2.377–434

Having nudged Telemachus out of his adolescent paralysis, Athena now swings into action, recruiting the crew, sedating the suitors, and leading the way to the ship.

377  θεῶν: authorized by  ὅρκον, “by the gods,” or “to the gods,” objective genitive (Smyth 1332, and see also Monro 147).

377  ὅρκονν: cognate accusative (Monro 139.2). 

377  ἀπώμνυ: imperfect active third singular from ἀπόμνυμι (ἀπό +ὄμνυμι). The verb is used for taking an oath not to do something; in this case, not to tell Penelope that Telemachus has gone.

381  ὁμίλει: imperfect active third singular from ὁμιλέω, unaugmented as usual (exceptions are Iliad 1.261, and 18.539). Note that the principal caesura of the line is in the fourth foot. 

383  πτόλιν: = πόλιν. Forms in both πτ- and π- are found in Homer (see Cunliffe), and this spelling is here metrically necessary. 

384  ἑκάστῳ φωτί: dative with the compound verb παρισταμένη (from παρίστημι, see Cunliffe).

385  ἑσπερίους "in the evening." The adjective ἑσπέριος (from ἕσπερος) is by Homer usually made to agree with a substantive or pronoun, but in sense qualifies the verb. Here, it agrees with the crewmen (accusative object of ἀνώγει) implied by the context. 

387  ᾔτεε  “was asking (accusative of person) for (accusative of thing),” imperfect active third singular from αἰτέω. 

387  οἱ: dative of indirect object, the "true dative" of Monro 143.  

387  ὑπέδεκτο “promised” (LSJ ὑποδέχομαι III.1). The expression here is somewhat elliptical. Understand ὑπέδεκτο δώσειν νῆα Τηλεμάχῳ (οἱ).

389  εἴρυσε: aorist from ἐρύω.

390  τά: relative pronoun with ὅπλα as antecedent. In Homer, the article with τε serves as a relative introducing a clause that describes a general class (Monro 263, 332).  

391  περί “around,” adverbial.

393  ἄλλ᾽ ἐνόησε “had another idea.”

394  Ὀδυσσῆος θείοιο: the second of twenty-four examples of this line-ending in the Odyssey, which also occurs three times in the Iliad. The other example in book 2 is line 233. 

395  ἐπὶ . . . ἔχευε “was pouring (accusative) over (dative), imperfect from ἐπιχέω (in tmesis).

396  πλάζε: unaugmented imperfect. 

396  χειρῶν: genitive governed by the prepositional prefix ἐκ– in the compound verb ἔκβαλλε (Cunliffe 4).

398  ἥατ(ο): imperfect midddle third plural from ἧμαι. For the ending, see Monro 5 (also Smyth 465 f. D). 

398  σφισιν: dative of possession.

400  ἐκπροκαλεσσαμένη “summoning him to her out of,” with a genitive governed by the prepositional prefix ἐκ–.

401  Μέντορι . . . : this line occurs five times in the Odyssey, and it is the final line of the work. The first example is line 268. Note the hiatus before the principal caesura. 

402  τοι: dative of advantage (“for you”).

403  ἥατ(αι): present middle indicative third plural from ἧμαι. For the ending, see Monro 5 (also Smyth 465 f. D). 

403  ποτιδέγμενοι: a participle from προσδέχομαι.

403  ὁρμήν “setting out,” “departure” (LSJ ὁρμή III).

404  ἴομεν: present subjunctive (hortatory) first plural from εἶμι; this form is consistently used by Homer (Monro 80). The iota in this form is sometimes long, sometimes short, as here (Monro 383-4).  

404  μὴ . . . διατρίβωμεν: negative hortatory subjunctive.  

404  ὁδοῖο “on (from) the journey.” The genitive expresses the space within which the motion takes place (Monro 149.3). 

406  ἴχνια βαῖνε “followed in the footsteps of.”

408  κάρη κομόωντας  “long-haired” (literally, “long-haired with respect to the head”) (Autenrieth κομάω ).

409  ἲς Τηλεμάχοιο  “mighty Telemachus” (literally, “the might of Telemachus”), periphrasis (Smyth 3041 ).

411  ἐνὶ μεγάρῳ: a final short syllable tends to have the metrical value of a long syllable before forms of μέγαρον (Monro 371). 

412  μία δ᾽ οἴη: that is, Eurycleia.

416  ἂν . . . νηὸς βαῖν(ε) “boarded the ship,” ἄν = ἀνά (Cunliffe, LSJ ἀνά A); Monro (209) notes that this is one of only three places in which ἀνά is used with the genitive in the Odyssey (the other two are 9.177 and 15.284), and it is only so used of going on board a ship.  

417  νηὶ ... ἐνὶ πρυμνῇ “in the stern” (literally, “in the back of the ship”).

417  κατ᾽ . . . ἕζετο:  tmesis, as  if from καθίζομαι.

419  ἂν .. . βάντες: from ἀναβαίνω (in tmesis).

420  ἵει: an imperfect from ἵημι.

421  ἀκραῆ: accusative singular masculine from ἀκραής.

422 ἐποτρύνας: aorist participle nominiative singular masculine from ἐποτρύνω.

423  ὅπλων: genitive with a verb of touching, ἅπτεσθαι, “to lay hold of” (Monro 151(a), also Smyth 1345 ). The ὅπλα are the various ropes (sheets) used to raise, fasten, and maneuver the sails.

423  τοί “they” nominative pluralmasculine from ὁ (See Cunliffe under ὁ for the form). 

423  ὀτρύνοντος: genitive participle with ἄκουσαν, referring to Telemachus.

424  ἔντοσθε “inside,” with genitive.

425  στῆσαν: the aorist of ἵστημι is causal: “stood up,” “caused to stand.” Homer here describes the “stepping” of the mast.

425  κατὰ . . . ἔδησαν: aorist from καταδέω (in tmesis).

425  προτόνοισιν: dative of means.

426  ἕλκον “hoisted” (LSJ ἕλκω A.I.6).

427 ἀμφί: with στείρῃ. The order: ἀμφὶ δὲ στείρῃ νηὸς ἰούσης, πορφύρεον κῦμα

ἴαχε μεγάλα.

428  μεγάλ(α): adverbial accusative (Monro 134, Smyth 1606 ).

429  ἡ: the ship (ἡ νῆυς).

430  δησάμενοι . . . ὅπλα: in a favorable wind (ἴκμενον οὖρον 420), the wind being steady and favoprable the sheets (see line 423) can be fastened to braces and held at a steady angle to the wind (so Heubeck, West, and Hainsworth 1988).

431  στήσαντο “set before themselves” (Merry, Riddell, and Monro 1886), aorist middle from ἵστημι.

432  λεῖβον: unaugmented imperfect. 

434  ἥ γε: the ship (ἡ νῆυς).

434  ἠῶ: accusative of extent of time.