Demodocus

/dɛˈmɒdəkəs/ noun

Definition

In Homer's Odyssey, a blind bard who sings at the court of the Phaeacians and whose song moves Odysseus to tears.

Etymology

From Greek Dēmodokos, from dēmos (people) + dokhos (hospitable or receiving). The name literally means 'one approved by the people' or 'people-pleaser.'

Kelly Says

Demodocus is arguably literature's first portrait of an artist—Homer shows him as skillful, respected, and emotionally powerful, and the scene where he sings about Troy and makes Odysseus weep is one of the earliest meditations on how art moves us.

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