Victory Odes

In Ancient Greece, poets held tenuous positions. The common Grecian was literate, but only few had the skill to turn it into a profession. This exclusivity, elevated poet's social status, but they still were not nobility. Therefore, they constantly had to prove their craft and worth. The victory ode genre exemplifies this tension.

 A victory ode depicts the triumph of an Olympian winner. One had to possess wealth, however, to compete in the games. Therefore, nobles commissioned victory odes.  This background helps the reader understand reoccurring victory ode aspects. For example, the poet always mention of the victor, his task, his family, and hometown to appease the patron. The difficulty, lies in the balance  balance the poet must create between satisfying the family, himself, and the audience. He cannot stray too far from the family, for they commission the work, but he also must produce a piece of literary merit. Furthermore, he must be careful not to exclude the population through too complex ideas, nor make them jealous of the wealth and prowess of the victory.  If the poet achieves this balance, the population will favorably remember his work. Thus, work’s subject also becomes favorably remembered. His ability to confer immortality through poetry, elevates his status. Therefore, through out the victory genre, the poet calls attention to his own skill. The poets Pindar and Bacchylides masterfully redirect the attention toward their importance. Though Bacchylides both employ metaphors, Pindar also boldly states his worth. The need to calling attention to their  poetic skill displays the emphasis Greeks place on wealth and nobility.

In Olympian 2, Pindar compares his ability to confer fame to an arrow,” Come, aim the bow now at the target, O my heart! Who is/the one/against whom darts of fame are launched / once more with mild intent?/”(Pindar, 87-91). To produce a true shooting arrow, the shaft must be level, the tip pointer, and feathers trimmed. Similarly, to create successful victory ode, the author must mention the family, display his literary skills, and appeal to the general public. Just as the combination of perfect arrow and skiller archer yields a bullseye, so too does a skillfull poet and his work drive the subject into the center of the audeience’s memory. Anchored there, the subject gains fame, and immortality, for after he dies, his story lives on in the memories of the population. This metaphor alone, would express Pinadar’s importance to the more educated members of society. Pindar, however, desires everyone to clearly understand his importants. Thus, he plainly states

 “Drawing at Akragas,/I shall proclaim on oath straightforward truth: no city has within a hundred years produced a man who toward his friends is more beneficient in thought or free hand”( Pindar, 92-94). His confidence parallels his abilities. Because he was so renowned, he is able to boast.         

            Famous, but less so than Pindar, Bacchylides references remain ever present, yet subtle. At the end of Ode 3, Bacchylides states “ To one who gains success,/ silence furnishes no adornment./ Together with the truth of noble deeds,/ many a man will sing the graceful gift of Keo’s honey-tongued nightingale”( 94-98). A birds song, beautiful and clear, brings pleasure to the listener. Honey similarly pleasure the taster, as its sweet tang and smooth texture drips over food. By comparing his poetry to pleasurable sensory objects, he asserts that like the just as a person gains auditory and taste satisfaction a person gets from listening to a bird’s song or eating honey, so too will his poetry too creates a sensory pleasure. Here, however, is where Bacchylides stops. He does not explicitly state his skill, like Pindar, but rather relies upon the reader to understand his metaphor.