Homer's Odyssey

[Scrooby]

Book I

O Muse, speak to me of the many-sided man,
of his many wanderings after his destruction
of the mighty city of Troy. Many people
and places he came to know, their ways and habits;
astray at sea he suffered much to save his life
and return home with his companions. But his men
would not be saved, but perished, for like foolish children
they ate the cattle of the sun-god Helios : so the men asea
day by day were denied their return. O goddess,
daughter of Zeus, begin where you will and speak to me.

Now all of the rest who had slipped death by battle
or sunken wreck at the bottom of the seabed
were back home, having escaped combat and the waves :
one man alone yearned for the return to his wife,
but the goddess Calypso, o bewitching nymph,
detained him in her deep caves, desiring him
as husband. But the cycles of the seasons revolved
to the year when the gods who spin the thread of fate
encouraged his return to Ithaca (yet not
even there at home would he be free from conflict,
even among his own people). Now all the gods
as one took pity on him, apart from Poseidon,
who raged hotly against godlike Odysseus
until at length he finally reached his homeland.

Now Poseidon had gone to the uttermost land
of Ethiopia, which stretches east to west,
facing where Hyperion rises and where he sets,
to enjoy a great public sacrifice and feast
of a hundred sheep and oxen; and while he
was enjoying his contentment to the fullest,
the other gods gathered together in a hall
of Olympian Zeus, and he the father of gods
and men spoke first. The death of royal Aegisthus
by far-famed Orestes, son of Agamemnon,
he had in mind as he addressed the immortals :

"Hear, o gods, the accusation of humankind!
From us they say comes precedent of wickedness,
but the evils they see are their own; and their pains
of mind are irregularities not foreseen
by destiny : even as Aegisthus overleapt
his destiny and took the wife of Atreus
as his own matrimony, knowing he would fall
from that foul height to great destruction and death.
Did I not dispatch Hermes, sharp-eyed swift-appearing
Hermes, as warning neither to kill the husband
nor seduce his wife? For Orestes would repay
what was taken from his father, son of Atreus,
when reaching the prime of youth he sought his homeland.
Hermes spoke, yet the soul of Aegisthus would not
listen and be persuaded to good-mindedness.
And so all at once the vengeance was paid in full."

And answered the goddess, shining-eyed Athena :

"O father of us all, majesty uppermost,
surely that human's ruin is reasonable;
those who act that way will in that way be destroyed.

But my heart aches on all sides for the dark-fortuned,
fertile-minded Odysseus, constantly
miserable, far from his friends, on an island
at the center of the sea. This wooded island
is the dwelling place of the daughter of Atlas,
who is destructive-minded. She knows every depth
of every sea, while Atlas bears the huge columns
separating heaven and earth. It's his daughter
delaying the unhappy man, ever-suffering
and ever-bewitched, both by her mildnessess
and by her soft words, temptations to enchant him
to utterly forget Ithaca. But sometimes
he leaps up into the air and imagines smoke
rising from his land : and he desires to die.
Not now does your heart allow this, dear Olympian.
Did not Odysseus perform sacrifices
cheerfully, willingly, beside the Argive ships
at far Troy? So why so vast a hate for him, o Zeus?"

Answer came to her from cloud-assembling Zeus :

"My child!
What a word has winged through your lovely row of teeth!
How shall I forget the godlike Odysseus,
he who is superior to all men in sense,
who favors the immortals with sacrifices,
pleasuring those who hold the colossal heavens?
No. Earth-trembling Poseidon, stubborn as always,
detests Odysseus, who blinded the Cyclops,
godlike Polyphemus, whose power excelled all
of the round-eyed Cyclops : Thoösa is his mother,
daughter of Phorcys, who stably rules the seawaters :
in those hollow caves that nymph lay with Poseidon.
And it will happen that earthshaking Poseidon
will not destroy Odysseus, but keep him lost
and wandering far from the land of his fathers.
Now come : we shall deliberate on his return;
he shall go on his way : and Poseidon shall quit
his bitter thoughts : for he is far from strong enough
to fight the will of the immortal gods alone."

And the goddess, shining-eyed Athena, replied :

"O father of all, Cronos' son, ruler of all,
if the blessed gods are truly content with this,
that many-thoughted Odysseus return home,
then may quick-bringing Hermes be sent to the island
of Ogygia to deliver our resolve
to the nymph Calypso, her of the beautiful braids :
that patient-minded Odysseus return home.
She should know that our decision will be enforced.
I will go to Ithaca, to stir battle-rage
in the heart of the son, to urge on his resolve
to lead a council of the long-haired Achaeans
and speak out against the mnesteressin (the wooers
of his mother, the one hundred and eight of them),
who are ever-slaughtering and ever-thinning
his abundance of sheep, and killing his shambling
twist-horned cattle. I will escort him to Sparta
and to sandy Pylos, where he will seek knowledge
of his dear father, if something is to be heard,
if fortunate news of him is held among men."

Just so she spoke. And she bound sandals to her feet,
a beautiful golden habiliment belonging
to the gods which bear her along over water
just as over vast lands as quick as a breath of wind.
She took in hand her hardy sharp-tipped spear, bright bronze
heavy, large, and strong, which humiliates all heroes
of men who anger her, daughter of mighty Zeus.
She stepped down from the Olympian sky, darting
from its peaks to the doorway of Odysseus
in the land of Ithaca. Her feet settled down
at the outer door of the entrance to the house.
She had made herself strange; to others she now appeared
As Mentes, a Taphian king with bronze spear in hand.
In the courtyard she found the haughty mnesteres
cheerfully bloated with an endless greed for life :
they sat on the hides of oxen they had slaughtered :
some were playing games, pushing oval stones on boards;
most were busy mixing water and wine in bowls.
Tables were cleaned with swelled-up sponges, and set out
for division between them were many fresh meats.

In among the many sat godlike Telemachus,
sorrowing at heart, and did not see Athena.
In his mind's eye he saw his noble father return
to scatter the mnesteres away from the grounds
and reestablish his honorable lordship
over the house. Thinking such thoughts, seated idly
with the others, he saw her, and walked to the door
without hesitation; for he would feel ashamed
to permit a stranger to stand long at the door.

He came near, and for warm greeting clasped her right hand;
and he relieved her of the bronze spear; and he spoke :

"Hail, guest!
You shall find welcome in this house. Once you have eaten,
you can speak to me then of what you have need of."

So went his introduction. Then, leading the way,
with Pallas Athena following, he brought her
into the high and lofty house. Her spear he placed
in a gleaming spear-case by a thick-set column.
Many spears of the downhearted Odysseus
stood there in array. Telemachus brought a chair
for her and overlaid a coverlet of linen
on its well-carven beauty. He even arranged
its footstool. Beside her he placed a wondrous chair,
cunningly wrought with intricate carved subtleties,
and sat. He had set them apart from the others
so that his guest might not be bothered by the noise
of the mnesteres and disrelish the meal;
and, contemplating the swell of men around them,
ask after his father who was long gone from here.
Water from a lovely golden pitcher was poured
by a maiden into a silver bowl for them
to wash their hands : and a polished table was set
down beside them. And the reverent housekeeper
brought them bread, and filled the extent of the table
with diverse foods, giving freely what was at hand :
and a carver brought platters of meats of all kinds;
and placed before them were golden big-bellied cups
which were often filled with wine by passing servants.

In upon them came the haughty mnesteres.
They arranged themselves in rows on couches and chairs
and bid their servants pour water over their hands.
Maidens piled up bread in baskets, while the male youths
filled the mixing bowls for drinking. The mnesteres
reached eagerly for the refreshment laid before them.
Then after food and drink they turned to other things,
to song and dance, delightful adornment of feasts.
A servant gave the hands of Phemius a lyre;
his strum established a very beautiful mood
among the Mnesteres. He played measuredly,
slowly, coaxing from the strings a lyrical song.

Telemachus spoke to shining-eyed Athena
with their heads close, to avoid the ears of others :

"Guest, friend, will you be provoked with what I'm to say?
Those others cultivate these things, lyre and song,
so lightly, after consuming a man's substance
so freely : man, father, husband, Odysseus."

Telemachus continued with quick winged words :

"They do not know if he has decayed to white bones
which lie upon the mainland, or have rolled away
by a sea-wave! If those people were to see him
return to Ithaca, they'd trade their weight of wealth
and showy clothing for swift feet.... He was destroyed
by a terrible fate, and we are left cheerless.
Is there but one man on earth who says he will come?

Destroyed is the day of his return.... But come now!
You speak now. Speak of yourself from the beginning.
Where have you come from? What men? What city? What father?
What ship did you arrive on? How was it that sailors
brought you to Ithaca? Who did they say they were?
I am certain that you did not come here on foot.
And be true with me, please, so that I may know well :
do you come as a stranger or as an ally
to my father's house? Many men came to our house
at the time when he had many dealings with men."

Again spoke the shining-eyed goddess Athena :

"Surely then I will tell you all of my story.
I am Mentes, son of war-wise Anchialus,
and am king of the Taphians, who love the oar.
It is rightly so that I have come here by ship;
my crew and I have been sailing the wine-dark sea,
stopping at places of men who use foreign tongues,
and are bound for Temese, to barter for copper.
I bring shining iron. My ship is anchored by
the fields outside of the city, in the harbour
of Rheithron, by the rise of high wooded Neion.
Your father and I are friends, as our fathers were,
friends from long ago. You may inquire about me :
speak to the old warrior Laertes. They say
he no longer comes into the city, but keeps
to his far-off fields. It's said he bears much suffering
from the weariness of age upon his body
while he steps along the tracks of his vineyard soil.
An old woman serves as his handmaid, and provides
food and drink for him, the warrior Laertes.

And now I am here : for some said that your father
was back among his people. Ah, well! It's the gods
frustrating his forward way. For Odysseus
is not destroyed. The noble man lives yet somewhere
on earth : on a deep-sea island, where cruelty
and wildness rule over him against his will.
To you now I foresee, as if my heart were touched
by the immortals, that everything will work out
to fulfilment. I think this, though I am no seer;
I cannot read the flight or cry of birds positively.
He shall stand on the land of his beloved fathers.
Soon : not even chains of iron could restrain him.
I envision him returning, for he is a man
of many inventions. Now come! Speak to me truly :
are you the very child of Odysseus?
Truly your head and fair eyes very much resemble his.
He and I often had dealings before he sailed
for Troy, where all of the best of the Argives went
in the hollows of their ships. And Odysseus
and I : we have not seen each other since that day."

And so further did sharp-witted Telemachus
hold her eyes and speak : "It's for me now to tell all.
My mother says that I am his child, but I
do not know : and no man can himself name his parents.
Well... I might have been the son of a happy man
who reached an old age among his own property.
I am the son of the luckless man you ask of."

Again spoke the goddess, shining-eyed Athena :

"Surely the gods did not establish your family,
only for you to remain forever nameless;
no, not for that were you born to Penelope.
Come now! Speak to me truly : tell me of this feast.
Who are these people? Why all this festivity?
Is it a wedding banquet? What need have you of this?
It is plain to see that these people feasting here
are indulgent and objectionable people.
A man would feel just resentment at this disgrace,
any reasonable man who might come here to see
these innumerable dishonorable deeds."

And again spoke wise Telemachus face to face :

"Stranger, I will answer, since you ask and question
so carefully. This house was once destined for wealth
and nobility, back when my father was here
and among the people. The will of the gods, though,
for some terrible reason, ripped him out of sight.
If he had been conquered among his companions
in the land of the Trojans, in the arms of a friend,
threaded up in war's tangled web, I would have long
since conquered my grief. Then all of the Achaeans
would have built his tomb. And the son, too, would have won
great fame and praise in days to come. But it is so :
birds of prey, demon harpies, have used their whirlwinds
to carry him away : not to be seen, nor heard of.
This grief I feel, and these tears that fall, are what's left
for me. No—new reasons bring me new suffering;
as the gods have brought me still more hateful trouble.

All those royals in possession of the islands,
Sáme and Dulichium and wooded Zakynthos,
and all those who rule over rocky Ithaca,
they are all competing to marry my mother!
Meanwhile they are wearing out the house. But she
refuses to refuse these contemptible wooers;
she will not make an end of all this trouble.
Their appetite will consume the entire house.
Soon I will be ruined."

Impatient with the boy Pallas Athena spoke :

"Ah, well! You have a great need of Odysseus
to come and let go against these shameless people.
If only he were here, standing before the doors,
with helmet and shield and two spears! But he is gone.
The man he once was! I first saw him in our house :
he was drinking wine and overflowing with good cheer.
He had sailed up to Ephyre, to the house
of Ilus, son of Mermerus. In that quick ship
of his he had gone in search of a man-killing drug,
to bathe the bronze tips of his arrows : but Ilus
wouldn't hand it over, concerned with what the gods
might think, the immortal ones whom he greatly dreads.
Odysseus was on his way home. My father
provided what was sought, for he felt a great love
for your Odysseus. Ah, if Odysseus
kept company with these people here! They would find
a quick death. They would come into a bitter marriage.
Well! Everything lies on the knees of the gods :
whether he return to these halls and and repay in full,
or not. May I urge you to consider a plan :
how you might drive these people away from the halls?
Come now! Hear me and agree and busy yourself
with my instruction : tomorrow you will summon
an assembly of the Achaean leaders,
and declare in public, with the gods as witness,
what has befallen your house. As for these people,
command them to scatter, each to his own interest.
Your mother—if her heart is aroused to marry,
make ready the hall of her mighty father
for a wedding, and arrange the many wedding gifts,
and may the beloved daughter enter the hall.
And now I will set before you wise speech—but only
if you listen wisely :

                      it's wrong to carry on
this way, because you are no longer a child.
Equip your best ship with your best band of rowers
and go search for news about your long-gone father,
if there is anyone who can tell you anything.
First go to Pylos. Question the noble Nestor.
Then to Sparta, to see fair-haired Menelaus :
he was the last of the bronze-suited Achaeans
to return. Indeed, you may hear that your father
is alive : then the toil of long travel won't hurt.
Or you hear that he is dead, no longer above.
Then without your beloved you must return home
to pour funeral gifts, due honour to a father;
and allow your mother a man.
Maybe the voice of Zeus will speak, a massive sound.
When after all this is done, there is yet something
to be done : purpose in mind and spirit to kill
these people lodging in the halls of your palace,
whether to kill them by stratagem, or openly.
Do you not know of how the noble Orestes
killed the tricky Aegisthus in retribution
for his father's murder and won fame among men?
His glorious mother Orestes also killed.
You, friend, are as beautiful and as powerful
as he. Be brave, so that those after you will speak
well of your name. I must go. By this time my friends
will be tremendously upset with my delay :
you who have shown gracious care, remember my words."

Then again spoke wise Telemachus face to face :

"Stranger, truly you speak what you know with a kind heart,
like a father with his son, and I will not forget.
But come now! I see you are eager to go. Stay,
and bathe, and delight yourself here. I have a gift
I want to give you, a memory of our meeting,
something very beautiful, such as friend gives to friend.
It will gladden your heart on your way back to your ship."

And the goddess answered, shining-eyed Athena :

"I cannot stay. The gift your kind heart wants to give me,
give it to me when I see you again. Make it
very beautiful; I will keep it in my home :
in return you will receive what is worthy of you."

She spoke, then shining-eyed Athena stepped away.
Like a bird she vanished unseen up into the air :
in the core of him she had placed courage and strength;
and thoughts of his father would weigh on his mind
more than before : and his spirit was astonished :
his mind had seen, and believed, that she was a goddess.

Later, he walked among the Mnesteres, a godlike man.

In silence they sat listening to the verses
of the renowned singer of songs : of the return
of the Achaeans, of their struggle back from Troy
that Pallas Athena had required they suffer;
and from an upper room thoughtful Penelope
heard the graceful song, daughter of Icarius;
and she came down the lofty staircase of the house
with two handmaidens behind her. She stood by a pillar
of the vast, solidly built hall with a veil
delicately covering her face. Beside her
to either hand stood her devoted handmaidens.
And then she addressed the holy artist of song
as her tears began to fall :

                            "Phemius, stop this
song; its sadness hurts my heart, and incenses a grief
that never ends. My heart is full of longing for him
all the time, for my husband, whose fame is far-spread
through Hellas and Argos. You know of many men
and gods and celebrate their works; choose another
of your songs to sing, as you sit here, and enchant them,
and they will lie still and drink their wine in silence."

In this way did wise Telemachus answer her :

"Mother, this singer of songs is not the guilty one.
Why reject the artist whose song is tuned to the times?
Someone else is responsible for your feelings :
Zeus is responsible. He grants to the courageous
what he wants, each and every day. It is not right
to resent the artist for the Danaans' fate.
This theme is close to many men; and they enjoy
the sound of a new song. Let heart and soul stand firm
and listen : not only Odysseus was destroyed
that day in Troy. Many other men were also killed.
Or go back upstairs and attend to your spindle
and busy yourself with the spinning of the loom.
Speech is a man's work, and is here exclusively mine,
as I have authority as head of the house."

Penelope then went back upstairs to her room
with her handmaidens. And much weeping and wailing
went through the upper story of the house, weeping
for much-loved husband Odysseus, until sleep
was placed upon her eyelids by shining-eyed Athena.

Down in the shadowy hall the mnesteres'
murmur rose to a din : each hoped to lie with her.

Then it was wise Telemachus began to speak :

"Enjoy yourselves for now : listen to the beautiful song.
No shouting, no clamour : just these beautiful songs.
In the morning we will sit in assembly
where I will speak clear : leave these halls. You are shameless
and contemptuous, both to my mother and to me!
Go from house to house and let each house host the feast!
But if you find it more agreeable to cut
through the substance of a man, fearing no vengeance,
do it. Answer will come from the immortal gods :
vengeance will come to this house and destroy the living."

In this way he spoke, and each man there clenched his teeth
and smouldered at Telemachus for his bold speech.

Antinous, son of Eupeithes, spoke in reply :

"Telemachus, the gods are evidently teaching you
large words and valour : may Zeus never give you rule
over Ithaca, like your father before you!"

And wise Telemachus stood face to face and spoke :

"Antinous, my words displease you? I will rule here,
God willing. You think that is the worst that can happen
to a man? It is good to rule: you have wealth and honour.
There are many here in Ithaca, both young and old,
who may rule, if they wish, as noble Odysseus
is dead. But I will be master of my own house
and of all that noble Odysseus has won."

Eurymachus, son of Polybus, answered him :

"Telemachus, it lies on the knees of the gods
who among the Achaeans will rule the island
of Ithaca. All of your property is yours,
and rule this house as you will. No one shows violence
and robs you of your possessions, not in Ithaca.
But gladly now, good man, tell us of the stranger.
So quickly he darted out of his seat and left!
Who was this man? What land did he say he comes from?
Where is his family and his father's fields?
Had he news of your father's return? Or was it
some business affair of his own that brought him here?
He certainly was a handsome fellow to look upon."

Then wise Telemachus spoke :

"My father has lost his return. I trust no talk
about him now. My mother summons oracles
into the halls, but I take heed of none of it.
The stranger was a friend of my father's, from Taphos.
He called himself Mentes, son of Anchialus,
and was king of the Taphians, who love the oar."

So spoke Telemachus,
but his heart knew he had met the immortal goddess.

The others returned to the dance and riotous song,
to great delight and cheer while the evening-star
appeared: and black night came to rest upon their cheer;
then each man went his own way to his home, to rest.

Telemachus' inner rooms were built high up;
they were visible all round the open country,
a very beautiful dwelling. Kindly Eurycleia,
daughter of Ops, son of Peisenor, led the way,
bearing burning pinewood torches. Back in her youth,
Laertes had traded twenty oxen for her
from his own property, and had admired her
in the halls as he had admired his own wife
(yet he never lay with her, to avoid the rage
of his wife) : of all the handmaidens of the house
she loved Telemachus the most, and had nursed him
as a child; so she held the blazing torches
as he proceeded to bed. He opened the doors
to his inmost bedroom and stripped off his tunic
and passed it into the kindly old woman's hands.
She smoothed out the tunic and hung it on a peg
by an inlaid bed-post; then withdrew from the room,
closing its doors with their silver handles, and slid
the locking bolt home with the strap. There, all night long,
covered in fine wool, his mind meditated on
travelling and the directions of Athena.

End of Book I

[max from fearless]

Scrooby - I thought of you as soon as I heard the new Nolan news. Honestly I wish he would have a little word with PTA about film marketing, because the way he sets up and plants the seed for his films - is something to be studied! I have no idea what a Nolan version of Homer's Odyssey looks or feels like, but its exciting af for sure. Does "mythic action epic" mean it can't take place in space or within some tricky temporal conundrum!?! Excited and love how he dropped the news just before Xmas. Nolan doesn't get enough credit for his marketing...

[Scrooby]

In this Situation the concordance of elements is extraordinary, or, in fact, it is not at all noteworthy a Situation. ¶ I agree that the marketing under Donna Langley's leadership at Universal is wondrous, extremely so. I recall at the time remarking, as so many did, that Oppenheimer's distribution should have itself won an Oscar. ¶ And now Scrooby proposes the following speculation ¶ magical realism ¶ a dream-memory of a fairy-tale vibe of an enchanting mood from something like, say, Ridley Scott's Legend ¶ from out of the mists came the ships and the men ¶ 2001 : A Space Odyssey. . . . Is it possible we may witness an "according to Hoyle" miracle of Storytelling Art? ¶ (and, possibly, Imax lit as if by Zsigmond?) ¶ Btw, is Howard Hughes at the heart of this, too?

Hollywood 25/26 : Live by Battle.

[max from fearless]

Hollywood 25/26 : Live by Battle.

PTA needs to promote Live by Battle like its Longlegs. Or get into The Master mode and drop unsanctioned trailer drops like Kendrick Lamar dropping GNX trailers with songs not on the album. PTA used to be the don of this, up until his first adventure with Warners, Inherent Vice brought forth the most obvious trailer in the history of PTA. Hoping this new Warner adventure inspires him to go all out.

IMAX by Zsigmond, my lord - McCabe and Ms Miller fog in contrast with 2001's sharp symbols. The cast doesn't scream Homer so much as it does scream zeitgeisty summer blockbuster, but who knows....

[Scrooby]

1a. An unspoken element behind Scroob's "mystical fairy-tale vibe" theory is the Scroob "Kenneth Branagh at the Shard" theory. That is to say, Nolan has done many a modern "zeitgeisty summer blockbuster"; and now, as storyteller Nolan is evolving in a glorious multispectral manner in glorious plain sight, Scrooby, therefore, speculates (idly, as it can only be) that storyteller Nolan will not repeat himself, and that Odyssey will not in any way recall, say, Tenet or Inception.

1b. By "evolving" I kindly invite the interested Reader to compare page 1 of two novels by Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice and Persuasion.

2. At face value it's an incredulous Situation requiring calming medication for witnesses of the Situation : PTA has Leo kicking ass in the can and doesn't titillate the world with thirty seconds of it?

But let's slow it down. Let's slow it real down. Because if PTA is "Doing a Kubrick" . . .

[Scrooby]

Book II

O Early-Born, o rosy-fingered Dawn, when you came
bearing light, the beloved son of Odysseus                   
rose from bed. He wrapped his outer cloak around him,
and belted his sharpened sword to an upper arm,
and bound his smooth feet in his beautiful sandals,
and left the room with a shining godlike presence.
Straightaway he sent a clear-voiced herald to call               
the long-haired Achaeans to assembly.
When they had gathered together in assembly
he approached with bronze spear in hand, and was not alone :
his two sleek hounds followed swift-footed beside him.
He shone with the divinely sweet grace of Athena,               
and each man gazed at him as he walked among them;
even the elders gave way. He sat down in his father's chair.

Aegyptius, a warrior weakened with age
and possessor of much knowledge, would be the first
to speak at the assembly. His son, spearman                   
Antiphus, had sailed with good Odysseus
in their hollow ships to the well-horsed land of Troy :
but the savage Cyclops killed him and dragged him back
to his deep cave and tore him to pieces for food.
He had three sons now : Eurynomus, who banquets               
with the mnesterin;  and two who still tend to
their father's land. And the father still mourns his son,
and while speaking in address his painful tears fell :

"Attend to the words, Ithacans, that I shall speak :
neither assembly nor council have we held                   
since goodly Odysseus left in the hollow ships.
What needs are now so great to have gathered us here?
Does it touch the young, or the old? Has he gained news
of an approaching army, a matter observed
plainly with his own eyes? Or is something other               
to be announced and explored in assembly?
He looks, I dare think, favoured by the gods. May Zeus
fulfil the good that this man's spirit desires."

In this way he spoke, and the dear son of Odysseus
rejoiced at the favourable speech; and so now                   
he stood up, eager to address the assembly :
and Peisenor, a minister wise in counsel,
placed the staff of precedence into his hand.

First he fixed on the Elder and spoke :

"Old man, not later but now you shall learn of the one               
who gathered the people together : it was I.
For just now, of all the people here, I suffer
the most hardship. I bring you no news of movements
of any army. And I speak in the assembly
of no public matter. This theme is a personal one.               
Evil has fallen on my house, in a double way :
I have lost a good father, he who once ruled here,
a gentle father : and now a fresh powerful evil
threatens to destroy my entire house altogether,
and ruin me. The fine sons of the noblest here                   
pursue my mother without invitation,
yet they draw back from going to Icarius
to gather up the fair marriage gifts for his daughter
and leave the choosing of the fairest man to him.
But through my house day by day to and fro they drift               
constantly in large numbers, a wild recreation
slaughtering our oxen and sheep and fat goats
and drinking our sparkling wine impudently.
In this way I will be used up. There is no man
here as Odysseus was, to hold the house from ruin.               
I cannot resist such a company on my own;
and afterwards I would be the pitiful one
known for his weakness.  I will speak plainly : in truth
I would defend myself if I had power at hand,
for intolerable deeds are taking place                       
and have brought my fine house to ruin. You should feel shame
for yourselves. Show respect for another man's work,
and for your fellows who live in your neighbourhood.
We live under the gods and should fear their vengeance.
We should fear that they turn around angry at foul acts.           
I ask under Olympian Zeus and Themis,
she who oversees correctness in the acts of men,
leave me alone in my grief, my friends : stop yourselves :
unless perhaps my noble father Odysseus
worked some hostile evil against the Achaeans,                   
and thus you repay him by tolerating this.
And there would be no profit in my recompense
for all my treasures and abundance of cattle,
so long would I be upon town demanding back
what was mine, that by the time I had recovered               
all of my substance, I would have wasted away.
Past fixing is this distress pressed upon my heart!"

He had spoken himself into exasperation.
He threw the staff to the earth and broke into tears.
Compassion seized the men of the assembly.                   
Yet there was silence. No man there dared bring himself
to reply with angry words to Telemachus.

Antinous alone opposed him in speech :

"Such large talk, Telemachus! This wild intent
to shame us : and to willingly ridicule us!                   
You know the Achaean men are guiltless in this.
Look to your own mother, who surpasses all in deceit!
For three years now—soon to be four—she has been tricking
the hearts of the Achaeans. She feeds us with hope, 
holding each man fixed, sending each man messages;               
but she is devoted to some other purpose.
Indeed—in her heart she contrived this treachery :
she set up an elaborate contraption in her halls
and began weaving with the finest of threads :
and she spoke to us :                               

                                        'Warriors, my sweethearts,
good Odysseus is dead, and you are impatient
for marriage. You must wait until I have completed
my work, for I will not leave undone the spinning
of a burial robe for warrior Laertes,                       
to take with him when fate brings him long-lying death,
so that there shall be no Achaean women displeased,
were he who won so much to lie without a shroud.'

So our resolute hearts put our faith in her words,
and day by day she wove her great web at her loom.               
But at night she would have torches put beside her
and she would unravel it. This art escaped detection
for three years, and she misled the Achaean men :
but as the seasons circled round and year four came,
one among her women told us everything,                   
and we caught her undoing the knit. So we forced her
to finish : like it or not. And now we answer you :
and you and all of the Achaeans hear this well :
send her on her way and give her in marriage
to whomever her father commands, or to him                   
who pleases her. And if she continues to harass
the sons of the Achaeans for much longer,
understanding it all in her heart; and knowing
that Athena has granted her above all others
the capability of very beautiful handwork,                   
and also a lovely spirit; and a cunning
we have never before seen in women,
not even among the long-ago well-braided
Achaeans, Tyro and Alcmene and Mycene
the well-crowned : not one of them can match the mind               
of Penelope : nevertheless she has not
thought things out rightly. Indeed : in this at least.
We will continue to feed on your property
so long as she continues to follow her mind
and heart as the gods see fit. Great fame she has gained               
for herself, while you regret its price of so-much wealth.
We are not going away, not to our lands—
not to a somewhere, not to an anywhere—until
she is willing to marry one of the Achaeans."

Then wise Telemachus faced him and spoke :                   

"Antinous, it is impossible to expect me
to banish my mother from the house. As for my father,
he is elsewhere; and no one knows if he lives or not.
And if I sent my mother away cruelly I would
have to repay Icarius her large bride-price.                   
I would suffer hatred and abuse from her father,
and the gods would deliver their own penalties,
for my mother would summon the odious Furies
to avenge her departure from the house; and men
would treat me with contempt : so never will I give               
that word. And if your hearts take offense at me, leave.
Come out of my halls and find your feasts elsewhere,
banquet on your own wealth, moving from house to house.
But if you think it better and wise to destroy
a man's substance with no fear of reprisal, do it.               
I call upon the gods, who will forever be,
that Zeus may bring works of vengeance to completion :
no one will bring help when you are destroyed in my house."

So spoke Telemachus. Then, far-sounding Zeus
set loose two eagles aloft from a mountain peak.               
Together they soared on a gust of wind with wings
at full stretch : and they passed over the middle
of the many-voiced assembly. Right there they whirled
over all of the heads, and their fluttering wings
sent raining down a scatter of heavy feathers,                   
and the look in their eye threatened ruin and death.
All watched as the two birds tore at each other's throats
and faces with their claws and faded away eastward
over the houses of the people of the city.
The men were astonished at the sign-bringing birds,               
and all round they wondered in their hearts what was
destined to be. Then stood the aged warrior
Halitherses, son of Mastor : of all the elders
he knew the most of reading fate in the flight of birds.

He spoke in the assembly with plain words :                   

"Hear me now, Ithacans, what I shall say to you.
Of the suitors I have this to say and make known,
since to you great calamity is rolling headlong :
Odysseus is coming. Not far away,
I think, or much longer absent, but already,                   
by this time, is very near; and planted inside him
are the Keres, the goddesses of doom. He comes
cresting over all these men like one wave of death
and will crush Ithaca one sunny afternoon.
And it will be bad for others, too, o Elders :                   
let us put an end to this before we are all killed.
Or rather : these men should bring their wrongs to an end,
and immediately. It would go better for them.
I have had much experience in prophecy :
and what I once said would happen is happening,               
just as I told the many-thoughted Odysseus
when he left with the Argives for Troy. I told him
he would suffer many evils, and lose all his men,
and return home in the twentieth year, a changed man.
And now all of this is coming to completion."                   

Eurymachus, son of Polybus, answered him :

"Old man, have some sense and go home. Go prophecy
to your children—or they might suffer even worse,
one of these days. I can read these signs just as well
as you. Many birds fly around in the sunlight                   
and they may teach us nothing at all. Odysseus
is dead. You, too, should be wasting away somewhere,
just as he is, wherever he is, instead of
standing here 'god-seeing' and urging Telemachus on
in his temper, expecting some gift for your household,               
if he offers it. And now I will speak to you,
and believe what I say. If you continue to utter
your ancient babble and influence this child
and increase his anger, for himself first of all
it shall go even worse, for how can he prosper                   
against the power gathered here? And you, old man,
will face a penalty that will be hard for you,
and bitter to live with. To you, Telemachus,
openly before all, I offer this advice :
order your mother to return to her father.                   
He will arrange a marriage, and assemble all
the wedding gifts due to a beloved daughter.
I say the sons of the Achaeans will not stop
asking for marriage and you will have to stand it.
We fear no man. No, not even Telemachus,                   
with all of his many words. And your words, old man,
mean nothing to us. What you say will never be :
so speak, and you will feel our contempt all the more.
We are not going anywhere, or changing our ways,
so long as she wears away the time of the Achaeans               
waiting for marriage. Hour by hour, day by day,
we wait, competing for her complete excellence.
We might go with others and find for each of us
a reasonable match, but no other woman,
however fit for marriage, much interests us."                   

Wise Telemachus answered:

"Eurymachus and all you other noble suitors,
let us carry this no further : for now I know it,
the gods know it, and all the Achaeans know it.
Come now, give me a swift ship and twenty men,               
to accompany me away and back. I'm to Sparta
and to sandy Pylos, to search for my father.
Someone may know something of his long absence.
(And may the gods, who often interact with men,
send signs I can understand.) While I am asea                   
you can waste my wealth for another year :
it will be worth it if I hear that my father
is alive. If I hear he is dead, I will return
and raise a burial mound, pour the libations,
burn the offerings, and give him all the honour                   
that he has earned; and I will make my mother marry."

This then he said, and sat. Then Mentor stood, a friend
of noble Odysseus. The old man had agreed
to keep watch over the house while Odysseus
was away with the ships, and keep things firmly footed.               

He addressed the assembly in all earnesty :

"Give ear to me now, Ithacans, and hear what I shall say :
Nevermore let there be such a kind and mild
and gentle man to raise the sceptre as leader,
nor let this leader's spirit know right-mindedness,               
but let him be painful to bear, and act godlessly :
since no one remembers Odysseus the godlike,
who reigned over us all as mild as a father!
But I hold no objection to these bold suitors
and the abominable schemings in their minds :                   
they are gambling their very lives while they eat
through the house of Odysseus, who, they affirm,
will nevermore return. I object to the silence
I hear from all the other people sitting here!
You volunteer not a single word to put a stop                   
to this, though you are many and they are but few."

Leocritus, son of Euenor, answered him :

"The irrepressible, stray-spirited Mentor!
What was all that you said, encouraging others
to stop us? It's tough-going for a man to fight                   
with many over his food. If Ithacan Odysseus
snuck up on his own home with stratagems in mind
to drive out the noblemen feasting in his halls,
he would die on the spot. What his wife had craved for
would bring her no joy. Right there he would meet his end           
if he fought us single-handed : a shameful fate :
unfair. You have spoken foolishly. Let it be an end.
Let us now separate, each to his own interest.
Mentor and Halitherses shall hasten the boy
on his way; they're old friends of his father's.                   
But I think he'll be here a long time yet,
if this journey happens at all, and any news
he hears will be heard here in Ithaca."

Such was his reply, and the assembly adjourned.
The men scattered to their separate homes,                   
and the suitors returned to the house of Odysseus.

Telemachus withdrew to the sands by the sea.
He washed his hands in the grey sea-water, then called
to Athena :

    "Hear me, goddess, who came to me :               
you who brought your divinity into my house :
who saw me pass in a ship into the misty sea :
seeking in that distance knowledge of my father—
whose absence has been long. I seek to voyage out,
but the Achaeans are frustrating all this,                   
especially those exceedingly evil ones."

Thus he spoke, and saw Mentor coming near :
it seemed his living body, and the voice seemed his,
but it was Athena. She let fly her winged words :

"Telemachus, in time to come you should never                   
be backward nor a fool, because the spirit
of your noble father flows within you,
a man who completed his every word in deed.
Your journey will not end aimlessly or without effect.
The son of Odysseus and Penelope,                       
I think, would complete the purpose he held in mind.
Few sons are equal to their fathers: most are worse,
but a few are superior to the father.
And since you should never be backward nor a fool,
as the mind of Odysseus is inside you,                       
I expect you to complete this work.
                                                                As for those people,
let be their senseless minds and their mindless designs.
They have no thought of the dark fate that is coming
for them, that they will all die together in a day.                   
Not long now is the journey you have in mind :
I am a friend to your father, and to his house.
I will prepare a swift ship for you, and go with you.
Go now back to the house. Blend in with those people.
Ready yourself while I fit a ship together                   
for you. You'll need food, and fit each container well :
the wine in amphorae, the barley meal (for bread)
in strong leather skins. I will go into the city
and build a crew of willing-ones. There are many ships
in sea-surrounded Ithaca, old and new.                       
I will choose the best and make it ready for you
to send it out onto the far-reaching sea."

Thus spoke Athena, daughter of Zeus.

After hearing her speak Telemachus went home
sorrowing in his heart. He found the well-stomached ones           
in his halls. They were peeling back the flesh of goats
and singeing the bristles off of pig carcasses
in the courtyard. With hearty laughter in his look
Antinous faced Telemachus, gripped his hand, and spoke :

"Large-talker Telemachus, ungovernable                   
in spirit! Don't let all this concern you further;
and no more hostile words! Take a drink with us,
and something to eat, as you always used to do.
The Achaeans will complete your business for you,
picking out a ship and carefully chosen oarsmen,               
so that you can be off for most holy, sacred,
divine Pylos and hear news of your good father."

Wise Telemachus answered him :

"Antinous, sitting with your insolence at table,
feasting mildly with cheerful face, appeals to me               
not at all. You people have been tasting our wealth
since I was a child and still it's not enough.
But I am grown now and hear the words of others
and learn, and my heart has grown with me. I will try
to ruin you worthless people. My voyage will end               
with a point. Yet you would make me a passenger
on some other's ship?"

                                          As he spoke he plucked his hand
lightly out of Antinous' hand. Along the halls
the bold ones were busy feasting. They smirked at him               
and mocked him.
                             
                                One of the smirking youths spoke :           

"Surely Telemachus is planning our murder.
Surely he's to bring defenders back from Pylos
or—what was it?—Sparta, so terrible he looks!                   
Or he's off to bounteous Ephyre to bring back
some life-destroying drug to drop into our wine-bowl,
and kill us all."

                              And another smirking youth spoke :

"Who knows? Maybe he, too, will die far away                   
from his friends while wandering, another Odysseus.
That would be an effort for us : we would have to
divide up all of his possessions. His mother
and whoever we hand her to can have the house."

While the mnesteres carved him up with words,               
Telemachus went down to his father's storeroom
underground, a private spot with wide-arched ceiling.
Gold and bronze lay heaped up beside garments in chests,
and the air was well-scented with olive oil.
Large earthenware jars of wine, old and sweet to drink,               
stood side by side in close order along a wall,
ready for Odysseus to taste, should he return home
after suffering his many pains and troubles.
Just now the doors, solid and well-fitted, were shut
and double-fastened. Both day and night a maidservant,               
the much-knowing Eurycleia, kept the room safe,
and to her now Telemachus spoke the following :

"Good mother, I require wine, the second-best
next to the sweet wine you preserve for our father,
in case Odysseus somewhere escapes fate                   
and the goddesses of death and returns home.
Fill twelve amphorae to the brim and seal them well;
and pour for me barley meal into well-stitched skins :
let it be twenty measures of the crushed barley.
Have it all ready to go and tell no one of it.                     
Tonight, as soon as my mother goes upstairs
to take her rest, I will come for these things.
I'm off for Sparta and Pylos to seek out news
of my father's return, if there's anything to hear."

And after hearing this Eurycleia began                       
to weep, and through tears she spoke to him urgently :

"Dear child, why? Who put this thought into your head?
You will go away and travel to far places—
you, the only son and darling of the house?
The goodly Odysseus is dead. He lost his life                   
in a strange place far from here. As soon as you go,
these people will plan a tricky way to kill you
and divide up the house among themselves. Please stay!
Live quietly where your family is settled.
You have no need to roam over the empty sea."               

And wise Telemachus answered her :

"Good mother, have confidence in me : my journey
is the will of the gods. Swear to me now to speak
nothing of this to my mother for at least ten days—
unless she hears that I am gone and asks you of it,               
as I would not have her beauty undone by tears."

So he watched the old woman swear a solemn oath.
And after she finished in due and proper form,
she began filling up the amphorae with wine,
then poured the barley into well-stitched leather bags.               
And Telemachus left her to join the men in the halls.

Meantime, the goddess' plans were evolving :
the shining-eyed Athena moved through the city
in the form of Telemachus, and to each man
she drew near she spoke her word, instructing them               
to gather at the swift ship at sundown. She went
also to the famed Noemon, son of Phronius,
and asked for a ship : and he kindly promised one.

Now when the sun had set and the city lay dark,
she drew the ship into the sea and fitted it                   
with all the equipment carried by well-benched ships;
and she secured it at the mouth of the harbour.
The brave crew gathered, and the goddess cheered each man.

After this, Athena continued with her plan.
She went to the house of noble Odysseus                   
and poured sweet sleep into the mnesteressin,
dazing their minds while they drank; and the cups fell
from their hands. So, no longer content to sit idle,
they left for their rest, spreading out through the city
while sleep weighed down their eyelids.                   

And the shining-eyed goddess spoke to Telemachus,
summoning him out of the comfortable halls,
and appearing once more in body and voice as Mentor :

"Telemachus, already your brave companions
sit at the oar and await your command : come now,               
let us delay no further our voyage out."

So spoke Pallas Athena, then nimbly led the way,
and Telemachus followed the steps of the goddess.
When they had come down to the ship and the sea,
they found on the shore his long-haired companions,               
and Telemachus, strong with the light of the goddess,
addressed his crew :

"Come now, good men, let us retrieve the provisions;
they're gathered in my halls. My mother knows nothing
of this, nor the housemaids—one alone heard my word."           

Thus he spoke, then led the way, and they kept pace with him.
When they returned they stowed everything in the ship,
as commanded by the son of Odysseus.
And then Telemachus went up aboard the ship.
Athena was already sitting in the stern,                       
and Telemachus sat down near her. And the men
unfastened the stern-cables, then stepped aboard
and sat at their places on the rowing benches.
The shining-eyed goddess roused a favouring wind,
a steady westerly singing over the wine-dark sea.               
And Telemachus ordered his men to take hold
of the tackling : and they hastened to obey him.
They raised the mast of pine-wood and socketed it
in the mast-box, making it fast with the forestays;
then raised sail with the well-twisted leather ropes.               
And the wind filled the white sail, and the ship went forth
through the dark-gleaming waves that hissed around the prow :
and so their journey began through the rolling sea.
When all was made fast, they set out bowls of wine
and poured offerings to the deathless gods everlasting,               
and especially to the shining-eyed daughter of Zeus.
All night long and into the dawn the black ship cleaved her way.


End of Book II

[max from fearless]

I agree, I don't think Nolan would take a wild swing such as this to repeat himself. To see Nolan working in a primal element with fantastical elements is going to be something. I wonder if he's writing the adaptation with someone else or alone? And doing this all this with new IMAX cameras to boot.

To put it in modern parlance - im simply thirsty to see what PTA's cooked up whilst working at this new budget level and simultaneously want him to cook up the game cos the game's absolutely cooked. 

[Scrooby]

When Scrooby translated The Odyssey a couple years back, Scroob thought a film adaptation of the material unthinkable.







Will Nolan "make the impossible possible"?

[Scrooby]

Hearken, Good Readers! The venerable King Nestor has been jeered at by the world for over two thousand years for his rambling babblings. (See, for example, James Joyce, Ulysses, Episode 2.) Book III is meant to be a "diversion narrative", and amusingly so. Just as the epic story is getting under way, King Nestor, ironically, cools it with words, and brings everything to a verbose standstill; and Homer jokes about this (please note words such as "windy" and "long"). Finally, however, we leave Nestor. And soon we meet heroic Odysseus. But not yet.

Book III

Now the horses of Helios burst from the sea
and galloped up the sky, bringing beautiful light
to the immortals above, and to mortals below
on wheat-springing earth : and the ship came to Pylos,
the stronghold of Lord Neleus. Standing by the shore               
of the sea the people were offering as sacrifice
a flock of black bulls to the dark-gleaming earthshaker
Poseidon. The assembly was separated
into nine divisions, each of five hundred men,
and in each stood nine bulls ready for sacrifice.                   
Having tasted the inward parts, they were burning
the thigh-slices to the god as the ship followed
a steady track to port. And the well-balanced ship
bundled the sail and secured it, and dropped anchor,
and the men came ashore : and from out of the ship               
came Telemachus, and Athena led the way.

Then shining-eyed Athena was first to speak :

"Telemachus, there is no more time to be shy,
not now, nor ever again : for you have sailed the sea
to learn of your father, in what place he is buried               
in the earth, and what fate he met. So come! Time runs
on : go now to Nestor, the tamer of horses :
let us extract what knowledge he keeps in his mind.
Stand strong, yet show due respect, to draw out his word : 
and he will not speak false, for he is very wise."                   

And Telemachus answered her :

"But Mentor—I'm unsure. How do I approach him?
I am not yet skilled in carefully worded speech,
and it's bold of a youth to question an elder."

Then again spoke the goddess, shining-eyed Athena :               

"Telemachus, some of the words your mind conceives
will be yours, and some words, I think, will be heaven's :
for the gods have been with you since the day of your birth."

Thus spoke Athena, who then nimbly led the way.

Telemachus followed in the steps of the goddess               
and they came to the fire where the men of Pylos
were gathered in assembly. There the revered Nestor
sat with his sons. Busy around them the people
were preparing the feast. Some meats there were roasting,
while others on skewers were grilling. When they saw               
the approach of the strangers they crowded round them,
greeted them warmly, and invited them to sit.
Peisistratus, Nestor's youngest son, took their hands
and graciously seated them down on soft fleeces
on the sea-sand, by his brother Thrasymedes                   
and their father. He gave them portions of inward parts
and poured wine in a golden cup and raised the cup
in their honour : and spoke to Pallas Athena,
daughter of aegis-bearing Zeus :

"Pray now, guest-friend, to King Poseidon, for this feast               
you come to is his. And when you have poured the wine
in his praise, and have prayed, as it is right to do,
pass the cup to your friend, so that he, too, may pour
the honey-sweet wine and pray to the immortals :
since all men have need of the gods. And as your friend           
is my equal in years, I give you the golden cup first."

So he spoke, and handed her the cup of sweet wine :
and Athena smiled at the man's wisdom and sense
in handing her the golden cup first : and she prayed
to King Poseidon :                               

"Hear me, Poseidon, o earthshaker, and do not fail
to answer our prayer and bring our work to completion.
To Nestor, first, and to his sons, bring glory and renown;
and bring beautiful return to all of the Pylians
for this gracious sacrifice. Last, grant that Telemachus               
and I reach Ithaca when we have completed our work,
which has brought us to this spot in our swift black ship."

Thus prayed the goddess, who was herself completing all.

She then handed the splendid ornamented cup
to Telemachus, who prayed in similar manner.                   

When the remaining meat was drawn off the skewers
and divided between them, the people enjoyed
an excellent feast. And when they sat satisfied
after the food and drink, the master of horses,
Nestor, spoke :                                   

"Now the time is proper to inquire of our guests
who they are, while they sit contented with our feast.
O strangers, who are you? Why are you sailing
the watery ways? Are you on a trading voyage?
Or perhaps you're wandering where the wind takes you,               
as pirates, who roam the wide sea risking their lives
to bring evil to peoples of foreign places?"

Telemachus stood confidently before him
and spoke, for Athena had placed courage in his heart,
so that he might ask after his long-absent father               
and win the good word and admiration of men :

"Nestor, son of Nelius, glory of the Achaeans,
you ask from what place I come : and I shall tell you.
We are from Ithaca, that is below Mount Neion.
This business I shall speak of is my own, and not                   
a public matter. I come seeking after far-spread
rumour of my father (if I may hear any),
the noble stronghearted Odysseus, who, they say,
once fought side by side with you in battle at Troy
and obliterated the city.                               
We have learned where each man died his sorry death,
but of my father's Zeus has put knowledge of it
beyond my reach, and no man can say where he fell :
whether his enemies overpowered him on land;
or was lost at sea on the waves of Amphitrite.                   

I have come now to my knees to ask for your favour :
if you are willing to tell of his miserable death :
if perhaps you saw it happen with your own eyes,
or heard from another some word of his wanderings :
for he was born into a life of many sorrows.                   
And take no pity on me and soften your words,
but tell me truly what you saw. I beg of you,
if ever my father, the noble Odysseus,
showed you loyalty in word or deed in the land
of the Trojans, remember it now, and speak true."               

Reply came from venerable Nestor of Gerenia :

"Friend, you bring to mind the misery we endured,
we sons of the Achaeans, an overpowering force :
all that misery of our ships on the murky sea
roaming wherever Achilles might lead the way,                   
on the track of spoils—"

The venerable Nestor hemmed, and stroked his beard,
and continued his wide oration:

"And all of the contention on all sides of Troy :
there the best of us were killed. There fierce Ajax lies;               
there Achilles; there Patroclus, peer of the gods
in counsel; and there my beloved son, the noble
and mighty Antilochus, swift-footed warrior,
superior in both. Many more evils besides these
befell us : who among men could recount the tale?               
Remain with us five years, six years, and ask of Troy,
ask of the many pains the noble Achaeans
suffered there : you would grow weary with the story
and be off, and never stop until Ithaca.
Nine years we busied ourselves with devising pains               
of all kinds to bring ruin upon them; and Zeus
was late in completing the work, and only after
many pains were suffered. No man there, at any time,
chose to contend with Odysseus in counsel,
so superior was your godly father in crafts                   
of all kinds. Your father—if you're truly his son :
yes, if I see rightly with these old eyes, indeed
I look upon you with astonishment. You speak
as he would : curious, that a man much younger
in years would resemble him in this way. All the time               
we were there, the godly Odysseus and I
not once spoke divided in the assembly
and in the Council of Elders, but with one mind
we counseled the Argives with sense and thoughtful word
how to devise the way to the very best success.                   
But after destroying the lofty city of Troy
and leaving in our ships, a god scattered us all
on the sea. Ten years of battle and even then
Zeus chose a miserable return for the Argives,
for not all of them were thoughtful or just :                   
thus many of them met a miserable fate,
from the destructive anger of goddess Athena,
daughter of a mighty father. She brought contention
between the sons of Atreus. These two brought together
all the Achaeans in assembly, thoughtlessly,                   
without order, at sundown, and the Achaeans
came heavy with wine and the two began to speak."

The venerable Nestor stroked his beard : and then
Nestor's experienced tongue continued apace :

"Menelaus urged all the Achaeans                       
to think of returning to the broad-backed sea.
This did not please Agamemnon at all, not at all :
he would rather hold back the army and offer
a sacrifice of a hundred oxen : with just so much
he sought to mollify the mighty Athena.                       
Silly man did not know that with her there is no thought
of complying. Gods don't lightly turn their heads.
The two stood there chattering and the bronze-suited
Achaeans rose up in marvellous unity,
wondering over the dual council. That night,                   
while resting, a gloom hung over the camp :
each wondered why Zeus was arranging for us
a terrible misery. In the morning some of us
launched our high-hoisted ships onto the holy sea;
we brought aboard our treasures and our shapely               
Trojan women : half of the army stayed behind
and stood with Agamemnon, son of Atreus,
herder of men : half embarked and rowed away :
very swiftly the ships sailed over the deep sea :
a god had made the surface level. At Tenedos                   
we sacrificed to heaven, hoping to reach our homes :
and yet Zeus did not allow us to return. Cruel god,
who brought disaster on us for a second time!
Some turned back their weary ships and went on their way :
the company of Odysseus : the skilful                       
and many-minded one : paying respect once more
to Agamemnon, son of Atreus.
                                                        I, however,
with ships crowded together behind me, took flight :
I knew the god was planning something terrible.                   
The warrior son of Tydeus fled with his ships;
and fair-haired Menelaus appeared behind us
finally, only to overtake us in Lesbos,
where we were considering the long voyage,
whether we should sail seaward of rocky Chios                   
by the island of Psyria, keeping this to our left;
or landward of Chios, passing by windy Mimas.
We asked of heaven to reveal the way for us,
and the way was revealed : we were to cleave the sea
to Euboea, the quickest route out of hardship.                   
A favourable wind was awakened, and the ships
sailed swiftly over the monster-breeding deep,
and at night we put in at Geraestus, where we
offered many thighs of bulls to King Poseidon
for allowing us across the sea. On the fourth day               
Diomedes and his men dropped anchor at Argos;
but I held on for Pylos, and the wind held strong
and never abandoned me, a blessing of heaven."

And now venerable Nestor gave straight answer :

"Thus I returned, dear child : and I have no news               
of Odysseus, nor of any other man
who went with him : whether they were saved, or were lost."

Wise Telemachus listened : and Nestor continued :

"These days I sit quietly in my halls, and hear
reports from elsewhere : these I shall relay to you,               
as is right, and hold nothing back :
the spear-bearing Myrmidons, it is said, returned
safely, led by the high-spirited Neoptolemus,
son of glorious Achilles. Philoctetes,
glorious son of Poias, returned safely.                       
Idomeneus came with all his company
to Crete : warriors surviving the war and the sea.
All the world knows of Atreus' son : you yourself
must know how Aegisthus devised his unhappy death :
and paid for it in full. How good a thing, to have                   
a son remaining after death to bring vengeance
on the father-murderer : tricky Aegisthus,
killed by Orestes, son of Agamemnon. You,
also, I see, are exceedingly handsome, and tall :
have courage, so many yet to come will speak of you."               

Wise Telemachus answered him :

"Nestor, son of Neleus, exalted Achaean,
triumphantly that son brought vengeance : and his name
shall spread everywhere, so that men in times to come
may hear of it. If only the gods would grant me                   
power as great as his! I would punish those people
for their audacity in conspiring my ruin.
But the fates have refused to spin me the happiness
I seek, to destroy those wooers, and my father
and I feel no peace, and I must bear it as I can."                   

And Nestor answered him :

"My friend, since you bring this to mind and speak of it :
they say that many wooers populate your halls,
competing for your mother's hand in marriage, and plan
much evil against you. Tell me, are you willingly                   
oppressed, or do the people of your land hate you,
urged on by rumour and idle talk? It may be
that Odysseus returns some day to repay them
for their violent acts with violence of his own :
either alone, or with the entire army                       
behind him. If only the shining-eyed Athena
cared for you just as she cared for Odysseus
at Troy, where the Achaeans suffered many woes.
Never have I seen the gods so openly loving
as goddess Athena loved him, standing by his side.               
If she cared for you as much as she cared for him,
many of those people would soon forget marriage."

Then wise Telemachus answered him :

"I expect nothing. What you say is tremendous :
I dare not imagine it. Such things are beyond                   
hoping for. Even though heaven destined such a thing,
I cannot believe I'll ever have such kindness."

Then Athena (in the shape of Mentor) spoke :

"Telemachus, what a word you speak! Easily
a god delivers man from evil, if the god                       
chooses, no matter where a man may be. As for me,
I would rather suffer to reach a peaceful home,
than reach home only to suffer my death at home,
as Agamemnon was murdered by the trickery
of Aegisthus and his wife. Though death is common               
to all. No god can save even a beloved man
when destructive fate overmasters, bringing long death."

Telemachus answered :

"Mentor, let us speak of this heartache no further.
I have no hope my father will ever return :                   
the gods long ago chose for him ruin and death.
But I would ask Nestor to speak another word,
since in thinking and wisdom he surpasses all others.
(It is said he has reigned for three generations,
and he appears to me an immortal in look.)                   
O Nestor, king of men, speak and tell me truly :
how was wide-ruling Agamemnon murdered?
Where was Menelaus? What death did tricky Aegisthus
devise for a man far superior to himself?
Was Menelaus elsewhere from Achaean Argos,                   
wandering among men, thereby emboldening
Aegisthus to kill?"

                                    And Nestor answered him :

"Child, I will tell you all that you wish to hear.
Indeed, you yourself have imagined how the matter               
would have fallen if Menelaus had returned
to find Aegisthus living in his halls. His death
would have brought him no burial mound, only dogs
and birds tearing at his corpse, exposed on a plain
far from the city; nor would any Argive woman                   
have wept for him; for his work was wicked. While
we were struggling to complete our task at Troy,
he rested at ease in a corner of Argos,
seducing Agamemnon's wife with artful words.
The royal Clytemnestra spurned the shameful plan,               
for her heart was pure : and moreover a songster
watched over her (at the word of Agamemnon
before sailing for Troy). But when the gods bound her
to her terrible fate, then Aegisthus took him
to a desolated island and left him there                       
as food for birds of prey; and she went willingly
to the bed of Aegisthus. And on the altars
of the gods he offered many sacrifices,
and many treasures he hung there, embroideries
and gold, since he had succeeded beyond his hopes."               

And venerable Nestor continued :

"Now we were sailing in convoy home from Troy,
Menelaus and I, the best of friends; but when
we came to sacred Sunium, there the Bright One,
Phoebus Apollo, fired an arrow bringing                       
a mild death to the helmsman of Menelaus,
as he held in his hands the tiller of the swift ship :
that was Phrontis, Onetor's son, most excellent
pilot when wind gusts rage. So there at the headland
of Athens Menelaus delayed, though eager                   
to carry on, and buried his friend. When he set sail
back on the wine-dark sea, Menelaus
swiftly came to the mountain heights of Malea.
There, Zeus the far-sounding thunderer planned for him
hateful confusion, exhaling breaths that raised                   
up the waves to towering heights equal to mountains.
The hollow ships scattered : some toward the isle of Crete,
where the Cydonians dwell by the waters of Iardanus.
There is a headland of steep smooth peaks on the outskirts
of the land of Gortyn in the hazy sea : where                   
the southwest wind drives huge waves against the headland
all the way to Phaestus. Here some of the hollow ships
shattered against the reefs : but the crews painfully
escaped death. And the winds rushed five ships to Egypt.
There, Menelaus gathered gifts and gold, roaming               
with his ships among a strange-tongued people.
Meanwhile, back home Aegisthus planned his sorry work.
For seven years he ruled in golden Mycenae
after killing Agamemnon, and the people
suffered his tyranny. But in the eighth year came                   
Orestes as a disaster upon him. Orestes,
back from Athens, murdered the father-murderer,
tricky Aegisthus, avenging his father's death.
After this, he honoured both his vile mother
and weak Aegisthus with a banquet for the people               
of Argos. On the same day, Menelaus returned,
bringing many treasures, as much freight as his ships
could carry.
                      So do not wander long from home, my friend,
abandoning your wealth to those hateful people,               
who will divide and devour everything that's yours :
and you will have gone on a useless journey.
But I advise and urge you to go to Menelaus :
whom the storm winds once sent wide of his course.
He has lately returned from a land so distant                   
that travellers who reach there lose hope of return.
Birds couldn't cross that distance if they had a year
to fly, so terrible it is. Now go your way
with your ship and your crew : or if you prefer land,
I offer you chariot and horses; and my sons                   
will escort you to glorious Lacedaemon,
where fair-haired Menelaus lives. Ask for the truth,
and he will not speak false, for he is very wise."

While he spoke the sun had descended under the earth,
and darkness came.                                 

                          And shining-eyed Athena spoke :

"O majesty, you have spoken well. Now the tongues
of our offerings must be cut out; and mix the wine,
and pour libations to Poseidon and all the gods.
Then may we sleep, for the hour agrees. Light has gone               
down to the world below, and we should not linger
at a feast to the gods (as it is unseemly),
but go on our way."

Thus spoke the daughter of Zeus, and they heard her word.

Manservants poured water over their hands, while boys               
mixed water and wine in bowls : then poured the drops
for libation into each cup, moving from man to man.
Then they laid the tongues onto the fire and rose
to their feet and poured out the offering over them.
When the libations were poured, and each man had drunk           
to contentment, then Athena and Telemachus
(beautiful as a god)
were ready to return to the hollow ship :

but Nestor detained them, and spoke :

"Heaven and the immortals forbid you leaving here               
as from a poor man wanting clothing, who has no
cloaks and blankets at home for guests to rest mildly on.
Indeed, I have many soft blankets and fine cloaks.
Surely I cannot allow the son of Odysseus
to sleep on the deck of a ship, not while I live :                   
and my children living after me in the halls
will receive whatever stranger might come to my house."

Then spoke the goddess, shining-eyed Athena :

"You speak well, my friend. It befits Telemachus
to accept your honourable invitation                       
and find rest in your halls. I will go to the ship
and see to the crewmen and their several duties.
I am the only man among them old in years :
the others are young in years like Telemachus,
and follow the great-hearted voyager in friendship.               
There I will lie down to sleep by the pitch-black ship.
(And at dawn I'm off to the noble Cauconians
to collect an old debt, a considerable matter.)
Do send Telemachus onward with chariot,
and with one son, since he a guest in your house,               
and give them your strongest and fastest horses."

So spoke shining-eyed Athena. She stepped away,
and taking eagle's shape uprose into the air :
and at the sight all looked on with astonishment;
the old man was awestruck when his eyes beheld it.               

Nestor seized the hand of Telemachus and spoke :

"O friend, I expect courage and goodness from you :
already the gods regard you, though young in years!
Truly this is no other god on Olympus
but the Head-Born, most glorious daughter of Zeus,               
who favoured your brave father among the Argives :

O Queen, show goodwill, and grant to me a good name,
glory for me, for my sons, and for my revered wife!
In return I will offer you in sacrifice
a bright white heifer, broad-browed and unbroken;               
and I will decorate her curved horns with gold leaf."

Thus he spoke in prayer, and Athena heard him.

Then Nestor of Gerenia, master of horses,
led them, his sons and the husbands of his daughters
to his glorious palace. And when they had come                   
to the king's beautiful palace, and had sat down
in rows on couches and chairs, the king mixed a bowl
of sweet wine (eleven years old when the mistress
of the house lifted the lid). As he mixed a bowl
the old man prayed passionately to Athena,                   
daughter of aegis-bearing Zeus.

When the libations were poured, and each man had drunk
to contentment, each man went to his room to rest.
The venerable Nestor led Telemachus,
the beloved son of godly Odysseus,                   
down a colonnade echoing by the courtyard,
to an inlaid bed; and by him he put warrior
Pisistratus, a leader of men, who was one
of King Nestor's unmarried sons. As for himself,
he slept furthest back in the lofty palace,                   
and beside him lay his wife, mistress of the house,
who had prepared the bed.

When the rosy-fingered Dawn touched Nestor with light,
he rose from bed and trod the length of the palace
to the tall doors at the front. Just outside, before               
the entrance, were shining white seats of polished stone
glimmering with oil. Long ago, Neleus
sat here, but the goddess of death took him (wise as gods)
down to Hades; and now venerable Nestor sat here,
sceptre in hand, protector of the Achaean people.               
As they came from their rooms his sons gathered round him,
Echephron and Stratius and Perseus and
Aretus and noble Thrasymedes; and the sixth
was warrior Peisistratus, good with the spear.
And they entreated the godlike Telemachus                   
to sit with them.

                              And Nestor was first to speak :

"Quickly now, dear children, fulfil my word : I will
honour goddess Athena, who graciously appeared
at the banquet yesterday. Come now! Fetch a cow               
from the plain (and the herdsman will drive her); one go
to great-hearted Telemachus' ship and bring
back his men (leaving two behind); another go
fetch the goldsmith Laerces, so the heifer's horns
will be wrapped in gold. As for all the rest, stay here               
together, and tell the handmaidens to prepare
for a feast within our halls : to gather the seats,
and the firewood to place around the altar;
and to bring clear water."

                So he spoke, and they went.               
And the heifer was led in from the plain;
and the crew arrived; and the smith brought his bronze tools,
the instruments of his art : the anvil and hammer
and tongs : with these he shaped and fashioned the gold.

And Athena (unseen) came to receive the gift.                   

And venerable Nestor provided the gold,
and the goldsmith prepared it, and applied gold leaf
lightly round the horns, to delight Athena's eyes.
Then Stratius and noble Echephron led her in
by the horns, and Aretus brought forth the water               
in a bowl decorated with flowers in relief;
and in his other hand he carried the barley
in a reed basket. Steady Thrasymedes stood by,
with sharp axe in hand, to strike the heifer;
and Perseus held the bowl to receive the blood.                   
Then venerable Nestor began the sacrifice :
the washing of hands, the sprinkling of barley meal :
and while praying earnestly to Athena
he cut the forelock off the heifer and dropped it
into the fire.                                   
                        When they had finished praying,
and had thrown crushed barley toward the altar,
then bold Thrasymedes, Nestor's son, dealt the blow :
the axe carved through the living fibres of the neck
and drained the animal's strength : and the holy cries               
(of joy and satisfaction) came from the daughters
and the sons' wives, and the honoured wife of Nestor,
Eurydice, oldest daughter of Clymenus.
And the men raised its head from the wide-open earth
and held it : and Peisistratus cut its throat.                   
And when the dark blood had run out and the bones lay
lifeless, they cut the body into pieces. They cut
the thigh-slices and wrapped them in a double layer
of fat and laid raw pieces of flesh on top. Nestor
burned them on the fire and poured sparkling wine               
over them; and when the thigh-slices were fully burnt,
and they had tasted the inward parts, they cut up
the rest and skewered the pieces on five-pronged spits
and roasted them, holding the spits over the fire.

Lovely Polycaste, meanwhile, youngest of all                   
of Nestor's daughters, bathed Telemachus.
And when she had bathed him, she rubbed a rich oil
into his skin, and dressed him in linen tunic
and elegant cloak : and he came forth from the bath
with the beauty of the immortals : and he went                   
and sat beside Nestor, king of men.

So now they drew the roasted pieces off the spits
and sat down and feasted, and excellent manservants
attended them, filling their golden cups with wine.
And when they were satisfied with the food and drink :               

Nestor, master of horses, spoke :

"Come now, my sons! For great-hearted Telemachus
find horses with beautiful manes and put them
to the chariot, so that he may continue on."

Thus he spoke, and they heard, and readily obeyed :               
soon the swift horses were yoked to the chariot.
And the mistress of the house placed in the chariot
bread and wine and delicacies suitable for kings
beloved of Zeus. And Telemachus mounted
the beautifully ornamented chariot.                       
Peisistratus stepped up beside him and took the reins
into his hands; and sparked the horses with the whip,
and the pair galloped eagerly to the open plain,
leaving behind them the lofty stronghold of Pylos.
All day long they rattled the harness fastened round               
their necks. And the sun set and the open earth grew dark.

At Phaerae they stopped at the house of Diocles,
descended (through Ortilochus) from Alpheus.
There they rested for the night, and were shown due care.

When the rosy-fingered Dawn delivered first light,               
they yoked the horses to the inlaid chariot
and stepped on and trotted out through the front gateway :
then Peisistratus sparked the horses with the whip,
and the pair rushed eagerly on. So they came
to the wheat-bearing plain, and in time made headway               
to their journey's end, so well the swift horses moved.

And when the sun set, the wide-open earth grew dark.


End of Book III