Book X, often called the Doloneia, provides a bridge between the speeches of Book IX and the extended battle scenes in Books XI–XVIII. Book X deals with a totally different aspect of war — espionage. The episode with Odysseus, Diomedes, and the Trojan, Dolon, contrasts with the straightforward battle scenes where carnage and brutality are paired with nobility and honor. The events in Book X are still violent, but there is no honor or nobility to offset the brutality. The foray of Diomedes and Odysseus is a foray behind enemy lines by men without scruples. Later in the Middle Ages, Dante noted this aspect of the passage and placed Diomedes and Odysseus in the 8th Circle of Hell, Bolgia, the Evil Counselors. The deceitful murder of Dolon is Dante's basis for this placement.
The bath that Diomedes and Odysseus take in the sea at the end of Book X may be symbolic of their need to cleanse themselves both physically and spiritually of this dirty night's work. The events in Book X, in fact, have often been referred to as "dirty work." That Homer looked on the deceitful killing of Dolon as low, immoral business is accentuated by the ironic ritual cleansing the two warriors go through after they have committed the murder of Dolon and the sleeping Trojans. Homer's consummate artistry shows up time and time again in the way the small events in the poem relate to larger issues.
