Why was epic poetry composed orally?
Writing was not yet used for the creation of lengthy documents
What did Milman Parry and Albert Lord discover about how the process of composing and transmitting oral poetry may have functioned?
Two early 20th century scholars; Parry studied the culture of the Serbo-Croatians living in former Yugoslavia in the 20s and 30s; the Serbo-Croats of the time were still mostly illiterate, but what most interested Parry was the fact that they had a strong tradition of epic song; Parry and Lord recoded professional Serbo-Croation singers improvising lengthy epics; the singers were also able to craft their poems as they performed because they had collected a stock of formulas, including conventional scenes and short epithets, which they could draw on rapidly
How are the Serbo-Croatian epics and Homeric or Hesiodic epics similar/different?
Serbo-Croatian epics aren’t as long as the Homeric or Hesiodic epics; Greek epic also uses epithets and stock scenes like the sacrificial feast; both were also composed in a set meter (Greek epic poetry is composed in dactylic hexameter) which would have made improvisation easier for the bard, since he would have a stock of epithets and phrases that he knew could be used to fill gaps in a line
What was a consequence of Parry and Lord’s discovery?
The Greek tradition of a single bard, Homer, who authored the Iliad and the Odyssey, became untenable; if Homeric epic had been composed orally and was not memorized, then it clearly could not have been passed down word for word (going back to the original is impossible); instead, the Iliad and the Odyssey were part of a larger tapestry of traditional oral poetry composed around the myths of the Trojan War
Approximately when were the stories of the Iliad and the Odyssey codified?
Codified in a form very near to that in which they have come down to us; both were probably only written down, however, at the end of the 6th century (there is still debate of when the codification occurred with dates ranging from the 8th to the 6th centuries); however, there is no doubt there would have been many other epic poems, perhaps shorter or of lesser quality, which dealt with other parts of the Trojan War myth, however, none have survived
What is being discussed in the opening lines of the Odyssey?
The subject of the poem is “the man of twists and turns” (Odysseus, who is cunning, well-traveled and knowledgeable); focuses on his struggle to go home and summarizes his adventures; begins by invoking the Muse, the patron goddess of poets and the daughter of Zeus (as in all other Greek epics)
What does the poet assume the audience knows about the Odyssey?
The basic outline of the story, including who “the man of twists and turns” is and what the sack of Troy was all about; the story focuses on just a piece of a much larger mythological landscape, which would have been well-known to everyone throughout the Ancient Greek world
What was the job of the epic poet while writing?
To focus on a new aspect of a specific story, such as bringing out a new theme or rearranging the internal components of the story in order to create something new and interesting; not just a retelling of the story, but retelling it in a new and interesting way
Trojan War myth
-War originally began due to a dispute among the gods; all gods had been invited to the wedding of a mortal, Peleus and Thetis, a sea nymph; all were invited except Discord
-She retaliated by throwing an apple down among the gathered goddesses; the apple was supposed to go to whoever was “fairest”; three goddesses claimed it: Hera (wife of Zeus), Athena (goddess of war and crafts) and Aphrodite (goddess of sexual love); Zeus declined to judge between them, so the three goddesses appeared to Paris (son of Priam, King of Troy) and ordered hum to chose
-Paris ended up choosing Aphrodite, who offered him Helen (a daughter of Zeus and wife of Menelaus of Sparta); Paris stole Helen returning with her to Troy; Menelaus complained to Agamemnon (his brother and king of Mycenae), they then set sail to Troy
What is the story of the Iliad about?
Focuses on a period of time in the 10th year of the war; opening is programmatic; focuses on the anger of Achilles (son of Peleus and sea nymph Thetis)
Summarize the Iliad
-Agamemnon brought a divine plaque on the Greek army by refusing to surrender Chyriseis to her father Chryses; Achilles berates Agamemnon for keeping Chyriseis to himself
-Agamemnon and Achilles argue, and eventually Agamemnon agrees to send Chyriseis to her father but instead claims to take Briseis for himself instead
-Achilles decides not to fight until they realize how much they need him, and eventually Agamemnon sends a peace offering to Achilles and the hand of his daughter in marriage if he will return to the battle, but he still refuses
-Patroclus (Achilles’ friend) puts on Achilles’ armour and Hector thinks he is Achilles and therefore kills him; Achilles hears about the death of his friend and goes back into battle
-Achilles gets new armour from Thetis made by Hephaestus and eventually kills Hector
-He drags around Hector’s body; King Priam tries to retrieve it and eventually Achilles gives it back
-Greeks and Trojans agree to a 9 day truce for time to have a proper funeral for Hector
-Achilles is actually eventually killed at Troy by Paris
Explain the purpose for the Trojan horse
The Greeks built a massive wooden horse, hiding a party of warriors inside while the rest of the army pretends to sail away; the Trojans drag the horse into the city to celebrate their supposed victory; at night the Greeks hidden inside open the gates of the city and allow the Greek army in; a rout ensues, including killing Priam and raping his daughter Cassandra, even though she was at the altar of Athena and under protection of the goddess; the gods become angry and make the journey home for the Greeks difficult
What is the story of the Odyssey about?
Deals with the Greek heroes’ journey homeward from Troy; focuses on Odysseus, king of Ithaca; begins in medias res (in the middle), after all of Odysseus’ men have died and he himself has been trapped on an island by the nymph Calypso for nearly seven years; the first 4 books focus on the situation in Odysseus’ homeland, Ithaca, and on the fate of his now grown-up son, Telemachus
Summarize the Odyssey
-Odysseus’ palace is overrun by a bunch of suitors who want to marry his wife Penelope (and become king)
-With some help from Athena, Telemachus sets off to find out information of his father’s whereabouts; first he travels to Nestor, the ruler of Pylos and the oldest of all heroes who fought at Troy
-Nestor sends him to Sparta, where he finds Menelaus and Helen; Menelaus tells him that he heard Odysseus was being held captive by Calypso
-The other gods force Calypso to release Odysseus; Poseidon, Odysseus’ enemy, causes a violent storm causing Odysseus to become shipwrecked on the island of Phaeacia where the king welcomes him
-Odysseus tells the king of his situation and the things he had encountered on his way home
-Phaeacians give him gifts and send him home; Odysseus first goes to the hut of Eumaeus, where he finds Telemachus, where they create a plan regarding the suitors
-They go to Odysseus’ palace, Telemachus first and then Odysseus disguised as a beggar; most treat him poorly, but Penelope treats him as an honoured guest
-They hold an archery contest, prize being marriage to Penelope, which Odysseus wins; they are then able to slaughter the suitors and anyone who wasn’t loyal while he was gone; peace is then restored in Ithaca
How was Odysseus’ description of the Cyclopes’ living arrangement the opposite of the human societies we saw in Hesiod’s Works and Days?
Where Hesiod stressed the need for law and judgement, and described the way the kings arbitrated disputes in public meeting places before the whole community, the Cyclopes have no recognizable community structure at all; instead they live independently with each being a “law to himself”; they have no relationships with neighbours and no meeting place; they don’t live in recognizable communities and don’t even farm; they also don’t drink wine (which is what makes it easy for Odysseus to get him drunk); the Cyclopes don’t acknowledge the gods let alone offer them sacrifice
How are heroes constantly competing with each other for prestige?
The competitive ethic of Homeric heroes mirrors the competitiveness of Iron Age society itself; persuasive speech, victory in combat or athletics, and the acquisition of material wealth all contribute to a hero’s standing; the quest for prestige is also what motivates Achilles to go to Troy; Odysseus may seem to our modern eyes to be overly acquisitive as he constantly worries about the wealth he has amassed, yet acquiring material goods quantifies a hero’s success and therefore is directly linked to his status; a loss of material goods on the other hand represents a loss in status
Explain the importance of the guest-host relationship
Good example is the relationship between the Phaeacian king and Odysseus; a traveller arriving in a new and unfamiliar place was extremely vulnerable to abuse; according to the Greeks, the relationship was guarded by Zeus himself and because guests were under his protection, hosts had an obligation to treat them well (solidified by gifts given to the guest by the host; receiving a valuable gift brought honour, but giving a rich gift also brought honour)
