Sixteen Ways of Looking at Hamlet & Odysseus - part 7
The list of similar incidents and themes in Hamlet and The Iliad and The Odyssey is long.
It is one thing to read one work of literature through the lens of another, or scenes Hamlet through the analogy of certain passages in Homer.
But how do we discern what similarities are coincidental [1], as compared to evidence that Shakespeare knew and was influenced by his first- or second-hand knowledge of Homer’s texts?
(This may be a topic for a future post).
For now, here is a new list:
1. Odysseus swears an oath to Tyndareus to defend whoever wins Helen;
Hamlet swears an oath to avenge Claudius having taken Gertrude from his father.
2. Paris takes Helen from Menelaus.
Claudius takes Gertrude from King Hamlet.
3. Odysseus feigns madness, delays keeping his oath to Tyndareus;
Hamlet feigns madness, delays keeping his oath to the ghost.
4. Hyperion/Helios is unsympathetic to Odysseus’ hungry men who steal his cattle.
The ghost’s skin was made “Lazar-like,” (ref. to a rich man who was unsympathetic to the beggar Lazarus in Luke 16).
5. Ithika's court & society are corrupted in Odysseus’ absence.
Denmark is corrupted after the death of King Hamlet. [2]
6. Penelope’s suitors drink the wine of Odysseus/Telemachus, abusing hospitality.
Gertrude's new husband Claudius drinks his brother’s/Hamlet’s wine, abusing hospitality.
7. Odysseus’ father Laertes helps defend Penelope from suitors.
Laertes discourages Ophelia from Hamlet as suitor.
Odyssey: Penelope weaves/unweaves a funeral shroud to delay suitors.
8. Hamlet figuratively weaves/unweaves thoughts and conscience, delaying action.
9. Ophelia is sewing when Hamlet comes to her room acting mad.
10. Hamlet and Ophelia figuratively weave/unweave love and rejection.
11. Penelope’s suitors plan to kill Telemachus, heir of Odysseus.
Claudius and Laertes plan to kill Hamlet, heir of Denmark.
12. Telemachus takes a sea voyage to find his father, Odysseus.
Hamlet takes a sea voyage and finds that having his father’s ring is providential.
13. Odysseus cannot embrace his mother’s spirit in Hades; she is like air;
Hamlet: Sentinels’ weapons do nothing to the ghost: it is like air.
14. Odysseus, returned from sea, disguised as a begger, reveals himself to Eummaus. The Goddess Athena is frequently disguised. [3]
Hamlet, often described as “poor” or “begging,” returns from sea, hides his identity from a gravedigger, with echoes of the Emmaus tale.
15. Odysseus and TELEMACHUS obtain vengeance against suitors, who suffer consequences of their own bad actions.
Hamlet, guided by the ghost, obtains vengeance against Claudius, who dies of his own poison.
16. Odyssey: Spirits of dead suitors gibber.
Horatio: Spirits of the dead gibbered in streets after Caesar’s death.
The Odyssey & Hamlet have many common themes as mentioned in previous posts. [4]
Is there something at the heart of all of this? [5]
What do you think?
~~~~~~~
NOTES:
[TITLE] The title of this post is a variation on the title of the Wallace Stevens poem, “Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird.”
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/45236/thirteen-ways-of-looking-at-a-blackbird
[1] There are many common themes in literature and human experience, but the presence of a common theme doesn’t mean a later author was familiar with and influenced by or alluding to an older work.
[2] I am indebted to Federico La Sala for this important point.
[3] See the following sources for connections between The Odyssey and Jesus appearing to the disciples on the road to Emmaus:
- Max Whitaker, in Is Jesus Athene or Odysseus? Investigating the Unrecognisability and Metamorphosis of Jesus in his Post-Resurrection Appearances (2019) p.174.
- Dennis R. MacDonald on Luke 14 (banquet invitations) and the story of Eumaeus: Mythologizing Jesus: From Jewish Teacher to Epic Hero (2015), chapter 10, and on the name Cleopas as an allusion to Eurycleia, both names being based on kleos, 'renown'. (p. 132).
- John Taylor, "Recognition Scenes in the Odyssey and the Gospels", in The Bible and Hellenism: Greek Influence on Jewish and Early Christian Literature (2014).
For these references, see this Reddit thread:
https://www.reddit.com/r/AcademicBiblical/comments/n5zsx1/connections_between_the_odysseys_eumaeus_and_the/
[4] In previous posts I mentioned that Zahra Hasan contributed good observations about such themes. See those posts:
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2022/08/laertes-in-hamlet-odyssey-part-2.html
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2022/08/seeking-penelope-in-ophelia-hamlet.html
[5] It’s possible that Shakespeare found it important to connect his writing by allusions not only to biblical texts, but also to classical texts. The word “catholic” is not only about the Roman Catholic Church, but also means “universal” or “inclusive of the whole,” so to be truly catholic in the richest sense, biblical references alone were not enough.
IMAGES: The 15 images near the top of this post were all taken from previous posts in this series. For credits, see those other posts (links below).
~~~~~~~~~
FOR MORE READING:
Greek Tragic Women on Shakespearean Stages (Oxford, 2017)
by Tanya Pollard
https://global.oup.com/academic/product/greek-tragic-women-on-shakespearean-stages-9780198793113?cc=us&lang=en&
Shakespeare and Classical Tragedy: The Influence of Seneca,
by Robert Miola https://global.oup.com/academic/product/shakespeare-and-classical-tragedy-9780198112648?cc=us&lang=en&
How the Classics Made Shakespeare
By Jonathan Bate
https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691161600/how-the-classics-made-shakespeare
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
POSTS IN THIS SERIES:
INDEX: Holding up The Odyssey as mirror in Hamlet
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2024/08/index-holding-up-odyssey-as-mirror-in.html
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
YOU CAN SUPPORT ME on a one-time "tip" basis on Ko-Fi:
https://ko-fi.com/pauladrianfried
IF YOU WOULD PREFER to support me on a REGULAR basis,
you may do so on Ko-Fi, or here on Patreon:
https://patreon.com/PaulAdrianFried
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Disclaimer: If and when I quote or paraphrase bible passages or mention religion in many of my blog posts, I do not intend to promote any religion over another, nor am I attempting to promote religious belief in general; only to explore how the Bible and religion influenced Shakespeare, his plays, and his age.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thanks for reading!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My current project is a book tentatively titled Hamlet’s Bible, about biblical allusions and plot echoes in Hamlet.
Below is a link to a list of some of my top posts (“greatest hits”), including a description of my book project (last item on the list):
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2019/12/top-20-hamlet-bible-posts.html
I post every week, so please visit as often as you like and consider FOLLOWING.
To find the FOLLOW button, go to the home page: https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/
see the = drop-down menu with three lines in the upper left.
From there you can click FOLLOW and see options.
It is one thing to read one work of literature through the lens of another, or scenes Hamlet through the analogy of certain passages in Homer.
But how do we discern what similarities are coincidental [1], as compared to evidence that Shakespeare knew and was influenced by his first- or second-hand knowledge of Homer’s texts?
(This may be a topic for a future post).
1. Odysseus swears an oath to Tyndareus to defend whoever wins Helen;
Hamlet swears an oath to avenge Claudius having taken Gertrude from his father.
2. Paris takes Helen from Menelaus.
Claudius takes Gertrude from King Hamlet.
3. Odysseus feigns madness, delays keeping his oath to Tyndareus;
Hamlet feigns madness, delays keeping his oath to the ghost.
4. Hyperion/Helios is unsympathetic to Odysseus’ hungry men who steal his cattle.
The ghost’s skin was made “Lazar-like,” (ref. to a rich man who was unsympathetic to the beggar Lazarus in Luke 16).
5. Ithika's court & society are corrupted in Odysseus’ absence.
Denmark is corrupted after the death of King Hamlet. [2]
6. Penelope’s suitors drink the wine of Odysseus/Telemachus, abusing hospitality.
Gertrude's new husband Claudius drinks his brother’s/Hamlet’s wine, abusing hospitality.
7. Odysseus’ father Laertes helps defend Penelope from suitors.
Laertes discourages Ophelia from Hamlet as suitor.
Odyssey: Penelope weaves/unweaves a funeral shroud to delay suitors.
8. Hamlet figuratively weaves/unweaves thoughts and conscience, delaying action.
9. Ophelia is sewing when Hamlet comes to her room acting mad.
10. Hamlet and Ophelia figuratively weave/unweave love and rejection.
11. Penelope’s suitors plan to kill Telemachus, heir of Odysseus.
Claudius and Laertes plan to kill Hamlet, heir of Denmark.
12. Telemachus takes a sea voyage to find his father, Odysseus.
Hamlet takes a sea voyage and finds that having his father’s ring is providential.
13. Odysseus cannot embrace his mother’s spirit in Hades; she is like air;
Hamlet: Sentinels’ weapons do nothing to the ghost: it is like air.
14. Odysseus, returned from sea, disguised as a begger, reveals himself to Eummaus. The Goddess Athena is frequently disguised. [3]
Hamlet, often described as “poor” or “begging,” returns from sea, hides his identity from a gravedigger, with echoes of the Emmaus tale.
15. Odysseus and TELEMACHUS obtain vengeance against suitors, who suffer consequences of their own bad actions.
Hamlet, guided by the ghost, obtains vengeance against Claudius, who dies of his own poison.
16. Odyssey: Spirits of dead suitors gibber.
Horatio: Spirits of the dead gibbered in streets after Caesar’s death.
The Odyssey & Hamlet have many common themes as mentioned in previous posts. [4]
Is there something at the heart of all of this? [5]
What do you think?
~~~~~~~
NOTES:
[TITLE] The title of this post is a variation on the title of the Wallace Stevens poem, “Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird.”
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/45236/thirteen-ways-of-looking-at-a-blackbird
[1] There are many common themes in literature and human experience, but the presence of a common theme doesn’t mean a later author was familiar with and influenced by or alluding to an older work.
[2] I am indebted to Federico La Sala for this important point.
[3] See the following sources for connections between The Odyssey and Jesus appearing to the disciples on the road to Emmaus:
- Max Whitaker, in Is Jesus Athene or Odysseus? Investigating the Unrecognisability and Metamorphosis of Jesus in his Post-Resurrection Appearances (2019) p.174.
- Dennis R. MacDonald on Luke 14 (banquet invitations) and the story of Eumaeus: Mythologizing Jesus: From Jewish Teacher to Epic Hero (2015), chapter 10, and on the name Cleopas as an allusion to Eurycleia, both names being based on kleos, 'renown'. (p. 132).
- John Taylor, "Recognition Scenes in the Odyssey and the Gospels", in The Bible and Hellenism: Greek Influence on Jewish and Early Christian Literature (2014).
For these references, see this Reddit thread:
https://www.reddit.com/r/AcademicBiblical/comments/n5zsx1/connections_between_the_odysseys_eumaeus_and_the/
[4] In previous posts I mentioned that Zahra Hasan contributed good observations about such themes. See those posts:
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2022/08/laertes-in-hamlet-odyssey-part-2.html
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2022/08/seeking-penelope-in-ophelia-hamlet.html
[5] It’s possible that Shakespeare found it important to connect his writing by allusions not only to biblical texts, but also to classical texts. The word “catholic” is not only about the Roman Catholic Church, but also means “universal” or “inclusive of the whole,” so to be truly catholic in the richest sense, biblical references alone were not enough.
IMAGES: The 15 images near the top of this post were all taken from previous posts in this series. For credits, see those other posts (links below).
~~~~~~~~~
FOR MORE READING:
Greek Tragic Women on Shakespearean Stages (Oxford, 2017)
by Tanya Pollard
https://global.oup.com/academic/product/greek-tragic-women-on-shakespearean-stages-9780198793113?cc=us&lang=en&
Shakespeare and Classical Tragedy: The Influence of Seneca,
by Robert Miola https://global.oup.com/academic/product/shakespeare-and-classical-tragedy-9780198112648?cc=us&lang=en&
How the Classics Made Shakespeare
By Jonathan Bate
https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691161600/how-the-classics-made-shakespeare
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
POSTS IN THIS SERIES:
INDEX: Holding up The Odyssey as mirror in Hamlet
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2024/08/index-holding-up-odyssey-as-mirror-in.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
YOU CAN SUPPORT ME on a one-time "tip" basis on Ko-Fi:
https://ko-fi.com/pauladrianfried
IF YOU WOULD PREFER to support me on a REGULAR basis,
you may do so on Ko-Fi, or here on Patreon:
https://patreon.com/PaulAdrianFried
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Disclaimer: If and when I quote or paraphrase bible passages or mention religion in many of my blog posts, I do not intend to promote any religion over another, nor am I attempting to promote religious belief in general; only to explore how the Bible and religion influenced Shakespeare, his plays, and his age.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thanks for reading!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My current project is a book tentatively titled Hamlet’s Bible, about biblical allusions and plot echoes in Hamlet.
Below is a link to a list of some of my top posts (“greatest hits”), including a description of my book project (last item on the list):
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2019/12/top-20-hamlet-bible-posts.html
I post every week, so please visit as often as you like and consider FOLLOWING.
To find the FOLLOW button, go to the home page: https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/
see the = drop-down menu with three lines in the upper left.
From there you can click FOLLOW and see options.
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