The world of The Odyssey is steeped in alcohol: at every meal, there is the expectation of watered-down wine to be served and a toast to the gods to be made. However, Homer’s peculiar use of wine on the island of the Cyclops belies a simple interpretation of wine as a means to inebriation, but as a symbol of gift-giving and graciousness. To this end, Homer employs wine as a physical talisman of the Greek custom of guest-friendship, or xenia. On the island of the Cyclops, Odysseus recounts two different types of wine from two different sources: one from Ismaros and one from Maron. Homer’s seemingly ordinary inclusion of two different wines on the island of Polyphemus reveals the importance of the reciprocal nature of gift-giving in The Odyssey.

Upon making landfall at the island of the Cyclops, Odysseus and his crew feast on “rounds of heady wine” following a successful hunt (9.180). While the wine itself tastes of “good red stock,” it is in fact intrinsically corrupted due to the method by which Odysseus obtained the wine (9.181). As Odysseus sailed from Troy with the Achaeans, the Greeks “carried off a generous store in jars / when [they] stormed and sacked the Cicones’ holy city” (9.183-4). Aside from just desecrating the holy city of Ismaros, Odysseus also fundamentally insults the patron god of wanderers: Zeus. In other scenes of The Odyssey, we can observe respectable hosts like Nestor and Aeolus paying careful attention to xenia, making sure to house and feed their guests before sending them off with vessels filled to the brim of their finest wine. Furthermore, it is not only enough for the hosts to provide their best hospitability, but also for Odysseus to provide entertainment through his gift of storytelling as an equal exchange between guest and host. This custom of xenia derives its universality from Zeus’ power: Zeus himself is often invoked as “Zeus Xenios,” just as Athena is named “Pallas Athene.” Therefore, the sacking of the city violates the reciprocal nature of guest-friendship: by raiding the city and engaging in piracy, Odysseus fundamentally violated the inherent protection afforded to him by xenia and incites the wrath of Zeus, leading to Odysseus’ first falling-out in the eyes of the gods. Later on, by drinking the Ciconian wine to celebrate landfall, Odysseus seals his fate and that of the six men who perish at the hands of Polyphemus.

Contrastingly, the wine of Maron is holy in origin, as it was given to Odysseus as a gift. Odysseus, in his speech to the Phaecians, recounts “What an aroma wafted from the bowl [of wine]— / What magic, what a godsend” (9.233-4). This comment on the pure nature of Maron’s wine seems out of place in Odysseus’ story, but its importance becomes immediately apparent. The wine, obtained as a “splendid [gift]” rather than as ill-gotten loot, is a boon to Odysseus. While trapped in the cave and feasting on six of Odysseus men, Odysseus hatches a plan that revolves on feeding Polyphemus wine under the guise of guest-friendship. Notably, Odysseus previously tallied that six men perished per ship in the raiding of Ismaros, further connecting the role of the cursed wine in their demise. After consuming three bowls filled with the wine, Polyphemus lies flat on his back in a drunken stupor as “wine came spurting, flooding up from his gullet / with chunks of human flesh—he vomited, blind drunk” (9.418-9). Only while Polyphemus is in this wine-induced unconsciousness is Odysseus able to use his sharpened stick to blind Polyphemus and escape the cavern. Thus, Maron’s wine represents a protective boon instead of a curse and reveals the far-reaching consequences of xenia.

It is important to note that the wine itself does not necessarily have supernatural powers; rather, it stands as a symbol of gift-giving widespread in Odysseus’ world. In other cases throughout The Odyssey, Homer demonstrates the inviolability of xenia in situations like the suitors overrunning Odysseus’ palace and Telemachus playing gracious host to Athena in disguise by connecting the actions of the guest and the host to later consequences, usually divine in nature. In this particular case on the island of the Cyclops, Homer’s use of wine and its connection to gift-giving reveals to us the sanctity of xenia in ancient Greek culture.