“The Odyssey” by Homer (post 8): Do not miss the forest for the trees — nine muses and other Greek gods and goddesses are alternate personalities.

I have finished reading Homer’s Odyssey and have found no other “trees”; that is, other particular kinds or examples of implicit multiple personality (see previous posts in this series). But I don’t want to be so focused on particulars that I miss the big picture.

Each of the Greek gods and goddesses is a type of personality. Like the characters in fiction or the personalities in multiple personality, none of the gods and goddesses is as well-rounded and multifaceted as a real person. Some are obviously specialized; for example, each Muse on a particular art or science. Others have their own characteristic interests and abilities.

Like alternate personalities in a person with multiple personality, the gods and goddesses live in their own world, Olympus or some island, which would correspond to the inner or dream world in a person’s mind, where alternate personalities spend most of their time and are usually busy doing their own things. But they monitor what is going on in the outside world, especially in regard to a particular person (the regular, host personality). Sometimes they are heard by the host as voices. Sometimes they influence the host from behind the scenes. Sometimes they interact with the host, like novelists with their characters. Occasionally they come out and take over.

Polytheism is multiple personality.