Homer's Odyssey, book i A 15th century manuscript of the Odyssey, book i Greek text of the Odyssey's

opening passageThe Odyssey is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is, in
part, a sequel to the Iliad, the other work ascribed to Homer. The poem is fundamental to the modern
Western canon, and is the second oldest extant work of Western literature, the Iliad being the oldest.
Scholars believe it was composed near the end of the 8th century BC, somewhere in Ionia, the Greek
coastal region of Anatolia.[2] The poem mainly focuses on the Greek hero Odysseus (known as Ulysses
in Roman myths) and his journey home after the fall of Troy. It takes Odysseus ten years to reach Ithaca
after the ten-year Trojan War.[3] In his absence, it is assumed he has died, and his wife Penelope and
son Telemachus must deal with a group of unruly suitors, the Mnesteres (Greek: Μνηστῆρες) or Proci,
who compete for Penelope's hand in marriage. It continues to be read in the Homeric Greek and
translated into modern languages around the world. Many scholars believe that the original poem was
composed in an oral tradition by an aoidos (epic poet/singer), perhaps a rhapsode (professional
performer), and was more likely intended to be heard than read.[2] The details of the ancient oral
performance, and the story's conversion to a written work inspire continual debate among scholars. The
Odyssey was written in a poetic dialect of Greek—a literary amalgam of Aeolic Greek, Ionic Greek, and
other Ancient Greek dialects—and comprises 12,110 lines of dactylic hexameter.[4][5] Among the most
noteworthy elements of the text are its non-linear plot, and the influence on events of choices made by
women and slaves, besides the actions of fighting men. In the English language as well as many others,
the word odyssey has come to refer to an epic voyage. The Odyssey has a lost sequel, the Telegony,
which was not written by Homer. It was usually attributed in antiquity to Cinaethon of Sparta. In one
source, the Telegony was said to have been stolen from Musaeus by Eugamon or Eugammon of Cyrene
(see Cyclic poets). Exposition The Odyssey begins ten years after the end of the ten-year Trojan War (the
subject of the Iliad), and Odysseus has still not returned home from the war. Odysseus' son Telemachus
is about 20 years old and is sharing his absent father's house on the island of Ithaca with his mother
Penelope and a crowd of 108 boisterous young men, "the Suitors", whose aim is to persuade Penelope to
marry one of them, all the while enjoying the hospitality of Odysseus' household and eating up his wealth.
Odysseus' protectress, the goddess Athena, discusses his fate with Zeus, king of the gods, at a moment
when Odysseus' enemy, the god of the sea Poseidon, is absent from Mount Olympus. Then, disguised as
a Taphian chieftain named Mentes, she visits Telemachus to urge him to search for news of his father. He
offers her hospitality; they observe the suitors dining rowdily while the bard Phemius performs a narrative
poem for them. Penelope objects to Phemius' theme, the "Return from Troy",[6] because it reminds her of
her missing husband, but Telemachus rebuts her objections. That night Athena, disguised as
Telemachus, finds a ship and crew for the true Telemachus. The next morning, Telemachus calls an
assembly of citizens of Ithaca to discuss what should be done with the suitors. Accompanied by Athena
(now disguised as Mentor), he departs for the Greek mainland and the household of Nestor, most
venerable of the Greek warriors at Troy, now at home in Pylos. From there, Telemachus rides overland,
accompanied by Nestor's son, Peisistratus, to Sparta, where he finds Menelaus and Helen, who are now
reconciled - Helen laments her fit of lust brought on by Aphrodite that sent her to Troy with Paris. He also
hears from Helen, who is the first to recognize him, that she pities him because Odysseus was not there
for him in his childhood because he went to Troy to fight for her and also about his exploit of stealing the
Palladium, or the Luck of Troy, where she was the only one to recognize him. Menelaus, meanwhile, also
praises Odysseus as an irreproachable comrade and friend, lamenting the fact that they were not only
unable to return together from Troy but that Odysseus is yet to return. Both Helen and Menelaus also say
that they returned to Sparta after a long voyage by way of Egypt. There, on the island of Pharos,
Menelaus encountered the old sea-god Proteus, who told him that Odysseus was a captive of the nymph
Calypso. Incidentally, Telemachus learns the fate of Menelaus' brother Agamemnon, king of Mycenae
and leader of the Greeks at Troy: he was murdered on his return home by his wife Clytemnestra and her
lover Aegisthus. Charles Gleyre, Odysseus and Nausicaä Escape to the Phaeacians The second part
tells the story of Odysseus. After he has spent seven years in captivity on Ogygia, the island of Calypso,
she falls deeply in love with him. But he has consistently spurned her advances. She is persuaded to
release him by Odysseus' great-grandfather, the messenger god Hermes, who has been sent by Zeus in
response to Athena's plea. Odysseus builds a raft and is given clothing, food, and drink by Calypso.
When Poseidon learns that Odysseus has escaped, he wrecks the raft, but, helped by a veil given by the
sea nymph Ino, Odysseus swims ashore on Scherie, the island of the Phaeacians. Naked and exhausted,
he hides in a pile of leaves and falls asleep. The next morning, awakened by the laughter of girls, he sees
the young Nausicaa, who has gone to the seashore with her maids to wash clothes after Athena told her
in a dream to do so. He appeals to her for help. She encourages him to seek the hospitality of her
parents, Arete and Alcinous, or Alkinous. Odysseus is welcomed and is not at first asked for his name. He
remains for several days, takes part in a pentathlon, and hears the blind singer Demodocus perform two
narrative poems. The first is an otherwise obscure incident of the Trojan War, the "Quarrel of Odysseus
and Achilles"; the second is the amusing tale of a love affair between two Olympian gods, Ares and
Aphrodite. Finally, Odysseus asks Demodocus to return to the Trojan War theme and tell of the Trojan
Horse, a stratagem in which Odysseus had played a leading role. Unable to hide his emotion as he
relives this episode, Odysseus at last reveals his identity. He then begins to tell the story of his return
from Troy. Odysseus Overcome by Demodocus' Song, by Francesco Hayez, 1813–15 Odysseus' account
of his adventures After a piratical raid on Ismaros in the land of the Cicones, he and his twelve ships were
driven off course by storms. They visited the lethargic Lotus-Eaters who gave two of his men their fruit
which caused them to forget their homecoming, and then were captured by the Cyclops Polyphemus,
escaping by blinding him with a wooden stake. While they were escaping, however, Odysseus foolishly
told Polyphemus his identity, and Polyphemus told his father, Poseidon, that Odysseus had blinded him.
Poseidon then cursed Odysseus to wander the sea for ten years, during which he would lose all his crew
and return home through the aid of others. After the escape, Odysseus and his crew stayed with Aeolus,
the ruler of the winds. He gave Odysseus a leather bag containing all the winds, except the west wind, a
gift that should have ensured a safe return home. However, the greedy sailors naively opened the bag
while Odysseus slept, thinking it contained gold. All of the winds flew out and the resulting storm drove
the ships back the way they had come, just as Ithaca came into sight. After unsuccessfully pleading with
Aeolus to help them again, they re-embarked and encountered the cannibalistic Laestrygonians. All of
Odysseus' ships except his own entered the harbor of the Laestrygonians' Island and were immediately
destroyed. He sailed on and visited the witch-goddess Circe. She turned half of his men into swine after
feeding them cheese and wine. Hermes warned Odysseus about Circe and gave Odysseus a drug called
moly which gave him resistance to Circe's magic. Circe, surprised by Odysseus' resistance, agreed to
change his men back to their human form in exchange for Odysseus' love. They remained with her on the
island for one year, while they feasted and drank. Finally, guided by Circe's instructions, Odysseus and
his crew crossed the ocean and reached a harbor at the western edge of the world, where Odysseus
sacrificed to the dead. He first encountered the spirit of Elpenor, a crewman who had gotten drunk and
fallen from a roof to his death, which had gone unnoticed by others, before Odysseus and the rest of his
crew had left Circe. Elpenor's ghost told Odysseus to bury his body, which Odysseus promised to do.
Odysseus then summoned the spirit of the prophet Tiresias for advice on how to appease Poseidon upon
his return home. Next Odysseus met the spirit of his own mother, who had died of grief during his long
absence. From her, he got his first news of his own household, threatened by the greed of the Suitors.
Finally, he met the spirits of famous men and women. Notably he encountered the spirit of Agamemnon,
of whose murder he now learned, and Achilles, who told him about the woes of the land of the dead (for
Odysseus' encounter with the dead, see also Nekuia). Odysseus and the Sirens, eponymous vase of the
Siren Painter, ca. 480-470 BC, (British Museum) Returning to Circe's island, they were advised by her on
the remaining stages of the journey. They skirted the land of the Sirens, who sang an enchanting song
that normally caused passing sailors to steer toward the rocks, only to hit them and sink. All of the sailors
had their ears plugged up with beeswax, except for Odysseus, who was tied to the mast as he wanted to
hear the song. They then passed between the six-headed monster Scylla and the whirlpool Charybdis;
Scylla snatched up six men. Next they landed on the island of Thrinacia. Zeus caused a storm which
prevented them leaving. While Odysseus was away praying, his men ignored the warnings of Tiresias
and Circe, and hunted the sacred cattle of the sun god Helios as their food had run short. The Sun God
insisted that Zeus punish the men for this sacrilege. They suffered a shipwreck as they were driven
towards Charybdis. All but Odysseus were drowned; he clung to a fig tree above Charybdis. Washed
ashore on the island of Ogygia, he was compelled to remain there as Calypso's lover until she was
ordered by Zeus, via Hermes, to release Odysseus. Return to Ithaca Having listened with rapt attention to
his story, the Phaeacians, who are skilled mariners, agree to help Odysseus get home. They deliver him
at night, while he is fast asleep, to a hidden harbour on Ithaca. He finds his way to the hut of one of his
own slaves, the swineherd Eumaeus. Athena disguises Odysseus as a wandering beggar so he can see
how things stand in his household. After dinner, he tells the farm laborers a fictitious tale of himself: He
was born in Crete, had led a party of Cretans to fight alongside other Greeks in the Trojan War, and had
then spent seven years at the court of the king of Egypt; finally he had been shipwrecked in Thesprotia
and crossed from there to Ithaca. Meanwhile, Telemachus sails home from Sparta, evading an ambush
set by the Suitors. He disembarks on the coast of Ithaca and makes for Eumaeus's hut. Father and son
meet; Odysseus identifies himself to Telemachus (but still not to Eumaeus), and they decide that the
Suitors must be killed. Telemachus goes home first. Accompanied by Eumaeus, Odysseus returns to his
own house, still pretending to be a beggar. When Odysseus' dog (who was a puppy before he left) saw
him, he becomes so excited that he dies.[7] He is ridiculed by the Suitors in his own home, especially by
one extremely impertinent man named Antinous. Odysseus meets Penelope and tests her intentions by
saying he once met Odysseus in Crete. Closely questioned, he adds that he had recently been in
Thesprotia and had learned something there of Odysseus's recent wanderings. Odysseus's identity is
discovered by the housekeeper, Eurycleia, when she recognizes an old scar as she is washing his feet.
Eurycleia tries to tell Penelope about the beggar's true identity, but Athena makes sure that Penelope
cannot hear her. Odysseus then swears Eurycleia to secrecy. Slaying of the Suitors Penelope questions
Odysseus to prove his identity. The next day, at Athena's prompting, Penelope maneuvers the Suitors
into competing for her hand with an archery competition using Odysseus' bow. The man who can string
the bow and shoot it through a dozen axe heads would win. Odysseus takes part in the competition
himself: he alone is strong enough to string the bow and shoot it through the dozen axe heads, making
him the winner. He then throws off his rags and kills Antinous with his next arrow. Then, with the help of
Athena, Odysseus, Telemachus, Eumaeus, and Philoteus the cowherd kill the rest of the Suitors, first
using the rest of the arrows and then by swords and spears once both sides have armed themselves.
Once the battle is won, Odysseus and Telemachus also hang twelve of their household maids whom
Eurycleia identifies as guilty of betraying Penelope, having sex with the Suitors, or both; they mutilate and
kill the goatherd Melanthius, who had mocked and abused Odysseus and also brought weapons and
armor to the suitors. Now at last, Odysseus identifies himself to Penelope. She is hesitant, but recognizes
him when he mentions that he made their bed from an olive tree still rooted to the ground. Many modern
and ancient scholars take this to be the original ending of the Odyssey, and the rest to be an interpolation.
The next day he and Telemachus visit the country farm of his old father Laertes, who likewise accepts his
identity only when Odysseus correctly describes the orchard that Laertes had previously given him. The
citizens of Ithaca have followed Odysseus on the road, planning to avenge the killing of the Suitors, their
sons. Their leader points out that Odysseus has now caused the deaths of two generations of the men of
Ithaca: his sailors, not one of whom survived; and the Suitors, whom he has now executed (albeit rightly).
Athena intervenes as a "dea" ex machina, as it were, and persuades both sides to give up the vendetta.
After this, Ithaca is at peace once more, concluding the Odyssey. Character of Odysseus Main article:
OdysseusOdysseus' name means "trouble" in Greek, referring to both the giving and receiving of trouble
—as is often the case in his wanderings. An early example of this is the boar hunt that gave Odysseus the
scar by which Eurycleia recognizes him; Odysseus is injured by the boar and responds by killing it.
Odysseus' heroic trait is his mētis, or "cunning intelligence": he is often described as the "Peer of Zeus in
Counsel". This intelligence is most often manifested by his use of disguise and deceptive speech. His
disguises take forms both physical (altering his appearance) and verbal, such as telling the Cyclops
Polyphemus that his name is Οὖτις, "Nobody", then escaping after blinding Polyphemus. When asked by
other Cyclopes why he is screaming, Polyphemus replies that "Nobody" is hurting him, so the others
assume that, "If alone as you are [Polyphemus] none uses violence on you, why, there is no avoiding the
sickness sent by great Zeus; so you had better pray to your father, the lord Poseidon".[8] The most
evident flaw that Odysseus sports is that of his arrogance and his pride, or hubris. As he sails away from
the island of the Cyclopes, he shouts his name and boasts that nobody can defeat the "Great Odysseus".
The Cyclops then throws the top half of a mountain at him and prays to his father, Poseidon, saying that
Odysseus has blinded him. This enrages Poseidon, causing the god to thwart Odysseus' homecoming for
a very long time.

LOYALTY A central virtuous theme in "The Odyssey" is loyalty. Odysseus's devotion to his family, his
country and his god is unwavering, according to Victoria Allen's "A Teacher's Guide to the Signet Classic
Edition of Homer's The Odyssey." Along his journey, Odysseus has the opportunity to be unfaithful to his
wife, renounce his country and ignore his beliefs. Even though he sometimes falters and some of his
decisions have negative consequences, his allegiance, love for his wife and desire to return home never
wanes. Self-Control Odysseus has strong moral values when it comes to self-control and sexual
temptation. Even though the beautiful Sirens attempt to draw him off course, he warns his men of their
seductive ways, attaches himself to his ship so he won't stray and plugs his crew's ears with wax. He also
shows self-control when he holds back and doesn't kill Polyphemus, the cyclops. He waits for the right
opportunity so he can gouge his eye out and escape. Even though some of his men -- those with poor
riding skills -- are killed by Polyphemus, his self-control keeps his whole crew from being slaughtered.
Perseverence "The Odyssey" is a story of perseverance. Despite the many obstacles and challenges he
faces, Odysseus never gives up. Even when Odysseus doesn't know how to escape the cyclops, he
makes a noble attempt to survive by riding under the bellies of sheep, according to "Scope" magazine.
Odysseus's perseverance isn't based on physical strength alone. He uses his intelligence to outwit those
who try to ensnare him. From the very beginning of the poem, Odysseus shows his determination by
escaping the grips of Calypso. Compassion Even though Odysseus is forced to deal with opposing forces
using violence and aggression, he never loses his soft side. He proves his virtue when he allows
compassion to rule his heart. For example, when Demodocus plays the harp and sings of the Trojan War,
Odysseus cries. Odysseus remembers his fellow comrades who died in war and mourns their loss. His
imprisonment, years away from home and oppressive confrontations aren't able to destroy his empathetic
and compassionate tendencies. CHARLES GLEYRE ODYSSEUS & NAUSICAA /DEMODOCUS /
PENELOPE / ODYSSEUS AND THE SIRENS