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Book Nine
one that worries Agamemnon, cf. 4.178—82, 14.70, but the precise (or
primary) cause of his shame is variously stated. It may be mere failure, or
the vaunts of the Trojans, but the point is regularly made, as here, that
many men have died for his sake; the same consideration weighed heavily
with Hektor, see 22.99-107.
23 =14.69 (and = 13.226). For the athetesis and repetition of 23-5
(= 2.116-18) see i3~3in.
24 TTOAICOV K&prjva: the metaphor recalls the similar use of KprjSeuva,
16.100, Od. 13.388, HyDem 151, though the nuance of desecration (explored
at length by Nagler, Spontaneity 45-60) is lacking.
25—31 Six consecutive sentences each filling a whole verse is one of
the longest such sequences in the Iliad, cf. 8.145-52, but the effect would be
mitigated by the pause in recitation at 28 at the end of Agamemnon's
speech. — The second hemistich is a useful tag (8x ), variously introduced
by TOO ydp, 6 TE, KOC! EU, OOU, OU TE, and applied to Zeus, aAicr), an eagle,
and the Cyclops.
26 This is a formular verse (6x //. 2X Od.).
29 + 31 The basic formula is oi 8' dpa TT&VTES CLKT\V EyEvovTo aicoTrf)
(iox //., 6x Od.), followed (5X //., 2X Od.) by oye 8e 8f) UETEEITTE, which is
then variously expanded by such verses as 30 here, cf. 430ft 0 ., 693ft 0 .
30 dvEco: see 3.84^ At Od. 23.93 the word is used, it may be by a
solecism, with reference to a single woman.
31-49 In spite of the stress put on pouAf) as a heroic accomplishment
reasoned argument is seldom heard from speakers in the Iliad. Diomedes
speaks in emotional terms but with this excuse, that Agamemnon's proposals
deserve what they receive, scorn and rejection. In the response
to similar proposals on his part at 14.64ft 0 . the scornful reproaches were
assigned to Odysseus (a senior counsellor) and the confident rejection to the
younger man, Diomedes. Here Diomedes is given both roles in a strongly
characterizing speech (cf. 697—709), the second (after Agamemnon's despondency)
of several such delineations of personality hereabouts, cf.
Nestor's softening response to Diomedes' strong language (57-64), and his
oblique approach to the hitherto unmentionable topic of the quarrel with
Akhilleus (96-113), Agamemnon's graceless appendix to his generosity
(158-61), and the words of the four speakers in Akhilleus' hut - 'O8UC7C7EUS
CTUVETOS, 7ravo0pyos, OEpooTEUTiKos* 'AXIAAEUS OUUIKOS, u£yaA69pcov QoTvi£
T)0IK6S, Trpaos, TTOCISEUTIKOS* Aias dv8p£Tos, CTEIJVOS, UEyaAo9pcov, OCTTAOOS,
8uaKivr)TOS, PaOus (bT on 622). bT summarize Diomedes' credentials: he
killed Hektor's charioteer (8.119-23), wounded Aphrodite (5.335-40), captured
Aineias' horses (5.323-7), secured golden armour (6.234-6), alone
responded to Idaios (7.400—2), alone withstood the thunderbolt (8.133—
50), was last to flee (8.99-100), first to rally (8.253-5), anc ^ did not revile
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