DT#Spitzer+Hanks#

Narrative#Economies#of#Sociality,#Disgust#and#Abjection#in#Sophocles’#Philoctetes##

#

A#broken#bone#can#heal,#but#the#wound#a#word#opens#can#fester#forever.#

# # # # # +Jessamyn#West#

#

#

# “All#is#disgust,”#Sophocles#tells#us,#“when#one#leaves#his#own#nature#and#does#

things#that#misfit#it.”1#Placed#in#the#mouth#of#a#Greek#sailor,#Neoptolemus,#on#the#

way#to#Troy,#this#dictum#is#meant#to#convince#a#lonely,#broken#hero#to#forget#his#

exile#and#rejoin#the#masculine#community#of#warriors,#but#in#typically#Sophoclean#

fashion#Neoptolemus’#normative#statement#doubles#as#both#a#downcast#self+

indictment#and#a#commentary#on#the#economies#of#sociality,#gender#and#disgust#at#

work#in#the#play.#Seemingly#prescriptive,#positing#the#existence#of#a#man’s#‘own#

nature’#and#a#category#of#actions#that#‘misfit#it,’#and#characterizing#their#

concatenation#as#auguring#an#explosion#of#aversion,#Neoptolemus’#seemingly#simple#

statement#actually#asks#more#than#it#answers.##

# Through#discussion#of#the#construction#of#masculinities#in#narrative#and#their#

hierarchical#arrangement#in#textual#space,#the#tripartite#function#of#abjection#and#its#

continuous#cycle#of#return,#and#the#systemic#necessity#of#abjection#itself,#it#will#be#

the#purpose#of#this#essay#to#begin#to#explore#the#results#of#concatenating#gender,#

social#duty,#and#disgust#as#Sophocles#does,#using#abjection#theory#as#an#explanatory#

device#offering#a#literary+critical#and#psychoanalytic#perspective#on#the#problem.#

Through#analysis#of#Sophocles’#text#I#hope#to#approach#nearer#to#fairly#basic#

questions:#what#is#it#to#proscribe#an#‘unfit’#way#of#being?#Is#there#a#necessary#

rhetorical#context#preceding#and#surrounding#such#an#operation,#and#do#the#

specificities#of#subjective#identity#affect#it?##

# But#before#moving#to#textual#analysis,#perhaps#it#would#be#best#to#discuss#

briefly#what#disgust#is,#and#why#it#is#of#importance.#Disgust#is#a#word#used#to#

indicate#aversion#to#an#object,#idea,#or#situation,#obviously,#but#the#complexity#of#the#

phenomenon#of#disgust#cannot#be#indicated#by#such#a#simple#précis.#Occurring#in#a#

phenomenal#space#beyond#simple#aversion,#Winfried#Menninghaus#points#out#that#

disgust#is#both#the#basic#(and#co+constitutive)#antithesis#of#beauty#in#aesthetics,#

DT#Spitzer+Hanks#

allowing#us#to#undertake#discussion#of#what#it#is#we#find#pleasurable#and#

unpleasurable#to#contemplate,#and#that#which#acts#as#a#stressor#on#the#dividing#line#

between#‘real’#and#‘imaginary.’#(Menninghaus#2011)#Thus#disgust#complicates#any#

discussion#of#aesthetics#by#introducing#reflexive#(and#perhaps#instinctive)#corporeal#

aversions#into#what#are#understood#to#be#intellectual,#or#even#spiritual,#operations.2##

Moreover,#disgust#is#itself#difficult#to#discuss:#“[D]isgust#belongs#in#the#area#of#

human#experience#most#protected#by#taboo#and#hedged#with#euphemism,”#writes#

Colin#McGinn,#(McGinn#2011:#3)#recalling#Mary#Douglas’#statement#that#“dirt,”#itself#

symbolic#of#that+which+disgusts#generally,#is#“matter#out#of#place,”#(Douglas#1966:#

37)#and#that#discussions#of#dirt#make#necessary#both#the#acknowledgment#of#the#

ubiquitous,#infectious#danger#that#disgust#heralds#and#the#constructedness#of#the#

system#of#which#it#is#the#fundament.#Deeply#phenomenological,#disgust#both#orders#

perceptions#of#our#experience#of#the#world#and#traverses#the#ontological#border#

between#perception#and#experience#as#if#the#world#itself,#and#the#cycles#of#

generation#and#rot#that#animate#it,#could#interpellate#human#subjects#back#into#bare#

life#through#the#incidence#of#revulsion.#

# Thus#a#great#deal#of#the#importance#of#theorizing#disgust#lies#in#the#

constitutive#power#that#disgust#arrogates#to#itself.#Disgust#makes#subjects#by#

forming#borders#between#that#which#one#might#wish#to#identify#with#and#that#which#

one#rejects:#the#I#and#the#not+I,#to#borrow#language#from#psychoanalysis.#Disgust#

makes#systems#by#forming#the#logical#basis#for#the#work#of#categorizing#one’s#

surroundings#while#also#proffering#the#energetic#impulse#necessary#to#the#system#in#

which#disgust#is#both#most#profoundly#implicated#in#and#most#consistently#

evacuated#from,#and#which#forms#the#basis#of#society:#language.#In#this#view,#then,#

disgust#forms#subjects,#the#systems#those#subjects#order#perception#through,#and#

through#which#they#communicate.#Disgust#is#originary,#ordinary,#and#ubiquitous.#

# If#the#journey#disgust#takes#us#on#is#of#such#ontological#and#epistemological#

importance#that#it#calls#into#question#the#very#distinction#between#those#two#

categories,#it#clearly#requires#a#robust#theoretical#guide.#The#approach#I#prefer#to#

take#to#disgust,#informed#by#Lacanian#psychoanalysis,#structuralist#feminism,#

literary#criticism#and#French#linguistic#theory,#is#Julia#Kristeva’s#work#on#abjection#

DT#Spitzer+Hanks#

in#her#1981#text#Powers1of1Horror:1An1Essay1on1Abjection#(Powers),#in#which#Kristeva#

takes#exception#to#the#Lacanian#process#of#subject#formation#and#in#doing#so#creates#

a#totalizing#formalist/structuralist#theory#of#self,#of#society,#and#of#representation#

privileging#what#is#liminal#and#grotesque,#finding#in#it#a#source#of#immense#

representational#power.#What#she#takes#exception#to#is#Lacan’s#description#of#the#

process#of#maternal#repudiation#as#it#takes#place#in#the#developing#subject#(a#subject#

I#will#assume#is#implicitly#male,#for#several#reasons3):#while#Lacan#assumes#that#the#

repudiation#of#the#mother#occurs#only#once,#leaving#the#infant#with#an#‘originary#

lack’+#a#permanent#hole#in#the#fabric#of#the#self#that#is#co+emergent#with#that#self+#

Kristeva#argues#that#this#repudiation#is#perennially#incomplete#and#attended#by#

feelings#of#both#pleasure#and#loss:#!

There#looms,#within#abjection,#one#of#those#violent,#dark#revolts#of#

being,#directed#against#a#threat#that#seems#to#emanate#from#an#

exorbitant#outside#or#inside,#ejected#beyond#the#scope#of#the#possible,#

the#tolerable,#the#thinkable.#It#lies#there,#quite#close,#but#it#cannot#be#

assimilated.#It#beseeches,#worries,#and#fascinates#desire,#which,#

nevertheless,#does#not#let#itself#be#seduced.#Apprehensive,#desire#

turns#aside;#sickened,#it#rejects…##simultaneously,#just#the#same,#that#

impetus,#that#spasm,#that#leap#is#drawn#toward#an#elsewhere#as#

tempting#as#it#is#condemned.#Unflaggingly,#like#an#inescapable#

boomerang,#a#vortex#of#summons#and#repulsions#places#the#one#

haunted#by#it#literally#beside#himself.#Powers11##

If#this#is#the#case#then#the#repudiation,#or#abjecting,#of#the#mother,#on#which#other#

models#of#disgust#are#built,#is#not#the#pleasant#and#singular#act#whose#completion#

produces#the#bounded#body#and#the#bounded#self,#but#instead#the#constantly#

unfolding#process#through#which#the#body#and#the#self#are#organized#in#relation#to#

the#world.#Furthermore,#this#relation#to#the#mother#is#doubled:#both#maternal#

repudiation#and#the#desire#for#maternal#union,#disgust#and#attraction,#pleasure#and#

pain#mingle#in#a#processual#series#of#overdetermined,#episodic#rehearsals#that#

characterize#the#individual’s#relation#both#to#itself#and#to#the#Other,#and#in#turn#

come#to#characterize#sociality#in#its#inception,#continuation,#and#representation.#

Thus#abjection#is#the#incomplete#repudiation#of#that+which+disgusts#which#

brings#with#it#the#incomplete#boundedness#of#the#self#and#of#social#groups,#which#in#

their#incompleteness#necessitates#the#intense#attention#to#boundary#maintenance#

DT#Spitzer+Hanks#

and#abjection#management#we#see#in#representation,#especially#those#

representations#dealing#with#subjects#whose#corporeal#or#psychological#outlines#

have#been#done#violence#to.#The#very#incompleteness#of#such#a#self#is#displaced#onto#

the#Other#and#in#this#displacement#the#abjection#that#characterizes#the#self#or#

society#is#also#displaced,#allowing#the#self/society#to#narrate#its#being#and#its#

formation#anew#as#pure,#whole,#and#complete.#This#strategy’s#unfortunate#

impossibility#of#success,#which#impossibility#is#the#kernel#of#all#narrative,#creates#the#

necessity#of#reiteration#and#thus#marks#abjection/disgust#as#art’s#primary#topos:#

The#abject#has#only#one#quality#of#the#object+#that#of#being#opposed#to#

I.#If#the#object,#however,#through#its#opposition,#settles#me#within#the#fragile#texture#of#a#desire#for#meaning,#which,#as#a#matter#of#fact,#

makes#me#ceaselessly#and#infinitely#homologous#to#it,#what#is#abject,#on#the#contrary,#the#jettisoned#object,#is#radically#excluded#and#draws#

me#towards#the#place#where#meaning#collapses.#A#certain#“ego”#that#

merges#with#its#master,#a#superego,#has#flatly#driven#it#away.#It#lies#

outside,#beyond#the#set,#and#does#not#seem#to#agree#to#the#latter’s#

rules#of#the#game.#Powers11+2##

If#abjection#is#ambiguity,#indeterminacy,#the#collapse#of#meaning#and#a#reminder#of#

perpetual#danger,#then#individuation#must#be#(and#cannot#be)#none#of#these,#must#in#

fact#(fail#to)#be#the#opposite#of#these:#clarity,#determinacy,#fixity#of#meaning#and#the#

successful#negotiation#of#the#problem#posed#by#disgust.#

# What#makes#Philoctetes#such#an#apposite#choice#of#text#for#exploring#these#

issues#is#that#inclarity,#indeterminacy,#the#dynamism#of#meaning#and#the#capacity#of#

disgust#and#abjection#to#both#repel#and#attract#the#play’s#characters#are#more#or#less#

the#subjects#of#the#play.#Philoctetes#himself#is#a#hero#of#Greek#myth#abandoned#on#a#

deserted#island#by#his#erstwhile#military#companions#due#to#a#suppurating#wound#

on#his#foot,#while#the#other#two#characters,#Neoptolemus#and#Odysseus,#are#

respectively#an#ephebe#wrestling#with#a#moral#conundrum#that#marks#a#disjunction#

between#ideals#of#masculinity#and#a#trickster#figure#and#army#leader#remarkable#for#

his#lack#of#appeal,#despite#having#his#rhetorical#position#multiply#underwritten#by#

divine#fiat#and#dramatic#events.#

# When#we#first#meet#them,#Neoptolemus#and#Odysseus#have#just#landed#on#

Lemnos,#the#island#of#Philoctetes’#exile,#and#find#him#not#at#home#in#his#double+

DT#Spitzer+Hanks#

mouthed#cave.#Having#set#a#guard#to#watch#for#his#approach,#being#painfully#aware#

of#his#own#role#in#Philoctetes’#abandonment#on#Lemnos#ten#years#before,#Odysseus#

proceeds#to#instruct#Neoptolemus,#as#his#military#superior,#in#what#his#task#will#be.#

Though#seemingly#simple,#the#task#is#in#fact#the#major#locus#of#disgust#and#abjection#

in#the#play:#Neoptolemus#must#“ensnare#the#soul#of#Philoctetes”#(54+5)#with#his#

words#and#“become#a#thief#of#the#arms#no#man#has#conquered,”#(77+8)#despite#the#

fact#that#to#do#so#means#acting#dishonorably.#

# Odysseus’#arguments#in#favor#of#carrying#out#the#task#are#worth#paying#close#

attention#to:##

I#know,#young#man,#it#is#not#your#natural#bent#

To#say#such#things#nor#to#contrive#such#mischief.# # #

But#the#prize#of#victory#is#pleasant#to#win.##

Bear#up:#another#time#we#shall#prove#honest.##

For#one#brief#shameless#portion#of#a#day#

Give#me#yourself,#and#then#for#all#the#rest#

You#may#be#called#the#most#scrupulous#of#men.# 79+85##

Here#Odysseus#mingles#two#separate#arguments,#one#echoing#an#earlier#argument,#

from#lines#50#through#54,#in#which#Odysseus#reminds#Neoptolemus#of#his#ephebic#

status#(Neoptolemus#is#here#figured#as#a#very#young#man,#of#about#eighteen,#under#

the#command#of#Odysseus)#and#his#obligation#to#obedience:#“it#was#to#serve#you#

came#here.”#(54)#The#other#argument#is#one#familiar#to#those#attentive#to#command#

structures#of#all#types,#and#consists#of#Odysseus#using#the#reminder#of#Neoptolemus’#

obligation#to#serve#as#a#fig+leaf#for#the#dishonorable#intentions#he#must#carry#out,#

offering#‘following#orders’#as#a#counterweight#to#other,#more#moral#considerations.#

# Neoptolemus,#however,#is#canny#enough#to#understand#that#Odysseus’#

arguments#in#favor#of#lying#are#just#that.#While#recognizing#that#his#task#is#to#serve#

Odysseus,#Neoptolemus#also#reminds#his#superior#of#the#importance#of#honor,#and#

specifically#physis41or#family#honor,#by#answering#“Son#of#Laertes,#what#I#dislike#to#

hear#I#hate#to#put#in#execution.#I#have#a#natural#antipathy#to#get#my#ends#by#tricks#

and#strategems.#So,#too,#they#say,#my#father#was.”#(84+9)#Neoptolemus#goes#on#to#

acknowledge#his#ephebic#duty,#itself#doubled5,#and#concludes#by#stating#that#he#

would#rather#“fail#with#honor#than#win#by#cheating.”#(96+7)#Odysseus#counters#by#

DT#Spitzer+Hanks#

saying#that#Neoptolemus#is#“a#good#man’s#son”#and#that#he#“was#young,#too,#once”#

but#that#he#now#knows#that#victory#comes#from#words,#not#deeds,#and#specifically#

from#lying#and#not#from#persuasive#(but#honest)#rhetoric.#(98+101)#

# In#this#short#conversation#between#two#of#the#three#dramatis1personae#we#are#

shown#the#central#point#of#friction#in#the#text.#What#is#it#to#be#honorable,#and#from#

what#does#honor#proceed?#Is#it#honorable#to#lie#to#or#to#steal#from#one#already#bereft#

in#pursuit#of#corporate#victory?#Is#it#better#to#be#honored#in#the#public#sphere#than#

to#maintain#private#honor#at#the#cost#of#public#approval?#At#its#most#basic#level,#then,#

this#play#is#about#what#virtue#is#and#is#not,#and#in#what#situations#it#can#operate,#and#

asks#the#audience#to#consider#these#questions#through#the#lenses#proffered#by#the#

interplay#between#civic#and#private#virtue.#Neoptolemus#is,#for#the#moment,#on#the#

side#of#family#honor,#addressing#his#commander#as#the#son#of#his#father,#perhaps#to#

remind#him#of#the#Greek#ideal#of#physis,#and#setting#aside#considerations#of#victory#

when#opposed#to#aretē1or#private#virtue.#

# Odysseus,#on#the#other#hand,#makes#a#more#or#less#unabashed#argument#in#

favor#of#pragmatism,#and#indicates#that#he#supposes#this#to#be#the#consensus#view.#

In#doing#so#he#shocks#Neoptolemus:#“[D]o#you#not#find#it#vile,#this#lying?”#(108)#

However,#Odysseus#answers#that#lying#is#not#vile#if#it#brings#their#rescue#with#it,#

reminding#Neoptolemus#that#Greek#military#success#is#imbricated#with#his#personal#

decision+making#process,#and#responds#to#Neoptolemus’#further#inquiry#by#saying#

that#“[W]hen#one#does#something#for#gain,#one#need#not#blush.”#(111)#Expediency#is#

here#allied#with#the#traditional#Greek#view#of#reality#as#ordered#by#the#whims#of#the#

Gods;#if#Greeks#are#fated#to#win#the#Trojan#war#(as#the#Athenian#audience#in#409#

BCE#would#have#understood#them#to#be)#and#if#that#fate#necessitates#lying#and#

treachery,#as#Odysseus#claims,#then#by#a#logical#process#of#argument#it#becomes#

clear#that#what#would#traditionally#be#understood#to#be#not+virtuous#is,#in#this#

situation,#virtuous,#and#by#extension#ethics#in1toto#becomes#radically#situational#and#

only#imperceptibly#different#from#the#bluntest#realpolitik.#

# Sadly,#Neoptolemus#at#this#point#makes#a#drastic#shift,#asking#what#gain#to#

him#might#accrue#from#such#actions.#Odysseus#tells#him#that#prophecy#decrees#that#

he,#Neoptolemus,#cannot#take#Troy#without#Philoctetes’#bow,#and#adds#that#he#will#

DT#Spitzer+Hanks#

win#a#“double#prize”#if#he#follows#Odysseus’#orders,#being#accounted#both#“a#wise#

man#and#a#good.”#(117+119)#Under#the#twin#attack#of#sophistic#arguments#

substituting#civic#expediency#for#personal#virtue#and#the#promise#of#glory#in#both#

battle#and#civic#repute,#Neoptolemus#accedes#to#Odysseus’#arguments#and#agrees#to#

carry#out#his#orders.#Before#we#track#his#success#in#doing#so,#it#is#worthwhile#to#note#

how#Odysseus’#arguments#echo#(and#may#be#supposed#to#have#echoed#for#

contemporary#audiences6)#those#of#the#sophists#then#emerging#as#a#force#in#

Athenian#politics,#and#also#play#upon#typical#imperial#anxieties:#how#can#one#dress#

the#naked#utilization#of#power#in#the#garb#of#virtue,#in#order#to#allocate#abjection#

away#from#the#imperial#polis#or#the#individual#rhetor#and,#by#extension,#his#

audience?#Odysseus’#argument#amounts#to#this:#if#it#works,#it#was#meant#to#work,#

and#if#it#was#meant#to#work,#then#it#is#right.#Might,#or#in#this#case,#trickery,#makes#

right.#Because#the#gods.#

# The#first#act#the#obedient#Neoptolemus#carries#out#is#one#of#instruction,#

setting#up#another#of#the#play’s#economies#of#meaning.#Just#as#Odysseus#has#

instructed#Neoptolemus,#and#in#doing#so#brought#him#into#ethical#abjection#with#him#

(from#a#traditionalist+ethical/#personal#virtue#point#of#view,#at#least),#Neoptolemus#

now#instructs#his#chorus.#As#their#military#leader+#the#chorus#is#made#up#of#sailors#

from#Neoptolemus’#ship+#Neoptolemus’#chorus#is#in#ephebic#relation#to#him,#just#as#

he#was#in#ephebic#relation#to#Odysseus,#and#in#a#doubled#moment#of#mirroring#the#

chorus#asks#Neoptolemus#what#to#do.#That#they#do#so#in#the#name#of#his#father,#

Achilles,#marks#the#complexity#of#this#particular#economy#of#meaning,#in#that#

Neoptolemus’#earlier#reminder#to#Odysseus#of#his#own#physis#through#the#address#

‘son#of#Laertes’#has#now#been#superceded#by#a#fresh#allegiance#to#the#polis#over#the#

family.#Neoptolemus,#son#of#Achilles,#who#was#himself#notable#for#an#unbending#

allegiance#to#personal#virtue#over#corporate#success#that#makes#up#almost#the#entire#

subject#of#the#Iliad,#has#become#the#scion#of#Odysseus#the#sophist#and#thereby#a#

civic,#rather#than#familial,#subject.##

# In#the#course#of#their#conversation#together,#Neoptolemus#and#the#chorus#

discuss#Philoctetes’#plight#and#their#response#to#it.#The#chorus#pities,#him,#enlarging#

DT#Spitzer+Hanks#

on#the#suffering#his#life#is#shadowed#by,#and#his#terrible#solitude,#but#Neoptolemus#

has#taken#Odysseus’#lesson#to#heart,#and#replies#that##

I#am#not#surprised#at#any#of#this:#

this#is#a#God’s#doing,#if#I#have#any#understanding.#

These#afflictions#that#have#come#upon#him#

are#the#work#of#Chryse,#bitter#of#heart.#

As#for#his#present#loneliness#and#suffering,#

this,#too,#no#doubt#is#part#of#the#God’s#plan#

that#he#may#not#bend#against#Troy#

the#divine#invincible#bow#

until#the#time#shall#be#fulfilled,#at#which#it#is#decreed,#

that#Troy,#as#they#say,#shall#fall#to#that#bow.# # 191+200##

After#this#reiteration#in#his#own#words#of#the#substance#of#Odysseus’#argument,#sans#

promises#of#glory,#the#conversation#is#interrupted#by#the#approach#of#Philoctetes.#

# Upon#his#entrance#Philoctetes#immediately#welcomes#his#visitors#with#glad#

cries#of#interrogation,#asking#who#they#are#and#whence#they’ve#come,#requesting#

piteously#that#they#answer#him,#saying#“if#this#is#all#that#we#can#have#from#one#

another,#speech,#this,#at#least,#we#should#have.”#(231+2)#Neoptolemus#answers#that#

they#are#Greeks,#he#the#son#of#Achilles,#and#all#bound#homeward#from#Troy.#

Philoctetes#reacts#with#surprise,#noting#that#Neoptolemus#was#not#with#the#first#

group#to#sail#to#Troy#to#fight#(amongst#which#he#had#been#included#until#his#

banishment)#and#asks#whether#they#have#heard#of#him.#Upon#learning#that#they#have#

not,#Philoctetes#launches#into#the#first#of#many#diatribes#against#the#military#leaders#

of#the#expedition#to#Troy,#the#Atreidae,#in#which#he#describes#being#left#on#Lemnos#

as#a#result#of#an#infected#snakebite#and#his#long#years#spent#alone,#in#mourning#for#

his#lost#community#of#warriors#and#in#deep#anger#at#their#ruthless#absence.#

It#is#nine#years#now#that#I#have#spent#dying,#

with#hunger#and#pain#feeding#my#insatiable#

disease.#That,#boy,#is#what#they#have#done#to#me,##

the#two#Atridae,#and#that#mighty#Prince#

Odysseus.#May#the#Gods#that#live#in#heaven##

grant#that#they#pay,#agony#for#my#agony.# # 312+17##

With#this#conclusion#he#draws#Neoptolemus#into#relation#with#him,#both#paideic,#

with#his#repetition#of#the#term#‘boy’#as#a#signal#of#affectionate#superiority,#and#

ethical,#asking#Neoptolemus#to#affirm#his#righteous#anger#as#an#expression#of#piety.#

DT#Spitzer+Hanks#

This#Neoptolemus#happily#does,#beginning#properly#to#follow#Odysseus’#instructions#

for#tricking#Philoctetes#through#a#falsely#shared#hatred#of#the#military#leadership#at#

Troy#by#retailing#the#borrowed#story#of#Achilles’#armor#being#rewarded#to#Odysseus#

as#if#he,#Neoptolemus,#were#Ajax,#the#actual#aggrieved#party.#Philoctetes#recognizes#

the#bid#for#interpersonal#connection#based#in#both#ethos#and#pathos,#saying#that#

what#he#hears#“rings#in#harmony”#with#his#own#experience#of#shameful#treatment#

and#resulting#anger#(404),#and#the#two#form#a#bond#through#their#(seemingly)#

shared#abjection#at#the#hands#of#the#Greek#generals.#This#bond#translates#

immediately#into#shared#travel#plans,#whose#recommendation#is#that#Neoptolemus#

is#supposedly#traveling#in#much#the#same#direction#as#Philoctetes#wishes#to:#

towards#home.#Against#this#recommendation#is#the#wound#of#Philoctetes,#a#stinking,#

suppurating#sore#of#divine#origin#whose#periodic#eruptions#cause#Philoctetes#

intense#pain,#expressed#in#profligate#screams,#followed#by#a#death+like#sleep.#

# Their#travel#plans,#not#yet#interrupted#by#biology,#are#first#interrupted#by#

fallacy.#Neoptolemus#and#Philoctetes,#paired#through#shared#hatred,#have#begun#to#

talk#of#leaving#in#(seeming)#earnest#when#a#sailor,#disguised#as#a#trader#but#sent#by#

Odysseus#as#part#of#his#plan#to#steal#both#Hercules’#bow#and#its#owner,#adds#another#

layer#of#untruth#to#what#already#overspreads#the#play’s#speeches.#The#trader#tells#

the#pair#that#Odysseus#sails#from#Troy#towards#Lemnos#in#pursuit#of#Philoctetes#and#

his#sacred#bow,#Odysseus’#mission#being#to#bring#Philoctetes#from#Lemnos#by#

persuasion#or#by#force,#in#response#to#a#prophecy#decreeing#that#Troy#cannot#fall#

without#the#wounded#man’s#presence.7#Enraged#afresh,#Philoctetes#again#enlarges#

upon#his#distaste#for#Odysseus,#getting#in#some#nice#digs#at#sophistic#rhetors#along#

the#way,#and#becomes#insistent#with#Neoptolemus#that#they#leave#immediately.#

# Agreeing,#Neoptolemus#reminds#Philoctetes#to#fetch#his#things,#obviously#

with#the#thought#in#mind#that#those#things#must#include#the#sacred#bow#and#arrows#

that#are#his#purpose.#They#move#towards#Philoctetes’#cave,#and#upon#seeing#the#bow#

Neoptolemus#is#seized#with#religious#awe,#asking#to#worship#the#bow#and,#if#it#is#

lawful,#to#touch#it.#Neoptolemus#accedes#to#the#request:#

Philoctetes#Your#words#are#holy,#boy.#It#is#lawful.#

DT#Spitzer+Hanks#

# For#you#have#given#me,#and#you#alone,#the#sight#of#the#sun#shining##

# # above#us#here,#

# The#sight#of#my#Oeta,#of#my#old#father,#my#friends.#

# You#have#raised#me#up#above#my#enemies,#

# when#I#was#under#their#feet.#You#may#be#confident.#

# You#may#indeed#touch#my#bow,#give#it#again#

# to#me#that#gave#it#you,#proclaim#that#alone## #

# of#all#the#world#you#touched#it,#in#return##

# for#the#good#deed#you#did.#It#was#for#that,#

# For#friendly#help,#I#myself#won#it#first.##

# Neoptolemus## I#am#glad#to#see#you#and#take#you#as#a#friend.#

# For#one#who#knows#how#to#show#and#to#accept#kindness#

# will#be#a#friend#better#than#any#possession.##

# Go#in.##

# Philoctetes11 # I#will#bring#you#with#me.#The#sickness#in#me##

# seeks#to#have#you#beside#me.## # # # 662+675##

This#passage#is#painfully#ironic,#in#that#Philoctetes#celebrates#Neoptolemus#for#

exactly#what#he#plans#not#to#do:#return#Philoctetes’#bow#to#him#and#take#him#home.#

It#is#also#funny,#though#not#very,#for#the#same#reason#(one#imagines#Neoptolemus#

squirming#uncomfortably#throughout),#but#it#is#most#interesting#for#the#explicit#link#

Philoctetes#makes#between#his#own,#younger#self#and#Neoptolemus.#Philoctetes#

notes#that#he#is#owner#of#the#bow#as#a#result#of#a#friendly#act,#which#was#his#lighting#

of#the#pyre#of#Hercules#who,#in#agony#after#having#been#poisoned#by#the#centaur#

Nessus#through#his#own#and#the#machinations#of#Deianeira,#Hercules’#wife,#could#not#

convince#his#son,#Hyllus,#to#the#terrible#duty.8#This#places#Neoptolemus#again#in#the#

realm#of#physis#and#of#paideic#relations#between#men,#implying#a#genealogy#of#virtue#

at#work#in#the#world#that#orders#identity#in#relation#to#time#and#the#past#and#

proffers#a#ready+made#ethics#with#fate’s#stamp#of#approval.#That#the#son#of#Achilles,#

in#an#ersatz#paideic#relation#both#to#Odysseus#and#to#Philoctetes,#should#call#up#

echoes#in#Philoctetes’#mind#of#a#virtuous#paideic#kinship#between#himself#and#

Hercules#through#promises#of#return#to#the#scene#of#that#bonding,#Mount#Oeta,#aided#

by#Neoptolemus’#relation#of#a#borrowed#history#that#recalls#both#the#wrath#of#

Achilles#and#the#agony#of#Ajax#(itself#the#deeply#abject#subject#of#another#of#

DT#Spitzer+Hanks#

Sophocles’#surviving#plays)#while#in#actuality#referring#back#to#Odysseus’#sophistic#

imperialism,#shows#that#we#are#in#the#midst#of#a#tight#thatch#of#issues#related#to#

masculine#sociality#and#civic/imperial#masculinity,#the#role#of#abjection#and#disgust#

as##they#relate#to#masculine#subjects#in#community,#and#crucially,#signaled#by#

Philoctetes’#strange#locution#at#the#end#of#the#selection#above,#the#bond#of#shared#

abjection#that#calls#out#from#the#wounded#bowman’s#foot#to#the#lying#ephebe’s#

troubled#conscience.##

# Having#reacted#as#hoped#to#the#Trader’s#information#and#bonded#further#

over#Philoctetes’#bow,#Neoptolemus#and#his#companion#move#towards#their#exit#

while#the#chorus#recites#a#lengthy#stasimon#recalling#the#deeds#of#Ixios,#the#first#

parricide#and#an#example#of#hamartia#(wrong#action/sin)#divinely#punished#and#

Hercules,#the#great#example#of#an#imperfect,#hubristic#but#ultimately#‘good’#(because#

deified)#figure#who#nevertheless#causes#us#to#ask,#as#does#the#appearance#of#Ixios,#

what#the#relation#between#choice,#virtue,#and#punishment#is.#From#this#catalogue#of#

ambiguity#the#chorus#recalls#Philoctetes’#time#on#Lemnos,#his#solitude#where#“there#

were#no#neighbors#for#his#sorrow,#with#whom#his#cries#would#find#answer,#with#

whom#he#could#lament#the#bloody#plague#that#ate#him#up”#and#his#pain:#“[H]ere#and#

there#he#crawled#writhing#always+#suffering#like#a#child#without#the#nurse#he#loves.”#

(691+704)#It#is#on#this#note+#one#noting#Philoctetes’#abjection#from#his#society,#and#

from#himself#(‘suffering#like#a#child#without#the#nurse#he#loves’#would#have#been#no#

more#heroic#a#description#in#409#BCE#than#it#is#today)#that#we#reach#the#pinnacle#of#

abject#spectacle#in#the#play,#as#Philoctetes’#wound#erupts#and#bathes#his#young#

companion#in#uncertainty.#

# Of#course,#in#even#such#an#abject#(and#unusually#gruesome,#for#Attic#tragedy)#

text#as#this,#one#character#does#not#in#fact#soak#another#with#fluid#from#a#spurting#

pustule#on#his#foot.#At#the#end#of#the#stasimon,#Philoctetes#and#Neoptolemus#begin#

to#move#towards#the#ships#off+stage,#but#Philoctetes#is#arrested#in#his#flight#by#a#

sudden#pain,#making#him#cry#out#to#the#gods,#which#increasing#causes#him#to#beg#

Neoptolemus#to#“strike#the#end#of#my#foot.#Strike#it#off,#I#tell#you,#now.#Do#not#spare#

my#life.#Quick,#boy,#quick.”#(749+50)#Neoptolemus,#either#from#disingenuity#or#

idiocy,#seems#not#to#understand#why#Philoctetes#cries#out,#but#gradually#realizes#

DT#Spitzer+Hanks#

that#his#companion#is#in#the#grip#of#his#sickness#and#offers#to#embrace#Philoctetes,#

promising#not#to#leave#him#despite#his#terrible#cries.9#Philoctetes#refuses#his#

embrace#but#gives#Neoptolemus#the#bow,#laying#on#him#the#obligation#to#keep#it#safe#

and#to#protect#it#from#any#who#might#steal#it,#telling#him#that#he#will#be#a#murderer#

and#a#suicide,#as#well#as#one#who#has#broken#faith#with#a#suppliant,#if#he#does:#“[A]nd#

let#no#one#trick#you#out#of#it,#lest#you#prove#a#murderer+#your#own#and#mine#that#

kneeled#to#you.”#(772+3)#

# Neoptolemus#takes#the#bow,#promising#as#he#does#so#not#to#allow#the#bow#to#

pass#to#any#“except#to#your#hands#and#to#mine.”#(775)#Though#the#audience#knows#

that#he#has#just#won#his#purpose,#it#is#also#clear#that#Neoptolemus#is#at#this#point#on#

the#horns#of#a#dilemma.#The#ephebic#innocent#and#son#of#Achilles,#unwilling#to#do#

anything#discordant#with#his#physis#and#his#aretē,#become#the#trickster#under#the#

tutelage#of#Odysseus,#become#the#ambiguously#trustworthy#‘friend’#and#mentee#of#

Philoctetes,#has#at#this#point#the#opportunity#to#decide#again#whether#or#not#to#

choose#private#virtue#over#corporate#success#with#only#the#coldly#anomic#reasoning#

of#Odysseus#on#the#one#side#and#the#pitiable,#diseased#and#choleric#ranting#of#

Philoctetes#on#the#other.#Granted,#he#has#sworn#to#Philoctetes#and#has#taken#a#

sacred#object#in#trust,#but#one#feels#certain#that#Odysseus’#situational#ethics#would#

see#a#way#past#that;#what#most#complicates#Neoptolemus’#decision+making#at#this#

point#is#the#bonds#he#shares#with#both#men#and#the#different#teloi#each#man’s#

worldview#suggests#his#actions#will#lead#towards.#For#Odysseus#the#path#to#success#

may#be#tread#by#liars,#while#for#Philoctetes#the#decisive#point#is#character,#the#lack#of#

which#he#attributes#to#the#Greek#generals#who#abandoned#him,#and#who#he#believes#

to#have#insulted#Neoptolemus#on#a#particularly#sensitive#point.##

# That#Neoptolemus#is#aware#of#all#this#is#clear#enough,#despite#the#spare#

dialogue#and#absent#stage#directions#of#Attic#tragedy,#but#it#is#specifically#during#this#

scene#that#both#audience#and#ephebe#actually#gaze#upon#Philoctetes#abject,#alone,#

and#undone.#Neoptolemus#seems#to#find#this#almost#unbearable,#saying#among#many#

other#expressions#of#concern#“I#have#been#in#pain#for#you;#I#have#been#in#sorrow#for#

your#pain”#(805+6)#and#embracing#Philoctetes;#however,#once#Philoctetes’#pain#

causes#him#to#lose#consciousness#he#and#the#chorus#return#to#the#world#of#realpolitik#

DT#Spitzer+Hanks#

and#argue#over#whether#to#steal#the#bow#and#go,#or#whether#to#hold#to#their#

promises#to#the#sleeping#invalid#and#wait.#While#urging#that#they#stay#Neoptolemus#

nevertheless#sounds#the#pragmatic#note#he#has#learnt#from#Odysseus#and#from#his#

envoy,#the#Trader,#referring#to#the#twin#prophecies#and#telling#his#chorus,#who#wish#

to#set#sail#without#delay#

Yes,#it#is#true#he#hears#nothing,#but#I#see#we#have#hunted#in#vain,#

Vainly#have#captured#our#quarry#the#bow,#if#we#sail#without#him.##

His#is#the#crown#of#victory.#Him#the#God#said#we#must#bring.#

Shame#shall#be#ours#if#we#boast#and#our#lies#leave#victory#unwon.##

839+842####

Though#pietistic#in#its#language,#just#as#Odysseus#himself#was#in#his,#this#speech#

shows#Neoptolemus#arguing#that#the#Gods#have#fated#something#to#happen,#so#his#

actions#in#bringing#about#that#event#are#morally#neutral,#and#furthermore#that#he#

and#his#sailors#will#bring#shame#upon#themselves#not#from#lying#and#treachery,#but#

from#incomplete#victory#in#their#quest,#if#they#too#abandon#Philoctetes+#to#certain#

death#in#the#absence#of#his#bow+#and#abscond#with#their#prize.#Though#physically#

with#Philoctetes,#Neoptolemus#is#still#Odysseus’#man.#It#is#not#until#Philoctetes#

awakes#that#the#break#comes.#

# The#break,#when#it#does#come,#is#co+emergent#with#the#breakdown#of#

language#that#has#so#far#been#well#concealed#by#sophistry#and#doubled,#ambiguous#

promises#on#Neoptolemus’#part.#Philoctetes#asleep#presents#an#opportunity#to#think;#

Philoctetes#awake#presents#the#necessity#of#action,#and#Neoptolemus,#unprepared,#

says#“[N]ow#is#the#moment.#What#shall#I#do#from#now#on?”#(895)#Philoctetes#replies:#

# What#is#it,#boy?#Where#are#your#words#straying?##

# Neoptolemus11 I#do#not#know#what#to#say.#I#am#at#a#loss.##

1 Philoctetes## Why#are#you#at#a#loss?#Do#not#say#so,#boy.##

# Neoptolemus## It#is#indeed#my#case.##

# Philoctetes## Is#it#disgust#at#my#sickness?#Is#it#this#

# that#makes#you#shrink#from#taking#me?#

DT#Spitzer+Hanks#

#

# Neoptolemus## All#is#disgust#when#one#leaves#his#own#nature#

# and#does#things#that#misfit#it.##

# Philoctetes## It#is#not#unlike#your#father,#either#in#word#

# or#in#act,#to#help#a#good#man.##

# Neoptolemus## I#shall#be#shown#to#be#dishonorable:#

# I#am#afraid#of#that.# # # # # 896+907##

Neoptolemus#goes#on#to#say,#assuaging#Philoctetes’#worries,#that#it#is#not#an#

intention#to#abandon#him#afresh#that#troubles#the#young#man,#but#the#intention#to#

take#him#where#he#most#wishes#not#to#go:#Troy.#This#has#a#highly#negative#effect#on#

Philoctetes,#whose#immediate#response#is#refusal#and#a#demand#for#the#bow’s#

return,#to#which#Neoptolemus#replies#“[T]hat#I#cannot.#Justice#and#interest#make#me#

obedient#to#those#in#authority.”#(925+6)#This#further#enrages#Philoctetes#against#his#

erstwhile#friend#and#mentee,#upon#whom#he#heaps#infamy#before#turning#his#lament#

to#the#island#that#has#for#so#long#been#his#only#companion,#envisioning#his#slow#

death#of#starvation#or,#alternatively,#a#less#slow#but#equally#nasty#death#at#the#hands#

(paws?)#of#the#wild#animals#that#have#formed#his#sustenance#during#a#decade#alone.##

# Turning#back,#Neoptolemus#laments#“[A]#kind#of#compassion,#a#terrible#

compassion,#has#come#upon#me#for#him.#I#have#felt#for#him#all#the#time”#and#repeats#

his#(and#the#play’s)#central#question:#“[W]#hat#shall#I#do?”#(964+69)#Philoctetes,#

sensing#the#change,#argues#yet#again#on#the#side#of#family#virtue#or#physis,#saying#

that#Neoptolemus#is#not#himself#bad,#but#“by#bad#men’s#teaching#you#came#to#

practice#your#foul#lesson,”#(971+2)#and#tells#his#former#ephebe#to#return#the#bow#

and,#if#he#must,#sail#away.#It#is#at#this#point#that#Odysseus#returns#to#the#stage,#

perhaps#sensing#from#afar#the#disarray#into#which#his#plan#has#fallen,#and#begins#to#

steer#the#argument#himself.#Odysseus’#return#begins#with#his#calling#Neoptolemus#a#

scoundrel#and#urging#him#to#give#him#the#bow,#but#Neoptolemus#refuses#and#

Philoctetes#and#he#descend#into#argument#from#which#neither#emerges#pristine.#

Understandably#the#former#taxes#Odysseus#with#his#misdeeds#in#abandoning#a#sick#

man#to#his#fate,#while#Odysseus#makes#the#same#argument#so#recently,#though#

DT#Spitzer+Hanks#

imperfectly,#made#by#Neoptolemus:#it#is#the#Gods#that#decide,#and#men#who#reside#in#

that#decision,#so#it#is#in#fact#Philoctetes#who#sins#by#setting#himself#against#prophecy#

and#his#own#best#interests#in#remaining#on#Lemnos#instead#of#traveling#with#the#

Greeks#to#Troy.#The#argument,#fought#to#a#standstill,#remains#hung#on#these#

competing#principles.#

# The#rest#of#the#play#is#concerned#with#adjudicating#the#two#positions.#

Neoptolemus#goes#with#Odysseus#to#the#ships#to#ready#them#for#departure,#but#

leaves#his#chorus#to#speak#with#Philoctetes,#and#Philoctetes#remains#adamant#in#his#

wounded#pride.#The#chorus#remains#with#Philoctetes#and#entreats#him#to#set#aside#

his#righteous#anger,#in#which#he#is#perseverating#beyond#even#his#own#reasoned#

anger,#but#he#repeatedly#refuses,#becoming#increasingly#distrait#and#incoherent.#

Odysseus,#though#not#in#possession#of#the#bow,#is#in#possession#of#Neoptolemus,#but#

it#is#clear#from#the#split#between#chorus#and#leader#that#the#ephebe#is#maturing.#No#

longer#the#clear+eyed#moralist,#nor#yet#the#blithe#pragmatist,#Neoptolemus#is#now#

friend#to#Philoctetes#and#has,#in#embracing#that#figure’s#pain,#taken#on#his#abjection#

over#that#of#Odysseus,#whose#sophistry#abjects#physis#and#paideia#in#one#fell#swoop.#

# What#is#most#interesting,#however,#is#not#that#after#continued#wrangling#

Hercules#comes#down#to#end#the#play,#using#Sophocles’#only#deus1ex1machina#to#

solve#what#has#become#an#obviously#intractable#problem,#but#that#the#problem#is#in#

fact#so#obviously#intractable.#Both#men#are,#despite#Odysseus’#being#on#the#side#of#

events#and#Philoctetes#on#the#side#of#inflexible#righteousness,#in#some#ways#

simultaneously#wrong#and#right.#Odysseus#wishes#to#end#the#suffering#of#thousands#

of#his#countrymen#on#the#plains#of#Troy,#redressing#what#was#itself#a#moral#wrong#

offensive#to#the#Gods,#and#winning#for#the#Greeks#both#repute#and#remuneration;#

Philoctetes#wishes#not#to#have#been#callously#abandoned#for#ten#long#years,#alone#

and#in#terrible#pain,#and#cannot#see#a#way#to#forgiveness.#Odysseus#is#frankly#ready#

to#do#what#is#necessary#to#win,#and#says#so#without#even#a#feigned#attempt#at#shame;#

Philoctetes’#inflexibility#and#rage#begin#to#edge#over#from#understandable#dudgeon#

to#overstatement,#even#insanity,#and#it#is#Sophocles’#master+stroke#to#show#that#the#

hero,#proud#in#adversity,#may#become#so#closed+in#by#his#own#code#that#he#can#no#

longer#participate#in#the#system#whose#morals#he#so#rigidly#upholds.###

DT#Spitzer+Hanks#

Neoptolemus’#inability#to#synthesize#the#two#positions,#which#inability#the#

audience#shares,#is#not#a#dramatic#mistake#but#rather#is#meant#to#send#the#same#

message#in#more#subtle,#dramatic#form#as#that#of#the#bumper#sticker#that#preceded#

me#on#my#commute#this#morning:#shit#happens.#Shit#happens,#and#it#stinks.#I#would#

add#that#shit#happens,#and#it#stinks,#and1it1sticks.#Though#inelegantly#put,#that#is#the#

message#of#the#play:#we#are#mired#in#the#shit#of#our#own#inability#to#draw#rigid#

boundaries#between#virtue#and#sin,#right#action#and#wrong,#and#what#is#more,#that#

inability#is#the#basis#of#sociality#and,#therefore,#so#is#shared#abjection.#If#“all#is#

disgust#when#one#leaves#his#own#nature#and#does#things#that#misfit#it”#but#one’s#own#

nature#is#changeable,#as#Neoptolemus’#certainly#is#and#as#Philoctetes’#is#not,#to#his#

discredit,#and#if#things#that#misfit#such#a#nature#are#furthermore#both#admirable#and#

self+defeating#(Philoctetes)#or#shameful,#self+serving,#and#yet#borne#out#by#events#

and#divine#fiat#(Odysseus),#then#it#is#indeed#true#that#all#is#disgust,#because#all#is#

abjection.#Coherence#and#a#rigid#attention#to#boundary#maintenance#seem#to#be#

much#more#the#qualities#that#Philoctetes,#the#wounded#savage#likened#to#a#child#and#

feminized#by#his#wound10,#displays,#while#Odysseus#is#changeable#in#methods#but#

rigid#in#his#goals#(success)#and#Neoptolemus,#perhaps#the#most#abject#figure#in#the#

play,#has#no#clear#telos#and#changes#direction#as#often#as#the#winds#he#remarks#so#

frequently#upon.#

# But#it#is#reasonable#to#ask,#at#this#point,#why#the#basic#message#of#human#

imperfection#the#play#clearly#sends#requires#the#theoretical#apparatus#that#takes#up#

so#much#of#the#first#half#of#this#essay.#To#offer#a#summation#ripped#from#a#car#

bumper#may#be#an#example#of#critical#oversimplification,#but#at#this#point#to#

continue#to#apply#abjection#theory#might#seem,#if#this#is#a#word,#undersimplification.#

As#conclusion#to#this#essay,#then,#it#will#be#my#task#to#argue#in#contradiction#to#that#

view.#Perhaps#an#easier#‘way#in’#than#the#block#quotes#with#which#I#assaulted#the#

reader#previously#would#be#this:#“[H]ow#can#I#be#without#border?”#(Powers#4)#This#

question,#paired#with#the#repetitive#query#“[W]hat#shall#I#do?”#that#dots#the#play#and,#

according#to#Roisman,#also#characterized#the#political#life#of#Athens#as#its#short+lived#

empire#began#to#crumble,#will#offer#at#least#a#preliminary#guide.#For#Philoctetes#a#life#

without#borders#has#become#habit;#he#has#spent#the#last#decade#dying,#in#his#own#

DT#Spitzer+Hanks#

words,#and#his#habitus#is#marked#by#abjection#through#his#abandonment#and#his#

wound.#His#abandonment,#his#having#been#marked#as#Other#makes#him#abject#and,#

according#to#Odysseus,#his#having#marked#himself#as#Other#makes#him#abject#

through#his#inability#to#maintain#heroic#masculine#coherence#through#the#control#of#

bodily#borders+#the#wound#and#its#stink+#and#his#resulting#screams,#which#fall#

outside#the#code#of#masculine#stoicism#and#disturb#the#onboard#sacrificial#

ceremonies#necessary#for#safe#travel#and#good#fortune#in#battle.#Philoctetes’#rags,#in#

which#only#he#would#have#been#dressed,#would#have#been#a#dramatic#symbol#of#this#

abjection,#as#is#his#frenzied#dismissal#of#their#words,#amounting#to#hubris,#when#

counseled#by#true#friends#(Neoptolemus#eventually#returns#the#bow#to#Philoctetes#in#

order#to#prove#his#friendship#but#remains#unable#to#convince#him#to#travel#to#Troy,#if#

only#to#be#healed#and#to#save#more#Greeks#from#the#slaughter).#It#is#as#if#Philoctetes#

cannot#be#without#borders,#but#must#be,#due#to#his#situation,#and#therefore#latches#

on#to#a#univocal#inanity#that#marks#his#speech#with#incoherence#and#his#personality#

with#such#extreme#rigidity#as#to#set#aside#his#own#and#his#people’s#health#and#

happiness.11##In#his#island#detachment#from#society,#civility,#and#health,#he#has#

become#attached#to#a#sustaining#but#deeply#limiting#rage,#which#the#play#

demonstrates#is#not#a#suitable#substitute#for#a#self.#

# That#Philoctetes#is#wounded#is#highly#important,#and#deeply#abject+#the#

symbolic#level#on#which#the#wound#operates#suggests#inner#abjection,#while#the#

unsubtle#break#in#bodily#boundaries,#especially#associated#with#the#shrine#of#Chryse,#

a#female#(abject)#and#a#deity#(outside#humanity,#and#thus#transcendent,#and#thus#

incompatible#with#human#imperfection#on#an#originary#level)#and#particularly#with#

some#unspecified#encroachment#on#the#borders#of#that#shrine,#further#suggests#it+#

but#Philoctetes#is#also#abjected#by#the#rhetorical#gamesmanship#occurring#

throughout#the#play.#By#accepting#Neoptolemus’#false#friendship,#Philoctetes#

unwittingly#participates#in#an#end#run#around#the#rules#of#the#game#he#thinks#he’s#

playing+#that#of#masculine#sociality,#and#of#paideic#relations#between#older#and#

younger#men,#and#of#the#military#code#of#honesty#among#comrades+#and#in#doing#so#

is#abjected,#perhaps#doubly#so#in#being#abjected#unbeknownst#to#himself.#Philoctetes#

is#certainly#‘matter#out#of#place’#and#thus#dirty,#and#furthermore,#as#Kristeva#states,#

DT#Spitzer+Hanks#

abjection#always#rejects#and#subverts#order#by#lying#“outside,#beyond#the#set,”#and#

infects#the#subject#and#sociality#by#not#agreeing#“to#the#latter’s#rules#of#the#game.”#

That#Philoctetes#disgusts#those#with#whom#he#is#in#contact#is#clear#by#the#many#

references#to#his#stench#and#to#the#obvious#unwillingness#of#all#those#who#meet#him#

to#be#in#proximity#with#him,#and#this#is#only#the#rotten#rind#of#the#abject#orange,#so#

to#speak.#

# Nor#is#Philoctetes#the#only#abject#subject#of#the#play.#Odysseus#is#also#

abjected#in#that#he#is#depicted#as#cowardly#(he#threatens#Philoctetes#and#

Neoptolemus#with#force#at#different#junctures#but#backs#down#quickly#each#time)#

and#therefore#unmartial,#which#is#disjunct#with#his#entire#identity,#and#Odysseus#

also,#like#abjection#itself,#refuses#to#play#by#the#rules#of#whichever#game#he#is#playing#

but#instead,#by#his#own#admission,#holds#to#his#own:#

# ...As#the#occasion#demands,#such#a#one#am#I.#

When#there#is#a#competition#of#men#just#and#good,#

you#will#find#none#more#scrupulous#than#myself.#

What#I#seek#in#everything#is#to#win## # 1049+1052##

If#we#recall#Odysseus’#reading#of#wisdom#and#goodness#as#being#entirely#tied#to#

victory,#and#his#promise#to#Neoptolemus#that#he#will#be#known#as#“the#most#

scrupulous#of#men”#for#lying#without#blushing#in#the#cause#of#victory,#and#Odysseus’#

general#opposition#of#realpolitik#to#Neoptolemus’#naive#moral#perfectionism,#the#

middle#two#lines#quoted#above#become#less#seemingly#admirable#and#the#first#and#

last#lines#attain#their#intended#clarity.#Odysseus#is#abject#because#there#are#no#

borders#to#what#he#will#not#do#in#his#own#interest,#and#no#rules#to#the#game#in#which#

only#he#can#possibly#be#the#winner.#If#abjection#lies#outside#the#set,#and#refuses#to#

play#by#the#rules,#the#Odysseus#in#the#Philoctetes#is#this#particular#valence#of#the#

term#personified.#

# But#it#was#not#overstatement,#despite#Odysseus’#and#Philoctetes#separate#

claims#to#victory#in#the#abjection#sweepstakes,#to#proclaim#Neoptolemus#the#most#

abject#character#in#the#play,#as#I#did#above.#Neoptolemus#wins#this#prize#precisely#by#

beginning#the#play#pure#and#whole,#somewhat#unformed#perhaps,#but#clean#and#

dedicated#to#his#own#and#his#father’s#proud#physis.#His#pitifully#foreshortened#

DT#Spitzer+Hanks#

defense#of#his#own#position#and#his#subsequent#mastery,#at#least#for#a#season,#of#his#

abject#master’s#lessons,#shows#him#entering#into#abjection#with#a#vengeance#as#he#

not#only#leaves#his#own,#virtuous#position#behind#but#draws#with#him#into#dirtiness#

his#ersatz#friend,#a#crippled,#lonely,#starved#and#half+mad#hermit#whose#pitiful#

existence#ought#to#call#for#compassion#and#honest#dealing,#not#a#series#of#half+lies#

and#circumlocutions.#That#Neoptolemus#moves#from#the#traditional#belief#in#

physis/family#virtue#and#the#primacy#of#aretē#or#personal#righteousness#to#what#was#

in#5th#century#Athens#the#novel#and#deeply#suspect#belief#in#naked#persuasion#and#

the#corresponding#political#power#to#act#in#one’s#own#interests#with#the#suborned#

support#of#the#polis#also#abjects#his#audience,#as#Sophocles#both#draws#them#with#

Neoptolemus#into#dishonest#relation#with#Philoctetes#and#forces#them#into#

sympathy#with#Neoptolemus,#and#with#his#and#Odysseus’#position,#through#the#final#

approval#of#Hercules#and#through#dramatic#identification.#

# That#this#wholesale#abjection#occurs#through#the#action#of#language#drives#

the#final#nail#into#the#coffin#of#imagined#wholesomeness#that#is#generally#both#so#

attractive#and#so#unattainable.#The#recurrent#question#“What#should#I#do?”#which#

enlivens#this#play#is,#of#course,#rendered#in#dramatic#form#as#“What#should#I#say?,”#

dialogue#being#our#main#path#to#understanding#any#character#in#drama,#and#our#

only#access#to#character#in#a#play#consisting#of#very#little#action;#considering#that#

this#play#is#also#in#part#about#language#occurring#outside#the#dramatic#frame,#with#

its#emphasis#on#Odysseus’#sophistry#and#the#uses#of#language#that#he#sees#as#

acceptable#but#that#are#in#direct#contradiction#to#traditional#Greek#ideals#of#virtue#

and#honor,#the#problem#of#language#that#Neoptolemus#most#persistently#makes#

visible#with#his#vexed#choice#between#lying#to#a#friend#and#suppliant,#Philoctetes,#

acceding#to#lying#language#put#upon#him#by#his#mentor,#Odysseus,#or#lying#to#himself#

about#the#morality#of#his#own#path#to#glory#and#renown#becomes#a#universal#

problem#crossing#boundaries#between#audience#and#character,#text#and#reader.#

# Thus#it#can#be#seen#that#what#seems#to#be#a#series#of#hierarchical#

arrangements#of#masculine#subjects#in#dramatic#space,#with#each#character#

jockeying#to#come#out#‘on#top,’#is#in#fact#more#like#a#trio#of#pigs#in#mud.#Each#man#is#

mired#in#his#own#abjection#and#desperately#tries#to#allocate#it#to#another#without#

DT#Spitzer+Hanks#

final#success,#and#each#rehearses#his#own#particular#logic#of#abjection#multiple#times#

throughout#the#play.#This#rehearsal#emphasizes#the#returning#action#of#abjection,#its#

ultimate#unmanageability,#and#also#makes#clear#that#abjection#moves#between#

individual,#intrapersonal,#and#societal#planes#quite#easily.#The#narrative#economies#

of#abjection#in#the#text#stretch#and#constrict#with#the#flux#of#argument#and#action,#

but#they#are#always#present.#That#this#is#so#may#only#reflect#the#particularities#of#the#

text,#but#it#is#in#part#my#point#that#the#simplicity#of#this#play,#structured#essentially#

around#an#argument#in#favor#of#bowing#to#necessity#while#recognizing#the#

imperfection#of#that#necessity#in#its#full#complexity,#in#less#an#expression#of#the#

supposedly#marmoreal#tendencies#of#Attic#tragedy#and#more#an#explanation#of#their#

staying#power:#the#great#Greek#tragedies#take#a#simple#situation#and#expose#its#

underlying#tangle#of#existentially#important#issues,#in#a#fully#human#way,#with#

emphasis#on#what#has#been#aptly#nominated#the#‘terrible#lightness#of#being.’##

# Thus#to#proscribe,#as#Neoptolemus#seems#to,#an#unfit#way#of#being#that#colors#

everything#with#disgust,#is#to#deny#the#very#fabric#of#life.#While#necessary,#

Neoptolemus’#struggle#against#abjection#is#finally#untenable#because#abjection#

characterizes#us,#makes#us,#and#sustains#us.#This#is#not#to#say#that#it#is#good,#

precisely;#abjection#is#a#source#of#discomfort#and#its#allocation#to#the#Other#a#

justification#for#blithe#savagery,#and#an#expression#of#the#removal#(actually,#the#

blank#impossibility)#of#immediacy#and#interpenetrative#communion#from#our#

relations#with#ourselves#and#others.#However,#nor#is#it#simply#bad:#as#with#disgust,#

with#abjection#comes#the#possibility#of#beauty#and#as#with#language,#with#abjection#

comes#the#possibility#of#a#relation#to#the#Other+within#and#+without.#“If,”#as#

Philoctetes#says#upon#spying#the#strangers#whose#incursion#onto#his#lonely#island#

spells#the#end#of#one#phase#of#abjection#and#the#beginning#of#another#“this#is#all#we#

can#have#from#one#another,#speech,#this,#at#least,#we#should#have”#and#if,#

additionally,#“the#wound#a#word#opens#festers#forever,”#then#perhaps#it#is#our#

obligation#to#treat#our#wounds#as#inkwells,#and#our#words#as#expressions#of#our#

wounded#selves.#Perhaps#our#wounded#selves,#and#the#speech#welling#up#from#those#

wounds,#are#a#better#basis#for#sociality#than#the#fleeting,#unattainable#perfection#of#

the#unabject,#non+existent#masculine#ideal#so#conspicuously#absent#from#Philoctetes.1

DT#Spitzer+Hanks#

Works#Cited#

Austin,#Norman.#Sophocles’1Philoctetes1and1the1Great1Soul1Robbery.#Madison,#WI:##University#of#Wisconsin#Press,#2011.#Print.#

#

Braidotti,#Rosi.#Nomadic1Subjects:1Embodiment1and1Sexual1Difference1in1Contemporary11Feminist1Theory.#New#York:#Columbia#UP,#1994.#Print.#

#

Butler,#Judith.#“Gender#Trouble,#Feminist#Theory,#and#Psychoanalytic#Discourse.”#

# Identities:1Race,1Class,1Gender1and1Nationality.#Eds.#Linda#Martín#Alcoff#and## Eduardo#Mendieta.#Oxford:#Blackwell,#2003.#201+211.#Print.#

#

Douglas,#Mary.#Purity1and1Danger:1An1Analysis1of1Concepts1of1Pollution1and1Taboo.### 1966.#London:#Routledge,#2002.#Print.#

#

Freud,#Sigmund.#“Some#Psychological#Consequences#of#the#Anatomical#Distinction#

# Between#the#Sexes.”#International1Journal1of1Psychoanalysis#8#(1927):#133+142.##Print.#

#

Gottlieb,#R.M.#“Refusing#the#Cure:#Sophocles's#Philoctetes#and#the#clinical#problems### of#self+injurious#spite,#shame#and#forgiveness.”#International1Journal1of1#1 Psychoanalysis#85.3#(2004):#669+89.#Print.##

Korsmeyer,#Carolyn.#Savoring1Disgust:1The1Foul1and1the1Fair1in1Æsthetics.#Oxford:### Oxford#UP,#2011.#Print.#

#

Kristeva,#Julia.#Powers1of1Horror:1An1Essay1on1Abjection.#1980.#New#York:#Columbia#UP,#1982.#Print.#

#

Konstan,#David.#“Pity#and#Politics.”#Pity1and1Power1in1Ancient1Athens.#Ed.#Rachel#Hall### Sternberg.#Cambridge:#Cabridge#UP,#2005.#48+66.#Print.#

#

Lycurgus.#Against1Leocrates.1Trans.#J.#O.#Burtt.#Vol.#2:#Minor#Attic#Orators#in#Two### Volumes.#London:#William#Heinemann#Ltd.,#1962.#Print.##

#

McGinn,#Colin.#The1Meaning1of1Disgust.#Oxford:#Oxford#UP,#2011.#Print.##

Menninghaus,#Winfried.#Disgust:1Theory1and1History1of1a1Strong1Sensation.#Trans.#Howard#Eiland#and#Joel#Golb.#Albany,#NY:#State#University#of#New#York#Press,#2003.#Print.#

#

Roisman,#Hanna#M.#Sophocles:1Philoctetes.#Duckworth#Companions#to#Greek#and#Roman#Tragedy.#London:#Gerald#Duckworth#&#Co.,#2005.#Print.#

##

Rhode,#Deborah#L.#“Theoretical#Perspectives#on#Sexual#Difference.”#Theoretical11 Perspectives1on1Sexual1Difference.#Ed.#Deborah#L.#Rhode.#New#Haven,#CT:#Yale## UP,#1990.#1+10.#Print.#

#

Sophocles.#Philoctetes.#Trans.#Carl#Phillips.#Oxford:#Oxford#UP,#2003.#Print.##

+++.#Philoctetes.#Trans#David#Grene.#New#York:#Washington#Square#Press,#1967.#Print.#

DT#Spitzer+Hanks#

#

Wilson,#Robert#Rawdon.#The1Hydra’s1Tale:1Imagining1Disgust.#Edmonton,#Alberta:#University#of#Alberta#Press,#2002.#Print.#

#

Notes#

########################################################1#This#quotation#is#from#Grene’s#1957#Chicago#translation,#though#I#came#to#this#text#

through#Carl#Phillips’#2003#translation#for#Oxford#University#Press.#The#differences#

are#mainly#stylistic,#but#whenever#working#with#a#text#in#translation#it#is#best#to#

consult#at#least#two#translations#when#possible,#and#to#work#with#whichever#seems#

appropriate#for#the#project#at#hand.#Grene’s#translation#being#less#self+consciously#

artistic,#I#quote#from#it#throughout,#though#Phillips’#remains#useful#and#interesting.##

2#Carolyn#Korsmeyer#argues#that#there#are#two#typical#positions#on#the#topic#of#

disgust:#“one#that#stresses#the#connection#of#emotional#responses#to#belief#systems#

and#cultures,#and#one#that#focuses#on#their#physical,#reactive#character.”#(Korsmeyer#

2011:#15)#That#Menninghaus#is#claiming#that#a#robust#analysis#of#disgust#must#span#

the#two#positions#suggests#that#disgust#may#be#a#special#topic#requiring#a#theoretical#

approach#capable#of#marking#the#traversal#across#dichotomies.##

3#Since#its#inception#psychoanalytic#theory#has#assumed#sexual#difference#to#have#a#

primary#organizing#function#within#the#individual#psyche,#including#during#the#

process#of#subject#formation.#(For#a#general#review#of#sexual#difference#in#

psychoanalytic#discourses#see#Braidotti#1994#and#Rhode#1990;#For#a#discussion#of#

sexual#difference#in#Lacanian#psychoanalytic#theory#see#Butler#2003;#for#a#

discussion#of#sexual#difference#in#Freud#see#Freud#1927.)#Concisely#put,#the#male#is#

supposed#to#repudiate#the#mother#by#splitting#her#into#the#exalted#and#the#degraded#

mother,#while#the#female#abandons#the#mother#as#the#original#sexual#object#for#the#

father#in#accordance#with#(patriarchal)#social#and#biological#necessity.#Therefore#it#

is#not#possible#to#deal#with#subjectivity#sans#sexual#difference;#while#Kristeva#is#often#read#as#doing#so#in#Powers#I#think#this#is#an#incorrect#reading,#and#I#prefer#to#retain#gender#as#integral#to#her#theory,#in#opposition#to#widespread#critical#practice.##

4#It#is#worth#noting#that#physis#passes#along#paternal#lines.#Thus#the#nominal#‘son#of...’#was#meant#to#indicate#something#of#character#as#it#would#be#passed#from#father#

to#son,#as#if#character#achieved#by#the#father#typified#his#descendants#through#a#

process#almost#genetic#in#its#inborn#determinacy.#If#we#consider#this#idea#alongside#

the#psychoanalytic#model#of#subjective#development,#in#which#the#abjection#of#and#

separation#from#the#mother#are#one#and#the#accession#to#the#Law#of#the#Father#and#

the#entry#into#language#follow#hard#upon#that#separation’s#heels,#then#physis#may#not#be#such#a#clear#and#unabject#alternative#to#Odyssean#sophistry.##

5#The#ephebic#oath,#as#preserved#at#Acharnae#and#discussed#in#Lycurgus’#Against1Leocrates#1.77#(ca.#330#BCE),#begins#“I#will#not#bring#dishonor#on#my#sacred#arms…”#and#goes#on#to#detail#the#duties#of#an#ephebe,#which#also#include#following#

commands#from#military#superiors.#Though#it#is#not#often#mentioned,#it#is#clear#from#

this#that#avoidance#of#dishonor#could#be#a#separate#obligation#from#obedience,#and#it#

DT#Spitzer+Hanks#

#####################################################################################################################################################################

is#unlikely#that#such#a#thought#would#not#have#occurred#to#Athenian#audiences#used#

to#wrangling#over#expediency#and#honor#in#military#matters#(see#Konstan#2005).##

6#Hanna#Roisman#notes#that#Athenian#civic#life#at#the#time#of#the#play’s#first#

performance#in#409#turned#on#the#question#of#“what#shall#I#do?”#so#frequently#

enunciated#in#the#play,#and#argues#that#the#varying#answers#presented#in#this#scene,#

and#in#others,#draw#attention#to#ongoing#worries#about#speech,#and#especially#

persuasive#speech,#at#the#time#connected#with#the#‘new#teaching’#of#the#sophists.#In#

this#scene#Odysseus#clearly#fills#the#sophistic#role,#persuading#a#young#person#

through#a#series#of#arguments#to#carry#out#a#morally#unsavoury#action#on#dubious#

grounds,#though#with#far#less#serious#consequences#for#himself#than#Socrates#was#to#

face#a#few#decades#later,#when#accused#of#a#very#similar#act.#See#Roisman#2005:#61+7##

7#it#should#be#noted#that#this#is#a#further#refinement#of#the#prophecy#as#retailed#to#

Neoptolemus#by#Odysseus,#in#which#only#the#bow#and#Neoptolemus’#presence#are#

needed#to#fell#Troy.#It#is#worth#asking,#as#many#scholars#have#done,#whether#the#

Trader#is#meant#purely#as#a#stratagem#to#work#on#Philoctetes#or#whether#the#Trader#

also#seeks#to#further#influence#Neoptolemus#by#changing#the#stakes#of#the#game.##

8#In#some#versions#of#the#myth#it#is#Philoctete’s#father,#Poias,#rather#than#Philoctetes,#

who#receives#the#bow.#The#play#is#working#with#the#mythic#version#that#assumes#

Philoctetes’#unbroken#ownership#of,#and#association#with,#the#bow#of#Hercules.##

9#These#cries,#more#terrible#even#than#those#simply#erupting#from#a#body#in#pain,#are#

the#cries#of#an#abject#hero+#a#man#whose#ability#to#inhabit#the#position#of#kalos1k’agathon,#the#pinnacle#of#paideic#education#and#a#perfect#blend#of#personal#and#civic#virtue,#is#slipping#away#with#his#inability#to#control#his#body#or#his#emotions+#

and#it#is#this#quality#in#Philoctetes’#cries#that#first#caused#him#to#be#abandoned#by#his#

comrades,#and#which#cause#him#to#fear#fresh#abandonment#now.#To#break#the#taboo#

of#masculine#self+control#by#screaming#in#horrific#pain#renders#Philoctetes#

personally#abject,#and#that#abjection#is#obnoxious#to#the#gods#during#sacrifice#as#well#

as#infectious#on#a#social#level.#It#is#also#worth#remembering#that#Philoctetes’#wound#

possesses#a#terrible#odor,#perhaps#the#ideal#model#of#infectious#abjection.##

10#In#The1Hydra’s1Tale#Wilson#likens#Philoctetes’#wound,#through#a#series#of#transferrals#and#logical#leaps,#to#menstruation;#while#I#find#this#perhaps#too#fanciful,#

it#is#logical#to#say#that#Philoctetes#is,#in#being#abjected,#also#feminized,#since#we#have#

seen#that#in#the#binary#system#operative#in#abjection#theory#that#which#is#abject#is#

automatically#feminine,#while#that#which#is#not#(despite#the#fact#of#nothing#finally#

lying#outside#the#arena#of#abjection)#is#masculine.#See#Wilson#2002.##

11#Gottlieb#2004#offers#a#psychoanalytic#perspective#on#this#precise#problem+#

perseveration#in#illness#as#a#function#of#the#ill#person’s#desire#for#revenge#and#

control+#arguing#that#such#issues#often#stem#from#feelings#of#anger#resulting#from#

previous#ill#treatment#whose#transference#onto#the#analyst#creates#the#desire#in#the#

analysand#not#to#be#‘cured,’#and#thereby#to#punish#the#analyst.#