"δὴ τότ᾽ ἐγὼν ἑτάροισι μετηύδων ἀχνύμενος κῆρ·
‘ὦ φίλοι, οὐ γὰρ χρὴ ἕνα ἴδμεναι οὐδὲ δύ᾽ οἴους
θέσφαθ᾽ ἅ μοι Κίρκη μυθήσατο, δῖα θεάων·155
ἀλλ᾽ ἐρέω μὲν ἐγών, ἵνα εἰδότες ἤ κε θάνωμεν
ἤ κεν ἀλευάμενοι θάνατον καὶ κῆρα φύγοιμεν.
Σειρήνων μὲν πρῶτον ἀνώγει θεσπεσιάων
φθόγγον ἀλεύασθαι καὶ λειμῶν᾽ ἀνθεμόεντα.
οἶον ἔμ᾽ ἠνώγει ὄπ᾽ ἀκουέμεν· ἀλλά με δεσμῷ160
δήσατ᾽ ἐν ἀργαλέῳ, ὄφρ᾽ ἔμπεδον αὐτόθι μίμνω,
ὀρθὸν ἐν ἱστοπέδῃ, ἐκ δ᾽ αὐτοῦ πείρατ᾽ ἀνήφθω.
εἰ δέ κε λίσσωμαι ὑμέας λῦσαί τε κελεύω,
ὑμεῖς δὲ πλεόνεσσι τότ᾽ ἐν δεσμοῖσι πιέζειν.’
ἦ τοι ἐγὼ τὰ ἕκαστα λέγων ἑτάροισι πίφαυσκον·165
τόφρα δὲ καρπαλίμως ἐξίκετο νηῦς ἐυεργὴς
νῆσον Σειρήνοιιν· ἔπειγε γὰρ οὖρος ἀπήμων.
αὐτίκ᾽ ἔπειτ᾽ ἄνεμος μὲν ἐπαύσατο ἠδὲ γαλήνη
ἔπλετο νηνεμίη, κοίμησε δὲ κύματα δαίμων.
ἀνστάντες δ᾽ ἕταροι νεὸς ἱστία μηρύσαντο170
καὶ τὰ μὲν ἐν νηὶ γλαφυρῇ θέσαν, οἱ δ᾽ ἐπ᾽ ἐρετμὰ
ἑζόμενοι λεύκαινον ὕδωρ ξεστῇς ἐλάτῃσιν.
αὐτὰρ ἐγὼ κηροῖο μέγαν τροχὸν ὀξέι χαλκῷ
τυτθὰ διατμήξας χερσὶ στιβαρῇσι πίεζον·
αἶψα δ᾽ ἰαίνετο κηρός, ἐπεὶ κέλετο μεγάλη ἲς175
Ἠελίου τ᾽ αὐγὴ Ὑπεριονίδαο ἄνακτος·
ἑξείης δ᾽ ἑτάροισιν ἐπ᾽ οὔατα πᾶσιν ἄλειψα.
οἱ δ᾽ ἐν νηί μ᾽ ἔδησαν ὁμοῦ χεῖράς τε πόδας τε
ὀρθὸν ἐν ἱστοπέδῃ, ἐκ δ᾽ αὐτοῦ πείρατ᾽ ἀνῆπτον·
αὐτοὶ δ᾽ ἑζόμενοι πολιὴν ἅλα τύπτον ἐρετμοῖς.180
ἀλλ᾽ ὅτε τόσσον ἀπῆμεν ὅσον τε γέγωνε βοήσας,
ῥίμφα διώκοντες, τὰς δ᾽ οὐ λάθεν ὠκύαλος νηῦς
ἐγγύθεν ὀρνυμένη, λιγυρὴν δ᾽ ἔντυνον ἀοιδήν·
‘δεῦρ᾽ ἄγ᾽ ἰών, πολύαιν᾽ Ὀδυσεῦ, μέγα κῦδος Ἀχαιῶν,
νῆα κατάστησον, ἵνα νωιτέρην ὄπ ἀκούσῃς.185
οὐ γάρ πώ τις τῇδε παρήλασε νηὶ μελαίνῃ,
πρίν γ᾽ ἡμέων μελίγηρυν ἀπὸ στομάτων ὄπ᾽ ἀκοῦσαι,
ἀλλ᾽ ὅ γε τερψάμενος νεῖται καὶ πλείονα εἰδώς.
ἴδμεν γάρ τοι πάνθ᾽ ὅσ᾽ ἐνὶ Τροίῃ εὐρείῃ
Ἀργεῖοι Τρῶές τε θεῶν ἰότητι μόγησαν,190
ἴδμεν δ᾽, ὅσσα γένηται ἐπὶ χθονὶ πουλυβοτείρῃ.’
notes
The Greeks encounter the Sirens.
As they approach the dreaded Sirens, Odysseus decides to level with the crew about Circe’s instructions. It is not right for only one or two to know them; he and crew are in this together and will either escape or all die together. This newfound team spirit soon rings slightly hollow, however, since what the witch in fact urged was for only Odysseus to listen to the seductive voices. In one sense, this episode echoes others in Books 9–12 where Odysseus’ restless curiosity, his desire to know things, was potentially perilous for the crew. There was no good reason for the Greeks to explore the island of the Cyclopes, but Odysseus insists because he wants to find out what kind of people live there (9.72–76); likewise, it is the captain’s urge to explore Circe’s island that puts his crew in danger (10.189–202).
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Here it will be useful to think about the two competing urges we see in Odysseus all the way through the poem, the centripetal drive for which he is best known, the relentless quest to return home to his accustomed roles in Ithaka and the centrifugal forces fueled by his restless curiosity and determination to know the world. The poem’s dominant rhetoric points us toward accepting the need for Odysseus to become himself again in Ithaka and reassume his glorious heroic ascendancy, the product of his fame. Anything that impedes that mission is fair game, not only monsters and alluring woman, but also the suitors and even, as it happens, his crew. On the other hand, sometimes not being known proves to be an advantage to the hero as he makes his way home. Knowledge is power in the Odyssey and knowing more about others than they know about you gives you leverage. When Odysseus arrives as an anonymous stranger at a new place, he does not immediately reveal his name, but bides his time while scouting the local scene and building trust with the inhabitants. The eventual revelation of his name, by him or others, is always a dramatic high point, marking his “return” to his former heroic self. The pattern persists from Scheria to the cave of the Cyclops, to Circe’s lair, coming to a triumphant crescendo after the slaughter of the suitors. The tension between the drive to reclaim his kleos, primarily associated with the centripetal hero, and the use of anonymity in the pursuit of knowledge and thus power, characteristic of the centrifugal adventurer, is a source of energy in the story from beginning to end. (See Introduction, para. 11–19)
In the encounter with the Sirens, these distinctions begin to blur. He will be able submit himself to the seductive powers of the Sirens and experience their dangerous knowledge (answering the call of the centrifugal urge to seek knowledge), but without anyone having to pay the price (the centripetal drive for home will not be sabotaged). The Sirens scramble other distinctions as well. Elsewhere, female singers are dangerous to men because their music surrounds them, blurring the boundaries affirmed in narrative songs that make meaning in a masculine world. The Sirens’ music, however subversive, is delivered in words and they promise Odysseus precisely the kind of knowledge that male bards deliver elsewhere in the poem. He who listens to them will gain special knowledge:
ἀλλ᾽ ὅ γε τερψάμενος νεῖται καὶ πλείονα εἰδώς.
ἴδμεν γάρ τοι πάνθ᾽ ὅσ᾽ ἐνὶ Τροίῃ εὐρείῃ
Ἀργεῖοι Τρῶές τε θεῶν ἰότητι μόγησαν,
ἴδμεν δ᾽, ὅσσα γένηται ἐπὶ χθονὶ πουλυβοτείρῃ
Well pleased, he (who listens to them) goes on, knowing more than he ever did.
For we know everything the Greeks and Trojans
suffered in wide Troy, by the gods’ will;
we know everything that happens on the generous earth.
Odyssey 12.188–91
With her advice, Circe offers Odysseus an antidote to the ruinous power of the Sirens, a way of experiencing their power without penalty. In this way, the entire episode recalls the beginning of the Circe episode in Book 10, where Hermes’s intervention gives Odysseus immunity from the magic of the witch, so he can enjoy her hospitality without being stranded, and perhaps the katabasis, where he can visit the land of the dead without paying the usual price of admission. As the adventures in Books 9–12 progress, the gods or their agents sometimes seem to take a more active role in protecting Odysseus from the perils toward which that his curious nature might draw him. As his centripetal drive brings him ever closer to Ithaka, he is allowed to indulge his centrifugal urges without the usual consequences. He will survive the next adventures, but at great cost to his crew.
153 κῆρ: "in my heart," accusative of respect.
154 οὐ … χρὴ: “it is not right for (acc.) to (infin.).”
154 γὰρ: “since”; anticipatory γάρ (Smyth 2811).
154 ἴδμεναι: infin. > οἶδα.
155 θέσφαθ᾽: θέσφατα, “prophecies”
156 ἵνα εἰδότες ἤ κε θάνωμεν ... / ἤ κεν ... φύγοιμεν: "so we might know whether we will die... or whether we might escape..." The only example of a purpose clause with ἵνα κε (Monro 286). κε implies conditionality, whereas purpose clauses are unconditional, but the presence here of two alternatives (ἤ κε … ἤ κεν …) implies conditionality. The subjunctive (θάνωμεν) represents the nearer possibility, and the potential optative (φύγοιμεν) the more remote possibility.
158 ἀνώγει: Circe is the subject.
160 ἠνώγει: introducing an accusative (οἶον ἔμε) and infinitive (ἀκούεμεν) construction of indirect discourse.
160 ὄπ(α): acc. > ὄψ, object of the infinitive.
162 ὀρθὸν: “standing up,” modifying με in line 160.
162 ἐκ ... αὐτοῦ: “from there” (i.e., the mast).
162 πείρατ(α) ἀνήφθω: “let the ends (of the rope) be fastened,” 3rd sing. pf. pass. imperat. > ἀνάπτω. This line is a repetition of 51.
163 compare with line 53.
164 πιέζειν: infin. as imperat. Compare this line with line 54.
166 τόφρα: "meanwhile."
167 Σειρήνοιϊν: gen. dual, implying that there are only two Sirens.
167 οὖρος ἀπήμων: “favorable wind.”
169 ἔπλετο: 3rd sing. impf. mid. > πέλω.
171 θέσαν: “stowed”; unaugmented 3rd pl. aor.
171 ἐπ᾽ ἐρετμὰ: “at the oars”
172 λεύκαινον: unaugmented 3rd pl. impf.
172 ξεστῇς ἐλάτῃσιν: dative of means. ἐλάτῃσιν, “with pine” (i.e., with oars made out of pine wood) is an example of metonymy (Smyth 3033), as is χαλκῷ (“with bronze,” i.e., with a bronze blade) in the next line.
174 τυτθὰ διατμήξας: “cutting … in pieces,” > διατμήγω.
174 πίεζον: “pinched”; unaugmented 1st sing. impf.
175 κέλετο: “compelled (it),” unaugmented 3rd sing. impf. > κἐλομαι. The subjects are both ἴς and αὐγή.
177 ἄλειψα: "stopped (their ears) with wax." This use of the verb is found only in this book of the Odyssey.
177–79 Odysseus carries out the instructions given to him by Circe in lines 47–51
181 ἀλλ᾽…βοήσας: “But when I was as far away as (someone) can be heard shouting.” The correlatives, τόσσον…ὅσσον, are accusatives of extent. This line is also found at 9.473.
182 διώκοντες: “propelling (the ship)” > διώκω.
183 ὀρνυμένη: "hurrying."
183 ἔντυνον: "were striking up (a song)."
184 ἄγ᾽: “come on!” an exhortation preceding an imperative, in this case κατάστησον in line 185 (Monro 327).
184 ἰών: nom. pres. act. ptc. > εἶμι.
185 κατάστησον: “stop," aor. sing. imperat., transitive > καθίστημι.
186 τῇδε: “here” or “this island,” dat., with a compound verb.
186 παρήλασε: “driven past,” “passed,” 3rd sing. aor. > παρελαύνω.
188 καὶ πλείονα: either “even more,” or καί coordinates the two participles.
vocabulary
ἑταῖρος –ου ὁ: comrade, companion
μεταυδάω μεταυδήσω μετηύδησα μετηύδηκα μετηύδημαι μετηυδήθην: to speak among
ἄχομαι and ἄχνυμαι: to afflict, sadden, trouble, grieve
κῆρ κῆρος τό: heart, mind
οἶος –α –ον: alone
θέσφατος –ον: fated, decreed, ordained, appointed 155
Κίρκη –ης ἡ: Circe, the enchantress, daughter of Helius, sister of Aeētes, dwelling in the isle of Aeaea
μυθέομαι μυθήσομαι μεμύθημαι ἐμυθήθην: speak or talk of, describe, explain, relate
δῖος –α –ον: divine, godlike, shining
θεά –ᾶς ἡ: goddess
ἐρῶ εἴρηκα ἐρρήθην: to say, tell, speak
ἀλέομαι or ἀλεύομαι, aor. ἠλεύατο, infin. ἀλέασθαι or ἀλεύασθαι: to avoid, shun
κήρ κηρός ἡ: doom, death, fate
Σειρήν –ῆνος ἡ: a Siren
ἄνωγα (pf. as pres.), ἠνώγεα (plupf. as impf.): to command, invite, exhort
θεσπέσιος [–α] –ον: divine; prodigious, extraordinary, supernatural; deafening
φθόγγος –ου ὁ: sound; voice
ἀλέομαι or ἀλεύομαι, aor. ἠλεύατο, infin. ἀλέασθαι or ἀλεύασθαι: to avoid, shun
λειμών –ῶνος ὁ: grassland, meadow, field
ἀνθεμόεις –εσσα –εν: flowery
οἶος –α –ον: alone 160
ἄνωγα (pf. as pres.), ἠνώγεα (plupf. as impf.): to command, invite, exhort
ὄψ ὀπός ἡ: a voice
δεσμός –οῦ ὁ (pl. δεσμά): a bond
ἀργαλέος –α –ον: hard to endure or deal with, difficult
ὄφρα: while; until; so that; ὄφρα … τόφρα, while … for so long
ἔμπεδος –ον: firm-set, steadfast, constant, unchanged; (in neuter as adverb) firmly, steadily
αὐτόθι: on the spot, right there
μίμνω ––– ––– ––– ––– –––: to remain, wait
ἱστοπέδη –ης ἡ: base of the mat
πεῖραρ –ατος τό: border, limit
ἀνάπτω ἀνάψω ἀνῆψα ––– ἀνῆμμαι ἀνήφθην: to attach, tie, fasten
λίσσομαι ––– ἐλλισάμην/ἐλιτόμην ––– ––– –––: to pray, beg; to beseech with prayer
δεσμός –οῦ ὁ (pl. δεσμά): a bond
πιέζω πιέσω ἐπίεσα πεπίεκα πεπίεσμαι ἐπιέσθην: to press, squeeze, press tight
τοι: let me tell you, surely 165
ἑταῖρος –ου ὁ: comrade, companion
πιφαύσκω: to make manifest, declare, tell of
τόφρα: at that very moment, so long; tόφρα … ὄφρα, as long as … until
καρπάλιμος –ον: swift
ἐξικνέομαι ἐξίξομαι ἐξικόμην ἐξῖγμαι: to reach, arrive at
εὐεργής –ές: well-wrought, well-made
Σειρήν –ῆνος ἡ: a Siren
ἐπείγω ἐπείξομαι ἤπειξα ––– ἤπειγμαι ἐπείχθην: to press hard; (pass.) to be in a hurry
οὖρος –ου ὁ: a fair wind
ἀπήμων –ον gen. –ονος: unharmed, unhurt; doing no harm; favorable
ἄνεμος –ου ὁ: wind
ἠδέ: and
γαλήνη –ης ἡ: stillness of the sea, calm
πέλω ––– ἔπλον ––– ––– –––: to be (the aor. has pres. signif.)
νηνεμίη –ης ἡ: windless calm, dead calm (in a negative sense)
κοιμάω κοιμήσω ἐκοίμησα κεκοίμηκα κεκοίμημαι ἐκοιμήθην: (act.) to put to bed, lull; (mid. and pass.) to go to bed, lay down
κῦμα –ατος τό: wave
ἀνίστημι ἀνστήσω ἀνέστησα (or ἀνέστην) ἀνέστηκα ἀνέσταμαι ἀνεστάθην: make stand, set up; stand up 170
ἑταῖρος –ου ὁ: comrade, companion
ἱστίον –ου τό: a sail
μηρύομαι μηρύσομαι ἐμηρυσάμην: to draw up, furl
γλαφῠρός –ά –όν: hollow, deep
ἐρετμόν –οῦ τό: oar
ἕζομαι – – – – –: to sit down
λευκαίνω λευκανῶ ἐλεύκανα: to make white, whiten
ξεστός –ή –όν: smoothed, polished, wrought
ἐλάτη –ης ἡ: the silver fir (pinus picea)
ἀτάρ (or αὐτάρ): but, yet
κηρός –οῦ ὁ: bees-wax
τροχός –οῦ ὁ: wheel
χαλκός –οῦ ὁ: bronze, copper, weapon
τυτθός [–ή] –όν: little, small
διατμήγω διατμήξω διέτμηξα/διέτμαγον – – διετμάγην: to cut in twain
στιβαρός –ά –όν: compact, strong, stout, sturdy
πιέζω πιέσω ἐπίεσα πεπίεκα πεπίεσμαι ἐπιέσθην: to press, squeeze, press tight
αἶψα: rapidly, speedily, suddenly 175
ἰαίνω ἰανῶ ἴηνα – – ἰάνθην: to heat
κηρός –οῦ ὁ: bees-wax
κέλομαι κελήσομαι ἐκελησάμην ἐκεκλόμην: command, urge on, exhort, call to
ἴς ἰνός ἡ: strength, force; sinew, tendon
αὐγή –ῆς ἡ: the light of the sun, sunlight
Ὑπεριονίδης –ου ὁ: Hyperion's son
ἄναξ –ακτος ὁ: ruler, lord
ἑξῆς: one after another, in order, in a row
ἑταῖρος –ου ὁ: comrade, companion
οὖς ὠτός τό: ear
ἀλείφω ἀλείψω ἤλειψα ἀλήλιφα ἀλήλιμμαι ἠλείφθην: to anoint, smear
ὁμοῦ: together, at the same place or time
ἱστοπέδη –ης ἡ: base of the mat
πεῖραρ –ατος τό: border, limit
ἀνάπτω ἀνάψω ἀνῆψα ––– ἀνῆμμαι ἀνήφθην: to attach, tie, fasten
ἕζομαι – – – – –: to sit down 180
πολιός –ή –όν: white
ἅλς ἁλός ὁ: salt (m.); sea (f.)
τύπτω τύψω ἔτυψα τέτῠφα (or τετύπτηκα) τέτυμμαι ἐτύφθην (or ἐτυπτήθην or ἐτύπην): to beat, strike
ἐρετμόν –οῦ τό: oar
τόσος –η –ον: so great, so vast
ἄπειμι ἀπέσομαι ––– ––– ––– –––: to be away, be distant, be absent
γέγωνα (perf. of γεγωνέω): to make oneself heard; to shout, cry out
βοάω βοήσομαι ἐβόησα βεβόηκα βεβόημαι ἐβοήθην: to shout, roar
ῥίμφα: lightly, swiftly, fleetly
ὠκύαλος –ον: sea-swift, speeding o'er the sea
ἐγγύθεν: close, nearby, alongside
ὄρνυμι ὄρσω ὦρσα ὄρωρα ὀρώρεμαι –––: to stir up, move; (mid.) to rise, get up
λιγυρός –ά –όν: clear, whistling
ἐντύνω ἐντυνῶ ἔντυνα – – –: to equip, deck out, get ready
ἀοιδή –ῆς ἡ: song, a singing
δεῦρο: here, to this place
πολύαινος –ον: much-praised
Ὀδυσσεύς –έως ὁ: Odysseus, king of Ithaca, hero of the Odyssey
κῦδος –ους τό: glory, majesty, might
Ἀχαιός –ά –όν: Achaean, Greek
νωΐτερος –α –ον: of or from us two 185
ὄψ ὀπός ἡ: a voice
πω: up to this time, yet
τῇδε: here, thus
παρελαύνω παρελῶ παρήλασα παρελήλακα παρελήλαμαι παρηλάθην: to drive by
μέλας μέλαινα μέλαν: black, dark, obscure
μελίγηρυς –υος: sweet-voiced, melodious
ὄψ ὀπός ἡ: a voice
τέρπω τέρψω ἔτερψα ––– ––– ἐτάρφθην/ἐτέρφθην: to delight; (mid./pass.) to have one's full of
νέομαι ––– ––– ––– ––– –––: to return (often in present with future sense), go home, go
τοι: let me tell you, surely
Τροίη –ης ἡ: Troy
εὐρύς –εῖα –ύ: broad
Ἀργεῖος –η –ον: Argive, of or from Argos (Greece) 190
Τρώς Τρωός ὁ: Trojan
ἰότης –ητος ἡ: will, desire
μογέω μογήσω ἐμόγησα: to toil, suffer
χθών χθονός ἡ: the earth, ground
πολυβότειρα –ας ἡ: much- or all-nourishing