Vision and reflexivity in the Odyssey and early vase-painting

This paper makes the case that both the Odyssey and the arguably earliest representations of it in vase-painting self-consciously engage with the senses of hearing and seeing. While there are a couple of scenes in the Odyssey which seem to allude to the visual quality of epic, Homer explicitly points out the aural nature of his medium. When the plot of the Odyssey has the sense of hearing trump sight, it thus boosts its own form of expression: while formulaic as well as non-formulaic diction closely links the idea of homecoming to seeing, the notion of sight is downplayed during Odysseus' return. Instead, narration emerges as crucial in the recognition scenes on Ithaca. The earliest paintings that can be argued to represent Odyssean themes, on the other hand, concentrate on scenes that centre on eyes and gazes, thereby privileging their own medium. The Odyssey and early vase-painting thus illustrate a self-conscious engagement with a medium well before the shrewd Hellenistic and Imperial plays with narrative and image that have received so much attention lately.