Telemakhos

This implies that he still needed his mother's approval of his actions, just as a child needs to have reinforcement of whether they are good or bad. By traveling far from home and risking his life to learn about his father, Telemakhos is forced to mature rapidly. By venturing off and meeting Nestor and Menelaos he learns about courage, bravery, and how to be both a man and a host. He learns that he must fight against what the suitors represent, to stop them from claiming what is his. Nestor and Menelaos essentially guide Telemakhos, with the help of Athena, toward manhood. When Telemakhos arrived home, Penelope demanded that he speak of what he learned on his journey. Telemakhos was vague in his response and then proceeded to change the subject on two different occasions that his mother asked him. He told her to bathe and go pray to the Gods and he was going to go retrieve the stranger. After he told her this it seemed that she had to fight replying negatively to the avoidance when it says, "She caught back the swift words upon her tongue- (Bk. 17:40-68). .
             I believe the climax of Telemakhos" climb to maturity was his ability to keep his head about him when his father was hit with the stool by Antinoos. He did very well gathering arms and keeping the suitors distracted while holding his temper at the mistreatment of his disguised father. Telemakhos did not want to jeorpordize truimoh with ignorance, and was able to keep his composure with the smell of revenge under his nose. This shows respect for his father also that he would obey him even though he hasn't been there for so long. Penelope is aloof at what is happening at that point but when she hears of the events that happened she lectures Telemakhos for not standing up against the suitors. She says, "Lightminded you were not have you no thoughtfulness or manners? How could it happen in our hall that you permit the stranger to be so abused Telemakhos looked in her eyes and answered with his clear head and discretion- (Bk.