Transactions of the American Philological Association

In Hesiod's Theogony, the "Kings and Singers" passage, lines 80-103, parallels the poem's Dichterweihe, lines 22-34, in that both portray contact between the Muses and mortals on whom they bestow gifts. The gifts granted Hesiod in the Dichterweihe, a divine voice and a laurel scepter, represent the persuasive powers of éoidÒw and basileÊw as described in Th. 80-103. The latter passage is thus programmatic for how Hesiod perceives his role as narrator and how he intends to use the Muses' gifts for didaxis. The Prometheus and Hekate passages later in the poem show Hesiod's didaxis in action.