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1 CE
The war
Odysseus must leave his wife and newborn son to fight in the Trojan War -
2
The Lotus eaters
Odysseus and his men show up to an island where his men eat the lotus flowers that compel them to no longer have the desire to go home. -
3
Polyphemus
After leaving the lotus island, Odysseus and his men land on an island inhabited by a cyclops named Polyphemus. They run into some trouble with the cyclops causing Odysseus and his men to have to blind him. "Nohbdy, Nohbdy’s tricked me, Nohbdy’s ruined me!" -
4
Aeolus
Odysseus lands on the island of Aeolus, the god of the winds next. There, Aeolus gifts Odysseus a bag of wing and pushes him in the direction of home. Due to curiosity and greed, his men open the bag, letting out the gusts of wind and knocks them off the route of home. -
5
Circe
Odysseus and his men wash up to the island of Circe, a witch, who transforms some of his men into animals. After being warned, Odysseus rushes to save them with the help of Hermes. After a year, Circe finally directs Odysseus to the underworld to hear a prophecy. -
6
The underworld
Odysseus travels to the land of the dead to hear a prophesy from Tiresias,who warns him not the eat Helios' cattle or his crew will perish. He finds out his mother is dead and a crewmate, Elpenor. Elpenor begs to be buried properly and tells Odysseus of his son leaving home."Avoid those kine,hold fast to your intent, and hard seafaring brings you all to Ithaca. But if you raid the beeves, I see destruction for ship and crew. Though you survive alone, bereft of all companions, lost for years" -
7
Scylla and Charybdis
After paying his respects to Elpenor and getting advice from Circe, Odysseus sets out to sea. He must sail past two monsters, Scylla and Charybdis. He had to go Scylla's way, where he will lose 6 shipmates, one for each of her heads. Going Charybdis' way would cause death for everyone. " Her legs— and there are twelve—are like great tentacles, unjointed, and upon her serpent necks are borne six heads like nightmares of ferocity, with triple serried rows of fangs and deep gullets of black death." -
8
Thrinacia, the island of the sun god
After Scylla, Odysseus and his men travel through the Land of Helios. Despite his warnings not to, his men eat the cattle, angering the sun god. Because of Helios' threat to stop shining, Zeus sends a thunderbolt to Odysseus' ship leaving him the lone survivor. He ends up stranded on Calypso's island for 7 years who lets him go after a warning from Zeus. -
9
Telemachus
With the help of King Alcinous, Odysseus arrives home. Athena disguises him as an old man and he stays with his faithful swineherd. Athena directs Telemachus to the same swineherd and he meets Odysseus, not believing it's actually him at first. "You cannot be my father Odysseus! Meddling spirits conceived this trick to twist the knife in me! No man of woman born could work these wonders by his own craft, unless a god came into it with ease to turn him young or old at will." -
10
The Bow Test
Penelope, Odysseus' wife creates a test. The test is to see who can properly string the bow, knowing only Odysseus can do it. -
11
The battle with the suitors
After finally showing himself, Odysseus has to finally kill all the suitors and servants who have betrayed him and his family. With help from Zeus and Athena, he is able to fight them all off as they came. "The suitors make various unsuccessful attempts to expel Odysseus....Athena urges Odysseus on to battle, yet holds back her fullest aid, waiting for Odysseus and Telemachus to prove themselves. Six of the suitors attempt an attack on Odysseus, but Athena deflects their arrows." -
12
The final test
After all the drama, Penelope decides to test Odysseus one final time to see if it is truly him. She led him to believe that the bed he built had been moved to see if he could tell her all the details and secrets that only they would know. He of course passed the test and Penelope welcomed him with joy. Many people were outraged about the deaths of the suitors but Athena managed to bring joy amongst the land. "There’s our sign! I know no more. "
