————— Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Studies 50 (2010) 133–157 © 2010 Jonathan L. Ready Why Odysseus Strings His Bow Jonathan L. Ready REVIOUS SCHOLARSHIP has shown that the significance of the archery contest in Odyssey 21 extends beyond Odysseus’ winning back his wife, Penelope. Stephanie Jamison, for one, uses Indic parallels to demonstrate that the ritualistic handling of the bow by various parties during the contest reinvests Odysseus with his kingly power. 1 In this ar- ticle, I focus on the precise moment in which Odysseus strings his bow and consider the additional benefits that accrue to Odysseus when he does so. I first suggest that he thereby brings back into a working state an item that helps ensure his par- ticipation in two economies that sustain his household. One economy is embedded in his relationships of xenia, and the other is related to his position as paramount basileus. Second, I argue that the simile likening Odysseus when he strings his bow to a singer repairing his lyre (21.405–409) confirms this read- ing. The Bow After Penelope decides to marry the suitor who can string Odysseus’ bow and shoot an arrow through twelve axes, the 1 S. W. Jamison, “Penelope and the Pigs: Indic Perspectives on the Odys- sey,” ClAnt 18 (1999) 227–272, at 258–264. Cf. J. Russo, “Odysseus’ Trial of the Bow as Symbolic Performance,” in A. Bierl et al. (eds.), Antike Literatur in neuer Deutung (Leipzig 2004) 95–101. A lengthy examination of the archery contest from a different perspective is offered by W. G. Thalmann, The Swineherd and the Bow: Representations of Class in the “Odyssey” (Ithaca 1998) ch. 4, who demonstrates how the contest lays bare the competition and rivalry between men that is at the heart of the honor-based society portrayed in the Homeric poems. P