Book 5: Calypso
New Major Characters
Ino: Goddess who helps Odysseus last through Poseidon’s wrath.
Athene once again beseeches Zeus and the other gods to aid Odysseus and his son, Telemachus. In response Zeus tells Athene to use her own capabilities to help Telemachus and ensure his safety; as for Odysseus, he is to have no help from man or god until he reaches the island Scherie, where the Phaeacians will see him the rest of the way home. Zeus then swiftly sends Hermes to deliver his will to Calypso on Ogygia.
Supplied with tools from Calypso, Odysseus builds himself a sea worthy raft and takes to the sea. After sailing for eighteen days Odysseus encounters Poseidon, enraged that Odysseus had been freed while he was in Ethiopia, unleashes his wrath upon him on last time, striking him with the winds and stirring the sea. Buffeted by wave after wave, Odysseus is thrown from his raft and plunged into the unforgiving sea. After struggling to pull himself back onto the raft Odysseus asks himself if this is truly the end for him when Ino of the slim ankles presents herself to him and instructs him to tie her veil about his waist and swim for shore if he wishes to survive.
Reluctantly, Odysseus makes for land after another great wave, sent by Poseidon, tears his raft asunder. For three days Odysseus swims and when finally in sight of the shore his heart sinks for he can see no safe place to touch land. The great goddess Athene takes pity on Odysseus and seeing his plight blesses him with intuition, showing him the mouth to a river. Odysseus begs and supplicates to the lord of the river so that he may find safe passage and hearing his cries, the lord makes his waters calm and allows Odysseus to enter. Once on the safety of solid earth, Odysseus casts the sacred veil given to him back into the waters and averts his eyes from it just as the goddess Ino had instructed.
Weary and battered from turbulent days in the ocean, Odysseus makes for the shelter of the woods where he finds two thick olive bushes in which he lies under to rest. Calmed by Athene, Odysseus falls into a deep slumber.
Book 6: Nausicaa
New Major Characters
Nausicaa: Daughter to king Alcinous of the Phaeacians, it is she who first encounters Odysseus on the island of Scherie.
In the middle of the night Athene visits Nausicaa, disguised as her best friend Dymas, and convinces her that in order to ever be married, as she so desires, she must take all of her dirty garments to the washing pools so that she may have clean beautiful dresses to impress the men with. Inspired by this vision, Nausicaa takes a wagon full of laundry and an escort of maids down by the shore where they wash the clothes. While the women are waiting for the wash to dry, Athene wakes Odysseus who, upon hearing the girlish shrieks, stumbles out onto the beach.
Thoroughly ashamed of his nakedness in the presence of these women, Odysseus begs only for a rag with which to cover himself so that he may then venture into the city. Nausicaa takes pity on him and bids him to go bathe, but as he is washing Athene blesses him with beauty so that when he returns to the beach Nausicaa sees him as a handsome noble man and asks him to come back to the city.
As instructed by the white armed Nausicaa, Odysseus follows their party until he reaches king Alcinous’ grove, sacred to Athene, and there he waits until the time is right for him to enter the city on his own and supplicate to the great queen of the Phaeacians.
*Notes based off reading “The Odyssey” by Homer