Odyssey: Husband and Wife Together

Husband and Wife Together

• Eurycleia informs Penelope that Odysseus has returned and killed the suitors.
• Penelope doubts Eurycleia's claim, suspecting a god is punishing the suitors.
• Eurycleia insists it is Odysseus and offers proof of the boar hunting scar she saw while washing his feet.
• Penelope remains hesitant despite Eurycleia's assurances.
• Odysseus stands by a pillar as Penelope enters the hall, but she hesitates to approach him.
• Telemachus questions Penelope's reluctance to greet Odysseus.
• Penelope expresses her shock and suggests they need time to understand each other.
• Odysseus tells Telemachus to wash off the stains of battle and tells Penelope she is being distant after 20 years of trials.
• Penelope orders Eurycleia to move Odysseus' bed to test if he possesses his secret knowledge only she and her husband share.
• Odysseus becomes angry, questioning how the bed could be moved since it is built around a living olive tree.
• Odysseus describes the bed's construction, including the olive tree trunk as a bedpost and its decorations of gold, silver, ivory, and purple-dyed leather.
• Penelope recognizes Odysseus based on his knowledge of the bed's unique construction.
• Penelope embraces Odysseus, relieved that her doubts are gone, now that he has passed her test:
  • She had feared an imposter claiming to Odysseus.

Father and Son

• Odysseus tells Penelope he must face more dangers due to the anger of those whose relatives were killed.
• He tells her he must first see Laertes.
• Odysseus finds Laertes working as a gardener, dressed in shabby clothes, and initially pretends to be a stranger.
• Odysseus speaks, inquiring about a man named Odysseus and offering criticisms of Laertes' care.
• Laertes mourns Odysseus' supposed death, stating he has perished far from any loved ones.
• Odysseus reveals himself, explaining his return after twenty years and his vengeance on the suitors.
• Laertes doubts Odysseus, asking for proof of his real identity.
• Odysseus reveals the scar from the boar hunt on Mount Parnassus.
• Odysseus recalls the fruit trees Laertes planted for him in the orchard as a child:
  • Thirteen pear trees
  • Ten apple trees
  • Forty fig trees.
• Laertes recognizes Odysseus as his son.
• Telemachus, Eumaeus, and Philoetius are also present in the house.
• Laertes is rejuvenated after a bath and dressing in fine clothes, surprising Odysseus who says a god must have intervened.
• Laertes laments not having his former strength to help Odysseus against the suitors.
• News of the suitors' deaths spreads, angering their relatives.
• The relatives of the slain men gather at Odysseus' house; those from Ithaca are buried there, while those from other islands are sent home.

Athena's Intervention

• Many are angry and seek vengeance for the slain friends.
• Zeus sends the goddess Athena depicted as a tall, fair woman to intervene.
• Athena warns the men of Ithaca to stop fighting, and they drop their weapons.
• Athena, disguised as Mentor, reminds the people of Ithaca of Odysseus' and his father's good leadership:
  • She also reminds the men how wickedly the suitors had behaved and that they brought their deaths upon themselves
• Athena persuades them to make peace with Odysseus who is willing to forgive all so Odysseus and his people lived in peace thereafter.