One passage that stood out to me was lines 260-270 in Book 9. During this part of the book, Odysseus and his crew are acquainting themselves with Polyphemus, Poseidon’s son, who is also one of the Cyclopes. The land of the Cyclopes is known to be barbaric and disorganized. Odysseus is led to believe that just like any other host he has been a guest to, that Polyphemus would give gifts to him and would help him on his journey home. Odysseus has previously been showered with gifts and blessings with past hosts. However, Polyphemus disregards Odysseus’ request and says that Odysseus is either “dumb” or “from far away.” After Odysseus tries to make Polyphemus sympathetic towards him and his crew, Polyphemus proceeds to eat two members of the crew. All of this completely goes against the guest-host relationship during this period. A host should do everything possible to ensure that the guest is comfortable and is in good spirits. Once Polyphemus breaks this tradition, all hell breaks loose as Odysseus eventually blinds him and escapes the cave. Every guest-host meeting up until this one had reflected a sense of companionship and respect instead of violence and cruelty in this case.
As a whole, the guest-host relationship during these times was supposed to be a symbol of peace. There was a lot of traveling to separate islands during this time period and most people did not know the visitors nor their motives for coming to their island. The first thing the guest should do is explain who he/she is and explain why he/she is there. The guest may explain a mutual relationship between a family member or friend and give a story or two. The host should then recognize that the guest is of no harm and is given gifts and praise on their journey. For example, Odysseus arrives at the palace of Alcinous and is given numerous gifts and celebrates many festivities with the Phaeacians and Telemachus, who is a guest to Nestor, receives many offerings when he is realized to be the son of Odysseus. Being a proper guest and host is also a sign of maturity. Telemachus was great at being a host, but was unsure of how to properly be a guest, which was an issue. He was shy and afraid, but Athena gave him the courage to talk to Nestor. Telemachus hopes to become more mature, eventually en route to kicking out the suitors from his house and eventually showing the people of Ithaca his maturity. It is very common throughout life to be the guest and the host many times each and it is also a way to always ensure order and unity. Being able to receive and give proper hospitality is a key part of Greek ethics as shown several times in this epic poem.
Hi, I agree with one of your point that “Being a proper guest and host is also a sign of maturity.” As you notice, Polyphemus, the son of Poseidon, does not receive Odysseus properly by offering delicious dishes and wine proactively, in the situation that Odysseus has explained clearly his past experience and the reason he comes here. Instead, Polyphemus seizes Odyssey’s crew and make his meal, which is actually a behavior of immaturity.
However, Polyphemus may not be the first to break the tradition of appropriate hospitality. Before going to the Cyclopes island, Odyssey also comes to the land of Lotus-Eaters. There, although the Lotus-Easters receive Odyssey with some lotus, meaning no harm seemingly, the sweet fruit makes Odyssey’s crew loss the will to report back who would rather stay there than leave. This instance actually reflects another form of cruel reception, the evil beneath the disguised kindness.
I think your perspective on this passage is very interesting. The point that this tradition of being a good host is in a way reshaped is significant to the whole piece. At the beginning we see that the suitors are being rude guests, while Telemachus holds his place as a good host. Only later do we see him break out of this, once he speaks up to the suitors. In a way this is parallel to Odysseus. There is a certain point where you can no longer be a courteous guest or host and it comes to pure survival. Telemachus had to survive the suitors, while Odysseus had to survive the Cyclops. This says a lot about tradition in the Odyssey. As you have said it is a part of the Greek ethics to be a proper guest or host, but how far can it go?
I totally agree with you that the host-guest meeting between Odysseus and Polyphemus is unusual, given many opposite examples priorly when hosts take care and give gifts to guests as a way of showing respect. Though in some cases, the guests don’t reveal their names until being provoked such as Odysseus only reveals his name after Alcinous asks starting at book IX or Helen correctly guessed Telemachus’s identity when he breaks down listening to Menelaus’s saying on Odysseus. I also find it interesting how you see guest-host is a measure of maturity and your example of Telemachus learning to appear mature does show it. Good job!
Hi Michael,
Like the other commenters here, I think your reading of the Polyphemous episode in light of the whole host of guest-host meetings in the Odyssey is spot on. Books 2, 3, and 5 show us guest-host relationships properly conducted; books 9 and 10 show gross violations of the guest-host relationship; this episode is perhaps the most startling and gruesome example of the pattern. Moreover, you demonstrate here a real sense of the variation in these relationships (I like your point that Telemachus is a skilled host, but unsure of himself a guest).
One major area for improvement, here, is close-reading itself. Work on digging in to the specific language of the passage you’ve chosen–not just explaining its place in relation to the plot and overarching themes, but in its own detailed specificity. Here, you choose two tiny phrases from your passage (“dumb” and “from far away”)–both of which are DEFINITELY worth saying more about!! Polyphemous’ accusation of stupidity is really interesting, since it’s lobbed against Odysseus. And his claim that the stranger must know nothing of his culture–he’s from far away–in fact tells us a kind of truth: Odysseus is “from far away” to almost everyone he meets, but generally he shares one thing with everyone culturally: an understanding of how guests and hosts behave.
In short–your instincts here are fantastic. You are connecting your passage to the text in interesting ways, and you are picking out a few key words and phrases. The next step is to dig deeper into the details.
Best,
Prof Kolb