The Authority of Telemachus

Alex Gottesman

33 citations0/0 files storedClassical Antiquity

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Classical Antiquity Studies Classical Studies and Philology Classical Philosophy and Thought

Abstract

The role of Telemachus in the Odyssey is a perennial puzzle. This paper argues that Telemachus must reconstruct authority in Ithaca in order to present the death of the suitors as a lawful execution rather than as an extra-legal murder. This is part of the Odyssey's strategy to exonerate Odysseus from any possible blame. The job falls to Telemachus because in the Odyssey authority is premised on personal relationships, and the suitors simply do not know Odysseus. The construction of authority occurs in a sympotic and domestic arena where Telemachus competes against the suitors to assert control over the key social practices of marriage (gamos), transportation (pompê), and hospitality (xeinia).

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References

1988Political Theology: Four Chapters on the Concept of Sovereignty 1983Politics in the Ancient World 1991The Constraints of Desire: The Anthropology of Sex and Gender in Ancient Greece.1981Myth and Society in Ancient Greece 1981The Best of the Achaeans: Concepts of the Hero in Archaic Greek Poetry 1987Ritualised Friendship and the Greek City 1990The language of heroes: speech and performance in the Iliad 1986The Use and Abuse of Homer

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