rigin
of words. The first who gave names to things called many of them from
what had taken place, and therefore introduced inarticulate sounds into
writing. As when they said [Greek omitted], "to blow," [Greek omitted],
"to cut," [Greek omitted], "to woo," [Greek omitted], "to thunder,"
and others like these. Whence he himself created certain words not
previously existing, copying the things they signified, as [Greek
omitted], "sound," and other things also indicating sounds, [Greek
omitted], and others of the same kind. None could be found more
significant. And again where some words pertaining to certain things he
attributes to others, as when he says (I. xxi. 337):--

Bearing an evil fire,--

which signifies its power in burning, and "fever" he uses for "fire."
Like these is the expression (I. xix. 25):--

Brass striking wounds,--

he writes to express wounds inflicted by brass. And to sum up he uses
much novelty of speech, with great freedom, changing some from their
customary use, giving distinction to others for the sake of infusing in
his language beauty and grandeur.

He has also much fertility in epithets; these being fitted to their
objects properly and naturally have the force of proper names, as when
he gives to the several gods each some proper designation, so he
calls Zeus the "all-wise and high thundering," and the Sun, Hyperion,
"advancing aloft," and Apollo, Phoebus, that is, shining. But after the
Onomatopoeia let us examine other Tropes.

Catechresis, which changes a word from a customary signification to
another not recognized. This is to be found in the poet when he says
golden chain [Greek omitted], but [Greek omitted] properly means a rope,
and when he says a goat helmet [Greek omitted]; now a helmet is [Greek
omitted] in Homer, because it used to be made of dog's skin, not of
goat's skin.

Metaphor, so-called because it transfers a thing from its proper
significance to another with an analogous likeness to both, occurs in
many and varied forms in verse, as is the line (O. ix. 481):--

He comes, having broken off the crown of a great mountain,--

and (O. x. 195):

An island which the sea laves and crowns.

For the relation a crown has to him whom it encircles, the same the sea
has to an island. By making use of related but not usual words he makes
his speech not only more beautiful but more picturesque.

There are in Homer various kinds of metaphors; some applied