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Book Nine
follows at 658-68 (621 ^ 659) by interposing an intermediary. (At 24.643
Akhilleus gives his orders directly.) This is because the emissaries must be
got rid of- and have their final say.
f) is from dg-t, 'said', from the same root seen in Lat. aio, ad-ag-ium. The
Iliadic formulas, not readily elicited from the concordances, are fj (b (a) ...
6E ... 4X , with change of subject, and without change of subject f), KCU ...
26X and ¥\ pa, KOCI ... 30X .
622-3 The progressive enjambment in the speech introduction is unusual
(but cf. TOTCTI 8e Neorcop | ^Sueirfjs ... 1.247-8), and has led to a
recasting of the regular formula for Aias. — T6Aaucovid8r|s: this patronymic
is found only here and at 23.838. It implies an interpretation as well
as a modification of the archaic TeAocucbvios, 'le mot pouvant signifier
l'«endurant»', Chantraine, Diet. s.v.
625-42 Aias' runover words and enjambed sentences give a powerful
effect of his anger at Akhilleus' attitude, on which see Higbie, Measure and
Music 118-20. The 'skewed sentence', i.e. one that begins in one verse and
ends in the next with progressive or necessary enjambment, is an important
aspect of Homeric style. In emotionally uncharged situations sentence and
verse tend to coincide. By overriding this tendency the skewed sentence
expresses the passion of speakers and, in battle scenes, the excitement of the
poet.
624-36 Aias begins by ostensibly addressing Odysseus, but more and
more as he proceeds his remarks are made for Akhilleus' ears, until he
finally slips into the 2nd person in 636. Actual change of addressee in the
course of a speech is marked as such, e.g. 7.361, 9.704, 11.819.
628-9 dypiov: an enduring aspect of Akhilleus' character, cf. Apollo's
words at 24.41-5, dypioc oT8ev ... sAeov uev dTrcoAeaev, o08s oi aiScos I
yiyveTou.
630 CTXSTAIOS: see Q- 1 *) 11 ' Aias protests at Akhilleus' unreasonable behaviour.
For him the values of the heroic world allow of no argument; they are
friends under one roof, they have done the right thing, why can't Akhilleus?
Aias' thought is similar to that of Odysseus at 256 and 301-3: acting
like a friend to one's friends is the better course now that recompense has
been made and by honouring Akhilleus the Achaeans have a claim in turn
to his co-operation.
631 l^oxov: only in the formula i^oxov dAAcov, otherwise i£oxoc. The
syntax is ambiguous, here and at 6.194, between adverb and adjective.
632 vr|Af)s: more strong language, cf. 16.33, 16.204. Akhilleus is like a
man who unreasonably insists on his pound of flesh.
632-6 Even for murder, apparently the worst crime Aias can think of,
the victim's relatives accept compensation. There is another reference to
this custom at 18.497-508 (see nn.). It was an option, of course, that in the
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