The Odyssey: Book 07 Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis
Rhyme Scheme: ABCBDEFGHCIJKLBDJMNO BPQRCSBTUOVWSMJNAOBC LXCYZXLA2ONB2LCC2OD2 AE2AOAWLBF2G2QH2I2J2 K2L2TBLLELSLLLBMM2DN 2LLO2LLBBCLLP2F2J2LQ BLD2BQ2R2S2EMF2T2TJ2 XLR2LLXLU2V2ELCLQLW2 LSLX2HDBY2OZ2SBA3LCT JAB3BBX2LLF2FLEFOLAD C3M2AOD3E3R2F3LLLLG3 XLOD2LH3BA2F2OXAOAJ2 V2RLJ2XI3QF2BEJ3OLWK 3SFBCL3M3LN3LO3P3HLQ OMQ3CBOXVFCOOOHAE2R3 CMS3T2T3LY2OCM2XBRVM U3E3AJ2BQLM2V3V2W3OE LFTQOX3R2LY3| Thus then did Ulysses wait and pray but the girl drove on to | A |
| the town When she reached her father's house she drew up at the | B |
| gateway and her brothers comely as the gods gathered round her | C |
| took the mules out of the waggon and carried the clothes into the | B |
| house while she went to her own room where an old servant | D |
| Eurymedusa of Apeira lit the fire for her This old woman had been | E |
| brought by sea from Apeira and had been chosen as a prize for | F |
| Alcinous because he was king over the Phaecians and the people obeyed | G |
| him as though he were a god She had been nurse to Nausicaa and had | H |
| now lit the fire for her and brought her supper for her into her | C |
| own room | I |
| Presently Ulysses got up to go towards the town and Minerva shed | J |
| a thick mist all round him to hide him in case any of the proud | K |
| Phaecians who met him should be rude to him or ask him who he was | L |
| Then as he was just entering the town she came towards him in the | B |
| likeness of a little girl carrying a pitcher She stood right in front | D |
| of him and Ulysses said | J |
| My dear will you be so kind as to show me the house of king | M |
| Alcinous I am an unfortunate foreigner in distress and do not know | N |
| one in your town and country | O |
| Then Minerva said Yes father stranger I will show you the | B |
| house you want for Alcinous lives quite close to my own father I | P |
| will go before you and show the way but say not a word as you go and | Q |
| do not look at any man nor ask him questions for the people here | R |
| cannot abide strangers and do not like men who come from some other | C |
| place They are a sea faring folk and sail the seas by the grace of | S |
| Neptune in ships that glide along like thought or as a bird in the | B |
| air | T |
| On this she led the way and Ulysses followed in her steps but | U |
| not one of the Phaecians could see him as he passed through the city | O |
| in the midst of them for the great goddess Minerva in her good will | V |
| towards him had hidden him in a thick cloud of darkness He admired | W |
| their harbours ships places of assembly and the lofty walls of | S |
| the city which with the palisade on top of them were very striking | M |
| and when they reached the king's house Minerva said | J |
| This is the house father stranger which you would have me show | N |
| you You will find a number of great people sitting at table but do | A |
| not be afraid go straight in for the bolder a man is the more likely | O |
| he is to carry his point even though he is a stranger First find the | B |
| queen Her name is Arete and she comes of the same family as her | C |
| husband Alcinous They both descend originally from Neptune who was | L |
| father to Nausithous by Periboea a woman of great beauty Periboea | X |
| was the youngest daughter of Eurymedon who at one time reigned over | C |
| the giants but he ruined his ill fated people and lost his own life | Y |
| to boot | Z |
| Neptune however lay with his daughter and she had a son by | X |
| him the great Nausithous who reigned over the Phaecians | L |
| Nausithous had two sons Rhexenor and Alcinous Apollo killed the first | A2 |
| of them while he was still a bridegroom and without male issue but he | O |
| left a daughter Arete whom Alcinous married and honours as no | N |
| other woman is honoured of all those that keep house along with | B2 |
| their husbands | L |
| Thus she both was and still is respected beyond measure by her | C |
| children by Alcinous himself and by the whole people who look | C2 |
| upon her as a goddess and greet her whenever she goes about the city | O |
| for she is a thoroughly good woman both in head and heart and when | D2 |
| any women are friends of hers she will help their husbands also to | A |
| settle their disputes If you can gain her good will you may have | E2 |
| every hope of seeing your friends again and getting safely back to | A |
| your home and country | O |
| Then Minerva left Scheria and went away over the sea She went to | A |
| Marathon and to the spacious streets of Athens where she entered | W |
| the abode of Erechtheus but Ulysses went on to the house of Alcinous | L |
| and he pondered much as he paused a while before reaching the | B |
| threshold of bronze for the splendour of the palace was like that | F2 |
| of the sun or moon The walls on either side were of bronze from end | G2 |
| to end and the cornice was of blue enamel The doors were gold and | Q |
| hung on pillars of silver that rose from a floor of bronze while | H2 |
| the lintel was silver and the hook of the door was of gold | I2 |
| On either side there stood gold and silver mastiffs which Vulcan | J2 |
| with his consummate skill had fashioned expressly to keep watch | K2 |
| over the palace of king Alcinous so they were immortal and could | L2 |
| never grow old Seats were ranged all along the wall here and there | T |
| from one end to the other with coverings of fine woven work which the | B |
| women of the house had made Here the chief persons of the Phaecians | L |
| used to sit and eat and drink for there was abundance at all seasons | L |
| and there were golden figures of young men with lighted torches in | E |
| their hands raised on pedestals to give light by night to those | L |
| who were at table There are fifty maid servants in the house some of | S |
| whom are always grinding rich yellow grain at the mill while others | L |
| work at the loom or sit and spin and their shuttles go backwards | L |
| and forwards like the fluttering of aspen leaves while the linen is | L |
| so closely woven that it will turn oil As the Phaecians are the | B |
| best sailors in the world so their women excel all others in weaving | M |
| for Minerva has taught them all manner of useful arts and they are | M2 |
| very intelligent | D |
| Outside the gate of the outer court there is a large garden of about | N2 |
| four acres with a wall all round it It is full of beautiful trees | L |
| pears pomegranates and the most delicious apples There are luscious | L |
| figs also and olives in full growth The fruits never rot nor fail | O2 |
| all the year round neither winter nor summer for the air is so | L |
| soft that a new crop ripens before the old has dropped Pear grows | L |
| on pear apple on apple and fig on fig and so also with the | B |
| grapes for there is an excellent vineyard on the level ground of a | B |
| part of this the grapes are being made into raisins in another | C |
| part they are being gathered some are being trodden in the wine tubs | L |
| others further on have shed their blossom and are beginning to show | L |
| fruit others again are just changing colour In the furthest part | P2 |
| of the ground there are beautifully arranged beds of flowers that | F2 |
| are in bloom all the year round Two streams go through it the one | J2 |
| turned in ducts throughout the whole garden while the other is | L |
| carried under the ground of the outer court to the house itself and | Q |
| the town's people draw water from it Such then were the | B |
| splendours with which the gods had endowed the house of king Alcinous | L |
| So here Ulysses stood for a while and looked about him but when | D2 |
| he had looked long enough he crossed the threshold and went within the | B |
| precincts of the house There he found all the chief people among | Q2 |
| the Phaecians making their drink offerings to Mercury which they | R2 |
| always did the last thing before going away for the night He went | S2 |
| straight through the court still hidden by the cloak of darkness in | E |
| which Minerva had enveloped him till he reached Arete and King | M |
| Alcinous then he laid his hands upon the knees of the queen and at | F2 |
| that moment the miraculous darkness fell away from him and he became | T2 |
| visible Every one was speechless with surprise at seeing a man there | T |
| but Ulysses began at once with his petition | J2 |
| Queen Arete he exclaimed daughter of great Rhexenor in my | X |
| distress I humbly pray you as also your husband and these your guests | L |
| whom may heaven prosper with long life and happiness and may they | R2 |
| leave their possessions to their children and all the honours | L |
| conferred upon them by the state to help me home to my own country as | L |
| soon as possible for I have been long in trouble and away from my | X |
| friends | L |
| Then he sat down on the hearth among the ashes and they all held | U2 |
| their peace till presently the old hero Echeneus who was an | V2 |
| excellent speaker and an elder among the Phaeacians plainly and in | E |
| all honesty addressed them thus | L |
| Alcinous said he it is not creditable to you that a stranger | C |
| should be seen sitting among the ashes of your hearth every one is | L |
| waiting to hear what you are about to say tell him then to rise and | Q |
| take a seat on a stool inlaid with silver and bid your servants mix | L |
| some wine and water that we may make a drink offering to Jove the lord | W2 |
| of thunder who takes all well disposed suppliants under his | L |
| protection and let the housekeeper give him some supper of | S |
| whatever there may be in the house | L |
| When Alcinous heard this he took Ulysses by the hand raised him | X2 |
| from the hearth and bade him take the seat of Laodamas who had | H |
| been sitting beside him and was his favourite son A maid servant | D |
| then brought him water in a beautiful golden ewer and poured it into a | B |
| silver basin for him to wash his hands and she drew a clean table | Y2 |
| beside him an upper servant brought him bread and offered him many | O |
| good things of what there was in the house and Ulysses ate and drank | Z2 |
| Then Alcinous said to one of the servants Pontonous mix a cup of | S |
| wine and hand it round that we may make drink offerings to Jove the | B |
| lord of thunder who is the protector of all well disposed | A3 |
| suppliants | L |
| Pontonous then mixed wine and water and handed it round after | C |
| giving every man his drink offering When they had made their | T |
| offerings and had drunk each as much as he was minded Alcinous said | J |
| Aldermen and town councillors of the Phaeacians hear my words You | A |
| have had your supper so now go home to bed To morrow morning I shall | B3 |
| invite a still larger number of aldermen and will give a | B |
| sacrificial banquet in honour of our guest we can then discuss the | B |
| question of his escort and consider how we may at once send him | X2 |
| back rejoicing to his own country without trouble or inconvenience | L |
| to himself no matter how distant it may be We must see that he comes | L |
| to no harm while on his homeward journey but when he is once at | F2 |
| home he will have to take the luck he was born with for better or | F |
| worse like other people It is possible however that the stranger is | L |
| one of the immortals who has come down from heaven to visit us but in | E |
| this case the gods are departing from their usual practice for | F |
| hitherto they have made themselves perfectly clear to us when we | O |
| have been offering them hecatombs They come and sit at our feasts | L |
| just like one of our selves and if any solitary wayfarer happens to | A |
| stumble upon some one or other of them they affect no concealment | D |
| for we are as near of kin to the gods as the Cyclopes and the savage | C3 |
| giants are | M2 |
| Then Ulysses said Pray Alcinous do not take any such notion into | A |
| your head I have nothing of the immortal about me neither in body | O |
| nor mind and most resemble those among you who are the most | D3 |
| afflicted Indeed were I to tell you all that heaven has seen fit | E3 |
| to lay upon me you would say that I was still worse off than they | R2 |
| are Nevertheless let me sup in spite of sorrow for an empty stomach | F3 |
| is a very importunate thing and thrusts itself on a man's notice no | L |
| matter how dire is his distress I am in great trouble yet it insists | L |
| that I shall eat and drink bids me lay aside all memory of my sorrows | L |
| and dwell only on the due replenishing of itself As for yourselves | L |
| do as you propose and at break of day set about helping me to get | G3 |
| home I shall be content to die if I may first once more behold my | X |
| property my bondsmen and all the greatness of my house | L |
| Thus did he speak Every one approved his saying and agreed that he | O |
| should have his escort inasmuch as he had spoken reasonably Then when | D2 |
| they had made their drink offerings and had drunk each as much as | L |
| he was minded they went home to bed every man in his own abode | H3 |
| leaving Ulysses in the cloister with Arete and Alcinous while the | B |
| servants were taking the things away after supper Arete was the first | A2 |
| to speak for she recognized the shirt cloak and good clothes that | F2 |
| Ulysses was wearing as the work of herself and of her maids so she | O |
| said Stranger before we go any further there is a question I | X |
| should like to ask you Who and whence are you and who gave you | A |
| those clothes Did you not say you had come here from beyond the sea | O |
| And Ulysses answered It would be a long story Madam were I to | A |
| relate in full the tale of my misfortunes for the hand of heaven | J2 |
| has been laid heavy upon me but as regards your question there is an | V2 |
| island far away in the sea which is called 'the Ogygian ' Here | R |
| dwells the cunning and powerful goddess Calypso daughter of Atlas | L |
| She lives by herself far from all neighbours human or divine Fortune | J2 |
| however me to her hearth all desolate and alone for Jove struck my | X |
| ship with his thunderbolts and broke it up in mid ocean My brave | I3 |
| comrades were drowned every man of them but I stuck to the keel and | Q |
| was carried hither and thither for the space of nine days till at | F2 |
| last during the darkness of the tenth night the gods brought me to the | B |
| Ogygian island where the great goddess Calypso lives She took me in | E |
| and treated me with the utmost kindness indeed she wanted to make | J3 |
| me immortal that I might never grow old but she could not persuade me | O |
| to let her do so | L |
| I stayed with Calypso seven years straight on end and watered | W |
| the good clothes she gave me with my tears during the whole time | K3 |
| but at last when the eighth year came round she bade me depart of | S |
| her own free will either because Jove had told her she must or | F |
| because she had changed her mind She sent me from her island on a | B |
| raft which she provisioned with abundance of bread and wine Moreover | C |
| she gave me good stout clothing and sent me a wind that blew both | L3 |
| warm and fair Days seven and ten did I sail over the sea and on | M3 |
| the eighteenth I caught sight of the first outlines of the mountains | L |
| upon your coast and glad indeed was I to set eyes upon them | N3 |
| Nevertheless there was still much trouble in store for me for at this | L |
| point Neptune would let me go no further and raised a great storm | O3 |
| against me the sea was so terribly high that I could no longer keep | P3 |
| to my raft which went to pieces under the fury of the gale and I had | H |
| to swim for it till wind and current brought me to your shores | L |
| There I tried to land but could not for it was a bad place and | Q |
| the waves dashed me against the rocks so I again took to the sea | O |
| and swam on till I came to a river that seemed the most likely landing | M |
| place for there were no rocks and it was sheltered from the wind | Q3 |
| Here then I got out of the water and gathered my senses together | C |
| again Night was coming on so I left the river and went into a | B |
| thicket where I covered myself all over with leaves and presently | O |
| heaven sent me off into a very deep sleep Sick and sorry as I was I | X |
| slept among the leaves all night and through the next day till | V |
| afternoon when I woke as the sun was westering and saw your | F |
| daughter's maid servants playing upon the beach and your daughter | C |
| among them looking like a goddess I besought her aid and she | O |
| proved to be of an excellent disposition much more so than could be | O |
| expected from so young a person for young people are apt to be | O |
| thoughtless She gave me plenty of bread and wine and when she had | H |
| had me washed in the river she also gave me the clothes in which you | A |
| see me Now therefore though it has pained me to do so I have | E2 |
| told you the whole truth | R3 |
| Then Alcinous said Stranger it was very wrong of my daughter | C |
| not to bring you on at once to my house along with the maids seeing | M |
| that she was the first person whose aid you asked | S3 |
| Pray do not scold her replied Ulysses she is not to blame | T2 |
| She did tell me to follow along with the maids but I was ashamed | T3 |
| and afraid for I thought you might perhaps be displeased if you saw | L |
| me Every human being is sometimes a little suspicious and irritable | Y2 |
| Stranger replied Alcinous I am not the kind of man to get angry | O |
| about nothing it is always better to be reasonable but by Father | C |
| Jove Minerva and Apollo now that I see what kind of person you are | M2 |
| and how much you think as I do I wish you would stay here marry my | X |
| daughter and become my son in law If you will stay I will give you a | B |
| house and an estate but no one heaven forbid shall keep you here | R |
| against your own wish and that you may be sure of this I will | V |
| attend to morrow to the matter of your escort You can sleep during | M |
| the whole voyage if you like and the men shall sail you over smooth | U3 |
| waters either to your own home or wherever you please even though it | E3 |
| be a long way further off than Euboea which those of my people who | A |
| saw it when they took yellow haired Rhadamanthus to see Tityus the son | J2 |
| of Gaia tell me is the furthest of any place and yet they did the | B |
| whole voyage in a single day without distressing themselves and | Q |
| came back again afterwards You will thus see how much my ships | L |
| excel all others and what magnificent oarsmen my sailors are | M2 |
| Then was Ulysses glad and prayed aloud saying Father Jove grant | V3 |
| that Alcinous may do all as he has said for so he will win an | V2 |
| imperishable name among mankind and at the same time I shall return | W3 |
| to my country | O |
| Thus did they converse Then Arete told her maids to set a bed in | E |
| the room that was in the gatehouse and make it with good red rugs | L |
| and to spread coverlets on the top of them with woollen cloaks for | F |
| Ulysses to wear The maids thereon went out with torches in their | T |
| hands and when they had made the bed they came up to Ulysses and | Q |
| said Rise sir stranger and come with us for your bed is ready | O |
| and glad indeed was he to go to his rest | X3 |
| So Ulysses slept in a bed placed in a room over the echoing gateway | R2 |
| but Alcinous lay in the inner part of the house with the queen his | L |
| wife by his side | Y3 |
Homer
(1)
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