0:00:04.086,0:00:09.041
Our hero has made it on to Scheria.[br]He's on this island far away.

0:00:09.062,0:00:15.031
We start to learn now, as he makes his[br]movement from this, edges of the island

0:00:15.031,0:00:21.028
where he meets Nausicaa and her friends.[br]When he moves from there into the center

0:00:21.028,0:00:25.091
of this town this city.[br]He sees something really amazing.

0:00:26.012,0:00:31.067
This place is a little bit strange.[br]It's not quite like a normal citadel.

0:00:31.088,0:00:36.065
That we will hear more about as Odysseus[br]goes on, on his adventures.

0:00:36.065,0:00:41.051
And we've seen now represented.[br]Presented in Telemachus's journyes as he

0:00:41.051,0:00:45.046
goes around and sees Nestor's palace or[br]Menelaus's palace.

0:00:45.065,0:00:50.071
The Phaeacians have a slightly different[br]kind of reality that they live in.

0:00:50.090,0:00:55.069
They are far away and they don't mix all[br]that well with others we're told.

0:00:55.069,0:00:59.038
They're at the world's frontier out of all[br]human contact.

0:00:59.058,0:01:03.007
We're told on page 174 at the bottom in[br]book seven.

0:01:03.027,0:01:07.042
There's plenty of food there.[br]The crops are irrigated by springs.

0:01:07.042,0:01:11.037
There's a kind of natural irrigation[br]system that's happening.

0:01:11.056,0:01:15.050
There's gentle wind.[br]These that bring ripeness in all seasons?

0:01:15.050,0:01:20.040
So that you have these lush, almost[br]magical orchards that just produce fruit.

0:01:20.040,0:01:25.095
It just kind of comes up out of the depths[br]without extra toil having to be exerted in

0:01:25.095,0:01:28.066
order to get the food, to get the food[br]out.

0:01:28.066,0:01:32.085
We'll hear later, at the close of book[br]eight, of their magic boats.

0:01:32.085,0:01:35.088
They have boats that actually steer[br]themselves.

0:01:35.088,0:01:40.097
They don't have steersmen in their boats.[br]Their boats just kind of know by will

0:01:40.097,0:01:45.062
where they're supposed to go.[br]And then maybe something to focus on in

0:01:45.062,0:01:48.008
terms.[br]Wasn't strangest, the strangest of all is

0:01:48.008,0:01:50.094
the idea that the Gods talked to them.[br]Face to face.

0:01:50.094,0:01:56.068
You hear about this on page 186 in book[br]seven, that the Phoenicians have ability

0:01:56.068,0:02:01.098
to talk face to face with the gods.[br]Usually, they don't disguise themselves

0:02:01.098,0:02:05.007
when they come and talk to the[br]Phoenicians.

0:02:05.007,0:02:09.030
This is really weird, when humans have[br]direct views of gods.

0:02:09.030,0:02:14.068
Usually, there's trouble in mind.[br]There's a story of Zeus and Semele that,

0:02:14.068,0:02:20.063
all you all will know, that a young mortal[br]girl who has a tryst with Zeus convinces

0:02:20.063,0:02:24.024
him to show.[br]Him, to herself in all his full glory and

0:02:24.024,0:02:29.035
he says no, please don't make me do that,[br]when he does, she gets incinerated because

0:02:29.035,0:02:34.003
of how amazingly glorious Zeus is.[br]Similarly, we will hear other kinds of

0:02:34.003,0:02:38.095
stories of humans getting in trouble by[br]getting in too close to gods as the, as

0:02:38.095,0:02:43.000
the coarse advances.[br]Then also remember we made a mention when

0:02:43.000,0:02:47.099
we talked about marriage of [inaudible][br]that in an earlier mythic time even you

0:02:47.099,0:02:50.063
know.[br]Prior to myth, myth in the beta stage.

0:02:50.081,0:02:55.012
There are some tales of just kind of[br]normal human god interactions.

0:02:55.012,0:02:58.044
They went to parties together.[br]They shared meals together.

0:02:58.062,0:03:01.082
We hear about that in the marriage of[br]Piles and Thetas.

0:03:01.099,0:03:06.036
Later on, we're gonna see a really[br]interesting episode of this portrayed in

0:03:06.036,0:03:09.092
Hesiod's Theogony.[br]That's gonna be the story of Prometheus.

0:03:09.092,0:03:14.098
So, you know that things get a little bit[br]messy when it comes to that interaction as

0:03:14.098,0:03:17.043
well.[br]But for the, the Phoenicians.

0:03:17.043,0:03:21.010
They seem to have this easy rapport with[br]the gods face to face.

0:03:21.028,0:03:27.071
They really put them in this mythic space,[br]that's already kind of Mythic for myth.

0:03:28.004,0:03:31.841
It's Proto-mythic, it's beta myth, it's[br]the early side of things.

0:03:31.841,0:03:37.623
So they have this easy back and forth.[br]They are though while they're removed from

0:03:37.623,0:03:40.468
others, they are though extraordinary[br]sailors.

0:03:40.468,0:03:45.378
And this sailing capacity, this sailing[br]prowess, brings them what sailing prowess

0:03:45.378,0:03:48.871
always does.[br]Extraordinarily rich trade, and tremendous

0:03:48.871,0:03:52.602
amounts of wealth.[br]There are fabulous riches described as

0:03:52.602,0:03:56.260
Odysseus approaches, the, the palace of[br]King [inaudible].

0:03:56.260,0:04:02.059
There's amazing stuff that he runs into.[br]A detailed description and a lavish

0:04:02.059,0:04:08.059
description, such as we have not yet seen.[br]This scene, where the, the wealth of the,

0:04:08.059,0:04:14.024
of the palaces is described, gives us a[br]chance to talk about one of the common

0:04:14.024,0:04:20.017
Homeric techniques of telling the story[br]that are really useful for us to focus on

0:04:20.017,0:04:23.043
to get the most we can out of this[br]tech-myth.

0:04:23.087,0:04:26.086
Homer uses a technique called ring[br]composition.

0:04:26.086,0:04:29.066
And in ring composition, some specific[br]thing.

0:04:29.066,0:04:32.065
Here, labelled A is articulated in the[br]story.

0:04:32.065,0:04:36.041
And then there's a long digression.[br]Here represented with B.

0:04:36.060,0:04:41.366
Where we talk about something that is[br]related to this usually specific physical

0:04:41.366,0:04:45.693
thing we just ran into, and then we'll[br]know that we're done with the digression

0:04:45.693,0:04:49.330
when we mention A again.[br]So sometimes he might say "and then the

0:04:49.330,0:04:52.934
general picked up that sword.[br]That sword which was handed down many

0:04:52.934,0:04:57.758
generations earlier to his grandfather and[br]his grandfather and got passed down to

0:04:57.758,0:04:59.964
him.[br]That sword is the one he picked up now."

0:04:59.964,0:05:04.403
So usually we will have an articulation of[br]the physical object, we'll have long

0:05:04.403,0:05:08.903
digression, and then another articulation[br]of the physical object to finish off the

0:05:08.903,0:05:11.975
XXX.[br]Thought to be a very useful aid for those

0:05:11.975,0:05:14.579
that are doing.[br]In a world of formulaic presentations of

0:05:14.579,0:05:18.063
poetry, so if your memorizing something[br]and you're trying to get it going and then

0:05:18.063,0:05:21.646
you want to talk about your digression and[br]then you want remind yourself and your

0:05:21.646,0:05:24.914
audience that you're done with the[br]digression, just mention that thing that

0:05:24.914,0:05:27.866
you did in the beginning.[br]It tells you that it's the time to get

0:05:27.866,0:05:31.064
out.[br]Now this technique is used in great effect

0:05:31.064,0:05:35.657
when Homer is describing the riches at the[br]palace of King Alkinoos.

0:05:35.657,0:05:41.186
So let's just take time to look at a[br]little bit from book seven using Fagels's

0:05:41.186,0:05:44.511
translation.[br]Now as Odysseus approached Alkinoos's

0:05:44.511,0:05:49.469
famous house, a rush of feelings stirred[br]within his heart, bringing him to a

0:05:49.469,0:05:53.069
standstill even before he crossed the[br]bronze threshold.

0:05:53.069,0:05:57.023
A strong radiant.[br]A radiance strong as the moon or rising

0:05:57.023,0:06:01.082
sun came flooding through the high roofed[br]halls of generous King Alcinous.

0:06:01.082,0:06:06.066
Walls plated in bronze crowned with a[br]circling frieze glazed as blue as lapis

0:06:06.066,0:06:10.063
ran to the left and right.[br]From outer gates to the deepest court

0:06:10.063,0:06:13.074
recesses and solid gold doors enclosed the[br]palace.

0:06:13.092,0:06:17.077
Pretty striking the description of what[br]he's walking in to.

0:06:17.077,0:06:22.024
And in fact the description goes on and[br]lots of details are brought out.

0:06:22.024,0:06:27.007
We hear about the threshold that he's[br]standing on is actually (itself made off).

0:06:27.007,0:06:29.096
Bronze.[br]The door posts and the lintel are made of

0:06:29.096,0:06:32.080
silver.[br]The handles on the door are made of gold.

0:06:32.096,0:06:37.057
There are gold and silver dog statues on[br]either side of the door that were made by

0:06:37.057,0:06:40.057
[himself.[br]They're immortal and never die.

0:06:40.057,0:06:42.096
They're guard dogs made of gold and[br]silver.

0:06:43.013,0:06:47.002
There are many thrones in the palace.[br]One is just not just good enough.

0:06:47.002,0:06:51.069
And each of them is decorated and draped[br]with beautiful fine fabric, that's, of

0:06:51.069,0:06:55.069
extraordinarily fine quality.[br]Then there are golden statues of boys that

0:06:55.069,0:06:59.024
are there for torch holders.[br]There are 50 servant women screwing

0:06:59.024,0:07:02.020
around.[br]And there are magnificent In orchards and

0:07:02.020,0:07:06.061
vineyards stretching for acres, that just[br]fertilized themselves.

0:07:06.061,0:07:12.001
So, we hear this long, long digression on[br]tales of the extraordinary wealth of

0:07:12.001,0:07:15.066
Alkinoss's Palace, that's visible to[br]Odysseus's eyes.

0:07:15.066,0:07:21.012
At that point then, at the end of this[br]digression, bottom of page 183 and 84 in

0:07:21.012,0:07:26.087
Fagles, in the middle of book seven, such[br]were the gifts the glory showered down by

0:07:26.087,0:07:31.099
the gods on King Alkinoss's realm.[br]And there Odysseus stood, gazing at all

0:07:31.099,0:07:35.086
this bounty.[br]A man who borne so much once he had his

0:07:35.086,0:07:40.587
fill of marveling at it all, he crossed[br]the threshold quickly, strode inside the

0:07:40.587,0:07:44.607
palace.[br]So with our ring composition, we have an A

0:07:44.607,0:07:49.137
and a B, and an A.[br]The A is our threshold and the digression

0:07:49.137,0:07:54.506
in B is our long and detailed tales of[br]wealth and A again is our threshold.

0:07:54.506,0:07:58.055
The way that Homer uses this, look at what[br]he's done.

0:07:58.074,0:08:03.588
The usefulness of this ring composition[br]and it's characteristic of the Homeric

0:08:03.588,0:08:07.039
technique.[br]We have Odysseus enter into the palace and

0:08:07.039,0:08:12.051
we basically see it through his own eyes.[br]He walks in, hits the threshold and then

0:08:12.051,0:08:17.015
he's just overwhelmed.[br]And in that marvelous one or two seconds

0:08:17.015,0:08:20.069
of Odysseus getting the visual,[br]overwhelming.

0:08:20.088,0:08:25.088
Impression of wealth in Alcinous's Palace.[br]In that short time Homer goes on and on

0:08:25.088,0:08:30.039
and on in narrative description.[br]And then reminds us at the end of it that

0:08:30.039,0:08:34.091
actually what we've just done is paused[br]with Odysseus for a moment on the

0:08:34.091,0:08:38.001
threshold.[br]But what we've been able to hear is this

0:08:38.001,0:08:42.883
giant explosion in Odysseus's mind of[br]Deep, registering of this powerful,

0:08:42.883,0:08:48.214
emotional kind of element, elements of[br]perception that Odysseus gets.

0:08:48.214,0:08:53.219
So, time is able to actually expand and[br]explode inside of these rings.

0:08:53.219,0:08:59.638
We'll have a mention of something, there[br]may be a long memory that comes back to

0:08:59.638,0:09:03.226
us, someone, and a mention of it at the[br]end.

0:09:03.226,0:09:08.142
That memory of course comes back.[br]In an instant, but the representation of

0:09:08.142,0:09:12.728
it in Homer's poetry goes on for some[br]lavish amount of time.

0:09:12.728,0:09:19.109
So Reins provide a way for Homer to dilate[br]certain very pregnant scenes to let us

0:09:19.109,0:09:24.676
pause for a moment usually inside of[br]someone's head as something grand happens

0:09:24.676,0:09:29.122
right before our eyes.[br]And in this case there's nothing that's

0:09:29.122,0:09:32.559
gonna be quite as grand as Alcinous's[br]Palace.

0:09:32.559,0:09:36.825
It's extraordinary.[br]So Odysseus is entering into a world of,

0:09:36.825,0:09:39.065
of tremendous, tremendous wealth.