Glorious Exploits Chapter 21: Prayer and Libation at the Quarry
⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.
Summary
The chapter opens at dusk. Gelon and the narrator do not go home but instead walk to the quarry. Without the children (the young performers they had previously enlisted), the quarry feels unnaturally quiet and lonely. As they near the pit, the narrator is overcome with a creeping dread and imagines he hears rats scurrying below. Only Gelon’s presence keeps him from turning back.
They stop at the same hilltop where Gelon first proposed they become directors of a play. From that spot they look down at the Athenian prisoners. In the fading light, the narrator can barely make out individual figures; he assumes the ones who are moving—shuffling their feet as if they still want to keep a flame alive—are “their” Athenians (the ones they had cast in their production).
Gelon produces a jug of wine, the most expensive available, purchased on the way. When the narrator asks for a sip, Gelon ignores him and pours the entire jug into the quarry. He then asks the narrator to take his hand. The narrator complies, feeling the eerie weight of the place and needing a friend’s warmth. Gelon says, “We pray,” and for the next few hours that is exactly what they do.
Key Events
- Gelon and the narrator visit the quarry alone at dusk, without the children who had previously accompanied them.
- The narrator experiences a strong sense of dread and loneliness, and hears rats in the pit.
- They stand on the hill where Gelon first proposed their directorial venture.
- Gelon pours an entire expensive jug of wine into the quarry as a libation.
- Gelon asks the narrator to hold his hand; the narrator agrees silently.
- The two men pray together for several hours.
Character Development
The narrator – The narrator’s dread and hesitation reveal a deepening emotional connection to the Athenian prisoners. He cannot joke or curse as he might have earlier; the gravity of the situation silences his humor. His grip on Gelon’s hand shows his need for human solidarity in the face of a dark ritual.
Gelon – Gelon takes a decisive, solemn action by wasting valuable wine on a symbolic gesture. He leads the prayer, transforming from a playful director into a supplicant. His willingness to spend and to kneel suggests a shift from artistic ambition to genuine concern for the prisoners’ welfare.
The Athenians – Though largely passive, the prisoners who continue to shuffle their feet are depicted as clinging to life. Their small movements become a focus of the narrator’s attention, highlighting their humanity.
Themes, Symbols, or Motifs
Libation and Sacrifice
The expensive wine poured into the quarry is a libation—a ritual offering. In ancient Greek culture, libations honored the gods or the dead. Here, Gelon and the narrator likely offer it to the gods on behalf of the prisoners, perhaps as a plea for mercy or as a gesture of mourning. The waste of a costly commodity underscores the seriousness of the act.
Prayer and Powerlessness
Prayer appears as the only remaining recourse after the failure of theatrical efforts to improve the prisoners’ lot. The characters cannot free the Athenians or change their fate; they can only pray. This motif emphasizes human limitation in the face of larger forces (war, political authority, or divine will).
Light and Movement as Signs of Life
The narrator distinguishes living prisoners from the dead by their movement: “the ones who shuffle their feet as if their lives were a flame they still want to keep burning.” The imagery of a flame and the act of shuffling connect survival with persistence and hope, however faint.
The Quarry as a Sacred Space
The quarry, previously a brutal prison and a stage for comedy, becomes a site of solemn ritual. Its eerie quiet and the rats imbue it with a deathly aura, but the act of prayer transforms it into a place of communion—one where the living reach out to the divine.
Why This Chapter Matters
This chapter marks a tonal shift from the earlier exuberance of staging a Greek play to a somber acknowledgment of helplessness. By replacing wine with prayer, Gelon and the narrator abandon their earlier role as entertainers and become mourners. The libation and the extended prayer serve as a ritual farewell or an appeal for divine intervention, suggesting that the protagonists now recognize the limits of human effort. The chapter deepens the novel’s reflection on art’s power—or lack thereof—to change suffering.
Study Questions and Answers
1. Why does Gelon pour the wine into the quarry instead of sharing it? Gelon pours the wine as a libation—a ritual offering to the gods. This act transforms the wine from a luxury into a sacred gift, likely intended to seek divine favour or mercy for the Athenian prisoners. It also signals that Gelon views the quarry as a space worthy of reverence, not just a prison.
2. What is the significance of the narrator taking Gelon’s hand without joking or complaining? The narrator’s silent compliance indicates that the situation has moved beyond jest. His earlier humor gave way to dread, and the physical gesture of hand-holding provides mutual comfort. It shows their friendship deepening into a shared burden, and it underscores the seriousness of the prayer that follows.
3. How does the author use sensory details (sounds, sights) to create atmosphere in this chapter? The author emphasizes silence and loneliness (“too quiet and lonesome”), the imagined sound of rats scurrying, and the visual of prisoners shuffling in the gloom. These details evoke a haunting, deathlike stillness that contrasts with the earlier noise of rehearsals. The fading light and the difficulty of distinguishing living prisoners from the dead reinforce the theme of fragility.