Works and Days

by Hesiod

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Hesiod

While it is unclear exactly what elements of Works and Days are autobiographical and which are fictional, the literary character of Hesiod is a hardworking farmer, a man concerned with justice, and a highly successful, prize-winning poet. His father was a seafarer from Asia Minor who established himself as a middle-class landowner near Mount Helicon in mainland Greece, leaving an estate to his two sons.

Hesiod in many ways embodies the ideals that he seeks to promote. Existing in contrast to the Homeric ideal of the hero, Hesiod accepts his place as a common man, shuns violence, and seeks to live a just life that pleases the gods. As a wise, accomplished, and generous person, he therefore writes Works and Days as a didactic text aimed at advising his brother, Perses, in both word and deed. Additionally, Perses is shown to have wronged Hesiod; the writing of this work on Perses’s behalf therefore shows Hesiod’s graciousness and genuine concern with the betterment of others around him. Hesiod narrates the poem in the first person, speaking directly to Perses, and claims to be inspired by the Muses of Mount Helicon. His words of advice pertain to farming, seafaring, and proper behavior.

Perses

Hesiod’s brother, Perses, is presented as a corrupt man who seeks to steal Hesiod’s wealth in order to compound it with his own inheritance from their father. Moreover, Perses also attempts to shun work of any kind, proving him to be not only a selfish, calculating individual but also an indolent one. He is never given a chance to speak for himself on these matters, however. Ultimately, Perses squanders all of the wealth he has amassed and reluctantly returns to his brother to beg for assistance, which Hesiod willingly gives him. The fact that Hesiod does so implies that he sees at least some potential and goodness in his brother.

Zeus

In Hesiod’s work, he asserts that the gods have a high degree of influence on the lives of humans, and Zeus, the ruler of the Greek pantheon, is shown to be of particular import in this regard. Primarily, Zeus exists as a figure through which divine justice is delivered, and Hesiod uses his example to urge his brother (and his audience) to live hardworking lives that embody the ideals represented by Zeus. He states that the common person must recognize that, while these ideals may look a certain way when conducted in the lives of gods and heroes, in the commoner’s life, living out these ideals materializes in vastly different ways.

The Gods

The gods more broadly also exist as explanations for the natural phenomena that influence the life of a farmer, both in its patterns and in its seeming randomness. Hesiod constructs a detailed almanac that explains when it is appropriate to carry out various tasks, and it is the divine wills of the gods that are presented as explanations for why certain days are auspicious and some are inopportune and why certain tasks should be confined to certain times of the year.

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