It is capable of amazing feats of intellect if used correctly, and can lead to triumph over lesser men when applied. Those who possess such intellectual excellence are destined to be great, for such a gift can not be wasted. Who better to portray this power of the mind than the great Queen of Ithica, husband to Odysseus, the elegantly beautiful Penelope. When faced with what seems like a hopeless situation and surrounded by adversaries for several years, Penelope manages to use her most powerful weapon - smarts - to turn the tables time and time again against the witless Suitors.
One of the most memorable examples of Penelope's intellect occurs early on in the epic. During the assembly held by Telemachus in book II, the suitor known as Antinous balks at Telemachus' impassioned speech and blames Penelope for everything and cites her first act of cleverness: the burial shroud. As the suitors press her for an answer in which one she will marry, Penelope prolongs her decision by insisting that she first have time to sew her elderly father-in-law Laertes a burial shroud saying that it would be unseemly to remarry before first paying this respect to her late husband's father. The suitors fell for this trick - eager for a measured length of time until she had to make a choice. However, in the true spirit of Greek cunning, Penelope would get up in the middle of the night and sneakily unravel the shroud so that she would have to start all over the next day, effectively delaying the suitors indefinitely. This scheme was effective for an astonishing three years - until an unfaithful servant revealed Penelope's secret to the suitors who then forced her to finish her work.
This setback will not hold down a woman as determined as Penelope however, as her most devious plan is set in motion much later in the epic. In book XIX as Odysseus is disguised as a lowly beggar and casing his mansion for the best way to present himself, Penelope devises a contest that will not only prevent the suitors from ever getting her hand in marriage, but also provides her husband a way to emerge from hiding in a triumphant manner.
