Poetic formula in the warrior's rhetoric (Iliad 6.215)

Abstract

The excerpt chosen for analysis is the opening expression of Diomedes' response to Glaucon (Iliad 6, 215). An imminent conflict between these two warriors is interrupted precisely by the dialogue that seals a relationship of friendship, hospitality and reciprocity. For the purposes of this article, the fragment chosen is the expression ἦ ῥά νύ, which will be analyzed in strictly linguistic terms, with a view to understanding nuances that clarify aspects of the warrior's rhetoric. Thus, supported by the bibliography used in the investigation (grammars, lexicons, dictionaries and other reference works), it was possible to verify that the correlation between particles is essential for understanding a discourse of this nature. Analyzing the combination of terms used in Diomedes' argument proved to be an indispensable procedure for the proper understanding and analytical deepening of the warrior's argument. And the comparative work showed that in other contexts of use of the same particles in poetic formula it remained a discursive marker of rhetorical impact for the utterance and its context.