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"And now, tell me and tell me true. Where have you been wandering, and in what countries have you travelled?... Tell us also why you are made unhappy on hearing about the return of the Argive Danaans from Troy. The gods arranged all this, and sent them their misfortunes in order that future generations might have something to sing about.”
Odyssey, Book 8; Samuel Butler translation
Book 8 Summary
The next morning King Alcinous holds an assembly where he calls on the people to prepare a ship for Odysseus and then come to his house for a feast.
During the feast, the blind bard Demodocus sings about different episodes during the Trojan War. Odysseus covers his face with his cloak to hide his weeping and Alcinous is the only one who notices. Alcinous calls an end to the feasting in order for the athletic games to begin.
After a few competitions, one of Alcinous' sons asks Odysseus if he wants to compete, but Odysseus turns him down because he has too much on his mind. Another young man, one of the most athletic among them, taunts Odysseus which angers him. Without taking off his cloak, Odysseus grabs a discus and throws it farther than anyone else had so far, then challenges anyone to any athletic contest they fancy, including archery which he boasts he is better than just about anyone alive.
Everyone is left silent except Alcinous who tries to pacify Odysseus. He brings back the bard Demodocus who begins to play more songs and calls on the leaders to present gifts to Odysseus. In the end, Odysseus receives a chest full of gold and clothes, a golden goblet, and a sword which belonged to young man who insulted Odysseus.
There is one final feast where Nausicaa says her goodbyes and Odysseus honors Demodocus with a portion of food. Odysseus requests a song about the wooden horse used to infiltrate Troy, and while hearing it he once again weeps. Alcinous calls an end to the song and tells Odysseus it's finally time to tell everyone exactly who he is and why songs about the Trojan War affect him so much.
A Self-Insert?
We’re introduced to the bard Demodocus in Book 8 and the narrator says this about him:
Demodocus, whom the muse had dearly loved, but to whom she had given both good and evil, for though she had endowed him with a divine gift of song, she had robbed him of his eyesight.
Odyssey, Book 8; Samuel Butler translation
The legends about Homer is that he was a blind poet. Is this a self-insert by Homer himself? It depends on if you think Homer was a real person and that he composed the Iliad and the Odyssey.
Suck it up, Buttercup
During the festivities, King Alcinous decides to hold athletic contests so the Phaeacians can show off to Odysseus how athletic they are. And then, a humorous scene occurs. One of Alcinous’ sons invites Odysseus to participate in the games. However, Odysseus declines.
Ulysses answered, “Laodamas, why do you taunt me in this way? my mind is set rather on cares than contests; I have been through infinite trouble, and am come among you now as a suppliant, praying your king and people to further me on my return home.”
Odyssey, Book 8; Samuel Butler translation
Odysseus is worn down not only by the journey it took to get to the Phaeacians, but he can think of nothing more than getting home.
One of the other participants chides Odysseus for this response.
Then Euryalus reviled him outright and said, “I gather, then that you are unskilled in any of the many sports that men generally delight in. I suppose you are one of those grasping traders that go about in ships as captains or merchants, and who think of nothing but of their outward freights and homeward cargos. There does not seem to be much of the athlete about you.”
Odyssey, Book 8; Samuel Butler translation
Euryalus just channeled Arnold Schwarzenegger and called Odysseus a girly-man.
Odysseus is ticked off by the disrespect.
“Your ill-judged remarks have made me exceedingly angry, and you are quite mistaken, for I excel in a great many athletic exercises; indeed, so long as I had youth and strength, I was among the first athletes of the age.”
Odyssey, Book 8; Samuel Butler translation
If you read the Iliad, you know this firsthand. In Book 23, ten years before Odysseus ends up in the land of the Phaeacians, there were athletic contests held by Achilles in honor of his fallen best friend Patroclus. In these contests, Odysseus wrestled the towering Telamonian Ajax to a draw and won first place in the foot race.
“Now, however, I am worn out by labour and sorrow, for I have gone through much both on the field of battle and by the waves of the weary sea; still, in spite of all this I will compete, for your taunts have stung me to the quick.”
Odyssey, Book 8; Samuel Butler translation
Odysseus then grabs a discus larger than any of the other Phaeacians were using and throws it the furthest. Then he turns around and challenges them to any of the contests being held.
This episode can be seen one of two ways. The first way, which just recently occurred to me, is the typical cliché in stories where strangers taunt the protagonist and the protagonist shows them up in spectacular fashion. You, the audience, knows the protagonist can own these hecklers and it’s very satisfying to watch him do so.
The second way is how I’ve seen this episode for a long time. Odysseus is feeling sorry for himself and is brooding. And you don’t blame him—especially after you learn the full story of what happened to him (Books 9-12). Odysseus has been through a lot and all he wants to do is get home to his wife and son. He doesn’t have time for these silly contests. If it were up to him, he would be leaving for home right at this second.
However, Odysseus’ attitude is not good. Despite his hardships, he shouldn’t be feeling sorry for himself nor should he be turning away from friendly competition. The youngster who taunts him snaps him out of his mood. I’m inclined to think that the youngster did this to intentionally rile up Odysseus, but it could have also been youthful impetuosity. Regardless, it works, and Odysseus is back in true form again and ready to show the next generation how the grownups do it.
The episode has a good lesson to learn. When you are down and out and feeling sorry for yourself, it is very tempting to isolate yourself and refuse to participate in anything that’s not going to help resolve your situation—especially in things that are fun.
Feeling sorry for yourself is very addicting. In a twisted way, you feel justified in your beliefs and feelings. You have the satisfaction of feeling like you stand, alone and resolute, against a world that just doesn’t understand you nor recognizes how right you are. The world doesn’t understand your grievances, so therefore the world is stupid and can go to hell. There’s power in feeling like you’re in that position, and so you get angry and annoyed at any attempts to cheer you up.
In reality, you just need to get over yourself. You need to suck it up, get out of your head, and push yourself to rejoin everyone else. It’s only then that you can think more clearly about your situation and find those who may help you. You’ll feel better and more in control. You’ll feel genuine satisfaction, not the fake satisfaction that comes from the false sense of superiority during your bad mood.
It’s easier said than done. May we have the discipline to escape our brooding when it tries to swallow us up.
Odysseus’ Insecurities?
After the athletic contests, the bard Demodocus tells one of the more popular stories known in Greek mythology: the time Hephaestus caught Aphrodite and Ares in a trap. In the Iliad, Hephaestus’ wife was the goddess Charis who was one of the three Graces (her alternate name is Aglaea). In the Odyssey, however, Hephaestus’ wife is Aphrodite. Aphrodite frequently stepped out on Hephaestus to be with Ares in their own wedding bed. One day, Hephaestus laid down a trap on the bed and pretended to go on a trip. Aphrodite and Ares spring the trap in the middle of their tryst and Hephaestus exposes them to the other gods. It’s not until Poseidon promises Hephaestus restitution one way or another that Hephaestus frees the embarrassed duo from the trap.
Side note: I did a very cursory look at the discrepancies and the two theories is that either Hephaestus divorced Aphrodite after her infidelity was exposed or that the Odyssey completely made up the fact that Hephaestus was married to Aphrodite because this tradition doesn’t really appear anywhere else.
This story has to hit close to home for Odysseus. On the one hand, he had only recently been offered a chance to be with a goddess. What if she had turned out to be just like Aphrodite, find some fault in him, and cheat on him with others? What if she simply lost interest?
On the other hand, Odysseus doesn’t know what his wife Penelope has been up to. We, the audience, know Penelope has remained faithful to Odysseus, but Odysseus doesn’t know that. What if he comes home and it turns out everyone has moved on and Penelope has remarried? In other words, has Penelope remained faithful?
I don’t think it’s a coincidence that this was one of the stories Demodocus picked to tell, just as it isn’t a coincidence that he decided to sing multiple songs about the Trojan War when they just so happened to have a visitor who was a veteran of that war (though none of them knew this until the athletic contests).
One of Odysseus’ Flaws
While Odysseus is riled up from Euryalus’ comment, he lets slip something about himself.
Philoctetes was the only man who could shoot better than I could when we Achaeans were before Troy and in practice.
Odyssey, Book 8; Samuel Butler translation
Odysseus has been keeping his identity a secret from the Phaeacians. In fact, none of them even know his name yet. However, in the heat of the moment, Odysseus reveals he is an Achaean and he fought in the Trojan War.
Keep this in mind. When Odysseus begins to get prideful about something, his tongue gets a little loose and the cunning he is known for goes out the window. Odysseus, essentially, becomes his own worst enemy.
Is Alcinous Stoic or Naive?
Toward the end of Book 8, Alcinous says this while reiterating his promise to help Odysseus:
“Still I do remember hearing my father say that Neptune was angry with us for being too easy-going in the matter of giving people escorts. He said that one of these days he should wreck a ship of ours as it was returning from having escorted some one, and bury our city under a high mountain. This is what my father used to say, but whether the god will carry out his threat or no is a matter which he will decide for himself.”
Odyssey, Book 8; Samuel Butler translation
You can probably guess at this point how Poseidon will react when he finds out the Phaeacians helped out Odysseus.
I’m not quite sure how to interpret Alcinous’ statement. Is he saying “Whatever happens, happens” or does Alcinous have a naive innocence about the world and the gods?
You have to keep in mind that they are a people isolated from the rest of the world who are frequently visited by the gods. Their island is akin to a paradise. You have to question whether they’ve seen the ugly side of the gods before. All they’ve really seen is the gods coming down and feasting with them. Have they ever seen the gods angry before? Have they ever seen the gods dish out their wrath or act petty?
And You Thought My Conspiracy was Crazy!
When Alcinous asks Odysseus to tell his story, he says this:
“Tell us also why you are made so unhappy on hearing about the return of the Argive Danaans from Troy. The gods arranged all this, and sent them their misfortunes in order that future generations might have something to sing about.”
Odyssey, Book 8; Samuel Butler translation
I briefly commented in my post on Book 5 that I came up with a conspiracy theory that the Trojan War was a means to decrease the amount of divine offspring in the world. It sounded crazy, I know.
However, Alcinous’ explanation for the war takes the cake! The gods caused the Trojan War to happen so that songs could be made about it?! The gods didn’t think there was enough exciting things in the world to make songs about so they decided “Hey, let’s get a war started! There will be so many entertaining stories to come from that!”
I can’t decide which one is worse: a war as a means of population control or a war as a means to generate future entertainment?
All joking aside, this statement also further plays into my theory that Alcinous is naively innocent. Have the Phaeacians ever experienced war before? Are these harsh and brutal events nothing but good stories to sing about and be entertained by? During the reign of the previous king, they were attacked by the Cyclopes which caused them to move to Scheria and build a wall around it, but has Alcinous or the current generation of Phaeacians ever experienced those hardships?
That’s all for Book 8 of the Odyssey.
May your days be filled with grace.
-Andronikos
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Thumbnail: Based on the sketch Ulysseys Weeps at the Song of Demodocus by John Flaxman, 1810.