“You ask me, goddess to god, why I have come.
Well, I’ll tell you exactly why. Remember, you asked.
Zeus ordered me to come here; I didn’t want to.
Who would want to cross this endless stretch
Of deserted sea? Not a single city in sight
Where you can get a decent sacrifice for men.”
(5.97-102).
In this passage, Hermes reminds me of another being that is not quite human, but yearns for their lives, or at least their activities:
“I wanna be where the people are
I wanna see, wanna see them dancing’
Walking around on those – what do you call ’em?
Oh – feet!”
As brilliantly described by the Little Mermaid Ariel, Hermes honestly just wants to be where the people are. Technically, he is an immortal god who should have all the time in the world to send Zeus’s message and be on Calypso’s island for a few minutes. Instead, he’d rather find some humans.
It is so amusing how the gods depend on humans. They want their sacrifices, their gossip, and their problems. The gods are supposed to be these beautiful, immortal and powerful beings, but Hermes here is more interested in being around people. He wants his sacrifice; he wants to be involved. Like Ariel, he wants to be part of their world.
This reminds me of the larger theme we discussed in the class: the relationship between gods and men. It is a reoccurring element that the gods live vicariously through humans. Like we’ve read, Athena feels Odysseus’s pain, the gods “feast” on the food of humans even though they don’t eat it, and all of Olympus watches over the humans like they are, in modern terms, the Kardashians.
The world of gods and humans becomes interdependent. While the humans look to the gods for guidance or protection, the gods look to the humans for life. Hermes honestly just wants a decent sacrifice and to be surrounded in places with people. Why would a god care so much about that? For one reason or another, Hermes craves attention and entertainment just like humans do.
While the world of Olympus is special and revered by the humans, the world of humans is seemingly yearned for by the gods. If they can’t live that life themselves as immortal beings, they will live it through the lives of their fascinating mortal counterparts. The gods may influence lives and control the different elements, but what they do and how they feel revolves around the lives of humans.
Great Post! I love how you brought in a quote from the Little Mermaid to more clearly depict the attitude the gods have towards the human population in the odyssey. When I first read that passage I found it comical that Hermes complains about being far away from human civilization. He has so much power and freedom to do as he pleases yet he feels the need to be entertained by mere humans. Additionally, I love how you made a direct connection to the real world and our society today by referring to the Kardashians. I can totally see what you meant! It seems to me that although the gods are constantly complaining about the humans’ mistakes, at the end of the day they would be in extreme boredom if those mistakes were nonexistent.
Hi JoMaris,
What a great passage to pick. One thing I noticed, reading it here, is how it differs in tone from the narration and from Odysseus’ speech. Hermes (and to an extent, Calypso) speak informally, snarkily, with rapid and proud declarations of their motives, desires, and peeves. There is NO ceremony here. What a contrast with Odysseus’ stately prayers, and formal speeches to his hosts (for instance, to Nausicaa).
The comparison to Ariel is delightful; he really does “want to be where the people are.” Unlike her, however, he wants to receive their worship; to be recognized as non-human, divine, Other. None of the gods, here, seem to express the desire to fully *become* human, though they long in different ways (think of Calypso herself) to participate in human lives.
-LK