Odyssey

Title: Odyssey
Author:
Homer (Ancient Greek: Ὅμηρος, Hómēros) in classical tradition is the ancient Greek epic poet, author of the epic poems the Iliad and the Odyssey, the Homeric Hymns and other works. Homer's epics stand at the beginning of the western canon of literature, exerting enormous influence on the history of fiction and literature in general.
The date of Homer's existence was controversial in antiquity and is no less so today. Herodotus estimates that Homer lived 400 years before his own time, which would place him at around 850 BC; but other ancient sources gave dates much closer to the supposed time of the Trojan War, perhaps from 1194 to 1184 BC.
Settings:

From Troy in Asia Minor across the islands of the Mediterranean Sea (near Italy) and back to Ithaka, Greece, sometime in the Bronze Age.

Much of the action in the Odyssey takes place on the sea, where Odysseus must battle against the storms of the sea god, Poseidon, but the last third of the story is set in the town and countryside of Ithaka. The setting is a geographical potpourri of what was important, mythologically, in Homer’s time period. Scholars have tried to correlate various places in the Odyssey with real locations in the Mediterranean, but there’s a lot of guess work involved in this. It’s very possible that Homer based his hero’s wanderings on real geography but extrapolated and manipulated to suit his narrative purposes. Anyway, enough about that: here’s a list for you.

Aiaia (Aeaea): The island home of one Circe, everyone’s favorite sorceress.

Aiolia: The island ruled by Aiolos, god of the winds.

Elysion: The Odyssey’s version of a heavenly afterlife.

Ithaka: You know what Ithaka is. And how Odysseus made it home there by the longest route ever.

Ismaros: The first place Odysseus and his men land after leaving Troy. This is the land of the Kikonians, whom the Ithakans plunder until driven from their shores.

Lakedaimon: Another name for Sparta. (Technically, this refers to the surrounding area of which Sparta is the capital.)

Lamos: The land of the Laistrygones, the giant/ogres/weirdos, and King Antiphates, drinker of blood. Needless to say, Odysseus and the Ithakans leave this place pretty quickly. Well, except for that one guy who was chugged by Antiphates.

Mount Parnassos (Parnassus): Where Odysseus goes hunting with his uncle when he’s a little boy. This is where the boar/thigh-scar incident took place.

Mount Olympos (Olympus): The gods’ hangout/home/pad.

Ogygia: Kalypso’s island, where Odysseus is held for seven years.

Pherai: Telemachos and Peisistratos spend the night here on the way to Pylos from Sparta.

Pylos: The first place Telemachos travels in his search for news of his father. Here he dines with King Nestor and his son Peisistratos before leaving for Menelaos in Sparta.

Scheria: The island of the Phaiakians. This is Odysseus’s last stop before he reaches Ithaka and also the location where he tells his tale.

Thrinakia (Thrinacia or Trinacria): The land where the sun god Helios keeps his super-duper cattle.

The Underworld: The land of the dead. Odysseus travels here to speak with Teiresias, the dead, blind prophet. While there, he converses with many other "shades," including his war buddies and his mother.
Characters:
Odysseus: King of Ithaca--Odysseus displays the essential traits of an epic hero: strength, nobility, confidence, courage, and the love of glory. He gains fame through his intellect and cunning, using both to help the Greek army destoy Troy. As with all Homeric heroes, Odysseus possesses hubris, or pride, which causes him to do really stupid things.

Penelope: Odysseus' faithful wife, Penelope is besieged by suitors, hoping to win her hand in marriage and rule Ithaca. She proves herself as cunning as her husband, devising several stratagems to delay her nuptials. She longs for Odysseus' return and remains faithful.

Telemachus: Odysseus leaves for Troy shortly after his son Telemachus is born. The Prince of Ithaca despises the suitors as they despise him. He aides Odysseus in the infamous suitor slaughter.

Athena: The goddess of wisdom and war favors and adores Odysseus. She advises him upon his return to Ithaca. Although she doesn't actively participate in the slaughter of the suitors, she does transform Odysseus into a beggar so as not to be recognized initially. She establishes peace on the island when the suitors' parents react angrily.

Poseidon: Odysseus' maiming of Poseidon's son Polyphemus angers the god of the sea who punishes Odysseus.

Polyphemus: The son of Poseidon, Polyphemus is a Cyclops who feels Odysseus wronged him by poking out his eye. What he fails to mention is how he smashed the heads of several crew members and ate them for dinner.

Circe: Circe from The Odyssey is an enchantress who turns Odysseus' crew into pigs. Odysseus, with a little help from Hermes, befriends Circe and spends a year in her care.

Calypso: The epic begins in media res on the Island of Ogygia, home to Calypso from The Odyssey. Calypso loves Odysseus and "welcomes" him to her island and its myriad caves. On a random note, Calypso from The Odyssey movie and Calypso from The Pirates of the Caribbean movie are played by the same actress, Vanessa Williams.

Antinous: A jerk among jerks, Antinous leads the suitors to michief and eventually their death. Odysseus shoots him in the throat with an arrow.

Alcinous: Alcinous, the king of Phaecia, hears Odysseus' story and provides him safe passage to Ithaca.

Argus: Odysseus' dog who dies on a pile of dung after seeing his master.

Short Summary of the Odyssey:

Odyssey battles internal and external conflict to take part in the Trojan War. It is at a time when his son Telemachus, is only a month old. Ten years after the war, Odysseus retraces his steps back home. By that time, Telemachus is twenty and living with his mother Penelope in Ithaca. His mother has to deal with 108 suitors, who are boisterous and adamant that she should agree to marriage.

Athena, Odysseus’s guardian, decides with the King of Gods according to Greek mythology, Zeus, to take the form of Mentes, a Taphian chief and speak to Telemachus. She urges the boy to look for his father. Telemachus and Athena witness Phemius the bard entertaining the rowdy suitors with "Return from Troy". Even as Penelope objects, urged by Athena, Telemachus orders Phemius to read on.

Athena finds Telemachus a ship and crew and helps him to depart for the mainland. Welcomed by the Nestor family, Telemachus then embarks on a land journey alongside Sparta, Nestor's son. He chances upon Helen and Menelaus bear witness of a meeting with sea-god Proteus. They inform Telemachus that his father has been captured by Calypso, a nymph.

Odysseus, meanwhile, spends seven years in captivity. He is released only to incur the wrath of Poseidon, the sea god who was not present on Mount Olympus when Athena and Zeus interacted. Escaping the wreckage, Odysseus swims ashore exhausted and falls asleep. He then seeks the hospitality of Arete and Alcinous. Odysseus struggles through a situation where his identity is always in doubt.

A raid on his twelve ships by storms, lotus eaters and blinded with a wooden stake, leaves the hero a broken man. A boon from Aeolus, the wind god helped Odysseus harness all the winds. However, with destiny playing truant, Odysseus does not retain the only 'safe' wind that could blow him homeward. His escapades with the pantheon of Greek gods and goddesses, a treacherous sailor, Laestrygones the cannibal, Circe, the witch goddess and the spirit of Tiresias, leave Odysseus spent and longing for home.

Odysseus' lucky meeting with the Phaeacians, buys him a homebound journey. Disguised as a beggar, Odysseus learns about his family. He meets Penelope with the intention of testing her love for him. Eurycleia, the housekeeper, discovers Odysseus’ identity and all is well when he strings his own bow as part of the suitor competition set by Penelope.