How should I imagine the gods?

[marvin.whence]

This isn't a very deep question, but I can't find much of an answer to it anywhere...

For example, as Appollo strides down from Olympus in Book I, unleashing arrows of plague upon the Argives, should I actually imagine a figure kneeling there, shooting arrows? Or is it strictly metaphorical?

Do the gods look just like humans in stature, in flesh, or are they larger than life and/or a transluscent apparition? Do all men see them, or only certain ones? It's obvious in some cases that a god is specifically only seen by one man, but many cases are ambiguous, as when Aphrodite sweeps Paris away from his duel with Menelaus.

I suspect the only answer is "however you wish to interpret it." But is there any kind of scholarly consensus about it in modern times or ancient?

[Ranger Jeff]

This is a big question I've been trying to grapple with myself. Part of the answer is that the gods are many things to different people at different times. Metaphorical, pure psychology to "fate", to actual actors. One thing you should consider is: Does it matter? Another thing to consider is that the gods are a philosophical construct of Death. Because they are immortal, paradoxically, they are inferior to humans (though of course they "think" the opposite), because only humans experience the exquisite possibility of death, hated as it is. Because they don't die, they act like children most of the time. Only "adults" can die properly, having reached the wisdom that comes with the knowledge of one's mortality.

But how can you transport yourself back to Homer's times, and "listen" to the Iliad with the ears of Homer's "customers," the courts and wealthy individuals who listened to his and others' renditions? The gods may have been very real to them--but even so not every instance of a god's appearance is meant to be taken literally. One thing comes in clear in the Iliad: One should always acknowledge them, and offer proper sacrifices and prayer. It seems very easy to slip up in this area, hence ready explanations for anything that goes wrong.

[marvin.whence]

That's a very interesting point that the gods act like children because they do not know mortality, but I found that most of the mortals, with few exceptions (Odysseus, in particular), also act like complete children.

but even so not every instance of a god's appearance is meant to be taken literally. But we can't know for sure, really. Perhaps the original writer and listeners/readers of this poem are imagining a time centuries ago when they thought the gods were far more involved, so involved that they imagined Aphrodite literally flying and snatching up Paris and carrying him away, with all the soldiers to watch. At the same time, it could just as easily be taken metaphorically if the reader finds that sort of situation too cheesy. Paris simply fled the fight, but Aphrodite, not a literal figure, but some kind of mystical force, persuaded his thoughts and led him back to Troy. I wonder though, if someone were to make some kind of screen adaptation, how would they best represent this scene?

I'd wager that it was originally meant to be taken quite literally. From what I've read, it wasn't until centuries later that the Roman scholars began to portray the gods as more distant and inactive in an attempt to rationalize the religion.