batch.motif.greek-iliad-pope-gutenberg-l10054-l10172
---
record_id: batch.motif.greek-iliad-pope-gutenberg-l10054-l10172
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/iliad-pope.md
passage_locator:
label: THE EMBASSY TO ACHILLES. / BOOK X. / ARGUMENT. / THE NIGHT-ADVENTURE OF DIOMED
AND ULYSSES.; lines 10054-10172
start: '10054'
end: '10172'
translation: The Iliad
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: Agamemnon, sleepless and distressed, seeks Nestor's counsel during the
night. Nestor urges reliance on the gods, orders the rousing of Greek chiefs,
and discusses the need for urgent action near the trench and gates. He wakes Ulysses
and Diomed, who arm themselves and proceed with the other chiefs toward the entrenchments.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: Agamemnon says he cannot sleep and wanders alone in distress over the condition
of the Greek host.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: Agamemnon proposes that he and Nestor go down to the trench and rouse the
guards at every gate.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:3
text: Nestor answers that Hector's hopes should not be assumed to be confirmed by
Jove and that the gods may ordain Achilles to rise again in battle.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:4
text: Nestor names Ulysses, Diomed, Meges, Ajax son of Oileus, Great Ajax, the king
of Crete, and the Spartan as chiefs to be roused or assembled.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: obs:5
text: Agamemnon says Menelaus has already risen and called several chiefs to meet
near the navy-wall, between the trench and gates, near the night-guards.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:6
text: Nestor arms himself with greaves, a purple mantle, and a steely lance, then
traverses the camp to Ulysses' tent.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:7
text: Ulysses wakes immediately at Nestor's call, asks the cause of the nighttime
alarm, takes his painted shield, and joins the chiefs.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: obs:8
text: Diomed is found outside his tent in arms, with sleeping companions nearby,
upright spears, a black bull hide as bed, and a carpet beneath his head.
category: setting
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: obs:9
text: Nestor wakes Diomed with his foot and urges him to rise because the enemy
is near the fleet and walls.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- id: obs:10
text: Diomed answers that Nestor's age should be spared such toil, while Nestor
replies that no time can be lost and asks Diomed to rouse the rest.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- id: obs:11
text: Diomed puts on a lion's skin, takes his lance, and proceeds to rouse Meges
and Ajax toward the entrenchments.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Agamemnon
description: The unhappy general of the Grecian bands, sleepless and burdened with
fear and care.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:6
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Nestor
description: The Pylian sage and venerable warrior who counsels Agamemnon and wakes
other chiefs.
role_refs:
- role:2
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:7
- ev:10
- ev:11
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Ulysses
description: Called a prudent chief and wise; he wakes at Nestor's call, takes his
shield, and joins the chiefs.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Diomed / son of Tydeus
description: An armed warrior found sleeping outside his tent among his companions;
he rises, arms himself with a lion's spoil and lance, and goes to rouse others.
role_refs:
- role:5
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- ev:10
- ev:12
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Hector
description: Enemy leader whose hopes and proximity threaten the Greek works and
fleet.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:10
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Achilles
description: A great warrior whom Nestor says the gods may ordain to rise and rage
again.
role_refs:
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Jove / the gods
description: Divine powers invoked as decreeing cares for Agamemnon and as possibly
ordaining Achilles' return to battle.
role_refs:
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: Menelaus / the Spartan
description: Agamemnon's brother, initially criticized by Nestor but said by Agamemnon
to have risen early and called chiefs to council.
role_refs:
- role:10
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: fig:9
name_or_label: Meges
description: Named by Nestor as needed for strength and later roused by Diomed.
role_refs:
- role:11
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:12
- id: fig:10
name_or_label: Ajax famed for speed / Ajax son of Oileus
description: Named as a swift chief and later roused with Meges.
role_refs:
- role:11
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:12
- id: fig:11
name_or_label: Great Ajax
description: A chief lying at the remotest ships, to be roused by another messenger.
role_refs:
- role:11
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:12
name_or_label: King of Crete
description: A chief lying at the remotest ships, to be roused by another messenger.
role_refs:
- role:11
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
roles:
- id: role:1
label: distressed commander
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Agamemnon calls himself an unhappy general, sleepless and fearful over his
people's miseries.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: elder counselor
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: Nestor advises Agamemnon about the gods, Hector, Achilles, and the need to
rouse the chiefs.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: role:3
label: nighttime rouser of chiefs
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: Nestor leaves his tent, crosses the camp, calls Ulysses, and wakes Diomed.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
- ev:10
- id: role:4
label: wise chief summoned for counsel
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: Nestor calls Ulysses wise and says his wisdom must be tried during the important
night.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: role:5
label: armed sleeper awakened
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: Diomed is found asleep outside his tent, sheathed in arms, and is awakened
by Nestor.
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- ev:10
- id: role:6
label: younger helper continuing Nestor's task
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: Nestor asks Diomed to use his youth as Nestor uses his age and to rouse the
rest.
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- ev:12
- id: role:7
label: enemy threat
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: Hector is described as near the fleet and walls, and his hopes are discussed
as threatening the Greeks.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:10
- id: role:8
label: potential returning champion
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: Nestor says Hector will suffer if the gods ordain that Achilles rise and
rage again.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:9
label: divine powers governing outcomes
assigned_to:
- fig:7
basis: Jove is said to decree Agamemnon's cares, and the gods may ordain Achilles'
return to battle.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- id: role:10
label: brother and council convener
assigned_to:
- fig:8
basis: Agamemnon says his brother rose before the rest and called chiefs to meet
near the navy-wall.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: role:11
label: chief to be roused or assembled
assigned_to:
- fig:9
- fig:10
- fig:11
- fig:12
basis: These figures are named among the chiefs needed or to be summoned during
the night emergency.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:12
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: gloomy night
literal_form: gloomy shade and silent night
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:8
- id: sym:2
label: trench and gates
literal_form: trench, gates, navy-wall, and entrenchments
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:8
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:6
- ev:12
- id: sym:3
label: weapons of readiness
literal_form: steely lance, painted shield, upright spears, ponderous lance
associated_figures:
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
- ev:9
- ev:12
- id: sym:4
label: animal hides as martial gear and bedding
literal_form: black bull hide and lion's spoils
associated_figures:
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- ev:12
- id: sym:5
label: watchfires or flashing light not specified as fire
literal_form: quivering light from flashing spear-points
associated_figures:
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Agamemnon seeks Nestor's counsel at night
summary: Agamemnon describes his sleepless distress and asks Nestor to help rouse
the guards at the trench and gates because the enemy may attack under cover of
darkness.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:5
- fig:7
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: scene:2
label: Nestor plans the summoning of chiefs
summary: Nestor reassures Agamemnon with reference to divine counsel, names the
needed chiefs, and agrees to help raise them for a council near the night-guards.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
- fig:5
- fig:6
- fig:8
- fig:9
- fig:10
- fig:11
- fig:12
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: scene:3
label: Nestor wakes Ulysses
summary: Nestor arms himself, crosses the sleeping camp, calls Ulysses from his
tent, and Ulysses takes his shield and joins the chiefs.
figure_refs:
- fig:2
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
- id: scene:4
label: Nestor wakes Diomed
summary: The chiefs find Diomed asleep in arms among his companions; Nestor wakes
him and urges him to rise because the enemy threatens the fleet and walls.
figure_refs:
- fig:2
- fig:4
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
- sym:4
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- ev:10
- id: scene:5
label: Diomed accepts the night task
summary: After objecting that Nestor's age should not bear such toil, Diomed accepts
Nestor's appeal, puts on a lion skin, takes his lance, and proceeds to rouse Meges
and Ajax toward the entrenchments.
figure_refs:
- fig:2
- fig:4
- fig:9
- fig:10
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:3
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- ev:12
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: urgent night council before danger
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: The passage centers on sleepless leaders seeking counsel, assembling wise
and strong chiefs, and deciding how to respond to an immediate threat at night.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:4
- ev:6
- ev:8
confidence: medium
cautions: The taxonomy reference to wisdom is supported by explicit emphasis on
counsel and Ulysses' wisdom, but the passage is primarily military narrative rather
than a wisdom tale.
- id: motif:2
label: armed hero awakened from sleep
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Ulysses and Diomed are both awakened at night and arm or are already armed
before joining the urgent mission.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- ev:9
- ev:10
- ev:12
confidence: high
cautions: No supplied taxonomy family directly matches this motif.
- id: motif:3
label: aged counselor transfers labor to younger warrior
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: Diomed says Nestor's age should be spared, and Nestor asks him to employ
his youth as Nestor employs his age in service of the host.
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- ev:12
confidence: medium
cautions: This is an internal role pattern in the passage; broader mythic comparison
is not established here.
- id: motif:4
label: threat at the boundary of the camp
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The trench, gates, walls, night-guards, and entrenchments mark the defensive
boundary that must be guarded against a sudden enemy attack.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:6
- ev:10
- ev:12
confidence: high
cautions: No available taxonomy reference directly matches camp-boundary defense.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: quote
locator: lines 10054-10067
quote_or_summary: Agamemnon says he stands as the unhappy general, that Jove bends
him with cares, and that he has known no sleep while bearing his people's miseries.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/iliad-pope.md
rights_note: Public domain source text; short quotation or summary used.
- id: ev:2
type: quote
locator: lines 10068-10075
quote_or_summary: Agamemnon asks Nestor to share counsel and says they should descend
to the trench and excite the guards at every gate lest the foe invade under gloomy
shade.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/iliad-pope.md
rights_note: Public domain source text; short quotation or summary used.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 10076-10084
quote_or_summary: Nestor tells Agamemnon to trust the powers above, rejects certainty
about Hector's hopes, and says Hector will face woes if the gods ordain Achilles
to rise and rage again.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/iliad-pope.md
rights_note: Public domain source text; summary used.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 10085-10091
quote_or_summary: Nestor says he will obey and that Ulysses, Diomed, Meges, Ajax
son of Oileus, Great Ajax, and the king of Crete should be roused or summoned.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/iliad-pope.md
rights_note: Public domain source text; summary used.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: lines 10092-10099
quote_or_summary: Nestor says he will rouse the Spartan and criticizes him for not
sharing his brother's martial care, because necessity demands all hands.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/iliad-pope.md
rights_note: Public domain source text; summary used.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 10100-10113
quote_or_summary: Agamemnon defends his brother, saying he rose before the rest,
sought Agamemnon's tent, and called the named chiefs to meet near the navy-wall
between trench and gates.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/iliad-pope.md
rights_note: Public domain source text; summary used.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: lines 10114-10122
quote_or_summary: Nestor rises, dons shining greaves and a purple mantle with golden
buckles, snatches his steely lance, and crosses the sleeping camp to Ulysses'
tent.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/iliad-pope.md
rights_note: Public domain source text; summary used.
- id: ev:8
type: summary
locator: lines 10123-10136
quote_or_summary: Ulysses wakes at Nestor's call, asks why Nestor wanders in the
silent night, hears that safety depends on this night, takes his painted shield,
and joins the chiefs.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/iliad-pope.md
rights_note: Public domain source text; summary used.
- id: ev:9
type: summary
locator: lines 10137-10145
quote_or_summary: Diomed is found outside his tent in arms, his companions asleep
around him with shields as pillows, upright spears flashing, a black bull hide
as his bed, and a carpet beneath his head.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/iliad-pope.md
rights_note: Public domain source text; summary used.
- id: ev:10
type: quote
locator: lines 10146-10154
quote_or_summary: Nestor wakes Diomed and asks why he sleeps when the foe from the
hill hangs over the fleet and shades the walls below.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/iliad-pope.md
rights_note: Public domain source text; short quotation or summary used.
- id: ev:11
type: summary
locator: lines 10155-10167
quote_or_summary: Diomed says younger Greeks should wake the warriors, while Nestor
says despair surrounds the host and asks Diomed to employ his youth as Nestor
employs his age.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/iliad-pope.md
rights_note: Public domain source text; summary used.
- id: ev:12
type: summary
locator: lines 10168-10172
quote_or_summary: Diomed puts a lion's spoil over his shoulders, seizes his lance,
strides along, and rouses Meges and Ajax toward the entrenchments.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/iliad-pope.md
rights_note: Public domain source text; summary used.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: uncertain
notes: Literal sequence, figures, and objects are clear in the supplied passage.
Motif labels are conservative and mostly not tied to specific taxonomy entries
except where counsel and wisdom are explicit. No comparison claims were added
because the passage itself does not support cross-textual comparison.
reviewer_status:
status: needs_review
reviewer: ''
reviewed_at: ''
notes: Machine-generated draft from OpenAI Batch; not human-reviewed.
extracted_by: openai_batch:gpt-5.5
extracted_at: '2026-04-28'
notes: |-
Used only the supplied passage and metadata. Taxonomy references were left empty where the available taxonomy did not directly match the observed pattern.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:greek-iliad-pope-gutenberg__l10054-l10172
passage_sha256=e3908e1c3cc822855d31157a502d418a72f9d4b905ae1ac36740af2ef943e65f