The Renewal of Epic: Responses to Homer in the Argonautica of Apollonius 9004103864, 9789004103863

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THE RENEWAL OF EPIC

MNEMOSYNE BIBLIOTHE CA CLASSICA BATAVA COLLEGERUNT J.M. BREMER , L F. JANSSEN , H. PINKSTER H.W. PLEKET • C.J. RUIJGH, P.H. SCHRijVERS BIBUOTHECAE FASCICUWS EDENDOS CURAVIT C.J. RUijGH, KLASSIEK SEMINARIUM, OUDE TURFMARKT 129, AMSTERDAM

SUPPLEMENf UM CENTESIMUM QUINQUAGES IMUM SECUNDUM VIRGINIA KNIGHT

THE RENEWAL OF EPIC

THE RENEWAL OF EPIC RESPONSES TO HOMER IN THE ARGONAUTICA OF APOLLONIUS

BY

VIRGINIA KNIGHT

E.J. BRILL LEIDEN · NEW YORK · KOLN 1995

The paper in this book meets the guidelines for permanence and durability of the Committee on Production Guidelines for Book Longevity of the Council on Library Resources.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Knight, V. H. (Virginia H.) The renewal of epic : responses to Homer in the Argonautica of Apollonius / by Virginia Knight. cm. - (Mnemosyne, bibliotheca classica Batava. p. Supplementum ; 152) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 9004103864 (alk. paper) 2. Epic poetry, GreekI. Apollonius, Rhodius. Argonautica. -History and Criticism. 3. Argonauts (Greek mythology) in 4. Jason (Greek mythology) in literature. 5. Medea literature. I. Title. 6. Homer-Influence. (Greek mythology) in literature. II. Series. 1995 PA3872.Z4K57 95-34550 883' .0 I-dc20 CIP

Die Deutsche Bibliothek - CIP-Einheitsaufnahme [Mnemosyne / Supplementum] Mnemosyne : bibliotheca classica Batava. Supplementum. Leiden ; New Yark ; Kain : Brill. Fruher Schriftenrcihe Reihe Supplementum zu: Mnemosyne

152. Knight, Virginia H.: The renewal of epic. - 1995 Knight, Virginia H.: The renewal of epic : responses to Homer in the Argonautica of Apollonius / by Virginia Knight. - Leiden; New York; Kain : Brill, 1995 (Mnemosyne : Supplementum ; 152)

ISBN 90--0+-10386---4

ISSN 0 169-8958 ISBN 90 04 l 0386 4 © Cofr.Jright 1995 by EJ. Brill, Leiden, The Netherlo.nds

All rights reserved. No part of this puhlicaJion 111'!)1 be reproduced, transl.aud, stored in a retrieval .rystem, or transmitted in any form or by any means, ekctronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission .from the publisher. Authori;:.aJion to photocopy items for internal or personal use is grant,ed by E.J. Brill provided that the appropriat,e fees are paid direct!, to The Copyright Drive, Suit,e 910 2 Ckarance Cent,er, 2 2 Rosewood Danvers MA 01923, USA. Fees are subject to change. PRINTED IN THE NETHERLANDS

Translations from the Iliad are mostly from the translation by Martin Hammond, from the OotipolEpOV aa:x;aAbrovtai;. (On that day they had been very close to the island when Zeus stirred up the blast of the North Wind and his rain signalled the watery passage of Arcturus. During the day the wind was soft and gently shook the leaves on the topmost branches of the mountain trees, but at night it fell fiercely upon the sea and the roaring blasts roused the waves. Dark mist filled the heavens, no bright stars appeared anywhere through the clouds, and all around a gloomy blackness pressed them. Soaked to the skin and fearful of a miserable end, the sons of Phrixus were carried aimlessly on the waves. The force of the wind tore out the sail and even broke the ship itself in two after it had been battered by the swell. With the help of the gods the four of them clung to one of those mighty planks which had been held together by sharp bolts, but which came loose as the ship broke up; narrowly avoiding death, they were carried in despair towards the island by the waves and the gusts of wind.) Od. 5.288 1eal 6:n Cl)mfi1erov yaiT1i; axe66v .... 29 3 ... (J'l)V oe veg,fraat 1eaJ..u"'e yatav oµou 1eal 7tOVtOV · opcopEl 6' oupav68ev yg. (J'l)V 6' Etipoi; tE Notoi; t' £7tECJOV Uq,upoi; tE 0'\lCJ 'bright' (1.774), iipru0oµev~ 'glowing' (1.778); cf. the cloak's brightness (1.725-26). 9ii~oavw (l.776)/0rt~oato (1.767) 'gaze' (a 8iiT1- form of9Eaoµm occurs only once elsewhere in Apollonius).

BA'ITLE SCENES

109

3.1271-74 recalls 11. 22.162-64 (pp. 120-1); it is not, strictly speaking, a simile, but rather indicates the distance from the plain of Ares to the city. 11. 22.162-64 comes at the climax of Achilles' arist,ei,a,, his encounter with Hector. Both passages are set at funeral games (3.127374, II. 22.164) where chariots run round a turning point (3.1272-73, 11. 22.162---63). The setting of Jason's ordeal is appropriately associated with physical prowess, and the specifying of the games as funeral games, which are found in the Iliad but not in the Argonautica (3.1273-74), 127 sets the tone for the 'Iliadic' action to follow. Like the race track, the space between the city and the plain is traversed by chariots (3.1272-73, 3.1235-39). The games are in honour of a king (3.1273); Aeetes is coming to watch but Kata'tOtuc; 'gardener', cpu'to'tpocpoc; 'nurseryman', cniµaV'tTIP 'master'. 137 Cf. p. 18 n. 68. 138 Cf. e.g. L. Klein, "Die Gottertechnik in den Argonautika des Apollonios Rhodios," Philologus 86 (1930), 18-51, 215-57. 139 E.g. II. 4.455, II. 8.559, (II. 13.493, cited above, is a reaction to the sight of flocks). 140 On vt60pt1twc; 'newly raised', cpuw'tpocpoc; 'nurseryman' in Apollonius' simile, cf. Campbell, Studies, 93. 141 Frankel (1921), 39.

112

CHAPTER THREE

Jason consists of several stages involving a variety of actions. Nor can it be because Apollonius dislikes violence and wishes to describe it as little as possible, 142 since the appearance of the bulls, yoking and ploughing are not in themselves destructive. In any case, Apollonius does not avoid describing battles, as this chapter has already demonstrated. The density of similes, along with other similarities to Homer, constructs Jason's arist.eia as a perverse kind of battle scene; 143 the exaggeration of Homeric elements and their appearance in new contexts shows the contrast with Homer. The end of Book 3, like its beginning, imitates a type of scene associated with the Iliad; the arist.eia of Jason, despite its unusual nature, is depicted in familiar heroic terms. The battles in Books 1 and 2, though apparently conventional, experimented with the style of Homeric battles; that in Book 3 introduces Homeric devices and language into an unusual setting. There are similarities in phraseology and actions which resemble those which occur in battle scenes in the Iliad, such as Aeetes' arming and Jason's throwing of the stone. There are many similes, as in a Homeric battle scene, and their vehicles resemble those of Homer's battle similes. It is also possible to make comparisons in general terms between the scene and the battles of the Iliad. The relationship of Jason's arist.eia to combat in the Iliad has a crucial bearing on the reader's evaluation of it as a heroic exploit; it is in this scene that his prowess is tested to the greatest extent. Can Jason's achievements compare with those of the greatest Homeric warriors, or, like those of a modern athlete, are they diminished by the artificial aid he has received? 144 In the foregoing discussion, I have drawn attention to the way the language and conventions of Homeric battles are used in Jason's arislida. In this respect it continues the approach established in the two more orthodox battles in the first two books. However, it does so in an even-handed way; it would be wrong to see the Iliadic colouring of the scene as relevant purely to Jason and not to Aeetes and the Earthborn. Naturally, in a passage such as a simile describing comSuggested by Carspecken (1952), 92-93. Cf. Fusillo (1985), 330-34. 144 For some recent differing views, cf. Schwinge (1986), 112-16, R. L. Hunter, '"Short on Heroics':Jason in the Argonautica," CQ,38 (1988), 448-51, 15-25, Lawall and De Forest (1991), 343-45. 142

143

BATILE SCENES

113

bat, the allusion will 'rub off' on both sides, but enough of the echoes of Homer pertain only to one side or the other for there to be some significance in their distribution. Most of the similarities do not gain in significance from a consideration of their Homeric context; the pattern of allusions connected with Iliad 22 associates both Jason and Aeetes with Achilles, and much of the other Homeric phraseology in the scene applies not to Jason but to Aeetes and the Earthborn. The bizarre warriors Jason fights gain in dignity by their resemblance to the combatants in the Iliad, and are brought into the world of epic. Apollonius could have set a 'Homeric' Jason against opponents who are not characterised in Iliadic terms, or, conversely, made Jason the innovator. Instead, all persons and actions are related to conventional epic warfare. It is possible to interpret Jason's resemblance to Achilles both in Jason's favour and against him; the association of Jason with Achilles could make him a figure of comparable stature to him, or it could diminish him by emphasising the difference in the methods by which each of them triumphs. The final decision in this matter is left to the reader. No appropriation of the language of the Iliad can disguise the different tasks Jason has to perform, or the magical nature of the help he is given. Although this kind of help is not afforded to warriors in the Iliad, Jason for his part does not have the immediate assistance of any of the Olympians which they often receive. And whereas Iliadic warriors do not use herbal substances to give themselves immunity from harm, there is a notable precedent in the OV o' EM.crav µEAiai; tE ical. amtioai; aU1V..01crtv, ol;dn llCEA.Ol pt7tj\ 1tup6c;. ~ t' M 8aµvotc; auaA.fotcrt 7t£p~ Kpovi6nc: VT]OOU ltOpEV eµµEvat o'Opov, (Among the generation of demi-gods he was the last survivor of the bronze race of men born from ash-trees, and the son of Kronos gave him to Europa to watch over the island .... ) Hes. WD 143 ZEi>c: 6£ lta~p tpitov liA.Ao YEVO~ µEpOltCilV av8p@ltCilV YJC apyupEq> ou6ev oµoiov, £JC UEA.l~ElV .....

('Hephaestus will ... leave off his fiery blasts, and Aeolus, son of Hippotes,

Cf. pp. 282-83. Cf. Frankel, Not,en, 343. 48 The content of the message given to Iris is mentioned twice (4. 764-69, 4.81922). However, this is not done by exact repetition (as would have happened in Homer); the only verbal correspondences are t1Crovta 'arrive' at line-end (4. 769, 4.821) and ZEqnipou 'west wind' (4. 768, 4.821 ), also in the same metrical position. For example, a~ta~ ... anoU.~!;ElEV (4. 766-67)/ai:ICa~ Epii!;Etv (4.820) 'calm the gusts' (iii:!; occurs only here, though at~ is Homeric (II. 15. 709)). Even a repeated proper name appears in a different form («l>ailJKtOm~Krov 4.822). The location of the repetition is also unexpected; it comes not when Iris delivers the message (4.77778) but in a speech of Hera to Thetis. 46

47

146

CHAPTER FOUR

will hold back the swift gusts of wind ... .') Od. 10.36 (cf. Od. 10.2) o&pa 1tap' AioAOU µqaA~top0 aito 1tdaµat' EKOWCX VEC: 1C\lavo1tpcppot0 .... ('I ... severed the hawsers of my ship') 133 EV8£v OE 1tpotfoc.o 1tAEOµEv .... ('Thence we sailed on ... .')

Odysseus' men have mixed feelings of relief and sorrow about what has happened; nothing is said about the emotions of the Argonauts at this point. They are presumably happy, but like Odysseus and his crew, they will soon feel axoc; 'grief' (1.1054, Od. 10.133) at the deaths of those dear to them, as they accidentally kill their former hosts; 66 like the encounter with the Laestrygonians, the visit to Cyzicus Clauss (1993), 160 notes the similarity. The sudden departure of Odysseus is also echoed at 4.207-8 (Jason cuts the mooring rope after defeating the other batch of Earthborn). Cf. W. Clausen, Virgil's Aeneid and the Traditwn poauvnow 'guilefully' (4.687) echoes Odysseus' own description of Circe's actions (Od. I 0.339 OoAOq>povfouacx). However, the gesture is ineffectual, as Jason instructs his men to remain behind while he and Medea go on alone. This attempt to lure Jason's men to her home replaces Circe's transformation of Odysseus' companions, changing magic into normal seduction (c( 4.667). Apollonius hints at Circe's Homeric role of seductress only to dismiss it. ipuaacxto 'he took' (4.689) recalls Od. 10.294, Od. 10.321 EpuaaaµEVO~ 1tcxpa. µ11pou 'drawing [his sword] from beside his thigh'; Jason takes Medea to protect him as Odysseus does his sword. Swords actually appear in both scenes; Odysseus threatens Circe with his (Od. 10.321-22), whereas Jason sticks his in the ground to show guilt (4.696-97). Circe suggests that the strangers sit down on seats, the first action of a Homeric host (4.691-92); 211 like her beckoning to Jason's men, this gesture is ineffectual since Jason and Medea instead adopt the suppliants' position at her hearth. Thus neither of her first two actions on meeting the Argonauts produces the expected result; this resembles the Oqyssey, where Odysseus does not behave as Circe expects when she tries to transform him. Circe purifies the suppliants before asking their identity (4. 70017). In Homer the position is reversed and it is Circe who supplicates the unknown Odysseus (Od. 10.323). 212 However, the many non-Homeric words used at this point create a distance from the Oqyssey; some are unattested earlier and may be Apollonius' own Both scenes are bipartite, cf. Dufner (1988), 74. On Homer's Circe as 'donna amante', an aspect lacking in Apollonius, cf. Hatzantonis (1976), 14-15. 211 Cf. Od. 1.130-31, Od. 3.34-39, Od. 10.314--15 (Circe), N. J. Richardson, ed., The Homeric Hymn /o Demet,er (Oxford: 1974) on HHDem. 180ff. 212 a1toA.uµa(voµm 'be purified by bathing' (4. 702) only occurs before at II. 1.31314 (cf. Dufner (1988), 75); as there, the cleansing is not the end of troubles for those concerned. Cf. 2.215 (the Phineus episode) 'l!CECJIOU ltp~ Z11voc;, 0 ttc; p(y1atoc; aA.ttpoic; I avopaa1 'By Zeus, protector of suppliants, who is most terrible to men who sin ... .'. 209

210

TIIE ARGONAUTS AND TIIE WANDERINGS OF ODYSSEUS

19 l

invention, 213 others are very rare, 214 and others are associated with tragedy. 215 These last are appropriate in a situation resembling that of Orestes in Eumenides (ritually cleansed from the murder of kin, Medea is still not free from pursuit). Purification from murder does not occur in Homer; 216 though the pig is a common victim in this kind of purification, 217 there remains the disturbing possibility that the sacrificial victim was originally human, since the reader knows that Circe performed this transformation on Odysseus' men. Circe's servants (4.710-l l) also appear at Od. I0.348-59 though their duties are not described in detail, as they are in Homer; 218 they are now naiads, rather than assorted nymphs. The description is in the imperfect rather than the present as in the Odyssry; Odysseus, describing his stay with Circe to the Phaeacians, assumes that Circe's household arrangements have remained the same, whereas the past tense in Apollonius reminds us that Circe is part of the heroic past as much as are the Argonauts. The scene then conforms more closely to the conventions of welcoming scenes, 219 with the suppliants raised to their feet as a sign of acceptance (4.719). 22° Circe at last sits her visitors down, as she has wanted to do since 4.691-92. 221 The questioning of guests (4.720-23) is standard Homeric practice; 222 in the Odyssry Circe does not ask

213 q,u~1~ 'of flight', (Zru.;cJ>u~10 .... ('She ushered me in and gave me a tall silver-studded chair to sit in .... ')

I. 735

ev Q_'. foav

'Avn61tnc; 'Ao-ro1ti6oc; uifr 6otco, 'Aµ E~Eq,aav0TJ, lC ivaA.tYJCtTJ E1tA.Eto p{~a.

(Its flower rises on twin stalks a cubit high; in colour it resembles the Corycian crocus, and the root in the earth is like newly-cut flesh.) Mb'. µEA.av EO"lCE, yaA.am 6t EllCEAOV civ0oc;· Od. 10.304

™

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INDEX OF GREEK WORDS

ltllX'l>V