽
ἀνθρώπων ἰκνεύμεναι) and accomplish everything (αἵ κεν τελέοιεν
ἕκαστα)". -
Just to confirm, these accusatives are synonymous, right?261. οἴκαδε ἱέμενοι, ἄλλην ὁδὸν ἄλλα κέλευθα -
Again, why ἐπί doesn't throw back its accent?ἀλλ᾽ ὅ γ᾽ ἀναΐξας ἑτάροις ἐπὶ χεῖρας ἴαλλε, -
I would expect that the verb of the simil (τρύπῷ) should be in the382. οἱ μὲν μοχλὸν ἑλόντες ἐλάινον, ὀξὺν ἐπ᾽ ἄκρῳ,
383. ὀφθαλμῷ ἐνέρεισαν: ἐγὼ δ᾽ ἐφύπερθεν ἐρεισθεὶς
384. δίνεον, ὡς ὅτε τις τρυπῷ δόρυ νήιον ἀνὴρ
385. τρυπάνῳ, οἱ δέ τ᾽ ἔνερθεν ὑποσσείουσιν ἱμάντι
386. ἁψάμενοι ἑκάτερθε, τὸ δὲ τρέχει ἐμμενὲς αἰεί.
subjunctive mode, because it is a present general clause. Why is it in
the optative mode? -
I have seen this redundant use of φημι other times. I wonder if it is455. Οὖτις, ὃν οὔ πώ φημι πεφυγμένον εἶναι ὄλεθρον.
used with some emphasis purpose, I haven't another examples at hand
now, but I would say that it is always used to make some solemn
affirmation "I say, now and here...", could it be? -
How is the last verse connected with the rest? Merry says that there522. ὣς ἔφατ᾽, αὐτὰρ ἐγώ μιν ἀμειβόμενος προσέειπον:
523. ‘αἲ γὰρ δὴ ψυχῆς τε καὶ αἰῶνός σε δυναίμην
524. εὖνιν ποιήσας πέμψαι δόμον Ἄϊδος εἴσω,
525. ὡς οὐκ ὀφθαλμόν γ᾽ ἰήσεται οὐδ᾽ ἐνοσίχθων.
is a οὕτως implicit, but I still don't get it.