A man of “twists and turns”, Odysseus is consistently put to the ultimate test during his ten year adventure of return to Ithaca to restore his authority . Odysseus rises to the occasion by using his intel

Odysseus is famous due to his heroic achievements where he utilizes his mind rather than his strength. The Trojan horse scheme has become a universal trick that is still fresh and new today. The episode from the Iliad is recounted twice in the Odyssey, in Sparta by King Menelaus and in Phaeacia retold by the bard Demodokos. The episode with the Cyclops Polyphemus is an excellent account of Odysseus’s wit. Rather than irrationally murdering the beast, Odysseus’ realizes he and his men are no match in strength to remove the boulder from the door. Wisely Odysseus blinds the Cyclops and he and his men escape disguised as his sheep. Giving only the name Nobody to Polyphemus, the Acheans escape unharmed by the other Cyclops on the island. When the crew must surpass Scylla and Charybdis, Odysseus acknowledges that there will be losses, but they can be minimized with strategic planning and navigation. Odysseus’s ingenuity shines through again in his scheme to defeat the suitors. He realizes his odds and infiltrates the palace disguised an elderly beggar to discover those who have remained loyal to his family and how to overthrow the slovenly suitors. Slowly Odysseus sets up a situation in the barricaded courtyard where he, Telemachus, Eumaios and Philoitios are armed and the suitors unarmed. Odysseus responds to every adversity he is faced with throughout the poem with calculated resourcefulness, which allows him to always be successful.

One of the first Gods Odysseus encounters on his travels is Aiolos, the god of the winds. The Acheans are treated graciously on his island and Aiolos bestows upon Odysseus a bag of wind he can use to guide his ship. Unfortunately as the ship was closing in to the shores of Ithaca, Odysseus curious crew opens the bag, resulting in a ferocious storm that blows them way off course. Hermes helps Odysseus and his men on Aiaia, Circe’s island. Circe turns the men into swine; to save them Hermes gives Odysseus a magic drug so that he is immune to her powers. As Odysseus embarks from Ogygia he is spotted immediately by Poseidon returning from Ethiopia, who in turn starts a violent storm. Leucothea a sea nymph

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