Odysseus in the Ancient Sources: 191 Passages in Greek & English

Hesiod (2)

Hesiod, Theogony 960–1022Goddesses and mortal men; the end of the poem (960-1022)The Muses are asked to sing of the goddesses who lay with mortal men. Demeter bears Plutus to Iasion, Harmonia bears Ino, Semele, Agave, Autonoe and Polydorus to Cadmus, and Callirrhoe bears Geryon. The list continues with Eos and Tithonus, Aphrodite and Anchises, Thetis and Peleus, and ends with Circe and Calypso bearing sons to Odysseus before the poet turns to the company of women.
Hesiod, Fragments 1.68The suitors of HelenThe best-preserved passage of the Catalogue lists the heroes who came to woo Helen, each with his gifts, from Philoctetes and the sons of Amphiaraus to Odysseus, Menestheus, Aias and Idomeneus. Tyndareus sends none away and receives no gift, and the passage ends with the birth of Hermione.

Homer (146)

Homer, Odyssey 19.164–316The stranger's tale of CreteOdysseus says that he comes from Crete, that his name is Aethon and that he is the younger brother of Idomeneus, and that he once entertained Odysseus in Crete when the wind drove him toward Troy. Penelope weeps, and tests him, asking what clothes Odysseus wore, and he describes the purple cloak with the golden brooch and the tunic that shone like the skin of an onion. He then says that Odysseus is alive in Thesprotia and will return, but Penelope does not believe him.
Homer, Odyssey 19.317–507Eurycleia washes the stranger; the scarPenelope calls Eurycleia to wash the stranger's feet, and Eurycleia says that he looks like Odysseus. As she bathes him she finds the scar that a boar's tusk made when he hunted on Parnassus, and tells how he got his name, and drops his foot. She is about to cry out, but Odysseus seizes her throat and makes her swear to keep silence.
Homer, Odyssey 24.203–411Odysseus and LaertesOdysseus and his companions go down to the farm of Laertes, who is working in the orchard, in old and dirty clothes. Odysseus, weeping, tests him with a false tale, and Laertes grieves and falls to the ground, and Odysseus tells him who he is and shows him the scar and the trees that he had been given as a child. Laertes recognises him, and Athena makes the old man taller and stronger, and they eat. Dolius and his sons come in from the fields and join them at the meal.
Homer, Odyssey 24.412–548The kinsmen of the suitors; peace restoredRumour carries the news of the slaughter through the city, and the kinsmen of the suitors take up their bodies and gather in the market-place, where Eupeithes, the father of Antinous, calls for revenge. Odysseus and his men arm and go out to meet them. Laertes kills Eupeithes with a spear, and Athena, in the likeness of Mentor, calls off the fighting, and a covenant is made between the two sides.
Homer, Odyssey 17.184–289Odysseus and Eumaeus on the road; MelanthiusEumaeus and Odysseus set out for the town, and at a fountain they meet the goatherd Melanthius, who curses them and kicks Odysseus. Odysseus holds back his anger, and Eumaeus prays to the nymphs of the fountain that Odysseus may come home to deal with such insolence. Melanthius threatens to sell Odysseus to a far country, and goes on before them, and the two come to the palace.
Homer, Odyssey 18.302–428Melantho and EurymachusOdysseus offers to keep the torches burning, and Melantho, a servant who is the lover of Eurymachus, abuses him for staying in the hall, and he threatens her with Telemachus' anger. Eurymachus taunts the beggar, saying that he is an idle man who prefers to beg, and Odysseus challenges him to a contest of mowing and of war. Eurymachus throws a stool at him, which strikes the wine-pourer, and the suitors go home to rest.
Homer, Odyssey 22.381–501The hall cleansed; the maids punishedOdysseus looks over the hall and finds all the suitors lying in blood like fish on the shore. Eurycleia is summoned, and she begins to cry out in triumph, but Odysseus checks her, saying that it is not holy to boast over the dead. The disloyal maids are made to carry out the dead and scrub the hall, and are hanged, and Melanthius is mutilated and killed, and Odysseus burns sulphur to purify the house. The faithful maids then come to welcome him.
Homer, Odyssey 16.1–153Telemachus comes to the hutAt dawn Eumaeus and Odysseus prepare breakfast, and the dogs, which do not bark, show that a friend is coming. Telemachus enters, and Eumaeus embraces him, weeping, and Odysseus rises to give him his seat, but Telemachus bids him stay. Eumaeus tells him of the stranger, and Telemachus promises him clothes, a sword and shoes, but says that he cannot protect him from the suitors. He then sends Eumaeus to tell Penelope that he is home.
Homer, Odyssey 22.205–309The slaying of the suitors: Athena as MentorAthena comes to the hall in the likeness of Mentor, and Odysseus calls for his aid, but she rebukes him for lacking his old courage. She flies up to a beam in the roof as a swallow, and the suitors take courage and throw their spears, but Athena turns them aside. Odysseus and his three companions throw in reply and kill four men, and then Athena shakes her aegis and the suitors flee like cattle stung by gadflies.
Homer, Iliad 11.401–488Odysseus is rescued by Menelaus and AjaxLeft alone, Odysseus reflects that only cowards leave the fight, and the Trojans close round him like hounds round a boar. He kills Deiopites, Thoon, Eunomus, Chersidamas and Charops, and then Socus, who has wounded him in the side. Odysseus shouts three times for help, and Menelaus and Ajax come and bring him out of the crowd.
Homer, Odyssey 20.122–239The morning of the feastTelemachus rises and tells Eurycleia to look after the stranger, and the house is made ready for the feast of Apollo. The swineherd Eumaeus brings three fat pigs, and Melanthius brings the best goats, and Melanthius abuses the stranger again and kicks him. Philoetius, the cowherd, arrives with a heifer and goats, and speaks kindly to Odysseus, and both herdsmen pray that Odysseus may come home.
Homer, Odyssey 22.89–204The slaying of the suitors: Amphinomus and MelanthiusAmphinomus rushes at Odysseus with his sword and is killed by Telemachus' spear, and Telemachus runs to the store-room for shields, spears and helmets. Melanthius makes two trips for arms for the suitors before Eumaeus and Philoetius catch him and bind him to a pillar.

134 more passages of Homer that name Odysseus

Apollodorus (6)

Apollodorus, The Library (Bibliotheca), with the Epitome E.7.1–40The wanderings of Odysseus, the suitors and his deathOdysseus leaves Troy and meets the Cicones, the Lotus-eaters and Polyphemus the Cyclops, then Aeolus, the Laestrygonians and Circe. After the visit to Hades, the Sirens, Scylla and Charybdis and the cattle of the Sun, he reaches Calypso and then the Phaeacians and Ithaca, where the suitors are named and killed. The section ends with his later life among the Thesprotians and the variant accounts of his death at the hands of Telegonus, and of Penelope's fate.
Apollodorus, The Library (Bibliotheca), with the Epitome E.5.1–23The death of Achilles, the Wooden Horse and the fall of TroyPenthesilea and then Memnon come to Troy's aid and are killed by Achilles, who is himself shot by Paris and Apollo. The contest for Achilles' arms drives Ajax to madness and suicide. Troy falls after Philoctetes shoots Paris, Helenus reveals the three conditions, Neoptolemus joins the army and Odysseus steals the Palladium, and the Greeks take the city with the Wooden Horse, Sinon and the beacon at Tenedos; the section closes with the sack, the deaths of Astyanax and Polyxena, and the division of the captives.
Apollodorus, The Library (Bibliotheca), with the Epitome E.3.1–35Paris and Helen; the muster at Aulis and the landing at TroyParis judges the contest of the three goddesses, carries off Helen, and Menelaus and Agamemnon call the Greek kings to arms; Odysseus's feigned madness is exposed and Palamedes is framed. The section gives the catalogue of the Greek fleet at Aulis, the omen of the snake and sparrows, the failed first landing in Mysia and the healing of Telephus, and the sacrifice of Iphigenia. After Tenedos and the abandonment of Philoctetes, Protesilaus is the first to die at Troy, Achilles takes many nearby cities, and the Trojan allies are listed.
Apollodorus, The Library (Bibliotheca), with the Epitome 3.10.1–9Hermes, Asclepius, Leda and the suitors of HelenThe Pleiades are named, and Maia bears Hermes to Zeus, who steals Apollo's cattle, invents the lyre and trades it for the cattle and the art of divination. The line of Taygete and Lacedaemon leads to Hyacinth, to Asclepius, son of Apollo and Coronis, whom Zeus strikes with a thunderbolt for raising the dead, and to Tyndareus and Icarius. Zeus, as a swan, lies with Leda, who bears Helen and the Dioscuri (or, in another version, Nemesis lays Helen's egg), and Theseus carries Helen off. The kings of Greece court Helen, and Tyndareus, on Odysseus's advice, binds them by an oath to defend the chosen husband.
Apollodorus, The Library (Bibliotheca), with the Epitome E.4.1–7The Iliad in brief: Achilles' anger, Patroclus and HectorThe Epitome gives a short account of the events of the Iliad: Achilles withdraws from the fighting because of the quarrel over Briseis, Paris and Menelaus fight a single combat, and Hector drives the Greeks back to the ships. Patroclus, wearing Achilles' armour, is killed by Hector. Achilles takes up Hephaestus's new armour, kills Hector and drags his body, holds games for Patroclus, and Priam ransoms Hector's body.
Apollodorus, The Library (Bibliotheca), with the Epitome 3.13.1–8Peleus, Thetis and the youth of AchillesPeleus flees to Phthia and is purified, kills Eurytion by accident in the Calydonian hunt, and escapes the plots of Astydamia, wife of Acastus. With help from Chiron he wins Thetis, who tries to make their son Achilles immortal in the fire. When Calchas declares that Troy cannot be taken without Achilles, Thetis hides him among the daughters of Lycomedes, where Odysseus finds him; Phoenix and Patroclus join him.

Euripides (33)

Euripides, Cyclops 96–162First episode: Odysseus meets Silenus and learns of the CyclopesOdysseus asks Silenus where to find water and food. Silenus tells him that this is Mount Aetna in Sicily and that the Cyclopes live on milk, cheese and the flesh of sheep, and that they kill and eat strangers. The Cyclops himself is away hunting.
Euripides, Cyclops 503–575Fourth episode: Odysseus gets the Cyclops drunk and tells him he is NomanThe Cyclops comes out merry with wine and calls for more, and Odysseus persuades him not to share it with his brothers. Silenus sneaks sips as cup-bearer, until the Cyclops takes the wine-skin back. The Cyclops asks the stranger's name, and Odysseus says that it is Noman, and the Cyclops promises to eat him last.
Euripides, Rhesus 565–594Fourth episode: Odysseus and Diomedes find Hector's bivouac emptyOdysseus and Diomedes steal into the Trojan camp, using the password Phoebus, which they learned from Dolon, and find that Hector's bivouac is empty. Odysseus proposes going back to the fleet, and Diomedes asks whether they should not first go against Aeneas or Paris, and says that it would be shameful to return having done no harm. Odysseus answers that they have slain Dolon.
Euripides, Rhesus 675–727Fifth episode: the sentries challenge Odysseus and let him passThe Chorus of sentries challenges the men who have disturbed the army in the gloom. Odysseus answers with the password, and the sentries let him pass. They then wonder who the intruder was, and whether it was Odysseus, who once came into the city in rags with his sword hidden in his cloak, and they fear Hector's blame.
Euripides, Cyclops 163–202First episode: Odysseus' wine buys food; the Cyclops returnsOdysseus lets Silenus taste Maron's wine and offers it in exchange for lambs and cheese, and Silenus agrees, saying that he would give up the flocks of every Cyclops for a single cup. The Chorus asks Odysseus about Troy and Helen, and Silenus brings out the food. The Cyclops is then seen coming, and Odysseus says that the Greeks must not flee from a single man.
Euripides, Hecuba 218–250First episode: Odysseus announces the sacrifice of PolyxenaOdysseus says that the army has voted to sacrifice Polyxena on the tomb of Achilles, and that the lot has made him messenger. He tells Hecuba to yield, since it is wise even in misfortune to give way. Hecuba reminds him that he once came to Troy as a spy and was spared by her, and asks whether she is to be thanked in this way.
Euripides, Hecuba 389–443First episode: Polyxena's farewell to HecubaOdysseus says that it is not Hecuba but Polyxena whom the ghost of Achilles demands, and Hecuba says that she will not let her daughter go, and clings to her. Polyxena begs her not to fight with their masters, and bids her mother farewell, asking to be veiled; Odysseus takes her away, and Hecuba falls to the ground, blaming Helen.
Euripides, Cyclops 437–502Third episode: Odysseus plans to blind the CyclopsOdysseus tells of his scheme to keep the Cyclops from his brothers and make him drunk, and then to burn out his eye with a blazing olive-branch. He says that he will then carry the satyrs and Silenus away in his ship, and the satyrs offer eagerly to help hold the brand. The drunken Cyclops is then seen leaving his cave, singing.
Euripides, Cyclops 663–709Exodos: the Cyclops is blinded and Odysseus names himselfThe Cyclops cries out that his eye is burnt, and says that Noman has blinded him, and the Chorus mocks him, and then misdirects him as he gropes for the Greeks. Odysseus reveals his real name, and the Cyclops says that an old oracle has come true, and threatens to crush the ship with a boulder. The Chorus declares that it will go with Odysseus and serve Bacchus.
Euripides, Cyclops 253–312Second episode: Odysseus and Silenus quarrel before the CyclopsOdysseus tells the Cyclops that they came to buy food and that Silenus sold them the lambs behind his master's back. Silenus protests and swears by Poseidon, but the Chorus says that it saw him sell them. The Cyclops asks who the strangers are, and Odysseus says that they are Ithacans on their way home from Troy, and he begs for mercy as suppliants.
Euripides, Cyclops 624–662Fifth episode: the satyrs shrink back from the brandOdysseus calls for silence and tells the satyrs to go in and grip the red-hot brand, but one after another they find excuses, one claiming to have gone lame and another to have dust in his eyes. The Chorus offers instead a spell of Orpheus. Odysseus calls them worthless allies and says that he will use his own men, while the Chorus promises to encourage him from outside.
Euripides, Cyclops 375–436Third episode: Odysseus reports the Cyclops' feastOdysseus comes out of the cave and tells how the Cyclops seized two of his comrades, killed them and cooked them. He then served the Cyclops Maron's wine until he began to sing drunkenly. Odysseus offers to save the satyrs and win them back to Dionysus.

21 more passages of Euripides that name Odysseus

Bacchylides (1)

Bacchylides, Dithyrambs 15.1–16.35Dithyrambs 15–16: the sons of Antenor; Heracles and DeianeiraTheano, priestess of Athena, opens the temple doors to the Greek envoys Odysseus and Menelaus, and the sons of Antenor lead them to the Trojan assembly, where Menelaus speaks of Insolence and Justice. In the next song the poet prays to Apollo, and sings how Heracles, after burning Oechalia, sacrifices at the cape of Cenaean Zeus. A god then weaves a cruel device for Deianeira when she learns that Iole is to come to the house as a bride, and she takes the fatal gift of Nessus.

Epic Cycle (3)

Epic Cycle, Summaries and Fragments 7.1–26Little IliadProclus' summary of the Little Iliad begins with the judging of the arms of Achilles, which Odysseus wins, and the madness and death of Aias. Philoctetes is brought from Lemnos, Eurypylus is killed by Neoptolemus and Epeius builds the wooden horse. The fragments give the girls' quarrel over Aias and Odysseus, Achilles at Scyros, the golden vine given to Laomedon for Ganymedes, and the death of Astyanax.
Epic Cycle, Summaries and Fragments 9.1–10.2Returns and TelegonyProclus' summary of the Returns begins with Athena causing a quarrel between Agamemnon and Menelaus about the voyage from Troy. The fragments mention Medea and Aeson, Heracles at Themiscyra, and Telemachus marrying Circe. The Telegony, in two books, has Odysseus sailing to Elis after the suitors are buried, and the author says that Odysseus had a son Telegonus by Calypso.
Epic Cycle, Summaries and Fragments 6.1–5AethiopisProclus' summary tells how Memnon, the son of Eos, comes to help the Trojans in armour made by Hephaestus, and how Thetis tells her son about him. Achilles is killed by Paris and Apollo and Aias carries the body away. A fragment adds the Amazon, the daughter of Ares, who came after the burial of Hector.

Odysseus in the ancient sources

Hesiod (2)

Homer (146)

Apollodorus (6)

Euripides (33)

Bacchylides (1)

Epic Cycle (3)