Craft Lesson From The Odyssey: Homeric Similes
Homer's Odyssey is back in the zeitgeist thanks to a new movie adaptation. By any measure, The Odyssey is one of the most influential pieces of literature in the Western canon, and, along with The Iliad, Homer's other epic poem, it is the foundation on which so much of the literature that came after it is built, from other epics like The Aeneid, Dante's Divine Comedy, and Moby Dick, to many popular fantasy genre quest tales. But beyond its influence, The Odyssey stands as a great book in its own right, and the fact that it is still getting new adaptations millennia after its composition speaks to this. It stand to reason, then, that there are many craft lessons one can learn from it, and, indeed, there are. While much of the craft advice taken from Homer focuses on structural and storytelling frameworks, like the Hero's Quest and parallel incidents before and after the journey to the underworld, in this article I want to focus on a much smaller, syntax-level literary technique, one which you, likely, will not see in the new Christopher Nolan adaptation, but one which is, perhaps, Homer's signature technique as a writer: the Homeric (or epic) simile.
A simile, of course, is a category of figurative language which compares something inside of the story to something else using "like" or "as." But to understand how Homeric similes function, we need to establish a framework for discussing figurative language.
At a basic level figurative language compares something in the text, a fact (because it exists in the world of the story) to something outside of the text, a figure. While there are many different categories of figurative language, the two most common are metaphor and simile.
For example, in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, Romeo compares Juliet to the sun. In a famous scene, Romeo says, "but soft what light from yonder window breaks? It is the East, and Juliet is the sun" (2.2.2). This, of course, is a metaphor. Had Shakespeare used a simile, the line would read "Juliet is like the sun."
In this example, Juliet is the fact, as she is a character in the story, and the sun is the figure as Juliet is being compared to the sun, which does not actually appear in the sky at this point in the story. In fact, the scene takes place at night, which we can see when, later in the speech Romeo asks his sun to "kill envious moon" (2.2.3).
Romeo's famous line is a metaphor. He writes "Juliet is the sun" not "Juliet is like the sun," but why would Shakespeare, or any other writer choose to use a metaphor instead of a simile or visa-versa?
The metaphor is considered the stronger comparison. In our example, Juliet and the Sun are defined by each other, and thus, in the reader's (on in the case of the play, the viewer's" mind), they see the fact, (Juliet) and the figure (the sun) simultaneously.
A simile would be a weaker comparison because the fact and figure are separated by the comparison word. The reader pictures Juliet and then, afterward, the sun. The "like" separates the fact and the figure making the comparison weaker.
A simile, however, is always more true than a metaphor. Juliet is not, in fact the sun. She can, however, embody some of the sun's characteristics.
Now, in the case of Romeo and Juliet, the stronger comparison fits with Romeo's intense love of Juliet. There is an immediacy and urgency in his love which is reflected in his words. In a different story, or even in a different situation within the same story, a simile might be more appropriate.
But what if there was a way to make an even stronger comparison between a fact and figure than a metaphor while maintaining the truer nature of the simile?
There is. It is called the Homeric simile.
Homer's similes differ in two important ways from the similes with which most of us are familiar. They invert the order of the figure and the fact, and they extend the imagery of the figure over many lines.
For example, Odysseus describes his crew's reaction when they are reunited on Circe's island in this way:
But now, as calves in stalls when cows come home, droves of them herded back from field to farmyard once they’ve grazed their fill—as all their young calves come frisking out to meet them, bucking out of their pens, lowing nonstop, jostling, rushing round their mothers— so my shipmates there at the sight of my return came pressing round me now, streaming tears, (Odyssey 10. 452-458, Fagles trans.)
Homer compares the crews reaction to that of calves upon seeing their mothers return from grazing in the field.
The comparison uses "as," which makes it a simile, but unlike most similes, the figure, in this case the description of the cows, comes before the fact, the crew's reunion with their captain. Thus, the image of the figure appears in the reader's (on in ancient Greece, the listener's) mind before they even know what the fact is. Because the figurative image exist for a time exclusively in the reader's mind, the figurative comparison becomes even stronger than a metaphor.
This effect is amplified by the length of the figurative description. In this case, there are five lines of description. In some cases, Homer uses ten or more. By the time he gets to the end of the figurative description, the reader has almost forgotten their place in the story, amplifying the power of the figurative image.
While the Homeric simile lacks some of the immediacy of the metaphor, which is why it would not have been an appropriate choice for Romeo in the example cited above, it does provide a stronger comparison than even the metaphor while maintaining the truth of the simile. It is a powerful tool in the writers toolbox, and one the signature elements of Homer's style. In the Odyssey, Homer uses them at key moments, such as Odysseus' reunion with Penelope, and the famous stringing of the bow.
These days, the Homeric simile is less common. It is considered old-fashioned and wordy by some, though it does lend a heightened sense of grandeur and importance because of its association with the classical epics.
There are, however, writers who still do use it. One of the best examples is the polar bear duel in Philip Pullman's The Golden Compass. In chapter 20, "Mortal Combat," there is a duel between two polar bear kings, a usurper and the real, but now deposed ruler. The winner of the duel will become the undisputed "king of the bears." (Pullman, 348). It is an important scene in the book, and one of the most dramatic.
Pullman describes the initial clash between the bears as follows:
"Like two great masses of rock balanced on adjoining peaks and shaken loose by an earthquake, which bound down the mountainsides gathering speed, leaping over crevasses and knocking trees into splinters, until they crash into each other so hard that both are smashed to powder and flying chips of stone: that was how the two bears came together," (Pullman, 350)
Pullman's simile follows the Homer's example. The figure, the two boulders dislodged by an earthquake falling down adjoining mountains by an earthquake, precedes the fact, the two bears crashing together in combat. The length of the figure's description also fits the Homeric convention.
Pullman uses Homeric similes multiple times throughout his description of the battle, including at the climactic moment when:
Like a wave that has been building its strength over a thousand miles of ocean, and which makes little stir in the deep water, but which when it reaches the shallows rears itself up high into the sky, terrifying the shore dwellers, before crashing down on the land with irresistible power—so lorek Byrnison rose up against lofur, exploding upward from his firm footing on the dry rock and slashing with a ferocious left hand at the exposed jaw of lofur Raknison." (Pullman, 353)
Again, the long description of the figure (the wave building and then crashing), precedes the bear rising up to deliver the fateful blow.
This is the only chapter in the book where Pullman uses Homeric similes. His choice to do so in this chapter specifically is deliberate and appropriate. Not only is it an epic clash, but the polar bear society in the book feels ancient compared to the other societies that make up the world. The use of Homeric simile adds gravitas and otherness to a scene which, in the context of the book, clearly calls for it.
While the Homeric simile is not currently in fashion, it is a powerful tool, which, if used properly, can add a sense of epic grandeur and importance when used properly. If one follows Pullman's example, and use it sparingly, but deliberately, it can still be a very effective tool in a writer's writing toolbox. I encourage you to add it to yours.
But, even if you choose not to use it, at the very least, reading Homer and analyzing the way he used similes should make you more deliberate about the choices you make when choosing your figures. Consider whether a situation calls for a simile, metaphor, or something else, and, even if you choose not to use extended multiple line figures like Homer, you might want to, on occasion flip the figure and the fact.
The more tools you have, the better chance you have to pick the right one in any given situation.
Source: Craft Lesson From The Odyssey: Homeric Similes
