batch.motif.roman-ovid-metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley-gutenberg-l10788-l10883
---
record_id: batch.motif.roman-ovid-metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley-gutenberg-l10788-l10883
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
passage_locator:
label: BOOK THE FOURTEENTH. / EXPLANATION. / EXPLANATION. / EXPLANATION.; lines
10788-10883
start: '10788'
end: '10883'
translation: The Metamorphoses of Ovid, Books VIII-XV
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: A Greek survivor recounts the blinded giant's rage after Ulysses' escape,
his own terror at memories of companions devoured, his hiding and eventual rescue
by a Trojan ship. Another survivor describes Aeolus' bag of winds, the sailors'
opening of it and reversal of their voyage, the attack of the Laestrygonians,
and a warning to Aeneas to avoid Circe's shores.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: A blinded giant roars, searches around Aetna and the woods, stumbles against
rocks, stretches blood-stained arms into the sea, and curses the Grecian race.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: The giant wishes Ulysses or his companions would return so that he could devour
entrails, mangle living limbs, drink blood, and crush members in his teeth.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: The survivor describes the giant's face, hands, empty eye-space, limbs, and
beard as still marked with human blood.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: The survivor remembers seeing two companions' bodies dashed against the ground
and consumed, including entrails, flesh, bones, marrow, and limbs.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:5
text: The survivor hides for many days, trembles at sounds, fears death, wants to
die, and eats acorns, grass, and leaves.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:6
text: The survivor sees a ship, signals for rescue, runs to the shore, and is received
aboard a Trojan ship though he is Greek.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:7
text: Aeolus is said to rule the Etrurian seas and confine the winds in a prison,
given shut in a leather bag as a gift to the Dulichean chief.
category: object
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:8
text: After nine days of favorable travel, the sailors, moved by envy and desire
for booty and thinking the bag contained gold, cut the fastenings of the winds.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:9
text: Released winds drive the ship back over the same waves to the harbor of Aeolus.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:10
text: At Lamus of the Laestrygonians, Antiphates kills one of three envoys, staining
his jaws with blood.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:11
text: Antiphates summons his followers, who shower stones and beams and overwhelm
men and ships; one ship carrying Ulysses escapes.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:12
text: Aeneas is addressed as son of a goddess and is warned to avoid the shores
of Circe.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Blinded giant / Polyphemus
description: A one-eyed giant deprived of his eye, raging near Aetna, blood-stained,
and associated with devouring human companions.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:7
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Greek survivor
description: A Greek speaker who survives the giant, hides for many days, signals
a ship, and is received by a Trojan ship.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Ulysses / Dulichean chief
description: Named as the giant's desired victim and as the chief who received Aeolus'
leather bag containing the winds; later his ship escapes the Laestrygonian attack.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Companions of Ulysses
description: Voyagers whose actions include opening the bag of winds; some are killed
by the giant or the Laestrygonians.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Aeolus
description: Grandson of Hippotas, ruler over the Etrurian seas, and keeper of the
confined winds.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Antiphates
description: King in the land of Lamus and the Laestrygonians, who pursues envoys
and summons followers.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Laestrygonians
description: Followers of Antiphates who attack men and ships with stones and beams.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: Aeneas
description: Addressed as most righteous of the Trojans and son of a goddess, no
longer to be called an enemy after the war.
role_refs:
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: fig:9
name_or_label: Circe
description: Associated with shores that Aeneas is warned to avoid.
role_refs:
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: fig:10
name_or_label: Macareus
description: Identified in the footnotes as a survivor connected with Polyphemus
and as the one pointing toward Circe's island or promontory.
role_refs:
- role:10
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
roles:
- id: role:1
label: cannibal pursuer
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The figure threatens to devour Greeks and is remembered consuming companions'
bodies.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: role:2
label: abandoned survivor rescued by ship
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: The speaker hides alone and is later taken aboard a Trojan ship.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:3
label: voyaging chief and escapee
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: Ulysses is linked with the Cyclops escape, receives Aeolus' gift, and escapes
on the one surviving ship.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:7
- id: role:4
label: vulnerable or erring crew
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: Companions are eaten by the giant, open the wind-bag through envy and greed,
and are lost in attacks.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: role:5
label: keeper of imprisoned winds
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: Aeolus confines the winds and gives them shut in a leather bag.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: role:6
label: hostile king
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: Antiphates rules the land, kills one envoy, pursues the survivors, and summons
attackers.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: role:7
label: ship-destroying attackers
assigned_to:
- fig:7
basis: They shower stones and beams, overwhelming men and ships.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: role:8
label: divine-born Trojan addressee
assigned_to:
- fig:8
basis: Aeneas is addressed as a Trojan and son of a goddess.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: role:9
label: dangerous shore-associated figure
assigned_to:
- fig:9
basis: The warning specifically tells Aeneas to avoid Circe's shores.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: role:10
label: Odyssean survivor in footnote
assigned_to:
- fig:10
basis: Footnotes identify Macareus as associated with Polyphemus and with pointing
toward Circe's island.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: Aetna
literal_form: Aetna, with woods and rocks
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs:
- mountain
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: sym:2
label: sea and waves
literal_form: sea, ocean, waves, Etrurian seas
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: sym:3
label: blood and gore
literal_form: blood-stained arms, bloodied face and beard, bloody banquet
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: sym:4
label: leather bag of winds
literal_form: winds shut in a leather bag
associated_figures:
- fig:3
- fig:4
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: sym:5
label: ship
literal_form: Trojan ship, Ulysses' ship, ships overwhelmed by attackers
associated_figures:
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
- fig:7
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
- id: sym:6
label: stones and beams
literal_form: stones and beams showered on men and ships
associated_figures:
- fig:6
- fig:7
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:7
label: Circe's island or shore
literal_form: island or promontory associated with Circe's shores
associated_figures:
- fig:8
- fig:9
- fig:10
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:8
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Blinded giant raging by Aetna and the sea
summary: The blinded giant searches the landscape, curses the Greeks, and longs
for Ulysses or his companions to return so he can kill and eat them.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Survivor's memory of cannibal feast
summary: The survivor recalls seeing companions dashed to the ground and consumed
by the giant, and fears the same fate.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Concealment and rescue by Trojan ship
summary: The Greek survivor hides alone, eats wild foods, then signals a passing
ship and is rescued by Trojans.
figure_refs:
- fig:2
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: scene:4
label: Aeolus' wind-bag and reversed voyage
summary: Aeolus gives the winds confined in a leather bag; sailors open it thinking
it contains gold, and the ship is driven back to Aeolus' harbor.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:4
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: scene:5
label: Laestrygonian attack
summary: Antiphates kills an envoy, summons his people, and the Laestrygonians destroy
men and ships with stones and beams, while Ulysses' ship escapes.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:4
- fig:6
- fig:7
symbol_refs:
- sym:5
- sym:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: scene:6
label: Warning to avoid Circe
summary: The speaker points out an island or promontory and warns Aeneas, son of
a goddess, to avoid Circe's shores.
figure_refs:
- fig:8
- fig:9
- fig:10
symbol_refs:
- sym:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:8
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: Blinded cannibal monster pursuing escaped voyagers
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The giant is deprived of his eye, rages after the escape, and is associated
with eating human companions.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:7
confidence: high
cautions: The passage gives the aftermath and remembered cannibalism rather than
the full blinding episode.
- id: motif:2
label: Abandoned survivor rescued from a hostile monster-land
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The survivor hides alone in fear and famine until a ship receives him.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
confidence: high
cautions: The passage does not describe the survivor's original abandonment in detail.
- id: motif:3
label: Forbidden or mistaken opening of a container holding winds
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Companions cut open the fastenings of Aeolus' wind-bag, wrongly believing
it contains gold, and the voyage is undone.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
confidence: high
cautions: The available taxonomy has no exact wind-container motif.
- id: motif:4
label: Ship-destroying giant or hostile people
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The Laestrygonians overwhelm men and ships by showering stones and beams,
while a single ship escapes.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
confidence: high
cautions: The passage does not explicitly call the Laestrygonians giants in this
excerpt.
- id: motif:5
label: Perilous island warning
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Aeneas is warned to avoid the shores of Circe after the narrator points toward
an island or promontory.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:8
confidence: medium
cautions: The danger of Circe is not described in this excerpt.
- id: motif:6
label: Divine-born hero addressed by lineage
taxonomy_refs:
- divine_parent_child
basis: Aeneas is addressed as son of a goddess.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage uses the divine parentage as an epithet and does not develop
a parent-child episode.
comparison_claims:
- id: claim:1
claim: The footnote explicitly connects this Polyphemus episode with Homer's Odyssey
Book 9, including Ulysses' blinding of the Cyclops, his use of the name 'Nobody,'
and the Cyclops' rock-throwing attack.
claim_level: same_motif
target: Homer, Odyssey Book 9 Polyphemus episode
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: high
limitations: The comparison is supplied by the translator's note; the excerpt itself
emphasizes aftermath, fear, and retelling rather than narrating the full Homeric
scene.
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 10788-10800
quote_or_summary: A blinded giant rages around Aetna, searches the woods, reaches
into the sea with blood-stained arms, curses Greeks, and wishes to devour Ulysses
or his companions.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 10800-10825
quote_or_summary: The survivor describes the giant's bloodied body and empty eye-space,
recalls companions dashed to the ground and eaten, and fears being swallowed himself.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 10826-10835
quote_or_summary: The survivor hides many days, eats acorns and grass with leaves,
sees a ship, signals for deliverance, reaches the shore, and is received by a
Trojan ship.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 10836-10847
quote_or_summary: Aeolus rules the Etrurian seas and confines winds in a leather
bag; companions open it believing it gold, and the ship is driven back to Aeolus'
harbor.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: lines 10848-10860
quote_or_summary: At Lamus, Antiphates kills an envoy and summons followers, who
destroy men and ships with stones and beams; only the ship carrying Ulysses escapes.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 10860-10866
quote_or_summary: The speaker points toward an island, addresses Aeneas as righteous
Trojan and son of a goddess, and warns him to avoid Circe's shores.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: footnote 19, lines 10872-10878
quote_or_summary: The translator's note cites Homer, Odyssey Book 9, describing
Ulysses blinding Polyphemus, using the name 'Nobody,' later revealing his real
name, and nearly having his ship sunk by a hurled rock.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain translation and note; summarized.
- id: ev:8
type: summary
locator: footnotes 18 and 22, lines 10869-10870 and 10882-10883
quote_or_summary: Footnotes identify Macareus in relation to Polyphemus and state
that Macareus points toward the promontory of Circaeum, formerly supposed to have
been an island.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain translation and notes; summarized.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: high
notes: Literal events and figures are clear in the passage. Motif taxonomy assignment
is limited because several prominent patterns, such as the wind-bag and cannibal
giant, lack exact available taxonomy references.
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: |-
Only the supplied passage and footnotes were used; taxonomy references were included only where directly supported.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:roman-ovid-metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley-gutenberg__l10788-l10883
passage_sha256=b5a1b827c1f6c2c9007f654faac3058f089c6fe3ecb10fa0df5cbf8f9423f92b