Hesiod, the Homeric Hymns, and Homerica Part 2

The Hymn is doubtless a very ancient form; but if no example of extreme antiquity survive this must be put down to the fact that until the age of literary consciousness, such things are not preserved.

First, apparently, in the collection stood the "Hymn to Dionysus", of which only two fragments now survive. While it appears to have been a hymn of the longer type [1115], we have no evidence to show either its scope or date.

The "Hymn to Demeter", extant only in the MS. discovered by Matthiae at Moscow, describes the seizure of Persephone by Hades, the grief of Demeter, her stay at Eleusis, and her vengeance on G.o.ds and men by causing famine. In the end Zeus is forced to bring Persephone back from the lower world; but the G.o.ddess, by the contriving of Hades, still remains partly a deity of the lower world. In memory of her sorrows Demeter establishes the Eleusinian mysteries (which, however, were purely agrarian in origin).

This hymn, as a literary work, is one of the finest in the collection.

It is surely Attic or Eleusinian in origin. Can we in any way fix its date? Firstly, it is certainly not later than the beginning of the sixth century, for it makes no mention of Iacchus, and the Dionysiac element was introduced at Eleusis at about that period. Further, the insignificance of Triptolemus and Eumolpus point to considerable antiquity, and the digamma is still active. All these considerations point to the seventh century as the probable date of the hymn.

The "Hymn to Apollo" consists of two parts, which beyond any doubt were originally distinct, a Delian hymn and a Pythian hymn.

The Delian hymn describes how Leto, in travail with Apollo, sought out a place in which to bear her son, and how Apollo, born in Delos, at once claimed for himself the lyre, the bow, and prophecy. This part of the existing hymn ends with an encomium of the Delian festival of Apollo and of the Delian choirs. The second part celebrates the founding of Pytho (Delphi) as the oracular seat of Apollo. After various wanderings the G.o.d comes to Telphus, near Haliartus, but is dissuaded by the nymph of the place from settling there and urged to go on to Pytho where, after slaying the she-dragon who nursed Typhaon, he builds his temple. After the punishment of Telphusa for her deceit in giving him no warning of the dragoness at Pytho, Apollo, in the form of a dolphin, brings certain Cretan shipmen to Delphi to be his priests; and the hymn ends with a charge to these men to behave orderly and righteously.

The Delian part is exclusively Ionian and insular both in style and sympathy; Delos and no other is Apollo's chosen seat: but the second part is as definitely continental; Delos is ignored and Delphi alone is the important centre of Apollo's worship. From this it is clear that the two parts need not be of one date--The first, indeed, is ascribed (Scholiast on Pindar "Nem". ii, 2) to Cynaethus of Chios (fl. 504 B.C.), a date which is obviously far too low; general considerations point rather to the eighth century. The second part is not later than 600 B.C.; for 1) the chariot-races at Pytho, which commenced in 586 B.C., are unknown to the writer of the hymn, 2) the temple built by Trophonius and Agamedes for Apollo (ll. 294-299) seems to have been still standing when the hymn was written, and this temple was burned in 548. We may at least be sure that the first part is a Chian work, and that the second was composed by a continental poet familiar with Delphi.

The "Hymn to Hermes" differs from others in its burlesque, quasi-comic character, and it is also the best-known of the Hymns to English readers in consequence of Sh.e.l.ley's translation.

After a brief narrative of the birth of Hermes, the author goes on to show how he won a place among the G.o.ds. First the new-born child found a tortoise and from its sh.e.l.l contrived the lyre; next, with much cunning circ.u.mstance, he stole Apollo's cattle and, when charged with the theft by Apollo, forced that G.o.d to appear in undignified guise before the tribunal of Zeus. Zeus seeks to reconcile the pair, and Hermes by the gift of the lyre wins Apollo's friendship and purchases various prerogatives, a share in divination, the lordship of herds and animals, and the office of messenger from the G.o.ds to Hades.

The Hymn is hard to date. Hermes' lyre has seven strings and the invention of the seven-stringed lyre is ascribed to Terpander (flor.

676 B.C.). The hymn must therefore be later than that date, though Terpander, according to Weir Smyth [1116], may have only modified the scale of the lyre; yet while the burlesque character precludes an early date, this feature is far removed, as Allen and Sikes remark, from the silliness of the "Battle of the Frogs and Mice", so that a date in the earlier part of the sixth century is most probable.

The "Hymn to Aphrodite" is not the least remarkable, from a literary point of view, of the whole collection, exhibiting as it does in a masterly manner a divine being as the unwilling victim of an irresistible force. It tells how all creatures, and even the G.o.ds themselves, are subject to the will of Aphrodite, saving only Artemis, Athena, and Hestia; how Zeus to humble her pride of power caused her to love a mortal, Anchises; and how the G.o.ddess visited the hero upon Mt.

Ida. A comparison of this work with the Lay of Demodocus ("Odyssey"

viii, 266 ff.), which is superficially similar, will show how far superior is the former in which the G.o.ddess is but a victim to forces stronger than herself. The lines (247-255) in which Aphrodite tells of her humiliation and grief are specially noteworthy.

There are only general indications of date. The influence of Hesiod is clear, and the hymn has almost certainly been used by the author of the "Hymn to Demeter", so that the date must lie between these two periods, and the seventh century seems to be the latest date possible.

The "Hymn to Dionysus" relates how the G.o.d was seized by pirates and how with many manifestations of power he avenged himself on them by turning them into dolphins. The date is widely disputed, for while Ludwich believes it to be a work of the fourth or third century, Allen and Sikes consider a sixth or seventh century date to be possible. The story is figured in a different form on the reliefs from the choragic monument of Lysicrates, now in the British Museum [1117].

Very different in character is the "Hymn to Ares", which is Orphic in character. The writer, after lauding the G.o.d by detailing his attributes, prays to be delivered from feebleness and weakness of soul, as also from impulses to wanton and brutal violence.

The only other considerable hymn is that to "Pan", which describes how he roams hunting among the mountains and thickets and streams, how he makes music at dusk while returning from the chase, and how he joins in dancing with the nymphs who sing the story of his birth. This, beyond most works of Greek literature, is remarkable for its fresh and spontaneous love of wild natural scenes.

The remaining hymns are mostly of the briefest compa.s.s, merely hailing the G.o.d to be celebrated and mentioning his chief attributes. The Hymns to "Hermes" (xviii), to the "Dioscuri" (xvii), and to "Demeter" (xiii) are mere abstracts of the longer hymns iv, x.x.xiii, and ii.

The Epigrams of Homer

The "Epigrams of Homer" are derived from the pseudo-Herodotean "Life of Homer", but many of them occur in other doc.u.ments such as the "Contest of Homer and Hesiod", or are quoted by various ancient authors. These poetic fragments clearly antedate the "Life" itself, which seems to have been so written round them as to supply appropriate occasions for their composition. Epigram iii on Midas of Larissa was otherwise attributed to Cleobulus of Lindus, one of the Seven Sages; the address to Glaucus (xi) is purely Hesiodic; xiii, according to MM. Croiset, is a fragment from a gnomic poem. Epigram xiv is a curious poem attributed on no very obvious grounds to Hesiod by Julius Pollox. In it the poet invokes Athena to protect certain potters and their craft, if they will, according to promise, give him a reward for his song; if they prove false, malignant gnomes are invoked to wreck the kiln and hurt the potters.

The Burlesque Poems

To Homer were popularly ascribed certain burlesque poems in which Aristotle ("Poetics" iv) saw the germ of comedy. Most interesting of these, were it extant, would be the "Margites". The hero of the epic is at once sciolist and simpleton, 'knowing many things, but knowing them all badly'. It is unfortunately impossible to trace the plan of the poem, which presumably detailed the adventures of this unheroic character: the metre used was a curious mixture of hexametric and iambic lines. The date of such a work cannot be high: Croiset thinks it may belong to the period of Archilochus (c. 650 B.C.), but it may well be somewhat later.

Another poem, of which we know even less, is the "Cercopes". These Cercopes ('Monkey-Men') were a pair of malignant dwarfs who went about the world mischief-making. Their punishment by Heracles is represented on one of the earlier metopes from Selinus. It would be idle to speculate as to the date of this work.

Finally there is the "Battle of the Frogs and Mice". Here is told the story of the quarrel which arose between the two tribes, and how they fought, until Zeus sent crabs to break up the battle. It is a parody of the warlike epic, but has little in it that is really comic or of literary merit, except perhaps the list of quaint arms a.s.sumed by the warriors. The text of the poem is in a chaotic condition, and there are many interpolations, some of Byzantine date.

Though popularly ascribed to Homer, its real author is said by Suidas to have been Pigres, a Carian, brother of Artemisia, 'wife of Mausonis', who distinguished herself at the battle of Salamis.

Suidas is confusing the two Artemisias, but he may be right in attributing the poem to about 480 B.C.

The Contest of Homer and Hesiod

This curious work dates in its present form from the lifetime or shortly after the death of Hadrian, but seems to be based in part on an earlier version by the sophist Alcidamas (c. 400 B.C.). Plutarch ("Conviv. Sept.

Sap.", 40) uses an earlier (or at least a shorter) version than that which we possess [1118]. The extant "Contest", however, has clearly combined with the original doc.u.ment much other ill-digested matter on the life and descent of Homer, probably drawing on the same general sources as does the Herodotean "Life of Homer". Its scope is as follows: 1) the descent (as variously reported) and relative dates of Homer and Hesiod; 2) their poetical contest at Chalcis; 3) the death of Hesiod; 4) the wanderings and fortunes of Homer, with brief notices of the circ.u.mstances under which his reputed works were composed, down to the time of his death.

The whole tract is, of course, mere romance; its only values are 1) the insight it give into ancient speculations about Homer; 2) a certain amount of definite information about the Cyclic poems; and 3) the epic fragments included in the stichomythia of the "Contest" proper, many of which--did we possess the clue--would have to be referred to poems of the Epic Cycle.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

HESIOD.--The cla.s.sification and numerations of MSS. here followed is that of Rzach (1913). It is only necessary to add that on the whole the recovery of Hesiodic papyri goes to confirm the authority of the mediaeval MSS. At the same time these fragments have produced much that is interesting and valuable, such as the new lines, "Works and Days"

169 a-d, and the improved readings ib. 278, "Theogony" 91, 93. Our chief gains from papyri are the numerous and excellent fragments of the Catalogues which have been recovered.

"Works and Days":--

S Oxyrhynchus Papyri 1090.

A Vienna, Rainer Papyri L.P. 21-9 (4th cent.).

B Geneva, Naville Papyri Pap. 94 (6th cent.).

C Paris, Bibl. Nat. 2771 (11th cent.).

D Florence, Laur. x.x.xi 39 (12th cent.).

E Messina, Univ. Lib. Preexistens 11 (12th-13th cent.).

F Rome, Vatican 38 (14th cent.).

G Venice, Marc. ix 6 (14th cent.).

H Florence, Laur. x.x.xi 37 (14th cent.).

I Florence, Laur. x.x.xii 16 (13th cent.).

K Florence, Laur. x.x.xii 2 (14th cent.).

L Milan, Ambros. G 32 sup. (14th cent.).

M Florence, Bibl. Riccardiana 71 (15th cent.).

N Milan, Ambros. J 15 sup. (15th cent.).

O Paris, Bibl. Nat. 2773 (14th cent.).

P Cambridge, Trinity College (Gale MS.), O.9.27 (13th-14th cent.).

Q Rome, Vatican 1332 (14th cent.).

These MSS. are divided by Rzach into the following families, issuing from a common original:--

{Omega}a = C {Omega}b = F,G,H {Psi}a = D {Psi}b = I,K,L,M {Phi}a = E {Phi}b = N,O,P,Q