batch.motif.greek-odyssey-butler-gutenberg-l4876-l4967
---
record_id: batch.motif.greek-odyssey-butler-gutenberg-l4876-l4967
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/odyssey-butler.md
passage_locator:
label: BOOK X / AEOLUS, THE LAESTRYGONES, CIRCE. / BOOK XI / THE VISIT TO THE DEAD.88;
lines 4876-4967
start: '4876'
end: '4967'
translation: The Odyssey
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: In the underworld, Teiresias foretells Odysseus' difficult return, warns
him not to harm the Sun's cattle, predicts trouble at home, and prescribes a later
inland journey with an oar and sacrifices to Neptune. Odysseus asks how to make
his mother's ghost recognize him; Teiresias explains that ghosts who taste blood
can speak. Odysseus' mother drinks the blood, recognizes him, describes the barrier
between living and dead, reports on his family in Ithaca, explains that longing
for him caused her death, and then cannot be physically embraced because she is
a ghost.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: Teiresias says Odysseus' return home will be made hard by heaven and by Neptune's
continuing anger over the blinding of his son.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: Teiresias warns that Odysseus and his companions must not harm the sheep and
cattle of the Sun on Thrinacia if they hope to return home.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:3
text: Teiresias foretells destruction of Odysseus' ship and men if the Sun's flocks
are harmed, while Odysseus himself may still escape in bad condition.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: Teiresias says Odysseus will find high-handed people in his house consuming
his substance while courting his wife.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:5
text: Teiresias instructs Odysseus to carry a well-made oar inland until a wayfarer
mistakes it for a winnowing shovel, then to plant the oar and sacrifice to Neptune.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:6
text: Teiresias says Odysseus should then return home and offer hecatombs to all
the gods in heaven.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:7
text: Odysseus asks how to make his silent mother's ghost recognize and speak to
him.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:8
text: Teiresias states that any ghost permitted to taste the blood will speak reasonably,
while a ghost denied blood will depart.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:9
text: Odysseus' mother tastes the blood, recognizes him, and speaks fondly to him.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: obs:10
text: The mother says it is hard for the living to see the abode of darkness because
terrible waters and Oceanus lie between the living and the dead.
category: setting
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: obs:11
text: Odysseus says he came to consult the ghost of Teiresias and asks about his
mother's death, his father, his son, his property, and his wife.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- id: obs:12
text: The mother reports that Odysseus' wife remains in his house in distress, Telemachus
holds the lands, and his father lives poorly in the country and grieves for him.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- id: obs:13
text: The mother says her death was caused by longing to know Odysseus' situation
and by her affection for him, not by illness or a swift painless death from heaven.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
- id: obs:14
text: Odysseus tries three times to embrace his mother's ghost, but each time she
flits away like a dream or phantom.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Odysseus
description: The speaker who receives Teiresias' prophecy, asks about his family,
and tries to embrace his mother's ghost.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:10
- ev:13
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Teiresias
description: The Theban prophet's ghost who gives Odysseus instructions and prophecy
in the house of Hades.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:7
- ev:8
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Neptune
description: A god said to nurse a grudge against Odysseus and to require later
sacrifice from him.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:4
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: the Sun
description: The owner of the sheep and cattle on Thrinacia, described as seeing
and hearing everything.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Odysseus' companions
description: The men whose restraint is required at Thrinacia and whose destruction
is foretold if the flocks are harmed.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Odysseus' mother
description: A ghost sitting by the blood who recognizes Odysseus after tasting
it, speaks with him, and cannot be embraced.
role_refs:
- role:7
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:8
- ev:12
- ev:13
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: suitors
description: High-handed people in Odysseus' house who consume his substance while
courting his wife.
role_refs:
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: Odysseus' wife
description: A woman remaining in Odysseus' house in distress and tears.
role_refs:
- role:10
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- id: fig:9
name_or_label: Telemachus
description: Odysseus' son, reported to hold his lands undisturbed.
role_refs:
- role:11
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- id: fig:10
name_or_label: Odysseus' father
description: An old man living in the country, sleeping humbly, grieving continually
for Odysseus, and growing older.
role_refs:
- role:12
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- id: fig:11
name_or_label: wayfarer
description: A person foretold to meet Odysseus inland and mistake his oar for a
winnowing shovel.
role_refs:
- role:13
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:12
name_or_label: Proserpine
description: A goddess whom Odysseus names when wondering whether his grief is being
increased by a phantom.
role_refs:
- role:14
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
roles:
- id: role:1
label: living visitor to the dead
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Odysseus is alive while in the abode of darkness and asks the dead for knowledge.
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- ev:10
- id: role:2
label: homecoming seeker
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: He receives prophecy about returning to Ithaca and asks about the state of
his house and family.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:10
- id: role:3
label: prophetic ghost
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: Teiresias delivers prophecies and explains the blood rite for speaking with
ghosts.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
- id: role:4
label: angered sea god and sacrifice recipient
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: Neptune's grudge obstructs the return, and Teiresias orders sacrifice to
him.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:4
- id: role:5
label: all-seeing owner of sacred livestock
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: The Sun owns the sheep and cattle and is described as seeing and hearing
everything.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:6
label: endangered crew
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: Their survival depends on restraining themselves from harming the flocks.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:7
label: maternal ghost
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: She is Odysseus' mother, appears as a ghost, and speaks after tasting blood.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:8
- id: role:8
label: unembraceable dead beloved
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: Odysseus attempts to clasp her, but she slips away like a phantom.
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
- id: role:9
label: household usurpers
assigned_to:
- fig:7
basis: They overrun Odysseus' house and devour his substance while courting his
wife.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:10
label: waiting wife in distress
assigned_to:
- fig:8
basis: She remains in the house and weeps night and day.
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- id: role:11
label: son preserving inheritance
assigned_to:
- fig:9
basis: He still holds Odysseus' lands undisturbed.
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- id: role:12
label: grieving aged father
assigned_to:
- fig:10
basis: He lives apart in hardship and grieves over Odysseus' absence.
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- id: role:13
label: recognition-token speaker
assigned_to:
- fig:11
basis: His remark identifying the oar as a winnowing shovel marks the place where
Odysseus must act.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: role:14
label: named underworld goddess
assigned_to:
- fig:12
basis: Odysseus invokes her while questioning whether the ghost is only a mocking
phantom.
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: blood that enables ghost speech
literal_form: blood by which ghosts may speak after tasting
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:6
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
- ev:8
- id: sym:2
label: oar carried inland
literal_form: well-made oar carried on Odysseus' shoulder and planted in the ground
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:11
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: sym:3
label: winnowing shovel mistaken for oar
literal_form: wayfarer's description of the oar as a winnowing shovel
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:11
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: sym:4
label: waters between living and dead
literal_form: great and terrible waters and Oceanus
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:6
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: sym:5
label: Sun's flocks
literal_form: sheep and cattle belonging to the Sun on Thrinacia
associated_figures:
- fig:4
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:6
label: sacrificial animals to Neptune
literal_form: a ram, a bull, and a boar
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: sym:7
label: phantom body of the dead
literal_form: mother's ghost flitting away like a dream or phantom
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:6
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
- id: sym:8
label: fire in father's winter sleeping place
literal_form: fire before which Odysseus' father sleeps on the floor in winter
associated_figures:
- fig:10
taxonomy_refs:
- fire
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Teiresias foretells the difficult homecoming
summary: Teiresias tells Odysseus that Neptune's anger will make his return difficult
but that he may still reach Ithaca after suffering.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Warning about the Sun's cattle
summary: Teiresias warns that the Sun's sheep and cattle must be left unharmed,
or Odysseus' ship and men will be destroyed.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:4
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Prophecy of the troubled house and revenge
summary: Teiresias predicts that Odysseus will find suitors devouring his goods
and will take revenge on them at home.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:7
- fig:8
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: scene:4
label: Inland oar journey and sacrifice
summary: After killing the suitors, Odysseus must carry an oar to a people ignorant
of the sea, plant it where it is mistaken for a winnowing shovel, and sacrifice
to Neptune before offering hecatombs to the gods.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:11
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:3
- sym:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: scene:5
label: Blood rule for speaking with ghosts
summary: Odysseus asks how his mother can know him, and Teiresias explains that
ghosts who taste blood can converse while those denied blood withdraw.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:6
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: scene:6
label: Mother recognizes Odysseus in Hades
summary: After Teiresias departs, Odysseus' mother tastes the blood, recognizes
him, and comments on the difficulty of the living seeing the realm of the dead
across Oceanus.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:6
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- ev:9
- id: scene:7
label: Report from Ithaca
summary: Odysseus questions his mother about the family, and she reports the condition
of his wife, son, property, father, and her own death from longing.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:6
- fig:8
- fig:9
- fig:10
symbol_refs:
- sym:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- ev:11
- ev:12
- id: scene:8
label: Failed embrace of the mother's ghost
summary: Odysseus tries three times to embrace his mother, but she repeatedly evades
his arms like a phantom, leading him to question the nature of what he sees.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:6
- fig:12
symbol_refs:
- sym:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: living hero descends to consult the dead
taxonomy_refs:
- hero_descent
- afterlife_journey_map
basis: Odysseus is alive in the abode of darkness, consults Teiresias, and speaks
with his mother's ghost in Hades.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- ev:9
- ev:10
confidence: high
cautions: The passage is an excerpt from a larger underworld episode; only the consultation
and encounters within this range are recorded here.
- id: motif:2
label: prophetic conditions for return home
taxonomy_refs:
- return
- wisdom
basis: Teiresias gives Odysseus conditional instructions and forecasts the hardships,
losses, revenge, and later rites connected to his return.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
confidence: high
cautions: The motif is identified from the prophecy's structure; the later fulfillment
lies outside the passage.
- id: motif:3
label: taboo against harming sacred livestock
taxonomy_refs:
- forbidden_knowledge
basis: The passage sets a strict prohibition against harming the Sun's sheep and
cattle, with destruction threatened if the prohibition is broken.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
confidence: medium
cautions: Available taxonomy lacks a direct 'forbidden food' or 'sacred herd' category;
the assigned taxonomy is approximate.
- id: motif:4
label: blood offering enabling speech with the dead
taxonomy_refs:
- sacred_exchange
basis: Teiresias explains that ghosts who taste the blood may speak, and Odysseus'
mother recognizes him after tasting it.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage does not explicitly call the blood an exchange; the label
is based on the observed ritual function.
- id: motif:5
label: journey to a land ignorant of the sea
taxonomy_refs:
- initiation
- return
basis: Odysseus must carry an oar inland until people no longer recognize it as
an oar, then plant it and perform sacrifice.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
confidence: high
cautions: The passage provides the instruction and token, not the later performance.
- id: motif:6
label: ungraspable ghost of a beloved dead relative
taxonomy_refs:
- death_rebirth
basis: Odysseus attempts three times to embrace his mother's ghost, but she cannot
be clasped and slips away like a dream or phantom.
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
confidence: medium
cautions: The taxonomy reference is approximate because the passage emphasizes death
and ghostly intangibility, not rebirth.
- id: motif:7
label: water boundary between living and dead
taxonomy_refs:
- afterlife_journey_map
basis: The mother states that great waters and Oceanus stand between the living
and the abode of the dead, requiring a ship to cross.
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
confidence: high
cautions: The statement describes geography of the afterlife in this passage; broader
cosmological interpretation is not added.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 4876-4882
quote_or_summary: Teiresias says heaven will make Odysseus' return hard and that
Neptune still bears a bitter grudge because Odysseus blinded his son.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/odyssey-butler.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 4882-4893
quote_or_summary: At Thrinacia Odysseus will find the Sun's sheep and cattle; if
the flocks are left unharmed, he may reach Ithaca after hardship, but if they
are harmed his ship and men will be destroyed.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/odyssey-butler.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 4893-4901
quote_or_summary: Odysseus may return after losing his men and will find his house
overrun by people devouring his substance while courting his wife; he will take
revenge on the suitors by force or fraud.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/odyssey-butler.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 4901-4913
quote_or_summary: Odysseus must carry a well-made oar to a country where people
do not know the sea, ships, or oars; when a wayfarer calls it a winnowing shovel,
he must plant it and sacrifice a ram, bull, and boar to Neptune.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/odyssey-butler.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: lines 4913-4919
quote_or_summary: After the inland sacrifice, Odysseus must return home, offer hecatombs
to all the gods, and will eventually die gently from the sea in old age and peace.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/odyssey-butler.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 4920-4927
quote_or_summary: Odysseus asks Teiresias how to make his mother, a ghost sitting
silently by the blood, know him and speak to him.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/odyssey-butler.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:7
type: quote
locator: lines 4928-4931
quote_or_summary: "“Any ghost that you let taste of the blood will talk with you
like a reasonable being” while those denied blood will go away."
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/odyssey-butler.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short excerpt used for evidence.
- id: ev:8
type: summary
locator: lines 4932-4936
quote_or_summary: Teiresias returns to the house of Hades after speaking his prophecies;
Odysseus remains until his mother tastes the blood, recognizes him, and speaks
fondly.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/odyssey-butler.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:9
type: summary
locator: lines 4936-4945
quote_or_summary: The mother asks how Odysseus came alive to the abode of darkness
and says terrible waters and Oceanus separate the living from these places, which
require a ship to cross.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/odyssey-butler.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:10
type: summary
locator: lines 4946-4958
quote_or_summary: Odysseus says he was forced to consult Teiresias and asks his
mother how she died and what has happened to his father, son, property, and wife.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/odyssey-butler.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:11
type: summary
locator: lines 4959-4979
quote_or_summary: The mother says Odysseus' wife remains in the house grieving,
Telemachus holds the lands, and Odysseus' father lives humbly in the country,
sleeping by the fire in winter and on vine leaves in summer while grieving for
him.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/odyssey-butler.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:12
type: summary
locator: lines 4979-4985
quote_or_summary: The mother says she did not die from illness or a swift painless
divine death; longing to know about Odysseus and affection for him caused her
death.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/odyssey-butler.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:13
type: summary
locator: lines 4986-4967
quote_or_summary: Odysseus tries three times to embrace his mother's ghost, but
she slips away like a dream or phantom; he asks whether Proserpine is mocking
him with only a phantom.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/odyssey-butler.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized; locator reflects supplied excerpt
endpoint though the passage text continues beyond sequential line numbering implied
by the excerpt.
confidence:
extraction: medium
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: uncertain
notes: Extraction is based only on the supplied passage. Some supplied line labels
appear inconsistent with the excerpt length near the end, so evidence locators
use approximate subranges within the provided passage label. Motif taxonomy mappings
are cautious where available categories do not directly match the passage detail.
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: |-
No external identifications or comparisons were added. The mother's personal name is not supplied in the passage and is therefore not used.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:greek-odyssey-butler-gutenberg__l4876-l4967
passage_sha256=24631ce3e1b6184b0b197b841440e5f0ad4e7ffa3b917d9a23d064fc7aa7505d