Odyssey 6.66 · Book 6, lines 66–67
The word she would not say
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ὣς ἔφατʼ· αἴδετο γὰρ θαλερὸν γάμον ἐξονομῆναι πατρὶ φίλῳ. ὁ δὲ πάντα νόει καὶ ἀμείβετο μύθῳ·
So she spoke; for she was ashamed to name blooming marriage to her dear father. But he understood everything and answered her with a word:
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The setting
The narrator breaks in to explain the gap in Nausicaa's speech, then turns to her father's reply.
A note on this passage
The narrator states outright what the speech had concealed: Nausicaa was ashamed to name marriage to her father, so she wrapped it in laundry. He answers at once — and, as the next lines show, grants everything.
The quiet touch is that he understood everything. Homer does not make Alcinous oblivious to the game. The father sees straight through the tactful screen and chooses to play along, giving his daughter the wagon without making her say why she wants it. It is a small, kind collusion between them.
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