Odyssey 10.181 · Book 10, lines 181–184
A day's feast on the shore
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αὐτὰρ ἐπεὶ τάρπησαν ὁρώμενοι ὀφθαλμοῖσιν, χεῖρας νιψάμενοι τεύχοντʼ ἐρικυδέα δαῖτα. ὣς τότε μὲν πρόπαν ἦμαρ ἐς ἠέλιον καταδύντα ἥμεθα δαινύμενοι κρέα τʼ ἄσπετα καὶ μέθυ ἡδύ·
But when they had had their fill of gazing with their eyes, they washed their hands and prepared a glorious feast. So then all day long until the setting sun we sat feasting on abundant meat and sweet wine.
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The setting
On the island of Aeaea, Odysseus's men have just killed a great stag and carried it back to the ship. Before the ordeal of Circe, they rest and eat.
A note on this passage
A whole day given to food and rest. They wash their hands, lay out the feast, and eat until sundown on abundant venison and sweet wine. After the terror of the Laestrygonians, the poem lets the survivors simply recover for one day.
The formula for a happy feast is doing quiet work here. This is the last easy day the crew will have, and the smoke Odysseus is about to describe belongs to Circe. Homer sets a full, ordinary meal at the very edge of the enchantment, so the reader feels what is about to be lost.
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