than when two people, a man and his wife, keep a harmonious.
household; a thing that brings much distress to the people that hate them.
and pleasure to their well-wishers, and for them the best reputation." .
- Book VI, line 180-185.
As we can see, the highest thing Odysseus prizes is domesticity and a harmonious home and a loving spouse. Humans, especially the great ones like Odysseus, aim and strive for the things that they prize the most. Since Odysseus declares that nothing is better than a steadfast home life where the husband and wife are in agreement, we can conclude that the reason he is striving with a persevering spirit through all the hardships that are thrown his is way, is to regain the pleasure of a steady home life in Ithaka and to see again his wife, faithful Penelope. .
Second, we can compare the ratio of the books of the Odyssey that focus on the adventures of Odysseus to the books of the Odyssey that focus on his interactions with his family and see that the latter is are far more numerous. The author of a book is obviously going to focus on the prime motive of the main character. In the Iliad, it was the anger of Achilles. Extreme wrath is what prompted nearly all of Achilles's actions. In the Odyssey, Homer focuses his attention on Odysseus's interaction with the people from Ithaka, in particular his son Telemachus and his wife Penelope. Beginning with the meeting of Odysseus with the faithful shepherd, Eumaios, climaxing at his reuniting with Penelope and winding down with him donning on armor with his son, Telemachus, the majority of the books focus on Odysseus's interactions with his family members. .
The contrast is strong; only three books are focused on his sea adventures and his struggles of journeying home. The majority of the books are set in Ithaka and most are about Odysseus's struggles to win back his home and his wife. The conclusion we can draw from this is that the author, describing in great detail and lengthy dialogue the interactions Odysseus had with those closest to him, wanted to emphasize that the primary motive of Odysseus was to reach home and see again his wife and son.
