There are many different ways to think about ancient
literature. It can be taken as a poetic form of history as Heinrich Schliemann[i]
did when looking for the city of Troy. Especially if it is very old, and comes
from before the invention of writing it can be seen as a form of mass
entertainment that was recited in a theatre. Ancient text can also be examined
linguistically[ii],
anthropologically[iii],
psychologically[iv],
theologically[v] or
from how the work is perceived historically[vi]
and probably any number of other ways to help us later day readers understand
how language developed and to provide clues to how ancient people lived and
what their cultures were like or just simply in understanding the work
involved. Sometimes, or so it appears
to me, all of these things are true. As could probably be expected one also finds
proponents of less esoteric readings of ancient text. These would see The
Odyssey as simply an adventure story that reflects the culture and mores of the
society that produced it; what might be called the “Hollywood” version of
ancient tales; just stories, just entertainment, nothing deep and nothing wrong
with that. Lastly modern scholars sometimes attempt to re-write or rework
classics to better fit modern sensibilities or themes whether that is Post
Modernism[vii],
feminism[viii],
or whatever “ism” is the scholar’s preferred soap-box issue or to make the
heroes of ancient literature progenitors of whatever political or philosophical
persuasion they are advocating. It seems that sometimes lost in scholarly
debate is the simply question; “What did the original hearers or readers take
away from this work?”
Perhaps the most obvious example of way in which modern
scholars can continually re-plow the fields of classic literature for new
intellectual crops is The Odyssey. Even its name has become a
euphemism for all sorts of things. Lost in the wealth of often very interesting
research into this work is the observation that it was probably not simply a
poem but a work of moral literature. It is not simply an adventure tale. The purpose
was not just to entertain but help the ancient Greeks know what being “Greek”
meant. But what are the moral lessons that Homer wants us to learn? To find the
answer to that question it is necessary to understand that the poem is not
merely account of the adventures and misfortune of Odysseus but what his son
Telemachus can learn morally from the trials and triumphs of his father. Indeed,
an argument can be made that main character of the Odyssey is not Odysseus but
his son Telemachus and his growth towards manhood.[ix]
This would explain the non-liner plot in the poem. We are given a clue to the
meaning of this poem by looking at the names “Odysseus” and “Telemachus” which
mean “Trouble” and “Fighting Man” respectively. Even a cursory reading of The
Odyssey reveals that Odysseus is a very different man emotionally and
intellectually when he returns to Ithaca than the man who left so many years
before. The gifts of Odysseus to his son are the lessons learned by the father
and passed along to the son with the mediation and help of Athena so that the
son does not become the man named “Trouble” like his father. When this theme is
understood the organization of the poem can be seen as intentional.
The Odyssey while longer and written to a different audience
bares some striking organizational similarities to the book of Job in the Bible.
Both are about powerful men who are brought low by supernatural forces in order
to teach them important lessons and who are then restored to their former
prosperity once the lesson is learned; importantly both Odysseus and Job need
to learn the same lesson that they should not trust solely in their own
cunning, power or wealth but should be grateful to God or gods for their
success. Where the works differ is in the use of time and secondary lessons.
Job suffers a single trial for which he has no explanation and turns to his
counselors for an explanation. Odysseus survives a series of calamitous
adventures that each should teach his son something. Unlike Job there is seldom
a counselor to explain it to Odysseus and he has to figure it out himself. Also
unlike Job the lessons Odysseus learn have much more to do with how he should
live than simply faith in the supernatural that while not as important in some
respects are vital to helping Telemachus avoid the mistakes made by his father.
When we first meet
Odysseus in the Odyssey he is on an island owned by the nymph Calypso where he
has been for seven long years. He is there involuntarily because Calypso is
keeping him as her love slave. While the terms and conditions of his
incarceration may be snickered at (How many men, at first thought wouldn’t jump
at the chance to be the lover of a beautiful nymph?) the predicament is more
universal. Calypso didn’t really love Odysseus; she was merely using him to
fulfill her own needs. I ask, how fulfilling would a sexual relationship be if
it was forced or coerced? How much fear would be in such a relationship of
retribution for not performing up to the desired standard? Indeed, reading the
account we find that Odysseus has consistently refused the offers of a more
than physical relationship with Calypso and provides her with just enough to
remain in her favor. Suppose the genders were reversed in this situation, If
Calypso was a male and Odysseus a female would this be a situation to be
snickered at? How many women would snicker at being held captive for sexual
favors for seven years
On a less erotic but applicable note, how many men become
slaves to their job? How many men wake up one day and find that years have
passed and that the people who are important to them that they really loved
have been sacrificed upon the alter of occupation, trade or profession? How
much worse is it if the man does not actually love the profession? Often men
fall into this trap while trying to provide for their families as Odysseus was
simply trying to return home to his wife. Once in this trap they have a
difficult time extricating themselves. That this is the first place we meet
Odysseus is instructive.
We do not learn more of the story until Odysseus has
escaped, by the skin of teeth from Calypso and washed up on the shore where Phaeacians
live which is actually closer to the end of the story than the beginning. It is
here that we learn from Odysseus himself what had befallen him.
The story Odysseus tells the Phaeacians by now one of the
most familiar ever told and ranks with David and Goliath and Noah’s flood in
its universality and I will not deal with each episode in detail. But here are
the lessons learned by Odysseus.
The trap of sloth and laziness; it would have been easy to
simply stay on the Island of the Lotus Eaters.
The trap of imposing upon other is learned at the cave of
the Cyclops. At that point in the story Odysseus was traveling in a 12 ship
fleet so at least a couple of hundred men. When they find the Cyclops home open
they simply help themselves to the sheep and cheese that are there. When the
Cyclops returns he is, I think understandably, angry. Granted, he may have been
a cannibal anyway but there is a certain justice in saying you ate my sheep now
I will eat you. Would it have hurt Odysseus and his crew to ask before raiding
the larder? Humans unlike monsters can
think about the needs of others
There is another lesson to be learned from the adventure
with the Cyclops. The way you treat your enemies is as important as the way you
treat your friends. Think about the story. In order escape Odysseus blinds the Cyclops
and then he and his men run to their ship and sail away. The normal
interpretation of this event is that Odysseus was cunning and smart. A better interpretation is that he was cruel and calloused. How can a shepherd keep track of
his sheep if he cannot see them? By blinding the Cyclops rather than just
escaping from him or even just killing him Odysseus doomed the one-eyed giant
to a life of poverty. Humans, unlike Cyclops exhibit mercy and Odysseus lowered himself to something less heroic by the manner of his escape
I find the island of Circe to be perhaps the most
interesting place in the epic. Circe was turning the crew into pigs. Think
about that a minute. A pig is an unusual forest animal. They are smart. They travel
in groups and are big enough and mean enough to fend off most predators. But
they live by instinct. This is sort of the other side of the coin from the
island of the Lotus Eaters rather than forgetting who they were because of the
pleasant conditions the crew was in danger of becoming simply animals. When we
as humans put our physical needs higher than our ethics or morality we are no better than pigs. Being a pig is OK
for pigs humans were made for something better.
There is an important rather obvious lesson that has already
been alluded to. While never so clearly stated in the poem the 1997 made for TV
version of the Odyssey did an excellent job making this lesson clear. In
that version as Odysseus’ raft is sinking in a storm sent by Poseidon Odysseus
calls out “Poseidon! What do you want from me?” and receives the answer “To know that without
gods man is nothing.” Notice how throughout the poem the Greeks make obligatory
offerings to the gods, the occasional prayer and then go about their business
as if it made no difference. Odysseus is apparently almost oblivious to the
help he receives from Hermes and Athena. As a Christian I can identify with the gist of
that in the normal way but the inverse is true. We may be nothing without divine
help but we are also not gods. There is a place for gratitude and humility even
in our success. Odysseus by his pride, lack of humility and failure to
acknowledge the help he’d received or to show remorse was ungrateful. Humility, gratitude and thankfulness are appropriate responses that should be exhibited in our lives. To give thanks for
blessings from above or from our friends and family is a uniquely human virtue as far as we know. The inverse
is also true. We may be nothing without God but neither are we gods. When we
act as though we are divine, the final arbiter of morality and ethics we become
not good and benevolent deities but petty, self-centered tyrants. When Odysseus
stood upon the prow of ship and shouted his name to the blinded, rock-throwing
Cyclops he was essentially saying “I am god, you can’t hurt me”
Even remembering our place in the universe is not the greatest
lesson Odysseus gave his son. Bigger still was the knowledge that greatness is
measured more by our response to failure than to success. We
remember Odysseus as much for his trials and mistakes on the journey home as we
do the Trojan War. The way we deal with adversity not victory defines us.
It is these lessons that allowed Odysseus to tell his son “Know
when to be angry” Notice at the end of the poem he allows Athena to disguise
him. He receives and is grateful for divine aide. He keeps his eyes on the goal
and is not distracted by the pleasantness of his home and doesn’t revert
to instinct and simply rush forward to attack like a wild-boar. Once he traps the
suitors he does not merely blind them so that they may exact revenge but kills
them which was justice in that day and time. These are the gifts of Odysseus to
his son.
Until Next Time
Fai Mao
The Blogger who still reads literature
Fai Mao
The Blogger who still reads literature
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[viii]
Suzuki,
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