ホメロスにおける xeinos について-その1

Abstract

A nation's <sentiment of value> can be observed in the attitude toward foreigners, as can be seen among the Polynesians according to Frazer (hostile) and among the Japanese according to Origuchi (friendly). At the same time this attitude sometimes betrays the essential nature of the society, for it may form a part of their <civilization>. In the present paper the author tries to weigh the connotative meanings of the word <xeinos> in Homer which often oversteps its referential meaning, contributing, to the understanding of Homeric society. The 12 examples in Il. are grouped into the following classes. (i) <foreigner, outlander> in : 24.202 (ii)<guest> in : 4.377, 4.387, 11.779, 13.661, 17.150, 17.584. For 4.377, as it was well known to the audience of the epic that Tydeus was an Aetolian descendant and that he was the father of Diomedes, there is no need to introduce him as a foreigner ; the <xenos> should be interpreted as <guest> as in Scholia BT 4.387 : it should be remembered that the Achaeans sent him for angelie (384), i. e. as an envoy who must be received as an <official guest>. As for 13.661 : since the poem was not for reading but for recitation, it is neither natural nor desirable to change the subject of the sentences twice within three lines ; Paris is understood as the subject, which leads to confine the meaning of the word as <guest>. In 17.150 and 17.584 the word is used for not merely any <guest>, but also for a guest who is a good friend ; for the former, cf. Homer's frequent use of the phrase hama...kai (in this case hetairon)...to introduce two words of similar categories ; for the latter, cf. the unique meaning of philtatos. The use in 11.779 could be regarded as <guest> as well as <host>, though dependent on the interpretation of themis, in which case it is to be grouped under (iv). (iii) <a person in the (paternal) guest-friend relationship> in : 6.215, 6.231, 21.42. After the recognition of the relationship between their grandfathers (6.215) Diomedews and Glaukos ceased from the single-combat ; this fact shoes that observance of the hereditary tie takes precedence over the battle in which heroes' virility is estimated at the cost of life. This precedence must have been generally acknowledged in Homeric society, judging from Diomedes' words (6.231f.). Viewed in this manner the meaning of <xenos> in 21.42 is therefore easily construed. (iv)<host> in : 6.224, 15.532 Remarkable is the usage in 6.224 where, after the recognition of their relationship, Diomedes declares that in his homeland Argos he will be a <xeinos> for Glaukos and v. v. ; the word here can mean nothing other than <host>. The usage in 15.532 can also be taken as a case in point, for Phyleus is a foreigner in Ephyra. From the records of the classical era Greek hospitality is known to be customary ; even on occasions of national crisis the Athenians did not fail to evacuate the <xenoi> in the city together with their fellow-citizens to Troizen (Themistokles' Decree, Meiggs & Lewis, G. H. I. No. 23, ll.6-8). But on the other hand, Sparta's <xenelasia> and the various restrictions Athens imposed upon the <xenoi>, sometimes criticized in respect to judical procedure (e. g. Antiphon V), shoud not be disregarded. The ambivalence seems to exist in every society. Then what does it mean that Homer did not use the word <xeinos> in a negative sense? <Extraordinariness>, <the non-dailiness> of the world of the poem, where the ones are from their homeland, the others face the fall of their state, both fighting life-or-death struggles. In the fall of their state, both fighting life-or-death struggles. In contrast to Il. a more vivid usage of <xeinos> may be expected in Od. where more than 200 examples of the word are found.