Blog Post #5

As hymnology is for praising God, Pindar’s victory odes are for praising victors.  He mentions the victor’s name, father, hometown, and event in the beginning of Ode, and expands the honor of victory by referring to Olympian Gods; it makes him as a special and dominant being rather than a normal man.

“for Xenophon son of Thessalos, from Corinth, victor in the stade race and the pentathlon.” (Olympian 13)

Here, he remarks victor’s name, Xenophone, and his father’s name, Thessalos. He also mentions his hometown, Corinth, and the event, stade game. He begins with this information to emphasize his honorable name and his family.

“O golden Lyre, possession of Apollo and the violet-haired

Muses that speaks on their behalf, to whom the dance step harkens

as initiator of festivity,

and whose signals the singers obey

whenever you strike up the preludes that

lead off the chorus with your throbbing notes-

you even quench the warlike thunderbolt

of ever-flowing fire; and as the eagle sleeps

on Zeus’s scepter, his swift wings

relaxed and folded on each side” (Pythian 1)

In Pythian 1, Pindar calls Muses, Apollo, Zeus, and Ares to amplify the glorious honor of the victor. Muses and Apollo opens a party with beautiful song. This song “even quenches the warlike thunderbolts”, and “eagle sleeps on Zeus’s scepter”. Pindar says that the Olympian Gods will celebrate the victor’s honorable victory, and praise him with a glorious song. His description of the song is very vivid and seems like audience can hear the songs of Muses.

Furthermore, Pindar honors victors with epic stories of famous Olympian God. For example, he says, “Long is the tale of Perseus with the Gorgon Medousa” (Nemean 10). He refers to the epic stories to give parallelism between the victor’s triumphs and epic hero’s victory.

Reference

1. Greek Lyric