The Odyssey: Book 20 Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis
Rhyme Scheme: ABCDBEFGHIJKLMNOFDPQ RSETUEGKVWXYNPZA2NB2 NIC2D2NE2PF2G2PH2I2E PKJ2F2EE2XNH2NEG2K2L 2M2RG2NG2N2CK2F2AO2N NP2Q2R2S2G2BQ2PT2U2V 2W2PR2F2FX2FM2Y2EFZ2 EA3F2NNJFF2B3NFF2EJF C3CEF2Y2EEV2ED3M2GE3 AEF3G3H3SPII3J3K3F2E Y2EL3M3N3D3W2PN3A3NA 3N3H2O3F3C2FF2XF2P3K 2Q3B3C2B2R3XENB2Q2BV S3H2F2UT3Y2U3H2B2Z2D 3NV3W3X3L3Y3B2R3AEF3 MEM2F3PEZ3FNKZ2FA4A3 FB4N3L2EEB2MNZ2B2N3P B2L3GEA3GG2Q2C4DEFD4 E4I2S3LNF4DIXFM2C4M2 R3M2EG2PM2B2FG4XEPF2 H2H4I4A3GJ4EELF2K4IL LL4F2M4Y2Y2F4LLI2D3I GXNLN4V3K2R3NF2FEC3K K2PELO4FDXH2EBL| Ulysses slept in the cloister upon an undressed bullock's hide on | A |
| the top of which he threw several skins of the sheep the suitors had | B |
| eaten and Eurynome threw a cloak over him after he had laid himself | C |
| down There then Ulysses lay wakefully brooding upon the way in | D |
| which he should kill the suitors and by and by the women who had | B |
| been in the habit of misconducting themselves with them left the | E |
| house giggling and laughing with one another This made Ulysses very | F |
| angry and he doubted whether to get up and kill every single one of | G |
| them then and there or to let them sleep one more and last time | H |
| with the suitors His heart growled within him and as a bitch with | I |
| puppies growls and shows her teeth when she sees a stranger so did | J |
| his heart growl with anger at the evil deeds that were being done but | K |
| he beat his breast and said Heart be still you had worse than this | L |
| to bear on the day when the terrible Cyclops ate your brave | M |
| companions yet you bore it in silence till your cunning got you | N |
| safe out of the cave though you made sure of being killed | O |
| Thus he chided with his heart and checked it into endurance but he | F |
| tossed about as one who turns a paunch full of blood and fat in | D |
| front of a hot fire doing it first on one side and then on the other | P |
| that he may get it cooked as soon as possible even so did he turn | Q |
| himself about from side to side thinking all the time how single | R |
| handed as he was he should contrive to kill so large a body of men as | S |
| the wicked suitors But by and by Minerva came down from heaven in the | E |
| likeness of a woman and hovered over his head saying My poor | T |
| unhappy man why do you lie awake in this way This is your house | U |
| your wife is safe inside it and so is your son who is just such a | E |
| young man as any father may be proud of | G |
| Goddess answered Ulysses all that you have said is true but | K |
| I am in some doubt as to how I shall be able to kill these wicked | V |
| suitors single handed seeing what a number of them there always | W |
| are And there is this further difficulty which is still more | X |
| considerable Supposing that with Jove's and your assistance I succeed | Y |
| in killing them I must ask you to consider where I am to escape to | N |
| from their avengers when it is all over | P |
| For shame replied Minerva why any one else would trust a worse | Z |
| ally than myself even though that ally were only a mortal and less | A2 |
| wise than I am Am I not a goddess and have I not protected you | N |
| throughout in all your troubles I tell you plainly that even though | B2 |
| there were fifty bands of men surrounding us and eager to kill us you | N |
| should take all their sheep and cattle and drive them away with | I |
| you But go to sleep it is a very bad thing to lie awake all night | C2 |
| and you shall be out of your troubles before long | D2 |
| As she spoke she shed sleep over his eyes and then went back to | N |
| Olympus | E2 |
| While Ulysses was thus yielding himself to a very deep slumber | P |
| that eased the burden of his sorrows his admirable wife awoke and | F2 |
| sitting up in her bed began to cry When she had relieved herself by | G2 |
| weeping she prayed to Diana saying Great Goddess Diana daughter | P |
| of Jove drive an arrow into my heart and slay me or let some | H2 |
| whirlwind snatch me up and bear me through paths of darkness till it | I2 |
| drop me into the mouths of overflowing Oceanus as it did the | E |
| daughters of Pandareus The daughters of Pandareus lost their father | P |
| and mother for the gods killed them so they were left orphans But | K |
| Venus took care of them and fed them on cheese honey and sweet | J2 |
| wine Juno taught them to excel all women in beauty of form and | F2 |
| understanding Diana gave them an imposing presence and Minerva | E |
| endowed them with every kind of accomplishment but one day when Venus | E2 |
| had gone up to Olympus to see Jove about getting them married for | X |
| well does he know both what shall happen and what not happen to | N |
| every one the storm winds came and spirited them away to become | H2 |
| handmaids to the dread Erinyes Even so I wish that the gods who | N |
| live in heaven would hide me from mortal sight or that fair Diana | E |
| might strike me for I would fain go even beneath the sad earth if I | G2 |
| might do so still looking towards Ulysses only and without having | K2 |
| to yield myself to a worse man than he was Besides no matter how | L2 |
| much people may grieve by day they can put up with it so long as they | M2 |
| can sleep at night for when the eyes are closed in slumber people | R |
| forget good and ill alike whereas my misery haunts me even in my | G2 |
| dreams This very night methought there was one lying by my side who | N |
| was like Ulysses as he was when he went away with his host and I | G2 |
| rejoiced for I believed that it was no dream but the very truth | N2 |
| itself | C |
| On this the day broke but Ulysses heard the sound of her weeping | K2 |
| and it puzzled him for it seemed as though she already knew him and | F2 |
| was by his side Then he gathered up the cloak and the fleeces on | A |
| which he had lain and set them on a seat in the cloister but he took | O2 |
| the bullock's hide out into the open He lifted up his hands to | N |
| heaven and prayed saying Father Jove since you have seen fit to | N |
| bring me over land and sea to my own home after all the afflictions | P2 |
| you have laid upon me give me a sign out of the mouth of some one | Q2 |
| or other of those who are now waking within the house and let me have | R2 |
| another sign of some kind from outside | S2 |
| Thus did he pray Jove heard his prayer and forthwith thundered high | G2 |
| up among the from the splendour of Olympus and Ulysses was glad | B |
| when he heard it At the same time within the house a miller woman | Q2 |
| from hard by in the mill room lifted up her voice and gave him another | P |
| sign There were twelve miller women whose business it was to grind | T2 |
| wheat and barley which are the staff of life The others had ground | U2 |
| their task and had gone to take their rest but this one had not yet | V2 |
| finished for she was not so strong as they were and when she heard | W2 |
| the thunder she stopped grinding and gave the sign to her master | P |
| Father Jove said she you who rule over heaven and earth you have | R2 |
| thundered from a clear sky without so much as a cloud in it and | F2 |
| this means something for somebody grant the prayer then of me | F |
| your poor servant who calls upon you and let this be the very last | X2 |
| day that the suitors dine in the house of Ulysses They have worn me | F |
| out with the labour of grinding meal for them and I hope they may | M2 |
| never have another dinner anywhere at all | Y2 |
| Ulysses was glad when he heard the omens conveyed to him by the | E |
| woman's speech and by the thunder for he knew they meant that he | F |
| should avenge himself on the suitors | Z2 |
| Then the other maids in the house rose and lit the fire on the | E |
| hearth Telemachus also rose and put on his clothes He girded his | A3 |
| sword about his shoulder bound his sandals on his comely feet and | F2 |
| took a doughty spear with a point of sharpened bronze then he went to | N |
| the threshold of the cloister and said to Euryclea Nurse did you | N |
| make the stranger comfortable both as regards bed and board or did | J |
| you let him shift for himself for my mother good woman though she | F |
| is has a way of paying great attention to second rate people and | F2 |
| of neglecting others who are in reality much better men | B3 |
| Do not find fault child said Euryclea when there is no one to | N |
| find fault with The stranger sat and drank his wine as long as he | F |
| liked your mother did ask him if he would take any more bread and | F2 |
| he said he would not When he wanted to go to bed she told the | E |
| servants to make one for him but he said he was re such wretched | J |
| outcast that he would not sleep on a bed and under blankets he | F |
| insisted on having an undressed bullock's hide and some sheepskins put | C3 |
| for him in the cloister and I threw a cloak over him myself | C |
| Then Telemachus went out of the court to the place where the | E |
| Achaeans were meeting in assembly he had his spear in his hand and | F2 |
| he was not alone for his two dogs went with him But Euryclea | Y2 |
| called the maids and said Come wake up set about sweeping the | E |
| cloisters and sprinkling them with water to lay the dust put the | E |
| covers on the seats wipe down the tables some of you with a wet | V2 |
| sponge clean out the mixing jugs and the cups and for water from the | E |
| fountain at once the suitors will be here directly they will be here | D3 |
| early for it is a feast day | M2 |
| Thus did she speak and they did even as she had said twenty of | G |
| them went to the fountain for water and the others set themselves | E3 |
| busily to work about the house The men who were in attendance on | A |
| the suitors also came up and began chopping firewood By and by the | E |
| women returned from the fountain and the swineherd came after them | F3 |
| with the three best pigs he could pick out These he let feed about | G3 |
| the premises and then he said good humouredly to Ulysses | H3 |
| Stranger are the suitors treating you any better now or are they as | S |
| insolent as ever | P |
| May heaven answered Ulysses requite to them the wickedness with | I |
| which they deal high handedly in another man's house without any sense | I3 |
| of shame | J3 |
| Thus did they converse meanwhile Melanthius the goatherd came up | K3 |
| for he too was bringing in his best goats for the suitors' dinner and | F2 |
| he had two shepherds with him They tied the goats up under the | E |
| gatehouse and then Melanthius began gibing at Ulysses Are you still | Y2 |
| here stranger said he to pester people by begging about the | E |
| house Why can you not go elsewhere You and I shall not come to an | L3 |
| understanding before we have given each other a taste of our fists | M3 |
| You beg without any sense of decency are there not feasts elsewhere | N3 |
| among the Achaeans as well as here | D3 |
| Ulysses made no answer but bowed his head and brooded Then a third | W2 |
| man Philoetius joined them who was bringing in a barren heifer | P |
| and some goats These were brought over by the boatmen who are there | N3 |
| to take people over when any one comes to them So Philoetius made his | A3 |
| heifer and his goats secure under the gatehouse and then went up to | N |
| the swineherd Who Swineherd said he is this stranger that is | A3 |
| lately come here Is he one of your men What is his family Where | N3 |
| does he come from Poor fellow he looks as if he had been some | H2 |
| great man but the gods give sorrow to whom they will even to kings | O3 |
| if it so pleases them | F3 |
| As he spoke he went up to Ulysses and saluted him with his right | C2 |
| hand Good day to you father stranger said he you seem to be | F |
| very poorly off now but I hope you will have better times by and | F2 |
| by Father Jove of all gods you are the most malicious We are your | X |
| own children yet you show us no mercy in all our misery and | F2 |
| afflictions A sweat came over me when I saw this man and my eyes | P3 |
| filled with tears for he reminds me of Ulysses who I fear is going | K2 |
| about in just such rags as this man's are if indeed he is still among | Q3 |
| the living If he is already dead and in the house of Hades then | B3 |
| alas for my good master who made me his stockman when I was quite | C2 |
| young among the Cephallenians and now his cattle are countless no | B2 |
| one could have done better with them than I have for they have bred | R3 |
| like ears of corn nevertheless I have to keep bringing them in for | X |
| others to eat who take no heed of his son though he is in the | E |
| house and fear not the wrath of heaven but are already eager to | N |
| divide Ulysses' property among them because he has been away so | B2 |
| long I have often thought only it would not be right while his son | Q2 |
| is living of going off with the cattle to some foreign country bad | B |
| as this would be it is still harder to stay here and be ill treated | V |
| about other people's herds My position is intolerable and I should | S3 |
| long since have run away and put myself under the protection of some | H2 |
| other chief only that I believe my poor master will yet return and | F2 |
| send all these suitors flying out of the house | U |
| Stockman answered Ulysses you seem to be a very well disposed | T3 |
| person and I can see that you are a man of sense Therefore I will | Y2 |
| tell you and will confirm my words with an oath by Jove the chief | U3 |
| of all gods and by that hearth of Ulysses to which I am now come | H2 |
| Ulysses shall return before you leave this place and if you are so | B2 |
| minded you shall see him killing the suitors who are now masters | Z2 |
| here | D3 |
| If Jove were to bring this to pass replied the stockman you | N |
| should see how I would do my very utmost to help him | V3 |
| And in like manner Eumaeus prayed that Ulysses might return home | W3 |
| Thus did they converse Meanwhile the suitors were hatching a plot | X3 |
| to murder Telemachus but a bird flew near them on their left hand an | L3 |
| eagle with a dove in its talons On this Amphinomus said My friends | Y3 |
| this plot of ours to murder Telemachus will not succeed let us go | B2 |
| to dinner instead | R3 |
| The others assented so they went inside and laid their cloaks on | A |
| the benches and seats They sacrificed the sheep goats pigs and the | E |
| heifer and when the inward meats were cooked they served them | F3 |
| round They mixed the wine in the mixing bowls and the swineherd gave | M |
| every man his cup while Philoetius handed round the bread in the | E |
| breadbaskets and Melanthius poured them out their wine Then they | M2 |
| laid their hands upon the good things that were before them | F3 |
| Telemachus purposely made Ulysses sit in the part of the cloister | P |
| that was paved with stone he gave him a shabby looking seat at a | E |
| little table to himself and had his portion of the inward meats | Z3 |
| brought to him with his wine in a gold cup Sit there said he | F |
| and drink your wine among the great people I will put a stop to | N |
| the gibes and blows of the suitors for this is no public house but | K |
| belongs to Ulysses and has passed from him to me Therefore suitors | Z2 |
| keep your hands and your tongues to yourselves or there will be | F |
| mischief | A4 |
| The suitors bit their lips and marvelled at the boldness of his | A3 |
| speech then Antinous said We do not like such language but we | F |
| will put up with it for Telemachus is threatening us in good earnest | B4 |
| If Jove had let us we should have put a stop to his brave talk ere | N3 |
| now | L2 |
| Thus spoke Antinous but Telemachus heeded him not Meanwhile the | E |
| heralds were bringing the holy hecatomb through the city and the | E |
| Achaeans gathered under the shady grove of Apollo | B2 |
| Then they roasted the outer meat drew it off the spits gave | M |
| every man his portion and feasted to their hearts' content those who | N |
| waited at table gave Ulysses exactly the same portion as the others | Z2 |
| had for Telemachus had told them to do so | B2 |
| But Minerva would not let the suitors for one moment drop their | N3 |
| insolence for she wanted Ulysses to become still more bitter | P |
| against them Now there happened to be among them a ribald fellow | B2 |
| whose name was Ctesippus and who came from Same This man | L3 |
| confident in his great wealth was paying court to the wife of | G |
| Ulysses and said to the suitors Hear what I have to say The | E |
| stranger has already had as large a portion as any one else this is | A3 |
| well for it is not right nor reasonable to ill treat any guest of | G |
| Telemachus who comes here I will however make him a present on my | G2 |
| own account that he may have something to give to the bath woman | Q2 |
| or to some other of Ulysses' servants | C4 |
| As he spoke he picked up a heifer's foot from the meat basket in | D |
| which it lay and threw it at Ulysses but Ulysses turned his head a | E |
| little aside and avoided it smiling grimly Sardinian fashion as he | F |
| did so and it hit the wall not him On this Telemachus spoke | D4 |
| fiercely to Ctesippus It is a good thing for you said he that | E4 |
| the stranger turned his head so that you missed him If you had hit | I2 |
| him I should have run you through with my spear and your father would | S3 |
| have had to see about getting you buried rather than married in this | L |
| house So let me have no more unseemly behaviour from any of you | N |
| for I am grown up now to the knowledge of good and evil and understand | F4 |
| what is going on instead of being the child that I have been | D |
| heretofore I have long seen you killing my sheep and making free with | I |
| my corn and wine I have put up with this for one man is no match for | X |
| many but do me no further violence Still if you wish to kill me | F |
| kill me I would far rather die than see such disgraceful scenes day | M2 |
| after day guests insulted and men dragging the women servants | C4 |
| about the house in an unseemly way | M2 |
| They all held their peace till at last Agelaus son of Damastor said | R3 |
| No one should take offence at what has just been said nor gainsay | M2 |
| it for it is quite reasonable Leave off therefore ill treating the | E |
| stranger or any one else of the servants who are about the house I | G2 |
| would say however a friendly word to Telemachus and his mother | P |
| which I trust may commend itself to both 'As long ' I would say | M2 |
| 'as you had ground for hoping that Ulysses would one day come home no | B2 |
| one could complain of your waiting and suffering the suitors to be | F |
| in your house It would have been better that he should have returned | G4 |
| but it is now sufficiently clear that he will never do so therefore | X |
| talk all this quietly over with your mother and tell her to marry the | E |
| best man and the one who makes her the most advantageous offer | P |
| Thus you will yourself be able to manage your own inheritance and | F2 |
| to eat and drink in peace while your mother will look after some | H2 |
| other man's house not yours ' | H4 |
| To this Telemachus answered By Jove Agelaus and by the sorrows | I4 |
| of my unhappy father who has either perished far from Ithaca or is | A3 |
| wandering in some distant land I throw no obstacles in the way of | G |
| my mother's marriage on the contrary I urge her to choose | J4 |
| whomsoever she will and I will give her numberless gifts into the | E |
| bargain but I dare not insist point blank that she shall leave the | E |
| house against her own wishes Heaven forbid that I should do this | L |
| Minerva now made the suitors fall to laughing immoderately and | F2 |
| set their wits wandering but they were laughing with a forced | K4 |
| laughter Their meat became smeared with blood their eyes filled with | I |
| tears and their hearts were heavy with forebodings Theoclymenus | L |
| saw this and said Unhappy men what is it that ails you There is | L |
| a shroud of darkness drawn over you from head to foot your cheeks are | L4 |
| wet with tears the air is alive with wailing voices the walls and | F2 |
| roof beams drip blood the gate of the cloisters and the court | M4 |
| beyond them are full of ghosts trooping down into the night of hell | Y2 |
| the sun is blotted out of heaven and a blighting gloom is over all | Y2 |
| the land | F4 |
| Thus did he speak and they all of them laughed heartily Eurymachus | L |
| then said This stranger who has lately come here has lost his | L |
| senses Servants turn him out into the streets since he finds it | I2 |
| so dark here | D3 |
| But Theoclymenus said Eurymachus you need not send any one with | I |
| me I have eyes ears and a pair of feet of my own to say nothing of | G |
| an understanding mind I will take these out of the house with me for | X |
| I see mischief overhanging you from which not one of you men who | N |
| are insulting people and plotting ill deeds in the house of Ulysses | L |
| will be able to escape | N4 |
| He left the house as he spoke and went back to Piraeus who gave him | V3 |
| welcome but the suitors kept looking at one another and provoking | K2 |
| Telemachus fly laughing at the strangers One insolent fellow said | R3 |
| to him Telemachus you are not happy in your guests first you | N |
| have this importunate tramp who comes begging bread and wine and | F2 |
| has no skill for work or for hard fighting but is perfectly | F |
| useless and now here is another fellow who is setting himself up as a | E |
| prophet Let me persuade you for it will be much better to put | C3 |
| them on board ship and send them off to the Sicels to sell for what | K |
| they will bring | K2 |
| Telemachus gave him no heed but sat silently watching his father | P |
| expecting every moment that he would begin his attack upon the | E |
| suitors | L |
| Meanwhile the daughter of Icarius wise Penelope had had had a rich | O4 |
| seat placed for her facing the court and cloisters so that she | F |
| could hear what every one was saying The dinner indeed had been | D |
| prepared amid merriment it had been both good and abundant for | X |
| they had sacrificed many victims but the supper was yet to come | H2 |
| and nothing can be conceived more gruesome than the meal which a | E |
| goddess and a brave man were soon to lay before them for they had | B |
| brought their doom upon themselves | L |
Homer
(1)
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