ADVENTURES OF ODYSSEUS
Land of Cicones
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Odysseus and his men after leaving Troy sailed to Ismarus the stronghold of Cicones. His men raided the island and took all of the luxuries,
they killed all men and held their women captive; as they were taking all of the luxuries, Cicones' army attacked them.
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Maron, a priest of Apollo gave Odysseus splendid gifts for sparing his life and his family. He gave 7 talents of gold, A mixing bowl all of silver,
and twelve Jars of wine.
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Odysseus and his men retreated after some of his men were killed
Maron (/ˈmærɒn, ˈmærən/) or Maro (/ˈmæroʊ/; Greek: Μάρων, gen. Μάρωνος) in mythology was son of Evanthes (some also call
him a son of Oenopion, Silenus or of Bacchus, and a pupil of Seilenus), and grandson of Dionysus and Ariadne. He was also a priest
of Apollo at Ismarus. He was the hero of sweet wine, and is mentioned among the companions of Dionysus. In Odyssey (9.200) before
making Polyphemus drunk and fall asleep, Odysseus narrates:
“..With me I had a goat-skin of the dark, sweet wine, which Maro, son of Euanthes, had given me, the priest of Apollo, the god who used to watch
over Ismarus. And he had given it me because we had protected him with his child and wife out of reverence; for he dwelt in a wooded grove
of Phoebus Apollo. And he gave me splendid gifts: of well-wrought gold he gave me seven talents, and he gave me a mixing-bowl all of silver; and besides
these, wine, wherewith he filled twelve jars in all, wine sweet and unmixed, a drink divine.
Zeus sent a storm that knocked them out on their knees and on the tenth day they found the…
Land of the Lotus Eaters
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Odysseus sent two of his men to explore the area, and when they don't come back Odysseus goes to find them. When he found them, they were
addicted to eating the Lotus plant that caused them to lose their grip on reality. Odysseus tied up the men and forced them onto the ship
against their will.
Odysseus and his men then sail through the murky night to the…
Island of Cyclops
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This islands’ inhabitants are rough and uncivilized race of one-eyed giants.
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After making a meal of wild goats captured on an island offshore, they cross to the mainland. There they immediately come upon a cave full
of sheep and crates of milk and cheese.
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The cave’s inhabitant soon returns—it is the Cyclops Polyphemus, the son of Poseidon. Polyphemus makes a show of hospitality at first, but
he soon turns hostile. He devours two of Odysseus’s men on the spot and imprisons Odysseus and the rest in his cave for future meals.
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Odysseus thought of killing Polyphemus by a sword by hitting a vital point, but only the giant can remove the boulder of the cave. Odysseus
devices and executes a plan.
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The next day, while Polyphemus is outside pasturing his sheep, Odysseus finds a wooden staff in the cave and hardens it in the fire. When
Polyphemus returns, Odysseus gets him drunk on wine that he brought along from the ship. Feeling jovial, Polyphemus asks Odysseus his
name. Odysseus replies that his name is “Nobody”
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As soon as Polyphemus collapses with intoxication, Odysseus and a select group of his men drive the red-hot staff into his eye. Polyphemus
wakes with a shriek, and his neighbors come to see what is wrong, but they leave as soon as he calls out, “Nobody’s killing me”
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Morning comes, Odysseus and his men escape from the cave, unseen by the blind Polyphemus, by clinging to the bellies of the monster’s sheep
as they go out to graze. Safe on board their ships and with Polyphemus’s flock on board as well,
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Odysseus calls to land and reveals his true identity. With his former prisoners now out of reach, the blind giant lifts up a prayer to his father,
Poseidon, calling for vengeance on Odysseus.
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They sailed from the land of cyclops to….
Aeolia
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Aeolus presents Odysseus with a bag containing all of the winds, and he stirs up a westerly wind to guide Odysseus and his crew home.
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Within ten days, they are in sight of Ithaca, but Odysseus’s shipmates, who think that Aeolus has secretly given Odysseus a fortune in gold and
silver, tear the bag open.
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The winds escape and stir up a storm that brings Odysseus and his men back to Aeolia.
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Aeolus refuses to help them, certain that the gods hate Odysseus and wish to do him harm.
Lacking wind, the Achaeans row to the…
Land of the Laestrygonians
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Laestrygonians is a race of powerful giants whose king, Antiphates, and unnamed queen turn Odysseus’s scouts into dinner.
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Odysseus and his remaining men flee toward their ships, but the Laestrygonians pelt the ships with boulders and sink them as they sit in the
harbor. Only Odysseus’s ship escapes.
With only one ship remaining they sailed to…
Aeaea
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Odysseus sends his men to go scout the island, when they don't come back Odysseus goes to find them.
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Circe drugs a band of Odysseus’s men and turns them into pigs. When Odysseus goes to rescue them, Hermes approaches him in the form
of a young man.
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He tells Odysseus to eat an herb called moly to protect himself from Circe’s drug and then lunge at her when she tries to strike him with her
sword.
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Odysseus follows Hermes’ instructions, overpowering Circe and forcing her to change his men back to their human forms.
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Odysseus soon becomes Circe’s lover.
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He and his men live with her in luxury for a year. When his men finally persuade him to continue the voyage homeward, Odysseus asks Circe
for the way back to Ithaca.
She replies he must sail to…
The Underworld
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Odysseus travels to the River of Oceanus in the land of the Cimmerians. There he pours libations and performs sacrifices as Circe earlier
instructs him to do to attract the souls of the dead. The first to appear is that of Elpenor, the crewman who broke his neck falling from
Circe’s roof and asked to go back to Circe’s land to give him a proper burial.
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Odysseus then speaks with the Theban prophet Tiresias, who reveals that Poseidon is punishing the Achaeans for blinding his son Polyphemus.
Land of Cimmerians: Country deprived forever of sunshine, entrance to the realm of the dead.
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He foretells Odysseus’s fate—that he will return home, reclaim his wife and palace from the wretched suitors, and then make another trip to
a distant land to appease Poseidon.
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He warns Odysseus not to touch the flocks of the Sun when he reaches the land of Thrinacia; otherwise, he won’t return home without
suffering much more hardship and losing all of his crew.
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When Tiresias departs, Odysseus calls other spirits toward him. He speaks with his mother, Anticleia, who updates him on the affairs of Ithaca
and relates how she died of grief waiting for his return.
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He then meets the spirits of various famous men and heroes and hears the stories of their lives and deaths.
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He relates his encounters there: he meets Agamemnon, who tells him of his murder at the hands of his wife, Clytemnestra. Next he meets
Achilles, who asks about his son, Neoptolemus. Odysseus then tries to speak with Ajax, an Achaean who killed himself after he lost a contest
with Odysseus over the arms of Achilles, but Ajax refuses to speak and slips away. He sees Heracles, King Minos, the hunter Orion, and
others. He witnesses the punishment of Sisyphus, struggling eternally to push a boulder over a hill only to have it roll back down whenever it
reaches the top. He then sees Tantalus, agonized by hunger and thirst. Tantalus sits in a pool of water overhung by bunches of grapes, but
whenever he reaches for the grapes, they rise out of grasp, and whenever he bends down to drink, the water sinks out of reach. Odysseus soon
finds himself mobbed by souls wishing to ask about their relatives in the world above. He becomes frightened, runs back to his ship, and
immediately sails away.
From Circe Odysseus learned that they must pass the…
Island of Sirens
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Odysseus returns to Aeaea, where he buries Elpenor and spends one last night with Circe. She describes the obstacles that he will face on
his voyage home and tells him how to negotiate them.
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As he sets sail, Odysseus passes Circe’s counsel on to his men. They approach the island of the lovely Sirens, and Odysseus, as instructed
by Circe, plugs his men’s ears with beeswax and has them bind him to the mast of the ship.
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He alone hears their song flowing forth from the island, promising to reveal the future. The Sirens’ song is so seductive that Odysseus begs
to be released from his fetters, but his faithful men only bind him tighter.
Once they have passed the Sirens’ island, Odysseus and his men must navigate the straits between…
Scylla and Charybdis.
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Scylla is a six-headed monster who, when ships pass, swallows one sailor for each head. (6 sailors)
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Charybdis is an enormous whirlpool that threatens to swallow the entire ship.
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As instructed by Circe, Odysseus holds his course tight against the cliffs of Scylla’s lair. As he and his men stare at Charybdis on the other
side of the strait, the heads of Scylla swoop down and gobble up six of the sailors.
Odysseus and his men are just out of the Scylla and Charybdis situation, and they see the…
Island of Trinacia
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He wants to avoid it entirely, but the outspoken Eurylochus persuades him to let his beleaguered crew rest there. A storm keeps them
beached for a month, and at first the crew is content to survive on its provisions in the ship.
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When these run out, however, Eurylochus persuades the other crew members to disobey Odysseus and slaughter the cattle of the Sun. They
do so one afternoon as Odysseus sleeps; when the Sun finds out, he asks Zeus to punish Odysseus and his men.
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Shortly after the Achaeans set sail from Thrinacia, Zeus kicks up another storm, which destroys the ship and sends the entire crew to its
death beneath the waves.
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As had been predicted, only Odysseus survives, and he just barely. The storm sweeps him all the way back to Charybdis, which he narrowly
escapes for the second time.
Afloat on the broken timbers of his ship, Odysseus eventually reaches.
Ogygia
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Calypso detained Odysseus on Ogygia for seven years and kept him from returning to his home of Ithaca, wanting to marry him offering him
immortality.
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All the gods except Poseidon gather again on Mount Olympus to discuss Odysseus’s fate. Athena complained about Calypso's actions to Zeus.
who sent the messenger Hermes to Ogygia to order Calypso to release Odysseus.
(Athena actually asked Zeus if Odysseus deserved this misery, and Zeus answered no)
At ITHACA
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A mob of suitors is devouring his estate in Ithaca and courting his wife, Penelope, in hopes of taking over his kingdom.
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His son, Telemachus, an infant when Odysseus left but now a young man, is helpless to stop them. He has resigned himself to the likelihood
that his father is dead.
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Athena travels to Ithaca to speak with Telemachus. Assuming the form of Odysseus’s old friend Mentes, Athena predicts that Odysseus is
still alive and that he will soon return to Ithaca.
Mentes -(Μέντης) is the name of the King of the Taphians and the son of Anchialus. He is mentioned in the Odyssey.
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She advises Telemachus to call together the suitors and announce their banishment from his father’s estate. She then tells him that he
must make a journey to Pylos and Sparta to ask for any news of his father.
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Telemachus announced that he will hold an assembly the next day at which they will be ordered to leave his father’s estate.
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Antinous and Eurymachus, two particularly defiant suitors, rebuke Telemachus and ask the identity of the visitor with whom he has just
been speaking. Although Telemachus suspects that his visitor was a goddess in disguise, he tells them only that the man was a friend of his
father.
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Telemachus calls an assembly of the suitors and other islanders. He tells them of the suitors' disgraceful behavior and angrily tries to
shame them into leaving.
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But Antinous puts the blame on Penelope, who has been teasing and deceiving the suitors for years, as when she promised to marry after
she wove a shroud for her dead husband's father, Laertes. The cunning Penelope unwove each day's progress at night for three years.
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Antinous, one of the suitors, gives Telemachus a choice: evict his mother, or make her marry one of them. Telemachus rejects his offer,
telling the suitors to leave and begging aid from Zeus.
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Zeus quickly sends down two eagles to attack the suitors - an omen of death - but the suitors deny the sign and insist things will remain as
they are; they have been waiting too long for the prize of Penelope.
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Telemachus changes his tack, requesting a ship and crew for him to find news of his father at Pylos and Sparta; if he finds out he is dead, he
will allow his mother to remarry.
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Athena returns to him in the form of Mentor, praises his abilities derived from his father, and assures him that his voyage will be
successful. She promises to find him a ship and crew and help him sail and tells him to get provisions ready at home.
Telemachus at Pylos
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Telemachus and Mentor (Athena in disguise) witness an impressive religious ceremony in which dozens of bulls are sacrificed to Poseidon,
the god of the sea.
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Although Telemachus has little experience with public speaking, Mentor gives him the encouragement that he needs to approach Nestor, the
city’s king, and ask him about Odysseus. Nestor, however, has no information about the Greek hero.
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He recounts that after the fall of Troy a falling-out occurred between Agamemnon and Menelaus. Menelaus set sail for Greece immediately,
while Agamemnon decided to wait a day and continue sacrificing on the shores of Troy. Nestor went with Menelaus, while Odysseus stayed
with Agamemnon, and he has heard no news of Odysseus.
Mentor (Greek: Μέντωρ, Méntōr; gen.: Μέντορος) was the son of Alcimus. In his old age Mentor was a friend of Odysseus who placed him and Odysseus'
foster-brother Eumaeus in charge of his son Telemachus, and of Odysseus' palace, when Odysseus left for the Trojan War.
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Telemachus then asks Nestor about Agamemnon’s fate. Nestor explains that Agamemnon returned from Troy to find that Aegisthus, a base
coward who remained behind while the Greeks fought in Troy, had seduced and married his wife, Clytemnestra.
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With her approval, Aegisthus murdered Agamemnon.
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He would have then taken over Agamemnon’s kingdom had not Orestes, who was in exile in Athens, returned and killed Aegisthus and
Clytemnestra.
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Nestor sends his own son Pisistratus along to accompany Telemachus to Sparta, and the two set out by land the next day.
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Athena, who reveals her divinity by shedding the form of Mentor and changing into an eagle before the entire court of Pylos, stays behind to
protect Telemachus’ ship and its crew.
Agamemnon (/æɡəˈmɛmnɒn/; Greek: Ἀγαμέμνων, Ἀgamémnōn) was the son of King Atreus and Queen Aerope of Mycenae, the brother
of Menelaus, the husband of Clytemnestra and the father of Iphigenia, Electra or Laodike (Λαοδίκη), Orestes and Chrysothemis.
Aegisthus was the son of Thyestes and Thyestes' own daughter Pelopia, an incestuous union motivated by his father's rivalry with the house
of Atreus for the throne of Mycenae. Aegisthus murdered Atreus in order to restore his father to power, ruling jointly with him until only to be driven
from power by Atreus' son Agamemnon.
Clytemnestra (/ˌklaɪtəmˈnɛstrə/;Greek: Κλυταιμνήστρα, Klytaimnḗstra, [klytai̯mnɛ̌ːstra]) was the wife of Agamemnon and queen
of Mycenae (or sometimes Argos) in ancient Greek legend. In the Oresteia by Aeschylus, she murdered Agamemnon – said by Euripidesto be her second
husband – and the Trojan princess Cassandra, whom he had taken as war prize following the sack of Troy; however, in Homer's Odyssey, her role in
Agamemnon's death is unclear and her character is significantly more subdued.
Telemachus and Pisistratus at Sparta
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Menelaus and Helen are celebrating the separate marriages of their son and daughter. They happily greet Pisistratus and Telemachus, the
latter of whom they soon recognize as the son of Odysseus because of the clear family resemblance.
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As they all feast, the king and queen recount with melancholy the many examples of Odysseus’s cunning at Troy. Helen recalls how Odysseus
dressed as a beggar to infiltrate the city’s walls.
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Menelaus tells the famous story of the Trojan horse, Odysseus’s masterful gambit that allowed the Greeks to sneak into Troy and slaughter
the Trojans.
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The following day, Menelaus recounts his own return from Troy. He says that, stranded in Egypt, he was forced to capture Proteus, the
divine Old Man of the Sea.
Menelaus (/ˌmɛnɪˈleɪəs/; Greek: Μενέλαος, Menelaos, from μένος "vigor, rage, power" and λαός "people," "wrath of the people") was a king
of Mycenaean (pre-Dorian) Sparta, the husband of Helen of Troy, and the son of Atreus and Aerope. According to the Iliad, Menelaus was a central figure in the Trojan
War, leading the Spartan contingent of the Greek army, under his elder brother Agamemnon, king of Mycenae. Prominent in both the Iliad and Odyssey, Menelaus was
also popular in Greek vase painting and Greek tragedy, the latter more as a hero of the Trojan War than as a member of the doomed House of Atreus.
Helen of Troy (Greek: Ἑλένη, Helénē, pronounced [helénɛː]), also known as Helen of Sparta, or simply Helen, was said to have been the most beautiful woman
in the world, who was married to King Menelaus of Sparta, but was abducted by Prince Paris of Troy, resulting in the Trojan War when the Achaeans set out to reclaim
her and bring her back to Sparta. She was believed to have been the daughter of Zeus and Leda, and was the sister of Clytemnestra, Castor and Polydeuces.
Proteus (/ˈproʊtiəs, -tjuːs/; Ancient Greek: Πρωτεύς) is an early sea-god or god of rivers and oceanic bodies of water, one of several deities whom Homer calls
the "Old Man of the Sea". Some who ascribe to him a specific domain call him the god of "elusive sea change", which suggests the constantly changing nature of
the sea or the liquid quality of water in general. He can foretell the future, but, in a mytheme familiar to several cultures, will change his shape to avoid having to; he
will answer only to someone who is capable of capturing the beast. From this feature of Proteus comes the adjective protean, with the general meaning of "versatile",
"mutable", "capable of assuming many forms". "Protean" has positive connotations of flexibility, versatility and adaptability.
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Proteus told him the way back to Sparta and then informed him of the fates of Agamemnon and Ajax, another Greek hero, who survived Troy
only to perish back in Greece.
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Proteus also told him news of Odysseus—that he was still alive but was imprisoned by Calypso on her island.
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Buoyed by this report, Telemachus and Pisistratus return to Pylos to set sail for Ithaca.
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Meanwhile, the suitors at Odysseus’s house learn of Telemachus’s voyage and prepare to ambush him upon his return. The herald Medon
overhears their plans and reports them to Penelope.
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She becomes distraught when she reflects that she may soon lose her son in addition to her husband, but Athena sends a phantom in the
form of Penelope’s sister, Iphthime, to reassure her. Iphthime tells her not to worry, for the goddess will protect Telemachus.
Iphthime,
daughter
of Icarius,
a
sister
of Penelope and Perileos,
wife
of Eumelus from Pherae.
In Homer's Odyssey, Athena creates an image in Iphthime's likeness and sends this to a sleeping Penelope. This image
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conveys encouragement to Penelope after the latter confides in it her worries for her husband Odysseus and her
son Telemachus.
Meanwhile in Ogygia…
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Calypso helps Odysseus build a new boat and stocks it with provisions from her island. With sadness, she watches as the object of her love
sails away.
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After eighteen days at sea, Odysseus spots Scheria, the island of the Phaeacians, his next destination appointed by the gods.
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Just then, Poseidon, returning from a trip to the land of the Ethiopians, spots him and realizes what the other gods have done in his
absence. Poseidon stirs up a storm, which nearly drags Odysseus under the sea, but the goddess Ino comes to his rescue.
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She gives him a veil that keeps him safe after his ship is wrecked.
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Athena too comes to his rescue as he is tossed back and forth, now out to the deep sea, now against the jagged rocks of the coast.
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Finally, a river up the coast of the island answers Odysseus’s prayers and allows him to swim into its waters.
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He throws his protective veil back into the water as Ino had commanded him to do and walks inland to rest in the safe cover of a forest.
Ino (/ˈaɪnoʊ/ Greek: Ἰνώ, Ancient: [iːnɔ̌ː]) was a mortal queen of Thebes, who after her death and transfiguration was worshiped as a goddess under
her epithet Leucothea, the "white goddess." Alcman called her "Queen of the Sea" (θαλασσομέδουσα), which, if not hyperbole, would make her a doublet
of Amphitrite. Ino, the daughter of Cadmus, sister of Semele, and queen of Athamas, became a goddess after Hera drove her insane as a punishment for caring for
the newborn Dionysus. She leapt into the sea with her son Melicertes in her arms, and out of pity, the Hellenes asserted, the Olympian gods turned them both into
sea-gods, transforming Melicertes into Palaemon, the patron of the Isthmian games, and Ino into Leucothea.
Odysseus arrived at…
Scheria
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Athena appears in a dream to the Phaeacian princess Nausicaa, disguised as her friend. She encourages the young princess to go to the river the next
day to wash her clothes.
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Nausicaa goes to the river, and while she and her handmaidens are naked, playing ball as their clothes dry on the ground.
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Odysseus wakes in the forest and encounters them. Naked himself, he humbly yet winningly pleads for their assistance, never revealing his identity.
Nausicaa leaves him alone to wash the dirt and brine from his body, and Athena makes him look especially handsome,
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Nausicaa gives Odysseus directions to the palace and advice on how to approach Arete, queen of the Phaeacians, when he meets her. With a prayer to
Athena for hospitality from the Phaeacians, Odysseus sets out for the palace.
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Odysseus finds the palace residents holding a festival in honor of Poseidon.
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As soon as he sees the queen, he throws himself at her feet. At first, the king wonders if this wayward traveler might be a god, but without revealing his
identity, Odysseus puts the king’s suspicions to rest by declaring that he is indeed a mortal.
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He then explains his predicament, and the king and queen gladly promise to see him off the next day in a Phaeacian ship.
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The next day, Alcinous calls an assembly of his Phaeacian counselors.
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Athena, back from Athens, ensures attendance by spreading word that the topic of discussion will be the godlike visitor who recently appeared on the
island.
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At the assembly, Alcinous proposes providing a ship for his visitor so that the man can return to his homeland. The measure is approved, and Alcinous
invites the counselors to his palace for a feast and celebration of games in honor of his guest. (This is where DEMODOCUS, a bard that always visits the
king to recite poems, sang and Odysseus got affected for he remembers the war in troy. So, they decided to start the game instead.)
Finally, Odysseus Arrived at Ithaca
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Back in Ithaca, Odysseus wakes to find a country that he doesn’t recognize, for Athena has shrouded it in mist to conceal its true form while she plans
his next move.
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At first, he curses the Phaeacians, whom he thinks have duped him and left him in some unknown land.
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But Athena, disguised as a shepherd, meets him and tells him that he is indeed in Ithaca.
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With characteristic cunning, Odysseus acts to conceal his identity from her until she reveals hers. Delighted by Odysseus’s tricks, Athena announces that
it is time for Odysseus to use his wits to punish the suitors.
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She tells him to hide out in the hut of his swineherd, Eumaeus. She informs him that Telemachus has gone in search of news of him and gives him the
appearance of an old vagabond so that no one will recognize him.
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Athena summons Telemachus home and tells him how to avoid an ambush by the suitors. Meanwhile back on Ithaca, Odysseus listens while the swineherd
Eumaeus recounts the story of his life. (refer to his character information)
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Telemachus evades the suitors' ambush and, following Athena's instructions, proceeds to the farmstead of Eumaeus.
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There he makes the acquaintance of the tattered guest and sends Eumaeus to his mother to announce his safe return.
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Athena restores Odysseus' normal appearance, enchanting it so that Telemachus takes him for a god. "No god am I," Odysseus assures him, "but your
own father, returned after these twenty years." They fall into each other's arms.
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Later they plot the suitors' doom. Concerned that the odds are fifty-to-one, Telemachus suggests that they might need reinforcements.
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"Aren't Zeus and Athena reinforcement enough?" asks Odysseus.
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Disguised once more as an old beggar, Odysseus journeys to town. On the trail he encounters an insolent goatherd named Melanthius, who curses and
tries to kick him.
Melanthius is a treacherous and opportunistic goatherd who supports the suitors, especially Eurymachus, and abuses the beggar who appears in Odysseus's
palace, not realizing that the man is Odysseus himself. Melantho - Sister of Melanthius and maidservant in Odysseus's palace.
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At his castle gate, the hero is recognized by Argos, a broken-down old dog that he had raised as a pup. Having seen his master again, the faithful hound
dies.
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At Athena's urging Odysseus begs food from the suitors. One man, Antinous, berates him and refuses so much as a crust. He hurls a footstool at
Odysseus, hitting him in the back. This makes even the other suitors nervous, for sometimes the gods masquerade as mortals to test their
righteousness.
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Report of this cruelty reaches Penelope, who asks to have the beggar brought to her so that she can question him about Odysseus.
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Another beggar, Arnaeus (nicknamed Irus), saunters into the palace. For a beggar, he is rather brash and warns Odysseus off his turf. Odysseus says
that there are pickings enough for the two of them, but Irus threatens fisticuffs and the suitors egg him on.
Arneus: (Irus)is always running errands for the suitors.
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It ends quickly as Odysseus floors Irus and stops just short of killing him.
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The suitors congratulate Odysseus. One in particular, the moderate Amphinomus, toasts him and gives him food. Odysseus, fully aware of the bloodshed
to come and overcome by pity for Amphinomus, pulls the man aside.
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He predicts to Amphinomus that Odysseus will soon be home and gives him a thinly veiled warning to abandon the palace and return to his own land. But
Amphinomus doesn’t depart, despite being “fraught with grave forebodings,” for Athena has bound him to death at the hands of Telemachus
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Athena inspires Penelope to come down and speak to the suitors. The queen tells the suitors that if they hope to win her hand they should give her gifts,
as is customary.
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Odysseus is pleased at this clever trick. The suitors send their servants to bring fine treasures and begin to dance and sing.
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Athena wants to rile Odysseus as much as possible, so she inspires Eurymachus to mock him once more, but Odysseus remains calm and predicts the
suitors' deaths.
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Eurymachus throws a stool at Odysseus-the-beggar but the stool hits a servant instead.
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When the suitors retire for the night, Telemachus and Odysseus remove the arms as planned. Athena lights the room for them so that they can see as
they work. Telemachus tells Eurycleia that they are storing the arms to keep them from being damaged.
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Odysseus had a long talk with his queen Penelope, saying that Odysseus will return before the month is over, but does not reveal his identity.
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Penelope takes kindly to the stranger and orders her maid Eurycleia to bathe his feet and anoint them with oil.
•
Eurycleia, who was Odysseus' nurse when he was a child, notices a scar above the hero's knee.
• Odysseus had been gored by a wild boar while hunting on Mount Parnassus as a young man with his grandfather Autolycus.
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•
The maid recognizes her master at once, and her hand goes out to his chin. But Odysseus silences her lest she give away his plot prematurely.
•
Meanwhile, Athena distracts Penelope from noticing the scene.
•
Before she retires, Penelope describes to Odysseus a dream that she has had in which an eagle swoops down upon her twenty pet geese and kills them
all; it then perches on her roof and, in a human voice, says that he is her husband who has just put her lovers to death.
•
Penelope declares that she has no idea what this dream means. Rising to the challenge, Odysseus explains it to her.
•
But Penelope decides that she is going to choose a new husband nevertheless: she will marry the first man who can shoot an arrow through the holes of
twelve axes set in a line.
•
Penelope and Odysseus both have trouble sleeping that night.
•
Odysseus worries that he and Telemachus will never be able to conquer so many suitors, but Athena reassures him that through the gods all things are
possible.
•
Tormented by the loss of her husband and her commitment to remarry, Penelope wakes and prays for Artemis to kill her.
•
Her distress wakes Odysseus, who asks Zeus for a good omen. Zeus responds with a clap of thunder, and, at once, a maid in an adjacent room is heard
cursing the suitors.
•
As the palace springs to life the next day, Odysseus and Telemachus encounter another herdsman (Philoethius). Like the swineherd Eumaeus, this man,
who tends the realm's cattle, swears his loyalty to the absent king.
•
Eurycleia instructs the maids to clean and decorate the house for the feast to be held during the archery contest.
•
An eagle flies by with a dove in its claws, and Amphinomus convinces the suitors to stop plotting against the prince and start feasting instead.
•
Athena wants to rouse Odysseus' anger, so she inspires a suitor names Ctesippus to fling a hoof at him; Telemachus loudly chastises the suitor, but
Odysseus remains calm.
•
Another suitor urges Telemachus to convince Penelope to take another husband, and Telemachus refuses yet again. Athena makes the suitors break into
irrational, hysterical laugher.
•
A prophet, an exiled murderer whom Telemachus has befriended, Theoclymenus points out dark omens: "I see the walls of this mansion dripping
with your blood." The suitors respond with gales of laughter.
The Death of Penelope suitors
•
Penelope sets out Odysseus's bow and axes and announces to the suitors that the archer that can shoot an arrow cleanly through the axes will have her
hand in marriage.
•
Telemachus tries it first, to set an example, but he can't even string the bow.
•
The suitors take turns trying to bend the bow to string it, but all of them lack the strength.
•
Antinous suggests that they adjourn until the next day, when they can sacrifice to Apollo, the archer god, before trying again. (Penelope natulog na dito)
•
Odysseus, still disguised, then asks for the bow. All the suitors complain, fearing that he will succeed. Antinous ridicules Odysseus, saying that the wine
has gone to his head and that he will bring disaster upon himself, just like the legendary drunken centaur Eurytion.
•
Telemachus takes control and orders Eumaeus to give Odysseus the bow. Needless to say, Odysseus easily strings it and sends the first arrow he grabs
whistling through all twelve axes.
•
Before the suitors realize what is happening, Odysseus shoots a second arrow through the throat of Antinous.
•
The suitors are confused and believe this shooting to be an accident. Odysseus finally reveals himself, and the suitors become terrified.
•
Eumaeus guards the side-door to the palace so that no suitors can escape
•
The goatherd Melanthius sneaks out and comes back with shields and spears for the suitors, They finish off the work with swords. Those of the
housemaids who had consorted with the suitors are hung by the neck in the courtyard, while the treacherous goatherd is chopped to bits.
•
Eumaeus and Philoetius catch Melanthius, when he returns for more weapons and leave him strung up in the storeroom in great pain.
•
Athena appears in the guise of Mentor; she then turns into a swallow and flies to a beam on the roof to watch the fighting.
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•
The suitors shoot arrows at Odysseus, but Athena makes sure the arrows miss their mark again and again.
•
Odysseus and Telemachus slaughter the suitors like eagles attacking little birds. Odysseus spares only the bard and the herald Medon.
Medon: loyal herald of Odysseus. The one that warned Penelope about the plot of suitors against her son Telemachus.
Bard: a poet, traditionally one reciting epic and associated with a particular oral tradition. (Phemius - the bard of Ithaca, is first introduced to the us in Book I of
the Odyssey. His character is pitiable. He is forced by the suitors to sing pleasing songs with his lyre, yet he does not explicitly express his allegiance to the suitors.)
Penelope and Odysseus
•
The mansion is purged with fire and brimstone. Odysseus tells everyone to dress in their finest and dance, so that passers-by won't suspect what's
happened. Even Odysseus could not hold vengeful kinfolk at bay.
•
Penelope still won't accept that it's truly her husband returned unless he gives her some secret sign. She tells a servant to make up his bed in the hall.
•
In the hall!" storms Odysseus. "Who had the craft to move my bed? I carved the bedpost myself from the living trunk of an olive tree and built the bedroom
around it."
•
Penelope rushes into his arms. The joy they share is like that of a drowning man who feels solid ground beneath his feet once more.
Odysseus’ Father
•
Odysseus travels to Laertes’ farm. He sends his servants into the house so that he can be alone with his father in the gardens. Odysseus finds that Laertes
has aged prematurely out of grief for his son and wife.
•
He doesn’t recognize Odysseus, and Odysseus doesn’t immediately reveal himself, pretending instead that he is someone who once knew and befriended
Odysseus.
•
But when Laertes begins to cry at the memory of Odysseus, Odysseus throws his arms around Laertes and kisses him. He proves his identity with the scar
and with his memories of the fruit trees that Laertes gave him when he was a little boy. He tells Laertes how he has avenged himself upon the suitors.
•
Laertes and Odysseus have lunch together. Dolius, the father of Melanthius and Melantho, joins them.
Revenge
•
While they eat, the goddess Rumor flies through the city spreading the news of the massacre at the palace.
•
The parents of the suitors hold an assembly at which they assess how to respond. Halitherses, the elder prophet, argues that the suitors merely got what
they deserved for their wickedness, but Eupithes, Antinous’s father, encourages the parents to seek revenge on Odysseus.
•
Their small army tracks Odysseus to Laertes’ house, but Athena, disguised again as Mentor, decides to put a stop to the violence.
•
Antinous’s father is the only one killed, felled by one of Laertes’ spears.
•
Athena makes the Ithacans forget the massacre of their children and recognize Odysseus as king. Peace is thus restored.
~THE END~
GODS & GODDESSES —
>> Aeolus - The keeper of the Winds, King of Aeolia
>> Athena - Goddess of Wisdom, acted as a guide for odysseus & Telemachus
>> Poseidon - Cursed Odysseus because he blinded his son, Polyphemus
>> Calypso - the one who saved odysseus after their ship god destroyed by Zeus
>> Circe - The beautiful witch who turned Odysseus’ Crew into Pigs/Hogs
>> Helios - The god of Sun and Light, sometimes called “Hyperion”
>> Ino - The Sea-Goddess who saved Odysseus from drowning via Enchanted Veil
>> Hermes - Acted as a messenger throughout the Story
>> Heracles - a god who Odysseus met in the Underworld
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Timelines of Homer's Odyssey
Chronological Order
Odyssey Order
Odysseus and his men raid the Cicones.
Council of the gods. Athena bargains with Zeus.
They arrive at the Land of the Lotus Eaters.
Athena visits Telemachus; he sails for Pylos.
Odysseus blinds Polyphemus.
Telemachus reaches Pylos, then moves on to Sparta.
Aiolos gives Odysseus the bag of winds.
King Menelaus receives Telemachus.
Odysseus nearly reaches Ithaca.
Second council of gods. Calypso frees Odysseus.
The Laistrygones destroy 11 ships.
Poseidon destroys Odysseus' raft.
Circe turns the crew into swine.
Odysseus lands on Scheria and meets Nausicaa.
Odysseus vists Teiresias in the Underworld.
Odysseus narrates his adventures to Phaeacians.
Odysseus's ship passes the Sirens.
Odysseus and his men raid the Cicones.
Odysseus passes between Scylla and Charybdis.
They arrive at the Land of the Lotus Eaters.
The crew slaughters Helios' cattle.
Odysseus blinds Polyphemus.
Zeus kills everyone but Odysseus.
Aiolos gives Odysseus the bag of winds.
Odysseus arrives on Calypso's island.
Odysseus nearly reaches Ithaca.
Council of the gods. Athena bargains with Zeus.
The Laistrygones destroy 11 ships.
Athena visits Telemachus; he sails for Pylos.
Circe turns the crew into swine.
Telemachus reaches Pylos, then sails to Sparta.
Odysseus vists Teiresias in the Underworld.
King Menelaus recieves Telemachus.
Odysseus's ship passes the Sirens.
Second council of gods. Calypso frees Odysseus.
Odysseus passes between Scylla and Charybdis.
Poseidon destroys Odysseus' raft.
The crew slaughters Helios' cattle.
Odysseus lands on Scheria and meets Nausicaa.
Zeus kills everyone but Odysseus.
Odysseus narrates his adventures to Phaeacians.
Odysseus arrives on Calypso's island.
The Phaeacians bring Odysseus to Ithaca. He stays with the swineherd Eumaios.
Telemachus travels back to Pherai. Next he sails to Pylos, then home to Ithaca.
Telemachus joins Odysseus and Eumaios on Ithaca. Disguised as a beggar, Odysseus visits the palace.
Penelope proposes bow competition. Still disguised, Odysseus wins the competition.
Odysseus reveals himself to suitors and Penelope. With Athena's help, Odysseus kills all suitors.
Odysseus reassumes his throne. Penelope finally accepts Odysseus.
Suitors' families attempt to take revenge. Athena intervenes to put an end to the violence.
Legend:
Books 1-4
Books 5-8
Books 9-12
Books 13-18
Books 19-24
http://www.classics.upenn.edu/myth/php/homer/index.php?page=timelines
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CHARACTERS:
-> The Characters are divided into 3 groups, The Gods & Goddesses,
The
Mortals, and The Monsters/Creatures
MORTALS / DEMIGODS —
>> Odysseus (Ulysses) - King Of Ithaca, Favorite of the Goddess Athena
-> Penelope - Wife of Odysseus, "Faithfulness"
-> Telemachus - The son of Odysseus, Guided by Athena
>> Maron - a priest of apollo who gave odysseus Wine, Gold & Silver
>> Laertes - The Father of Odysseus
>> Anticlea - The Mother of Odysseus
>> Eurymachus - an Ithakan Nobleman, one of the Suitors of Penelope
>> Amphinomus - Prince of Dulichium, one of the Suitors of Penelope
>> Antinous - One of The suitors of Penelope, first to be slain by odysseus
>> Tiresias - The Blind & Dead Prophet of Circe who guided Odysseus. Saw athena naked
>> Nestor - King of Pylos, Former Achaean Commander
>> Eumaeus - a faithful servant of Odysseus
>> Eurycleia - The Wet-Nurse of Odysseus & Telemachus
>> Melanthius - Brother of Melantho, Abuses Odysseus in his Beggar Disguise
>> Melantho - Sister of Melanthius
>> Alcinous - The King of Scheria, Helped aid Odysseus to get back to Troy
>> Arete - Queen of Scheria, Wife of king Alcinous
-> Nausicaa - The daughter of King Alcinous and Queen Arete, give ship to Odysseus
>> Eurylochus - persuades the men to kill Helios' Cattle
>> Mentes - Old friend of Odysseus
>> Autolycus - the Father of Laertes
>> Telegonus - son of odysseus to Circe
>> Mentor - praised telemachus
>> Pisistratus - son of nestor, reveals to achilles that patroclus is dead
>> Proteus - divine old man of the Sea
>> Argos - the dog of Odysseus
>> Arneus (Irus) - another beggar in ithaca
>> Ptoliporthus - son of telemachus to Nausicaa
>> Ctesippus - another suitor of penelope in Ithaca
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>> Theoclymenus - an exiled prophet and murderer
>> Eurytion - the drunken centaur
>> Philoteus - an ally of odysseus
>> Dolius - father of melantho and melanthius
>> Halitherses - an elder prophet
>> Eupithes - father of Antinous
>> Medon - reports the suitors plan to penelope (ambushing Telemachus)
>> Iphthime - Sister of Penelope
Athena transform – Mentis, Mentor , Eagle, Iphitime , Shepherd, Phantom
CREATURES / MONSTERS —
>> Polyphemus - A Cyclops, the son of Poseidon
-> Cyclops - One eyed monsters who were the son of Poseidon
>> Scylla - a Female creature who has 6 separate serpent-like heads
>> Charybdis - A swirling whirlpool who Odysseus had to sail away from
>> Sirens - Winged beings who lure sailors to their Deaths. Applied beeswax
>> Cannibals - found on the shores of Laestrygonia, tried to kill Odysseus’ crew
>> Lotus Eaters - People that ate the fruit of the Lotus in Djerba
>> Antiphates - The leader of the Laestrygonian Cannibals
PLACES / LANDMARKS:
>> Troy - Now destroyed and King Priam Dead, It is a Desolate Wasteland
>> Island of Cicones
>> Island of the Lotus Eaters,
>> Land of Cyclopes ( Sicily )- Home of the one-eyed Polyphemus and the Cyclops
>> Aeolia - Floating Island of king Aeolus, Keeper of the winds and king of Aeolia
>> Land of the Laestrygonians - Home of The fierce Cannibals that odysseus had to face
>> Aeaea - Home of the God Circe, who turned Odysseus’ crew into Swine
>> The Underworld - Where all souls flee when their mortal bodies die
>> Island of the Sirens
>> Strafe of Scylla and Charybdis
>> Island of Thrinacia - Home of Helios, the sun god, and his cattle
>> Ogygia - The island of Calypso
>> Scheria - Home of the Phaeacians, King Alcinous, Queen Arete, and Nausicaa
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