Odysseus

Odysseus was a legendary hero in Greek mythology, king of the island of Ithaca and the main protagonist of Homer’s epic, the “Odyssey.” The son of Laertes and Anticlea, Odysseus was well known among the Greeks as an eloquent speaker, an ingenious strategist, and a cunning trickster. One of the suitors of Helen, Odysseus was obliged to join the Trojan expedition – something he didn’t want to do, since he was happy alongside his wife, Penelope, and his newborn son, Telemachus. He played a crucial part during the Trojan War – both as a strategist and as a warrior – eventually coming up with the famous stratagem which decided the outcome of the conflict: the Trojan Horse. Afterward, he set sail for Ithaca, but, after blinding the Cyclops Polyphemus, he angered Poseidon, who obstructed his journey homeward. After numerous memorable adventures – the Lotus-Eaters, Polyphemus, Aeolus, the Laestrygonians, Circe, Teiresias in the Underworld, the Sirens, Scylla and Charybdis, the cattle of Helios, Calypso and Ogygia – Odysseus finally managed to reach Ithaca, ten years after leaving Troy and twenty years after joining the Trojan expedition. There, with the help of Telemachus, Eumaeus, Philoetius, and Athena, he killed the Suitors of Penelope, including Antinous, and reclaimed his throne.

Odysseus Before the Trojan War

Odysseus’ Family

Odysseus was – almost certainly – the only son of Laertes of Ithaca, a former Argonaut, and Anticlea, the only daughter of Autolycus. Now, this Autolycus, Odysseus’ grandfather, was a son of Hermes and was widely renowned as so skillful a thief that he could not be caught, being “able to change whatever he stole into some other form – from white to black, or from black to white, from a hornless animal to a horned one, or from horned one to a hornless.” However, later authors didn’t seem too content with a genealogy which makes the cunning Odysseus a relative of a thief only on his mother’s side, so they started spreading a rumor according to which his father wasn’t Laertes, but none other than the master-trickster Sisyphus, who supposedly bargained a night with Anticlea from her father after he had finally caught Autolycus stealing his cattle.

Odysseus’ Name

Odysseus seems to have spent some of the most defining moments of his childhood with Autolycus, who, in addition to passing on to him his craft, may have even given Odysseus his famous name. “Inasmuch as I am come hither as one that has been angered with many” – supposedly said Autolycus upon being asked to be the godfather, “therefore let the name by which the child is named be Odysseus.” By this etymology, Odysseus comes from odussesthai, “to be wrought against, to be at odds with someone, to hate.”

Odysseus’ Scar

Many years later, while visiting his grandfather, Odysseus joined his uncles on a boar-hunting trip and, even though he was still an inexperienced adolescent, he managed to kill the boar himself, after coming face to face with it. However, the boar did hurt him, leaving a deep recognizable scar on his leg, one which will play an important part in the memorable drama of his later life.

A Suitor of Helen

Odysseus was one of the suitors of Helen, step-daughter of King Tyndareus of Sparta. However, he was undoubtedly the most reluctant among them, not only because he was reasonably sure that Menelaus would be the chosen bridegroom, but also because, as beautiful as Helen was, he was much more profoundly smitten by her cousin, Penelope, the daughter of Tyndareus’ brother, Icarius.

With or without Odysseus, the suitors were just too many to please, and Tyndareus justifiably feared an outbreak of violence regardless of his final choice. Fortunately, Odysseus thought up an excellent little solution. In exchange for some help from Tyndareus regarding the hand of Penelope, Odysseus advised him to make all the suitors swear an oath that they would respect his final choice and that they would support the husband and wife in any ill fate that the two may face in the future.

And so, when Menelaus was chosen, all the other suitors peacefully left Sparta; except for Odysseus, that is, who stayed there until Tyndareus fulfilled his part of the promise and talked his brother into giving Penelope’s hand to Odysseus in marriage.

Palamedes’ Ploy

After marrying Penelope, Odysseus took her to Ithaca where the couple lived a happy life, made even happier after the birth of their only son, Telemachus. However, while the boy was still a baby, Helen was abducted by Prince Paris of Troy. Calling upon the oath sworn by Helen’s suitors, Menelaus summoned all of them to help him in his quest to bring her back. Ironically – since he had been the one to propose the oath in the first place – Odysseus did not want to join the expedition; and he had a good reason for it: the seer Halitherses had informed him that if he participated, it would take him a long time to return home. So, he decided to feign madness by harnessing a donkey and an ox to a plow and sowing salt on a field. Palamedes – who was the man sent to recruit Odysseus from Ithaca – did not believe the hero one bit; in order to test his sanity, he put Telemachus in front of the plow. Odysseus immediately changed course, thus exposing his plan. Odysseus never forgave Palamedes for this and spend many an hour planning his revenge.

Odysseus During the Trojan War

It would be an understatement to say that the successful recruitment of Odysseus was a crucial event, one that would eventually decide the outcome of the Trojan War perhaps more than any other: without Odysseus, the Greeks may have never sacked Troy.

Recruiting Achilles

As a matter of fact, his recruitment started paying dividends even before the Greeks reached Troy. Namely, fearing a prophecy which claimed that Achilles would either live a long and peaceful life or die a glorious death as a mighty warrior, his mother Thetis decided to disguise him as a woman and hide him on the court of King Lycomedes, who ruled with the island of Scyros. Unfortunately, Odysseus learned from the prophet Calchas that the Greeks could win the Trojan War only if Achilles joined their forces. So, after learning of his whereabouts, he devised a plan to penetrate Achilles’ disguise as well. Masked as a peddler selling women’s clothes, Odysseus laid a spear among his goods, and Achilles (named Pyrrha at the time) was the only one who showed any interest in the shiny object. Some are more inclined to tell a different story, according to which Odysseus feigned an attack on Scyros; in this case, all but Achilles fled upon hearing the sound of the battle horn.

Odysseus’ Role in the Trojan War

From a discussion between Priam and Helen in Homer’s “Iliad,” we know that Odysseus was shorter by a head than Agamemnon but broader in his chest and shoulders. Physically unimpressive, “thou wouldest have deemed him a churlish man and naught but a fool” on sight, claims Priam. “But whenso he uttered his great voice from his chest, and words fell like snowflakes on a winter's day, then could no mortal man beside vie with Odysseus; then did we not so marvel to behold Odysseus' aspect.” “He knoweth all manner of craft and cunning devices,” concurs Helen, this illustrious “Odysseus of many wiles.”

Unsurprisingly, Odysseus’ main role during the Trojan war was one of a crafty strategist and a wise advisor. He was the one most capable of maintaining the morale of the Greeks at a high level, and the one who managed to prevent the bulk of the Greek army from withdrawing from the war after Agamemnon’s plan to test their determination by allowing them a leave had backfired tremendously. Odysseus was also the leader of the three-man expedition sent to appease Achilles who, enraged at what he had perceived as unfair treatment from Agamemnon, decided to leave the battlefield.

However, this doesn’t mean that Odysseus didn’t prove his worth as a warrior as well. Together with Diomedes, he captured and killed the Trojan spy Dolon and killed the Thracian king Rhesus during a dangerous night-raid on the Trojan camp. He also captured the Trojan seer Helenus in order to learn from him a few conditions upon whose fulfillment the fall of Troy depended. These included the recruitment of Achilles’ son, Neoptolemus, and the wounded archer, Philoctetes (in whose possession were Heracles’ bow and arrows) – and Odysseus played the central part in both.

Odysseus and The Trojan Horse

Odysseus’ main and most memorable contribution to the successful conclusion of the Trojan War was the devising of the stratagem by which, after a decade-long war, the Greeks finally managed to enter Troy. It involved the construction of the Trojan Horse, a huge wooden sculpture inside whose hollow belly the greatest of Greece’s celebrated heroes hid. After leaving the Horse near the Gates of Troy, the Greeks pretended to sail away; initially confused, in time, the Trojans started believing that the war was over and that the Horse had been a divine gift; so, they wheeled the sculpture inside their city gates. They spent the whole day joyfully celebrating their victory and dancing around the Horse. However, once the night fell, the Greek warriors hopped out of the sculpture and opened the Gates for the rest of the rest of the Greeks, who, under the guise of the evening, had managed to sail back to the shore. Before long, the Greeks stormed at the unsuspecting, drunk and practically defenseless Trojans, slewing many of them and, finally, winning a famous and conclusive victory.

Odysseus’ Cruelty

Odysseus was sometimes unreasonably cruel towards his enemies, which is why, as much as he was adored by the Greeks, he was reviled by the Romans (who knew him as Ulysses and considered themselves Trojan descendants). Certainly, Odysseus’ most vicious act happened just after Troy had fallen: fearing some kind of future retribution, he urged for the death of Astyanax, Hector’s little boy. Some even say that it was Odysseus himself who killed Astyanax, possibly throwing the infant from Troy’s walls.

In addition, Odysseus never forgot his grudge against Palamedes. According to some authors, he faked a letter from Priam and falsely exposed him as a traitor after which he and Diomedes stoned Palamedes to death. Others claim that the two comrades fooled Palamedes into descending a well under the premise that a treasure laid hidden inside; once Palamedes climbed down the well, Odysseus and Palamedes started throwing rocks at him, eventually burying him at the bottom.

The Odyssey: Returning Home to Ithaca

After the Trojan War, Odysseus embarked on a ten-year journey to reach his home, Ithaca; his adventures are recounted – mostly in flashbacks – in Homer’s monumental epic “Odyssey.” Chronologically, this is the order in which they happen. These episodes are not only adventures, but also tests of leadership, loyalty, self-control, hospitality, and the desire to return home.

Maron and the Cicones

Odysseus left Troy with twelve ships – as many as he had sailed with a decade before. Soon after, a strong wind drives the ships off course, and they wind up on the south coast of Thrace, among the Cicones, Trojan allies. In the battle which ensues, Odysseus and his crew kill all the men there, except for a priest of Apollo called Maron. In gratitude, the priest gives Odysseus twelve jars of strong wine. Drunk with victory, the Greeks stay a tad too long in Thrace, giving the Cicones just enough time to summon the necessary reinforcements and eventually prevail, overpowering Odysseus’ crew and killing six men out of each of the twelve ships in the process.

The Lotus-Eaters

After some time, Odysseus reaches the land of the Lotus-Eaters. He sends three men to scout the area, but, not one of them returns to the ships in due time. As Odysseus finds out, the reason for this is not some cruel act by the Lotus-Eaters, but the taste of their lotus, “so delicious that those who ate of it left off caring about home, and did not even want to go back and say what had happened to them, but were for staying and munching lotus with the Lotus-Eaters without thinking further of their homecoming.” Odysseus has to drag his scouts back to the ships by force, after which the journey to Ithaca goes on.

Odysseus and Polyphemus

Next, Odysseus' ships reach the island of the Cyclopes, a race of one-eyed giant shepherds famous for their uncouth and violent ways. Enticed by some resources, Odysseus and twelve of his men end up entrapped in the cave of the Cyclops Polyphemus, who, after blocking the entrance of the cave with a giant boulder, starts eating them, two by two. The monster manages to devour six of Odysseus’ men before the hero devises a life-saving trick. After introducing himself as Outis – i.e., “Nobody” – he gives Polyphemus some of Maron’s wine and gets him so drunk that he is able to pierce his eye with a stake. “Nobody is killing me by fraud,” cries out Polyphemus, “Nobody is killing me by force!” Though not exactly the sharpest tools in the shed, nobody can blame the other Cyclopes this time around for not running to Polyphemus’ help.

The next morning, Odysseus and his six surviving men escape from Polyphemus’ cave by hiding under the bellies of his sheep, as the Cyclops unsuspectingly lets them out to pasture. Before they sail away from the island, however, Odysseus makes the mistake of revealing his true identity to Polyphemus, who then asks his father, the sea-god Poseidon, to avenge him; this will have a major impact on the hero's journey, as it will be Poseidon’s anger which will keep Odysseus away from his beloved Ithaca for the next ten years.

Odysseus and Aeolus

The ships then reach the island of the god of the winds, Aeolus, who welcomes them warmly and harbors them for a month. At the end of it, so as to aid Odysseus on his journey, Aeolus puts all his winds except for the West Wind in a leather bag and gives the bag to Odysseus. During the next nine days, the West Wind steers the ships gently all the way to Ithaca. However, on the tenth day, just before they reach the shore, Odysseus falls asleep. Thinking it contains gold, his men steal the leather bag and open it, thus releasing all the other winds at once. The ships are violently blown back to the island of Aeolus, where, realizing that Odysseus must be cursed, the god of the winds refuses to help him again.

The Laestrygonians

Seven days later, Odysseus reaches the island of the Laestrygonians, a tribe of bloodthirsty, man-eating giants. Most of his ships enter a narrow harbor surrounded by cliffs, but Odysseus keeps his own ship outside. This small decision saves his life.

When the Laestrygonians attack, they throw massive boulders from the cliffs, smash eleven of Odysseus’ twelve ships, and spear the drowning men like fish. Odysseus’ ship is the only one that manages to escape. After this disaster, he is no longer the leader of a fleet, but the captain of one surviving ship.

Odysseus, Circe and Eurylochus

Odysseus’ ship next reaches Aeaea, an island ruled by the sorceress Circe. Odysseus divides his men into groups, and Eurylochus leads one scouting party inland. The men find Circe’s house, but Eurylochus suspects danger and stays outside.

His caution saves him. Circe gives the other men enchanted food and drink and turns them into swine. Eurylochus runs back to warn Odysseus, who goes to Circe’s house with help from Hermes and the magical herb moly. Odysseus resists her magic, threatens her with his sword, and forces her to restore his men.

After this, Odysseus and his crew remain on Aeaea for one year, during which Odysseus becomes Circe’s lover. When they finally prepare to leave, Circe tells him that he must first go down to the Underworld and seek advice from the prophet Teiresias.

The Underworld and Teiresias

At the end of the year, Circe counsels Odysseus to go down to Hades and seek advice from the seer Teiresias before continuing his journey. Odysseus does so, sailing to the edge of the world and making offerings to the dead so that their spirits can speak.

Teiresias warns Odysseus that Poseidon is still angry because of the blinding of Polyphemus. He also warns him about the sacred cattle of Helios on Thrinacia: if the crew harms them, the ship will be destroyed, the men will die, and Odysseus will return home alone.

In the Underworld, Odysseus also encounters many famous dead people, including Agamemnon, Achilles, Heracles, and the spirit of his mother Anticlea, who tells him of the suffering in Ithaca and of Penelope’s difficult position among the Suitors.

Odysseus and the Sirens

First, Odysseus passes by the island of the Sirens who – as he is told by Circe – enchant all who come near them through the luring sound of their song. However, Odysseus orders his crew to stuff their ears with beeswax and ties himself tightly to the mast, so that he can not only escape unharmed but also hear the beautiful Sirens’ song.

Scylla and Charybdis

Then Odysseus’ ship must pass through a narrow strait between the whirlpool Charybdis and the six-headed monster Scylla. Circe has warned Odysseus that Charybdis can swallow the whole ship, while Scylla will seize only some of the men.

Odysseus chooses to sail closer to Scylla, accepting a smaller loss rather than the destruction of everyone. As the crew watches Charybdis in terror, Scylla strikes from her cave and devours six of Odysseus’ men. It is one of the cruelest choices of his journey, because there is no safe path between the two monsters.

The Cattle of Helios

Next, the crew reaches the island of Thrinacia, where Odysseus, remembering Circe’s and Teiresias’ warnings, cautions his shipmates not to eat the sacred cattle of the sun god Helios. At first, the men obey. However, bad winds trap them on the island, and their supplies begin to run out.

While Odysseus is away praying, Eurylochus persuades the starving crew to kill the cattle. He argues that dying quickly at sea would be better than slowly wasting away from hunger. The men agree, even though they had been warned clearly not to touch the animals.

Helios, enraged, demands punishment from Zeus. Zeus sends a violent storm and strikes the ship with a thunderbolt. All of Odysseus’ shipmates die, and Odysseus alone survives.

Odysseus, Calypso and Ogygia

The sea carries Odysseus to Ogygia, the remote island of the nymph Calypso. Calypso falls in love with him and keeps him there for seven years. She offers him comfort, care, and even immortality if he will stay with her as her husband.

Odysseus refuses to forget Ithaca. Although Ogygia is beautiful, he spends his days longing for Penelope and his home. Finally, Athena appeals to Zeus, and Zeus sends Hermes to order Calypso to release him.

Calypso obeys the command, though unwillingly. She helps Odysseus build a raft and gives him food, wine, water, and clothing for the journey. After leaving Ogygia, Odysseus faces one more storm from Poseidon before reaching the Phaeacians.

The Phaeacians

Odysseus then reaches Scheria, the island of the Phaeacians. There, he is helped by Nausicaa and welcomed by King Alcinous and Queen Arete. During a feast, the blind bard Demodocus sings of the Trojan War, moving Odysseus to tears.

Odysseus then reveals his identity and recounts his long journey. The Phaeacians honor him as a guest and provide him with a ship. Their sailors carry the exhausted hero back to Ithaca while he sleeps. After twenty years of warring and wandering, Odysseus is finally home.

Odysseus back in Ithaca

Odysseus reaches Ithaca late at night, sound asleep. Not wanting to bother his sleep, the Phaeacian sailors lay him down on the shore and leave. Odysseus wakes up confused, but Athena appears to him and, after revealing to him what had happened, disguises him as an elderly beggar – both for his safety and so that he can learn better what had happened during his absence.

Odysseus and Eumaeus

Pretending to be a Cretan returning from Troy with some news of Odysseus, the disguised hero finds his way to the hut of one of his most faithful servants, the swineherd Eumaeus. Eumaeus does not recognize him, but he welcomes him warmly, gives him food and shelter, and speaks with love and grief for his absent master.

The hut of Eumaeus becomes a safe place for Odysseus on Ithaca. Away from the palace and the Suitors, he can learn what has happened during his absence and prepare for his return. Eumaeus’ loyalty stands in sharp contrast to the disloyal servants who have joined the Suitors.

Odysseus and Telemachus

Meanwhile, Telemachus has sailed home from Sparta and, after evading an ambush set by the Suitors of Penelope, goes straight to Eumaeus’ hut. There, Athena removes Odysseus’ disguise, and father and son are finally reunited – twenty years after being separated by the Trojan War and the ploy of Palamedes.

Odysseus and Telemachus then begin planning the destruction of the Suitors. Their reunion is one of the turning points of the Odyssey, because the broken royal house of Ithaca starts to come together again.

Penelope and the Suitors

Accompanied by Eumaeus, Odysseus next heads for his own house. There, he sees the Suitors eating his food, drinking his wine, and behaving as if his palace already belongs to them. The abuse of hospitality is now clear before his eyes.

Antinous, one of the most arrogant Suitors, treats the disguised Odysseus with special cruelty. He insults him and hurls a footstool at him. Eurymachus, another leading Suitor, is smoother in speech but no less guilty in the destruction of Odysseus’ household.

Penelope appears and, prompted by Athena, announces that she is finally ready to remarry. Odysseus, still disguised, speaks with his unsuspecting wife and gives her false but comforting news of her missing husband.

Melantho, Melanthius and the Disloyal Servants

Not everyone in the palace remains loyal to Odysseus and Penelope. Melantho, a maidservant raised by Penelope, insults Odysseus while he is disguised as a beggar. Her behavior shows how deeply the household has been corrupted during the king’s absence.

Melanthius, the goatherd and brother of Melantho, also sides with the Suitors. He insults Odysseus and later tries to bring weapons to the Suitors during the battle. Together, Melantho and Melanthius stand opposite loyal servants such as Eumaeus, Eurycleia, and Philoetius.

Odysseus and Eurycleia

Growing a fondness for this stranger, Penelope calls Eurycleia – Odysseus’ one-time wet-nurse – and asks her to wash the beggar’s feet. While doing this, Eurycleia notices a scar on his leg and realizes the identity of the stranger. She tries telling Penelope, but Odysseus and Athena intervene, and the secret stays safe.

The Contest of the Bow

Urged by the beggar, Penelope announces the next morning that she will marry the Suitor able to string her husband’s bow and shoot an arrow through twelve ax shafts. None of the Suitors manage to do it.

Odysseus, still in disguise, asks to try. With help from Eumaeus and Philoetius, he prepares the hall. He strings the bow with ease and shoots the arrow through the ax shafts. The contest reveals what the Suitors cannot yet understand: the true master of the house has returned.

Afterward, Odysseus reveals himself. Helped by Telemachus, Athena, Eumaeus, and Philoetius, he slays the Suitors. Antinous is the first to die, struck by an arrow while drinking from a cup. The disloyal servants are also punished.

The Reunion of Odysseus and Penelope

Eurycleia notifies Penelope of the unexpected outcome of the contest, joyously notifying her that the stranger had been none other than Odysseus all this time! Penelope does not believe her and refuses to acknowledge Odysseus’ identity even after coming down and seeing him bathed and clothed in royal attire, all but a god among humans. Understandably cautious, Penelope asks Odysseus to move her marriage-bed to another room. Odysseus replies that such a thing is impossible, as he had made the bed himself and knows that one of its legs is a still living olive tree deeply rooted in the ground. Penelope needs no further proof: she runs in her husband’s embrace, and both start weeping tears of joy. Gladdened, Athena orders Eos to postpone the dawn for a few hours, so that the two spouses can fully enjoy a lengthened night of embraces, tears and stories, of love and pleasure.

Odysseus’ Role and Symbolism

Cunning and Intelligence

Odysseus is famous for cunning intelligence. He wins not because he is the strongest Greek hero, but because he can plan, speak, deceive, wait, and adapt. The Trojan Horse, the trick of Nobody, and his disguise in Ithaca all show this side of his character.

Endurance and Homecoming

Odysseus is also a hero of endurance. His story is not only about victory in war, but about the painful return home after war. He loses ships, men, time, and comfort, but he continues to desire Ithaca.

The Abuse of Hospitality

Many of Odysseus’ adventures test the sacred rule of hospitality. Polyphemus kills and eats his guests. The Laestrygonians destroy strangers instead of welcoming them. The Suitors live in Odysseus’ house but abuse his goods and family. Against them stand good hosts such as Eumaeus and the Phaeacians.

The Danger of Pride

Odysseus is wise, but he is not perfect. His pride after escaping Polyphemus causes him to reveal his name, allowing the Cyclops to call on Poseidon. This mistake brings years of suffering. The Odyssey therefore presents Odysseus as brilliant and flawed at the same time.

Human Life Over Immortality

Calypso offers Odysseus immortality on Ogygia, but he refuses it. He chooses Penelope, Ithaca, age, and mortal life over endless youth away from home. This choice is one of the clearest signs of what the Odyssey values: belonging, memory, family, and return.

The Death of Odysseus

Not many things are known about Odysseus’ later years; or, to be more precise, too many contradictory stories are told by different authors. The more romantic state that he and Penelope lived happily ever after; the more skeptic that, after finding a proof of her infidelity, Odysseus either left or even killed Penelope and went on another journey to the kingdom of Thesprotia, where he eventually married Callidice.

The most famous story of Odysseus’ death, however, concerns Telegonus, the son he fathered with Circe while on Aeaea. Once Telegonus reached adulthood, he went to Ithaca to meet his father. Landing on the shore, he killed some sheep to satisfy his hunger. Odysseus was not happy with this act and came out to confront him. In the fight which ensued, Odysseus was deadly wounded by Telegonus’ spear tipped with the poison of a sting-ray. After finding out the identity of his victim, Telegonus took both Penelope and Telemachus to Aeaea, where Circe made all three of them immortal. Afterward, the two sons married each other's mothers.

Odysseus Sources

Though he appears as an important character in quite a few tragedies (such as Euripides’ “Hecuba” and “The Trojan Women” or Sophocles’ “Ajax” and “Philoctetes”), the main sources on Odysseus’ life and deeds are Homer’s two epics: the “Iliad,” which covers his part in the Trojan War, and especially the “Odyssey,” which focuses on his journey back home.

The Odyssey preserves the main stories of Polyphemus, Aeolus, the Laestrygonians, Circe, Eurylochus, Teiresias, the Sirens, Scylla, Charybdis, Helios, Calypso, Ogygia, the Phaeacians, Eumaeus, Antinous, Melantho, and the revenge against the Suitors in Ithaca. A summary of the poem can also be found in the final chapters of the epitome of Apollodorus’ “Library.”

See Also: Laertes, Anticlea, Trojan War, Trojan Horse, Helen, Tyndareus, Priam, Achilles, Thetis, Palamedes, Penelope, Telemachus, Polyphemus, Poseidon, Aeolus, Laestrygonians, Circe, Eurylochus, Hermes, Teiresias, Sirens, Scylla, Charybdis, Helios, Zeus, Calypso, Ogygia, Phaeacians, Eumaeus, Antinous, Melantho, Melanthius, Philoetius, Eurycleia, Telegonus