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The "peaked sea-mark of Ithaca" (Homer line 21) is Odysseus's ordinary world. At the very beginning of his story preceding the events of the Odyssey, he lives there with Penelope and Telemachus, whom are his wife and son. He is the king of Ithaca.

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Odysseus' call to adventure was when he "plundered the stronghold on the proud height of Troy" (Homer lines 4-5). His refusal of the call was his hesitation to fight in the Trojan War, but Athena convinced him to do so.

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Boats and boating--Equipment and supplies

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Odysseus had 3 notable mentors, Athena, Circe, and Tiresias. Athena was his main mentor, convincing him to join the war and later "[disguising him] as a beggar" (Homer). Circe told him to "consult the blind prophet Tiresias" and go to Hades, which was important for Odysseus to learn his destiny. Tiresias tells Odysseus that "anguish lies ahead [and] the god who thunders on the land prepares it" (Homer lines 633-634), warning him of his perilous journey ahead filled with tests. He also warns of Scylla and Charybdis and the Sirens.

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In Odysseus' journey, the event representing his crossing of the threshold is when he travelled to Hades. For the first time, he "grew sick with fear" (Homer line 570), showing that everything around him is different and unfamiliar. Fear is a major violation of Greek values, as it is the opposite of courage.

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The First Test - Battle of the Cicones (Sailing from Troy)

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The First Test - Battle of the Cicones (Sailing from Troy)

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Odysseus's first test was when he and his men went to Cicones. His men were supposed to take what they needed as supplies for the war effort and leave, but "[his] men were mutinous, fools, on stores of wine" (Homer lines 47-48). Their greed was tested, and it got the best of them. They stayed too long, reinforcements came, and slaughtered many of them as they were too drunk to fight back.  He and his crew failed this test, although Odysseus showed good leadership, an important Greek value. His crew broke the Greek value of honor, taking more than they should have.

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His second test is when a storm sent him off course to the land of the Lotus-eaters. These lotus flowers were known to make someone lose all motives except for eating more lotus flowers upon eating them. Odysseus told them not to eat them, and yet many decided to eat them anyway. However, Odysseus demonstrated good leadership skills and intelligence, "[tying] them down under their rowing benches" (Homer line 102). His crew demonstrated excessive curiosity, again doing just what Odysseus warned them of.

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Odysseus' third test was when he ended up on the island of Cyclops. He demonstrated great courage, strength, and intelligence on this test, outwitting Polyphemus by taking a spike and "[ramming] it deep in his crater eye" (Homer lines 332-333). He also had the idea of clinging to Polyphemus's rams and using them to escape the cave when he took them out to graze. He also told him his name was Nohbdy, which tricked Polyphemus greatly. Gods involved were Poseidon, Polyphemus, and Athena. Polyphemus violated the Greek value of hospitality by eating Odysseus' men. Odysseus exhibited excessive pride and hubris by telling Polyphemus his actual name, which incurred him to pray to his father for Odysseus' misfortune. Athena was involved by helping Odysseus and answering his prayers. Overall, despite escaping, he did not pass this test because it put him in even more danger than he was in in the first place by being essentially cursed by Poseidon.

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Odysseus and his men arrive at Aeolia, where he is given a "sack containing all the winds except the favorable west wind" (Homer), which he is not supposed to open. He, again, fails the test, opening the sack and getting sent back to Aeolia. Aeolus then sends them on their way. The only god involved in this test is Aeolus, keeper of the winds. He plays an important role by giving him his fourth test. No Greek values are demonstrated nor violated, oddly enough.

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Odysseus' crew arrives at the land of the Laestrygonians, where his fifth test takes place. It can be inferred that the value of hospitality is violated, because the "creatures destroy all of Odysseus' ships except the one he is sailing in" (Homer) upon getting to the island. This massive loss makes it clear that he did not pass the test. No gods or goddesses are involved.

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Odysseus and his men arrive at Aeaea, where Circe resides. Before getting to the palace, Athena sends Hermes to Odysseus, telling him that using a special magic herb will protect him from Circe's magic. He stays with Circe for a year after his men are "[transformed... into swine" (Homer), and Circe then tells him to seek out Tiresias in the Land of the Dead. Athena serves as an overseer, Hermes serves as her messenger, and Circe serves as both an antagonist and a mentor at the end. Odysseus did not necessarily pass this test, because it was a massive inconvenience and he didn't do anything on his own.

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With Tiresias' knowledge, Odysseus and his men go and face the sirens. Odysseus is "lashed to the mast" (Homer line 696) as he instructs his crew, and his crew are fit with beeswax in their ear to resist the sirens themselves. Only Odysseus was meant to hear the sirens. They all managed to get past the sirens with no casualties, passing the test and demonstrating the values of intelligence and courage.

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Boats and boating--Equipment and supplies

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The Eighth Test - Passing Scylla and Charybdis

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The Eighth Test - Passing Scylla and Charybdis

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Passing the sirens, the crew now approached the strait between Scylla, a great six-headed hydra, and Charybdis, a massive whirlpool. Odysseus chose to go closer to Scylla, losing "six of [his] best men" (Homer line 810) to the creature. He did not pass this test, because his crew took heavy casualties by paying too much attention to Charybdis. Circe is a goddess involved because she tells Odysseus to sail close to Scylla.

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Odysseus was "detained long by Calypso" (Homer line 29) for 7 years, escaping after Zeus sends Hermes to order her to let him go.

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The Phaecians "[conducted Odysseus] home by ship" (Homer) after he told them his story. They played an important role, helping him return to Ithaca.

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Telemachus, along with "Odysseus... Eumaeus, and other faithful herdsmen[,] kill all the suitors" (Homer). He serves as an important ally to Odysseus during part 2, fighting off the suitors with him.

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Upon arriving at Ithaca, Athena "directs him to the hut of Eumaeus" (Homer) who feeds him breakfast and later helps him fight the suitors with Telemachus and the other herders.

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The suitors "continually [sought] the hand of [Odysseus'] wife, Penelope, in marriage" (Homer). These suitors are Odysseus' final opponent, and he kills all of them.

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Earlier on in the story, Polyphemus "stretched his hands out in his darkness toward the sky of stars, and prayed [to] Poseidon" (Homer line 483). Poseidon then brought fated misfortune to Odysseus, making all of his men die in his destiny. Without the wrath of Poseidon cursing him throughout his journey, it would not be nearly as difficult for Odysseus to return home safe and sound.

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One major god and a pseudo-god are involved in this chapter, those being Zeus and the titan Helios. Zeus' role is giving Odysseus his final tests, and eventually helping him once he feels he has done enough. Helios is the one who actually incurs the wrath of Zeus upon Odysseus, because his men killed and ate Helios' cattle, "which Tiresias warned Odysseus not to harm" (Homer). Odysseus demonstrates and relies on the Greek value of intelligence during this test.

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Odysseus uses every bit of knowledge and skill he's gathered throughout his journey to outwit and kill all the suitors with his allies. This is his supreme ordeal because he is faced with death and it's the last hurdle before his reward. The main goddess involved is Athena, who helps Odysseus and his allies in battle from afar. Odysseus exhibited the values of intelligence, strength, and courage. He outwitted the suitors, overpowered them in combat, and fought valiantly in a battle in which he was outnumbered in.

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Odysseus "[finishes] telling his story to the Phaecians" (Homer) and they bring him to Ithaca in a ship. This is his journey home because his home is Ithaca, and it is the final trip.

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Odysseus has finished his journey, and achieved his reward. He is "reuinited with his father... peace [prevails] between Odysseus and the relatives of the slain suitors. [He] has regained his family and his kingdom" (Homer). He also lives on with his wife Penelope and his son Telemachus.

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Odysseus is, although not flawlessly, a hero. His traits reflect greatly on this fact. These traits include, but are definitely not limited to, courage, strength, intelligence, and influence on those around him. First off, Odysseus is a courageous individual because of how quickly he puts himself at risk. When his crew is ready to face defeat, Odysseus has already thought of a plan. Without his guidance throughout his many tests and ordeals, his crew and himself would have died far before he reached Ithaca. In his encounter with Polyphemus, he and his crew were locked in a cave by a massive boulder. In addition to this, they were all at the mercy of Polyphemus, a gargantuan cyclops. Despite his general lack of intelligence, Polyphemus helped himself to Odysseus' crew, eating them whenever he felt. Yet, in this situation, Odysseus still got out of it, along with the majority of his crew. He, along with a few of his friends, got him drunk on wine, took a spike, and "rammed it deep in his crater eye" (Homer lines 332-333). This piece of evidence is a display of all of the mentioned traits. Strength, both mentally and physically, to lift the spike and take on the cyclops, inspiration to get his friends to help him, intelligence to come up with the brilliant idea, and, most importantly, the courage to take on a massive creature whom is practically a demigod, being the son of Poseidon. Moving onto the second prominent heroic trait, Odysseus demonstrates strength throughout his journey through his skill in combat. He participated in the Trojan War early on, and near the end of his journey, he "[kills] all the suitors" (Homer) with a combination of help from his allies, the power of Athena, his physical strength, and his combat expertise. This shows strength because of how much he exerted himself physically, fighting a battle in which he is steeply outnumbered with relative ease. His third heroic trait is possibly his most developed, this being intelligence. One of his most notable demonstrations of intelligence is during his encounter with the sirens. He told his crew to "tie [him] up... along the mast" (Homer lines 695-696) of his ship. He also accounted for his crew, giving them beeswax to put in their ears to block out the songs. This demonstrates intelligence because he accounts for everything he needs to with his own wit. The final trait Odysseus exhibits throughout his journey is inspiration of others. When he took on the suitors, he was "aided by Athena, Odysseus, Telemachus, Eumaeus, and other faithful herdsmen" (Homer). This make it clear that people around him want to be on his side. He's also angered many gods throughout his journey with his actions, and managed to come to terms with them, Poseidon leaving him be and Zeus even assisting him in his journey. Odysseus has displayed all of these heroic traits throughout his journey, and it is entirely clear that he can be considered an epic hero.