While not featured in the Iliad, Somax becomes one of the most important characters in Ransom yet he is so important to the story because he is so ordinary. He’s an ordinary carter with a sad story and bag of griddlecakes, all of which make him seem very reasonable. He opens Priam up to the world and sees things as they are. His mundane qualities are what make him essential to the narrative. Somax is an ordinary working man, “a stocky fellow of fifty or so” yet we primarily recognise his importance as a storyteller. While the stories he tells Priam are deeply personal and undoubtable true, we understand he has a reputation of being, as stated by Hermes, “A bit of a tippler, and a storyteller and spinner of tales”. His omission of his daughter-in-law’s