Odysseus
Odysseus EuropeOr Ulysses to the Romans. This Greek hero was King of Ithaca, a small island in the Ionian Sea. He took part in the Trojan War and earned the title Sisyphides for his devious schemes, the most successful of which was undoubtedly the wooden horse. Deceived by various ruses, the Trojans dragged this wheeled contraption into their impregnable city, and with it the Greeks hidden in its hollow belly. Odysseus was among these soldiers, who emerged at night and opened the gates to their waiting comrades.
After the sack of Troy, Odysseus began his homeward journey to Ithaca and this, the subject of Homer'sOdyssey composed in the ninth century BC, took ten years, even though the goddess Athena gave Odysseus her special protection. His adventures were many: in Sicily he acquired the undying enmity of Poseidon by blinding the sea god's son, the Cyclops Polyphemus; he encountered the Laestrygones, a cannibal race; on Circe's island he...
[The entire page is 308 words long]
Join eNotes
Over 3,500 study guides, question and answer forums, literature criticism, reference content, and much more!
Oxford University Press Titles
