Odysseus Missing for 10 Years After Trojan War!
This journey started after the Trojan War, when all the Greeks sailed home.
By Seth Golfinopoulos (Main Article)
Odysseus`son, Telemachus, was getting anxious. His father, Odysseus, was missing for 10 years after the Trojan War and Ithaca was starting to pile up with 100 suitors all after Queen Penelope. He went to King Menelaus in Sparta because Menelaus didn
Odysseus' JourneyOdysseus has one of the most difficult journeys back home to Greece.
The Island of the Cicones: After leaving Troy, they stop to raid this island for supplies. The Cicones attack on horseback, and Odysseus lost 72 of his men. The Island of the Lotus Eaters: Odysseus sends his men out to search for food, and has to recover them when they eat the Lotus Flower. The Lotus Flower is a flower that hypnotises the person that eats it to stay there and keep eating it. Odysseus has to drag his men back to his ships. The Island of the Cyclopes: At this island, Odysseus needs to refill his water skins and get food. However, when they entered Polyphemus' cave, they see food. Odysseus' men actually had the right idea and urged him to steal some cheese and get back to the ship. Odysseus was too overconfident and decided to wait for Polyphemus to return, thinking he would give him food in gratitude. Odysseus knew Polyphemus was a Cyclops, and he acted very dumb on this matter. Polyphemus ate 6 of Odysseus' men and trapped everyone else. Using his wits and cunning, Odysseus poured very heavy wine for Polyphemus and Polyphemus got drunk. Odysseus and his men found a large wooden stick and sharpened it. When Polyphemus was asleep, he stabbed him in the eye, blinding him. (Cyclops only have one eye) Odysseus also said he was Nobody so when the Cyclops called for help from other Cyclops, Polyphemus said Nobody has hurt me so no one came for help. Then Odysseus came escaped on the underside of sheep's but when Odysseus was safe in the water, he yelled out his actual name and Polyphemus got Poseidon to make Odysseus' life difficult. |
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Frequently Asked QuestionsWhy did Odysseus try so hard to get back to Ithaca when he could have been immortal if he wanted to? He loved his wife, Penelope so much that he had to gt back to her
Explain why the God Poseidon was an enemy toward Odysseus. Odysseus had blinded his son, the cyclops Polyphemus, and when Odysseus bragged he had escaped, Polyphemus asked to curse Odysseus from Poseidon. Tell what would happen if Odysseus never found Circe? Odysseus would have most likely been lost at sea, eaten by the Sirens or eaten by Scylla or Charybdis. Circe gave Odysseus a lot of advice. What are some of the problems of Odysseus' men? They were not super loyal because they went against some of his orders. They were also super curious, and very selfish, because they opened the bag of winds because they thought it contained gold, and they also ate the sacred cattle of Helios just to save themselves. Is there a better solution to having Odysseus wait ten years of misery just to go home? Yes, there is. If Odysseus had given super strict orders for his crew, then they wouldn't have opened the bag of winds. However, they still would have had to make sacrifices to Poseidon to get home in return for blinding his son. What would happen if Odysseus' men didn't disobey his orders and not open the bag of winds? He would have reached Ithaca with most of his crew instead of none except himself. |
Polyphemus and OdysseusThe Island of Aeolus: Aeolus, the god of the winds, gives Odysseus all of the bad winds, so he can safely sail home. Odysseus' men go against his orders and open the bag, and all of the winds escape. They thought that the bag was full of gold and Aeolus was tricking them. The winds blew them far off course.
The Island of the Laestrygonians: The Laestrygonians, a race of cannibals, eat the Greeks. They throw cannibals that sink all the ships except Odysseus's ship. Only the men on Odysseus' ship and himself survive. The Underworld: Odysseus consults the prophet Teiresias to ask how he can get home, and finds his mother there, who has committed suicide in depression. Teiresias gives Odysseus advice and Odysseus continues his journey. The Island of the Sirens: Odysseus and his men pass here, an island with women singing their luring songs, trying to reel in sailors. So they do not hear, Odysseus fills his mens ears with beeswax, and he has them tie him to the mast. However, Circe advises Odysseus to hear the Sirens to gain knowledge. His crew follow orders and don't untie Odysseus till they have passed. Scylla and Charybdis: Odysseus chooses to sail for Scylla, a six-headed sea serpent on a cliff, rather than Charybdis, a giant whirlpool. He did this because he knew that if he went to Charybdis, the whole ship would be destroyed. However, if he went towards Scylla, six men would die. A sacrifice the brave Odysseus decided to make. Ogygia (Calypso's Island): Odysseus finds this island after drifting in the sea. It is a island of women, with a nymph named Calypso, with whom Odysseus has a seven-year affair with. After the seven years, Hermes convinces Calypso to let Odysseus build a new ship so he could sail home. Lost At Sea: After 18 days of sailing, Poseidon creates a storm and sinks Odysseus' ship. A sea nymph Ino, gives Odysseus her sash and tells him it will keep him afloat and from drowning. When he reaches the land of the Phaecians, he throws that sash behind him in the water to return it to the sea nymph. The Island of the Phaecians: The Phaecians accept Odysseus, and he explains his ten-year journey to them during a feast. They happily give him a ride home on one of their magical ships. |
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Circe's Island: Circe turns Odysseus' men to guinea pigs, but Odysseus is protected from her magic with the help of Hermes, who gave him a magical herb called Moly. Odysseus ends up staying there for 2 years because Circe bribes him saying she has much needed advice but she won't tell him unless he stays for 2 years. Before Odysseus departs, Circe finally tells him that he needs to find the blind prophet Teiresias in the Underworld. She also tells him about Scylla, and the Sirens.
The SirensThe Island of Helios: They stop here, and Odysseus falls asleep praying to Athena. While sleeping, his men once again go against his orders and eat Helios' cattle. This outrages the god, and he threatens never to rise again. As a punishment, Zeus throws a bolt of lightning at the ship, and turns it to splinters. Only Odysseus survives.
Poseidon's Massive Sea Storm |
Ithaca: Odysseus finally arrives home, and sees his son, Telemachus, for the first time in 15 years. Telemachus and Odysseus kill all the suitors and Odysseus is finally home. (Please click the button below, this is the most interesting part of Odysseus journey)