Phemius
Encyclopedia
In Homer
's epic poem, the Odyssey
Phemius is an Ithaca
n poet who performs narrative songs in the house of the absent Odysseus
. His audience is made up largely of the "Suitors" (Proci), who live in the house while attempting to persuade Penelope
to marry one of them. In Book 1 of the poem, Phemius performs at their request a version of the theme The Return from Troy
(a theme that actually existed as a written poem, probably at a slightly later date). The performance is heard by Penelope. The story distresses her, since it is a reminder that her own husband has still not returned, and she emerges from her room to ask Phemius to choose a less painful theme. The proposal is roughly rejected by her son Telemachus
.
We are told that Phemius performs for the Suitors "unwillingly", and he successfully pleads to be spared the death that Odysseus is planning for the Suitors. Towards the end of the story Odysseus instructs Phemius to perform wedding songs to conceal the dying Suitors' cries from passers-by.
He is also the son of Terpes.
Homer
In the Western classical tradition Homer , is the author of the Iliad and the Odyssey, and is revered as the greatest ancient Greek epic poet. These epics lie at the beginning of the Western canon of literature, and have had an enormous influence on the history of literature.When he lived is...
's epic poem, the Odyssey
Odyssey
The Odyssey is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is, in part, a sequel to the Iliad, the other work ascribed to Homer. The poem is fundamental to the modern Western canon, and is the second—the Iliad being the first—extant work of Western literature...
Phemius is an Ithaca
Ithaca
Ithaca or Ithaka is an island located in the Ionian Sea, in Greece, with an area of and a little more than three thousand inhabitants. It is also a separate regional unit of the Ionian Islands region, and the only municipality of the regional unit. It lies off the northeast coast of Kefalonia and...
n poet who performs narrative songs in the house of the absent Odysseus
Odysseus
Odysseus or Ulysses was a legendary Greek king of Ithaca and the hero of Homer's epic poem the Odyssey. Odysseus also plays a key role in Homer's Iliad and other works in the Epic Cycle....
. His audience is made up largely of the "Suitors" (Proci), who live in the house while attempting to persuade Penelope
Penelope
In Homer's Odyssey, Penelope is the faithful wife of Odysseus, who keeps her suitors at bay in his long absence and is eventually reunited with him....
to marry one of them. In Book 1 of the poem, Phemius performs at their request a version of the theme The Return from Troy
Nostoi
The Nostoi , also known as Returns or Returns of the Greeks, was a lost epic of ancient Greek literature. It was one of the Epic Cycle, that is, the "Trojan" cycle, which told the entire history of the Trojan War in epic verse...
(a theme that actually existed as a written poem, probably at a slightly later date). The performance is heard by Penelope. The story distresses her, since it is a reminder that her own husband has still not returned, and she emerges from her room to ask Phemius to choose a less painful theme. The proposal is roughly rejected by her son Telemachus
Telemachus
Telemachus is a figure in Greek mythology, the son of Odysseus and Penelope, and a central character in Homer's Odyssey. The first four books in particular focus on Telemachus' journeys in search of news about his father, who has been away at war...
.
We are told that Phemius performs for the Suitors "unwillingly", and he successfully pleads to be spared the death that Odysseus is planning for the Suitors. Towards the end of the story Odysseus instructs Phemius to perform wedding songs to conceal the dying Suitors' cries from passers-by.
He is also the son of Terpes.