ὅσσον Φαίηκες περὶ πάντων ἴδριες ἀνδρῶν

νῆα θοὴν ἐνὶ πόντῳ ἐλαυνέμεν, ὣς δὲ γυναῖκες

ἱστῶν τεχνῆσσαι· πέρι γάρ σφισι δῶκεν Ἀθήνη110

ἔργα τ᾽ ἐπίστασθαι περικαλλέα καὶ φρένας ἐσθλάς.

ἔκτοσθεν δ᾽ αὐλῆς μέγας ὄρχατος ἄγχι θυράων

τετράγυος· περὶ δ᾽ ἕρκος ἐλήλαται ἀμφοτέρωθεν.

ἔνθα δὲ δένδρεα μακρὰ πεφύκασι τηλεθόωντα,

ὄγχναι καὶ ῥοιαὶ καὶ μηλέαι ἀγλαόκαρποι115

συκέαι τε γλυκεραὶ καὶ ἐλαῖαι τηλεθόωσαι.

τάων οὔ ποτε καρπὸς ἀπόλλυται οὐδ᾽ ἀπολείπει

χείματος οὐδὲ θέρευς, ἐπετήσιος· ἀλλὰ μάλ᾽ αἰεὶ

Ζεφυρίη πνείουσα τὰ μὲν φύει, ἄλλα δὲ πέσσει.

ὄγχνη ἐπ᾽ ὄγχνῃ γηράσκει, μῆλον δ᾽ ἐπὶ μήλῳ,120

αὐτὰρ ἐπὶ σταφυλῇ σταφυλή, σῦκον δ᾽ ἐπὶ σύκῳ.

ἔνθα δέ οἱ πολύκαρπος ἀλωὴ ἐρρίζωται,

τῆς ἕτερον μὲν θειλόπεδον λευρῷ ἐνὶ χώρῳ

τέρσεται ἠελίῳ, ἑτέρας δ᾽ ἄρα τε τρυγόωσιν,

ἄλλας δὲ τραπέουσι· πάροιθε δέ τ᾽ ὄμφακές εἰσιν125

ἄνθος ἀφιεῖσαι, ἕτεραι δ᾽ ὑποπερκάζουσιν.

ἔνθα δὲ κοσμηταὶ πρασιαὶ παρὰ νείατον ὄρχον

παντοῖαι πεφύασιν, ἐπηετανὸν γανόωσαι·

ἐν δὲ δύω κρῆναι ἡ μέν τ᾽ ἀνὰ κῆπον ἅπαντα

σκίδναται, ἡ δ᾽ ἑτέρωθεν ὑπ᾽ αὐλῆς οὐδὸν ἵησι130

πρὸς δόμον ὑψηλόν, ὅθεν ὑδρεύοντο πολῖται.

τοῖ᾽ ἄρ᾽ ἐν Ἀλκινόοιο θεῶν ἔσαν ἀγλαὰ δῶρα.

ἔνθα στὰς θηεῖτο πολύτλας δῖος Ὀδυσσεύς.

αὐτὰρ ἐπεὶ δὴ πάντα ἑῷ θηήσατο θυμῷ,

καρπαλίμως ὑπὲρ οὐδὸν ἐβήσετο δώματος εἴσω.135

εὗρε δὲ Φαιήκων ἡγήτορας ἠδὲ μέδοντας

σπένδοντας δεπάεσσιν ἐυσκόπῳ ἀργεϊφόντῃ,

ᾧ πυμάτῳ σπένδεσκον, ὅτε μνησαίατο κοίτου.

αὐτὰρ ὁ βῆ διὰ δῶμα πολύτλας δῖος Ὀδυσσεὺς

πολλὴν ἠέρ᾽ ἔχων, ἥν οἱ περίχευεν Ἀθήνη,140

ὄφρ᾽ ἵκετ᾽ Ἀρήτην τε καὶ Ἀλκίνοον βασιλῆα.

ἀμφὶ δ᾽ ἄρ᾽ Ἀρήτης βάλε γούνασι χεῖρας Ὀδυσσεύς,

καὶ τότε δή ῥ᾽ αὐτοῖο πάλιν χύτο θέσφατος ἀήρ.

οἱ δ᾽ ἄνεῳ ἐγένοντο, δόμον κάτα φῶτα ἰδόντες·

θαύμαζον δ᾽ ὁρόωντες. ὁ δὲ λιτάνευεν Ὀδυσσεύς·145

" Ἀρήτη, θύγατερ Ῥηξήνορος ἀντιθέοιο,

σόν τε πόσιν σά τε γούναθ᾽ ἱκάνω πολλὰ μογήσας

τούσδε τε δαιτυμόνας· τοῖσιν θεοὶ ὄλβια δοῖεν

ζωέμεναι, καὶ παισὶν ἐπιτρέψειεν ἕκαστος

κτήματ᾽ ἐνὶ μεγάροισι γέρας θ᾽ ὅ τι δῆμος ἔδωκεν·150

αὐτὰρ ἐμοὶ πομπὴν ὀτρύνετε πατρίδ᾽ ἱκέσθαι

θᾶσσον, ἐπεὶ δὴ δηθὰ φίλων ἄπο πήματα πάσχω."

    A description of the palace of Alcinous (continued). Odysseus enters the palace and addresses Queen Arete.

    Homer turns to the citizens of Scheria and paints the portrait of an impressively evolved society. The men’s expertise in sailing is matched by the women’s skill in spinning and weaving.

    read full essay

    We then pass outside the palace to the king’s flourishing, fertile gardens, blooming all year round, pear upon pear, grape upon grape, fig upon fig. The natural setting of a society in the Odyssey often reflects the character of its people. Calypso’s magical landscape reflects her powers, lush with vegetation and filled with fertile energy, seemingly responding to her beguiling voice, ordered but not by human intelligence (see essay on Book 5.43–91). Later, we will hear about the cave of Polyphemus, closed off from the other inhabitants of an asocial, atomized society (see essay on Book 9.161–192) and the home of Aeolus, who controls the winds for the gods, a floating island surrounded by sheer cliffs and bronze ramparts (see essay on Book 10.1–45), a suitable venue for rigid control. Eumaeus’s outpost is a microcosmic version of what Odysseus’s palace must have been before the suitors arrived, carefully ordered, productive but not flashy (14.5–28). The last gardens we will see are those kept by Laertes in the Ithakan countryside, a hardscrabble plot reflecting the deprivation created by Odysseus’s absence (24.226–31).

    The orchards of Alkinous tell us much about the king and his society. Flourishing in a gentle climate, they offer sustenance without apparently requiring hard labor. This abundance, Homer tells us, is a gift from the gods. The poet’s description recalls a common paradigm in the myths of the ancient Mediterranean, of a Golden Age when humans lived a carefree existence alongside the gods, in a landscape where food grew spontaneously without the need for human husbandry or the skills that inform it. This kind of effortless fecundity fits with the general tenor of Phaeacian civilization, which seems highly sophisticated but lacking in the kind of heroic striving that would usually produce such an existence. The Phaeacians, we will learn, do not like violent conflicts such as boxing or wrestling (let alone war), but prefer singing and dancing and warm baths. Theirs is the kind of society that the Greeks of the 8th century might see as insufficiently tough. Another parallel from Telemachus’ visit to Sparta suggests a more focused version of this critique (see essay on Book 6.239–88.)

    After dinner in the royal palace, Menelaus tells his guest the story of how he was becalmed in Egypt after leaving Troy. Eidothea, a friendly sea nymph, befriended the Greek commander and advised him to consult her father Proteus about how to escape. Proteus, a prophetic shapeshifter, could change form at will and would only yield up his prophecies if confined and unable to transform himself. With the nymph’s help, the Greeks captured her father and extracted information about how they might get home. They also learned about the fates of his comrades who fought at Troy, including Odysseus, still held captive by Calypso. Finally, the old man revealed how Menelaus’s own life would end:

    σοι δ᾽ οὐ θέσφατόν ἐστι, διοτρεφὲς ὦ Μενέλαε,
    Ἄργει ἐν ἱπποβότῳ θανέειν καὶ πότμον ἐπισπεῖν,
    ἀλλά σ᾽ ἐς Ἠλύσιον πεδίον καὶ πείρατα γαίης
    ἀθάνατοι πέμψουσιν, ὅθι ξανθὸς Ῥαδάμανθυς,
    τῇ περ ῥηίστη βιοτὴ πέλει ἀνθρώποισιν:
    οὐ νιφετός, οὔτ᾽ ἂρ χειμὼν πολὺς οὔτε ποτ᾽ ὄμβρος,
    ἀλλ᾽ αἰεὶ Ζεφύροιο λιγὺ πνείοντος ἀήτας
    Ὠκεανὸς ἀνίησιν ἀναψύχειν ἀνθρώπους:
    οὕνεκ᾽ ἔχεις Ἑλένην καί σφιν γαμβρὸς Διός ἐσσι.

    But for you it is not fated, Zeus-nourished Menelaus,
    to die and meet your fate in horse-pasturing Argos,
    but to the Elysian fields at the ends of the earth
    will the immortal gods send you, where sandy-haired Rhadymanthus
    is, and where life is made easiest for mortals.
    No snowstorms there, nor harsh winter, nor even much rain,
    but always the streams of the Ocean send forth fresh
    breezes from the west wind to refresh the lives of mortals.
    This will be yours because you have Helen and are son-in-law to Zeus.

    Odyssey 4.561–69

    This blissful existence foreshadows the unending life of pleasure that Calypso will offer Odysseus if he will only stay with her (5.135–36). The hero’s preference for a perilous and uncertain future with Penelope is definitive for our understanding of his character: an anonymous immortality, no matter how attractive, would keep him from the heroic striving—and thus, heroic glory—that defines who he is in an existential sense. The implied contrast between Menelaus’s afterlife, a divine gift he has not earned, and the heroic glory that Odysseus must win through constant exertion, could not be stronger.

    The gardens of Alkinous, bathed in the breezes of the Zephyr, sending forth crops unceasingly (7.118–19), are the Phaeacian king’s version of Elysium. Like the opulent milieu of the royal palace, with its golden torchbearers and mysterious robot guard dogs, this landscape seems to rest closer to the carefree existence of the gods than the grittier, conflict-ridden reality Odysseus will return to in Ithaka. And like the mysterious, fecund world of Calypso, the entire benign realm of Alkinous is a gift from the gods not won through striving, not an appropriate place for Odysseus to spend the rest of his life.

    Homer has prepared the scene carefully, setting the Phaeacian royal family and their home in evocative surroundings. Now it’s time for the hero to get moving again. He steps briskly into the palace to find a scene that both Nausicaa and Athena have already described to him (6.303–9; 7.75–76). Athena’s mist keeps him invisible right up to the moment he kneels before Arete, making for a dramatic epiphany. His short speech follows a familiar pattern for suppliants, offering hope for the queen’s prosperity and continued honor for the assembled local citizens in return for help getting home. His plea brings, however, no response from Arete for almost eighty verses. Instead, the poet’s attention turns to Alkinous and his clumsy debut as a host. This curious delay has generated much interest among classical scholars, but as we will see, the poet has his reasons.

    Meanwhile, we note that Odysseus’s speech, like much of what happens in Book 7, points both backward and forward. His kneeling before Arete echoes his more elaborate supplication of Nausicaa (6.149–85; see essay for Book 6.127–61) and contributes to the impression that the hero’s approach to the Phaeacians comes in waves, beginning on the beach, eddying for a time, then surging forward again. This section of the poem is, as we have said, marked as especially significant by its scale, with the hero making his way inexorably toward the palace with repeated movements. The tide will continue to roll in right up through the hero’s arrival in Ithaka when he must again win over the queen to arrive safely home.

     

    Further Reading

    Dimock, G. 1989. The Unity of the Odyssey, 86-89. Amherst, MA: University of Massachusetts Press.

    Segal, C. 1962. “The Phaeacians and the Symbolism of Odysseus’ Return.” Arion 1: 17–64.

     

    108  ὅσσον … / …, ὣς: “as much as …, so …,” with ὣς instead of the usual correlative τόσσος.

    108  περὶ: “beyond,” “superior to,” with genitive.

    108  ἴδριες: understand the verb εἰσί.

    109  ἐλαυνέμεν: pres. act. infin. > ἐλαύνω. The infinitive is “epexegetical,” limiting and explaining the adjective ἴδριες (Smyth 2002).

    110  ἱστῶν τεχνῆσσαι: “skillful at looms.” For the use of the genitive with an adjective denoting experience or skill, see Smyth 1419.

    110  πέρι: “above all others,” like the περὶ in line 108 (LSJ περί E.II).

    111  ἐπίστασθαι: infinitive of purpose, after the verb δῶκεν (= ἔδωκεν). The verb δῶκεν takes both an infinitive of purpose (ἔργα τ᾽ ἐπίστασθαι περικαλλέα) and a direct object (φρένας ἐσθλάς).

    113  περὶ: “around it” (i.e., around the orchard).

    113  ἐλήλαται: 3rd sing. perf. pass. indic. > ἐλαύνω (LSJ ἐλαύνω III.2).

    114  πεφύκασι: 3rd pl. perf. act. indic. > φύω, with present meaning.

    114  τηλεθόωντα: “flourishing,” neut. acc. pl. pres. act. ptc. > τηλεθάω.

    116  τηλεθόωσαι: fem. nom. pl. pres. act. ptc. > τηλεθάω.

    117  τάων: “of these,” fem. gen. pl. The article is used as a demonstrative pronoun. (Smyth 1100).

    117  ἀπολείπει: “fails” (LSJ ἀπολείπω IV).

    118  χείματος οὐδὲ θέρευς: genitives of time when. 

    118  θέρευς: gen. sing. > θέρος, το.

    123  τῆς ἕτερον: “one part of it” (i.e., of the vineyard). The antecedent of τῆς is ἀλωὴ.

    123  θειλόπεδον: “namely, the sunny spot …,” in apposition to ἔτερον.

    124  ἑτέρας: “other (grapes),” understand σταφύλας.

    124  τρυγόωσιν: understand the men working in the vineyard as the subject.

    125  πάροιθε: “in the foreground.”

    126  ἄνθος ἀφιεῖσαι: “shedding their blossom(s).”

    126  ἄνθος: neut. acc. sing.

    126  ἀφιεῖσαι: fem. nom. pl. pres. act. ptc. > ἀφίημι.

    127  πρασιαὶ: the beds of an herb garden or kitchen garden, gather than flowerbeds.

    127  παρὰ νείατον ὄρχον: “along the outermost row (of vines).”

    128  πεφύασιν: 3rd pl. perf. act. indic. > φύω, with present meaning.

    129  ἐν δὲ: “and therein (are),” understand the verb εἰσί.

    129  τ(ε): Homeric τε, untranslatable (Smyth 2970).

    130  ὑπ᾽ αὐλῆς οὐδὸν: “towards and under the threshold of the courtyard,” ὑπό goes with the accusative, and the genitive is possessive.

    132  ἐν Ἀλκινόοιο: “in (the house) of Alcinous.”

    133  θηεῖτο: unaugmented 3rd sing. impf. mid./pass. indic. > θεάομαι.

    134  θηήσατο: unaugmented 3rd sing. aor. mid./pass. indic. > θεάομαι.

    137  δεπάεσσιν: dative of means or instrument.

    137  ἐυσκόπῳ ἀργεϊφόντῃ: dat. with σπένδοντας, the dative of the god to whom the libation is made (either the i.o. of σπένδοντας, or a dative of interest).

    138  : “to whom,” the dative of the god to whom the libation is made.

    138  σπένδεσκον: “were in the habit of pouring libations,” iterative impf.

    138  ὅτε μνησαίατο: “whenever they were put in mind of,” general temporal clause, with optative in secondary sequence. 

    138  μνησαίατο: 3rd pl. aor. mid. opt. > μιμνήσκω, + gen. The -ατο ending is an Ionic form.

    140  οἱ: the dative object of the compound verb περίχευεν.

    141  ὄφρ(α): “until.”

    142  ἀμφὶ … βάλε: tmesis > ἀμφιβάλλω, “to put (acc.) around (dat.)." unaugmented aor.

    143  αὐτοῖο πάλιν: “back from the man himself,” genitive of separation (Smyth 1392).

    143  χύτο: 3rd sing. aor. pass. indic. > χέω.

    144  ἄνεῳ ἐγένοντο: “they grew silent.”

    144  δόμον κάτα: anastrophe (= κατὰ δόμον).

    144  ἰδόντες: /… ὁρόωντες: the aorist participle refers to the moment of “catching sight” of him, whereas the present participle refers to the continuing action of looking at him: a distinction between the aorist and progressive aspect.

    148  τούσδε τε δαιτυμόνας: another object of ἱκάνω (“I come to”).

    148  δοῖεν: optative of wish (Smyth 1814), 3rd pl. aor. act. opt. > δίδωμι.

    149  ζωέμεναι: pres. infin. Probably epexegetical, explaining ὄλβια (“blessings, namely, to live”).

    149  παισὶν: dative object of the compound verb ἐπιτρέψειεν.

    149  ἐπιτρέψειεν: optative of wish (see line 148), 3rd sing. aor. act. opt. > ἐπιτρέπω.

    152  φίλων ἄπο: “away from my friends,” anastrophe.

    Φαίαξ –ακος ὁ: a Phaeacian

    ἴδρις –ι: experienced, knowing, skilful

    θοός –ή –όν: swift

    πόντος –ου ὁ: sea, open sea

    ἱστός –οῦ ὁ: mast, beam; loom 110

    τεχνήεις –εσσα –εν: cunningly wrought; skillful

    σφεῖς: they

    Ἀθήνη –ης ἡ: Athena

    ἐπίσταμαι, impf. ἠπιστάμην, fut. ἐπιστήσομαι, aor. pass. ἠπιστήθην: to know, be capable

    περικαλλής –ές: very beautiful

    φρήν φρενός ἡ: diaphragm; heart, mind, wits

    ἐσθλός –ή –όν: good

    ἔκτοσθε: outside

    αὐλή –ῆς ἡ: courtyard; enclosure for livestock; court, residence

    ὄρχατος –ου ὁ: a row of trees

    ἄγχι: near

    θύρα –ας ἡ: door

    τετράγυος –ον: containing four measures of land

    ἕρκος –ους τό: a fence, hedge, wall, barrier

    ἀμφοτέρωθεν: on both sides, in both directions

    δένδρεον –ου or δένδρον –ου or δένδρος –ους τό: a tree

    τηλεθάω – – – – –: (in the pres. partic.) blooming, flourishing

    ὄγχνη –ης ἡ: a pear-tree 115

    ῥοιά –ᾶς ἡ: pomegranate; pomegranate tree (see ῥόα)

    μηλέα –ας ἡ: an apple-tree

    ἀγλαόκαρπος –ον: bearing beautiful fruit

    συκῆ –ῆς ἡ: fig tree

    γλυκύς γλυκεῖα γλυκύ: sweet, pleasant

    ἐλαία –ας ἡ: the olive-tree

    τηλεθάω – – – – –: (in the pres. partic.) blooming, flourishing

    καρπός –οῦ ὁ: fruit (of the earth), produce

    ἀπολείπω ἀπολείψω ἀπέλιπον ἀπολέλοιπα ἀπολέλειμμαι ἀπελείφθην: to leave off, stop; depart

    χεῖμα –ατος τό: winter-weather, cold, frost

    θέρος –ους τό: summer

    ἐπετήσιος –ον: from year to year, yearly

    Ζεφυρίη –ης ἡ: Zephyrus, the west wind

    πνέω πμεύσομαι/πνευσοῦμαι ἔπνευσα πέπνευκα ––– ἐπνεύσθην: breathe, be prudent

    μέν: on the one hand, on the other hand

    πέσσω πέψω ἔπεψα πέπεμμαι ἐπέφθην: to cook, bake; to ripen, to digest

    ὄγχνη –ης ἡ: a pear-tree 120

    γηράσκω γηράσομαι/γηράσω ἐγήρασα γεγήρακα ––– –––: to grow old, become old

    μῆλον –ου τό: sheep or goat; (plur.) flock; apple

    ἀτάρ (or αὐτάρ): but, yet, consequently

    σταφυλή –ῆς ἡ: a bunch of grapes

    σῦκον –ου τό: fig

    οὗ, οἷ, ἕ and encl. οὑ, οἱ, ἑ: him, her, it; himself, herself, itself

    πολύκαρπος –ον: rich in fruit

    ἀλωή –ῆς ἡ: a threshing-floor; orchard, garden 

    ῥιζόω ῥιζώσω ἐρρίζωσα – ἐρρίζωμαι ἐρριζώθην: to make to strike root

    μέν: on the one hand, on the other hand

    θειλόπεδον –ου τό: a sunny spot

    λευρός –ά –όν: smooth, level, even

    χῶρος –ου ὁ: place, a piece of ground

    τέρσομαι τερσήσομαι ἐτέρσην: to be or become dry

    ἄρα: now, then, next, thus

    τρυγάω τρυγήσω ἐτρύγησα – τετρύγημαι ἐτρυγήθην: to gather in

    τραπέω – – – – –: to tread grapes 125

    πάροιθε: in front of, before; first, preceding

    ὄμφαξ –ακος ἡ: an unripe grape

    ἄνθος –ους τό: flower

    ὑποπερκάζω – – – – –: to begin to turn colour

    κοσμητός –ή –όν: well-ordered, trim

    πρασιά –ᾶς ἡ: a bed of leeks

    νέατος –η –ον: the last, uttermost, lowest

    ὄρχος –ου ὁ: a row of vines

    παντοῖος –α –ον: of all sorts

    ἐπηετανός –όν: always full; all year round

    γανάω – – – – –: to shine, glitter, gleam

    κρήνη –ης ἡ: a well, spring, fountain

    μέν: on the one hand, on the other hand

    κῆπος –ου ὁ: a garden, orchard, plantation

    σκίδνημι/σκεδαννύω/σκεδάννυμι σκεδῶ ἐσκέδασα – ἐσκέδασμαι ἐσκεδάσθην: to disperse 130

    ἑτέρωθεν: from the other side

    αὐλή –ῆς ἡ: courtyard; enclosure for livestock; court, residence

    οὐδός –οῦ ὁ: a threshold

    δόμος –ου ὁ: house, home

    ὑψηλός –ή –όν: high, lofty, high-hearted

    ὑδρεύω ὑδρεύσω ὕδρευσα: to draw or fetch water

    πολίτης –ου ὁ: citizen, city dweller

    τοῖος –α –ον: quality, such, such-like

    ἄρα: now, then, next, thus

    Ἀλκίνοος –ου ὁ: Alcinous, king of the Phaeacians in Scheria, a grandson of Poseidon

    ἀγλαός –ή –όν: splendid, shining, bright

    δῶρον –ου τό: gift

    θεάομαι θεάσομαι ἐθεσάμην ––– τεθέαμαι ἐθεσαμήθην: to look on, behold, view (with wonder)

    πόλυτλας –αντος: much-enduring

    δῖος –α –ον: divine, godlike, shining

    Ὀδυσσεύς –έως ὁ: Odysseus, king of Ithaca, hero of the Odyssey

    ἀτάρ (or αὐτάρ): but, yet, consequently

    ἑός ἑή ἑόν: his, her, own

    θεάομαι θεάσομαι ἐθεσάμην ––– τεθέαμαι ἐθεσαμήθην: to look on, behold, view (with wonder) 

    καρπάλιμος –ον: swift 135

    οὐδός –οῦ ὁ: a threshold

    δῶμα –ατος τό: house (often in plural)

    εἴσω (or ἔσω): in, into, inside

    Φαίαξ –ακος ὁ: a Phaeacian

    ἡγήτωρ –ορος ὁ: a leader, commander, chief

    ἠδέ: and

    μέδων –οντος ὁ: a guardian, lord

    σπένδω σπείσω ἔσπεισα ἔσπεισμαι: to pour a libation; (mid.) to make a treaty; to make peace (by pouring a libation with the other party)

    δέπας –αος τό: drinking cup, beaker

    εὔσκοπος –ον: sharp-seeing, keen-sighted, watchful

    Ἀργειφόντης –ου ὁ: slayer of Argus, epithet of Hermes

    πύματος –η –ον: hindmost, last

    σπένδω σπείσω ἔσπεισα ἔσπεισμαι: to pour a libation; (mid.) to make a treaty; to make peace (by pouring a libation with the other party)

    κοῖτος ὁ: a place to lie on, bed; sleep, sleepiness

    ἀτάρ (or αὐτάρ): but, yet, consequently

    δῶμα –ατος τό: house (often in plural)

    πολύτλας –αντος: having borne much, much-enduring

    δῖος –α –ον: divine, godlike, shining

    Ὀδυσσεύς –έως ὁ: Odysseus, king of Ithaca, hero of the Odyssey

    ἀήρ ἀέρος ὁ: mist, vapor, haze, cloud 140

    οὗ, οἷ, ἕ and encl. οὑ, οἱ, ἑ: him, her, it; himself, herself, itself

    περιχέω περιχέω περιέχεα περικέχυκα περικέχυμαι περιεχύθην: to pour round

    Ἀθήνη –ης ἡ: Athena

    ὄφρα: while; until; so that; ὄφρα … τόφρα, while … for so long

    ἱκνέομαι ἵξομαι ἱκόμην ––– ἷγμαι –––: to come, reach

    Ἀρήτη –ης ἡ: wife of Alcinous, king of the Phaeacians

    Ἀλκίνοος –ου ὁ: Alcinous, king of the Phaeacians in Scheria, a grandson of Poseidon

    ἄρα: now, then, next, thus

    Ἀρήτη –ης ἡ: wife of Alcinous, king of the Phaeacians

    γόνυ γόνατος (or γουνός) τό: knee

    Ὀδυσσεύς –έως ὁ: Odysseus, king of Ithaca, hero of the Odyssey

    ἄρα: now, then, next, thus

    χέω χέω ἔχεα or ἔχευα κέχυκα κέχυμαι ἐχύθην: to pour, shed

    θέσφατον -ου τό: willed or ordained by a god; (neut. plur.) divine decree

    ἀήρ ἀέρος ὁ: mist, vapor, haze, cloud

    ἄνεω: silence

    δόμος –ου ὁ: house, home

    φώς φωτός ὁ: man

    λιτανεύω λιτανεύσω ἐλλιτάνευσα: to pray, entreat

    Ὀδυσσεύς –έως ὁ: Odysseus, king of Ithaca, hero of the Odyssey

    Ἀρήτη –ης ἡ: wife of Alcinous, king of the Phaeacians

    Ῥηξήνωρ –ορος ὁ: Rhexenor, son of Nausithous, and brother of Alcinous

    ἀντίθεος –η –ον: godlike

    πόσις –ιος/–εως ὁ: husband, spouse, mate

    γόνυ γόνατος (or γουνός) τό: knee

    ἱκάνω ––– ––– ––– ––– –––: to come to, arrive at, reach

    μογέω μογήσω ἐμόγησα: to toil, suffer

    δαιτυμών –όνος ὁ: one that is entertained, an invited guest

    ὅλβιος –α –ον: happy, content; prosperous, rich 

    ζῶ (or ζώω) ζήσω ἔζησα (or ἔζωσα) ἔζηκα: live

    ἐπιτρέπω ἐπιτρέψω ἐπέτρεψα ἐπιτέτροφα ἐπιτέτραμμαι ἐπετράφθην (or ἐπετράπην): turn to, transfer, leave to

    κτῆμα –ατος τό: possession 150

    μέγαρον –ου τό: a large room, hall, feast-hall

    γέρας –ως τό: prize, privilege, sovereignty, honor

    ἀτάρ (or αὐτάρ): but, yet, consequently

    πομπή –ῆς ἡ: escort, guidance; arrangement for one's departure

    ὀτρύνω ὀτρυνῶ ὤτρυνα ––– ––– –––: to urge on

    ἱκνέομαι ἵξομαι ἱκόμην ––– ἷγμαι –––: to come, reach

    δηθά: for a long time

    πῆμα –ατος τό: suffering, misery, calamity, woe, bane; cause of suffering

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    Suggested Citation

    Thomas Van Nortwick and Rob Hardy, Homer: Odyssey 5–12. Carlisle, Pennsylvania: Dickinson College Commentaries, 2024. ISBN: 978-1-947822-17-7 https://dcc.dickinson.edu/homer-odyssey/vii-108-152