The Odyssey
The Journey
Those characters influenced Odysseus' journey home. He traveled for years, far and wide. Despertely trying to get home to see his friends and family.
After Odysseus and his men left Troy for their long journey home, they decieded to raid a town called Cicones. After they raided them, murdered the men and captured the woman and children. Some of the men started to eat and drink. By the time they were drunk or full, the Cicones attacked them, thus loosing a large number of people on Odysseus side.
After they escape the Cicones. They start traveling again. The next spot they land on is the land of the Lotus Eaters. Odysseus sends some spys out onto the land to see what the natives were like. The natives then gave those scouts the Lotus Flower. Whoever ate the Lotus Flower would just want to do nothing and eat more Lotus Flowers. This caused the men not know where they are. Odysseus then went and got them. He tied them up on the ship and off they went.
Odysseus and his crew then come to another island. This island they find a cave and they go see what is in it. They find food and drinks and help themselves to it. Later a cyclops named Polyphemus comes in with his sheep. He sees what the men have done and eats two of Odysseus' men right on the spot. Polyphemus then killed more men later, but this time Odysseus gave the cyclops very strong wine. Later the cyclops passed out and Odysseus and him men stab the cyclop's eye with a burnt stick, thus blinding him.
Then they go to the Island of Aeolus. Aeolus is the god of the winds and he gives Odysseus a bag of wind to use to sail home. Odysseus can almost see the Island of Ithaca, but his crew though he was hidding something in the bag, so they opened it, sending them back to the Island of Aeolus. Aeolus then refused to give them another bag of the winds.
They land on the Island of the Laestrygonians next. The problem is, that the Laestrygonians are cannibals. They eat the Greeks, but the men of Odysseus' ship are the only to survive.
For the next year, they stay on Circe's Island. Circe is a goddess/witch who turned some of Odysseus men into swine. Hermes protects Odysseus from the spell and he convinces her to turn his men back. Odysseus then stays as her lover for a year. Circe then tells Odysseus to go to the Underworld to see Tiresias.
Odysseus then follows what Circe said and went to the underworld to see Tiresias. When he gets there, Tiresias tells Odysseus how to get to Ithaca. He also lets Odysseus talk to spirits, including his dead mother.
Odysseus follows the path that Tiresias tells him. They then go by the Island of the Sirens. The Sirens are known for their beautiful song that attractes sailors and then the Sircens kill the sailors. Odysseus orders for every man to put bee's wax in their eyes so they can't here the song. Then for Odysseus to be tied to the mast of the ship with no bee's wax in his ears. He then is the first man to hear the songs of the Sirens and survive.
Odysseus then chooses after to head towards Scylla the six-headed sea serpent instead of Charybdis, which is a giant whirlpool. He picked to go toward Scylla because if they went towards the six-headed sea serpent, only six men would die, instead of risking the whole ship from sinking, and everyone dying by going towards Charybdis.
They crew then went to Helio's Island. While they were there, Odysseus fell asleep while praying to Athena. While he was asleep, his men ate Helio's cattle. Helio's was in rage and threatened to never rise again (Helio's is the god of the sun). Instead, Zeus strucks Odysseus' ship with a lightning bolt, killing everyone, but Odysseus.
After Odysseus' ship was destroyed by Zeus, he was adrift in the sea, intill he washed up on Ogygia, or Calypso's Island. Calypso then keeps Odysseus there on the Island for seven years as a slave. Finally, Hermes told Calypso that Odysseus has to leave and hed home to Ithaca. She lets him go on a tiny raft that they made together.
After Odysseus left Ogygia, he landed on the Island on the Phaecians. The daughter of Alcinous, Nausicaa, found Odysseus on the beach. She took him to her father and they had a feast that night in honor of the stranger. That night, Odysseus said his horrible journey to they all and who he actually was. They wanted him to get home so they gave him a boat to sail home on.
Finally! Odysseus reaches Ithaca! The thing is he can't just walk up to his throne and claim it. There are suitors wanting to marry Peneolope. And if they see Odysseus they will kill him on sight. So Athena disguises Odysseus as an old begger. He then waits with Eumaios, an old friend for Telemachus to return home, where they are going to kill the suitors.