Characters from the Odyssey
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Agamemnon - The king of Mycenae and leader of the Achaean expedition to
Troy.
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Alcinoos - The king of the Phaeacians, husband of Arete and father of Nausicaa,
he is a generous, kind, and good-humored ruler and father.
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Antinoos - The leader of the suitors and the first slain by Odysseus. He
is a cruel, greedy, and hypocritical villain, always attempting to justify
his evil behavior by distorting the motives or acts of others.
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Athena - Daughter of Zeus, goddess of wisdom and patroness of the arts
and crafts, also known as Pallas. Odysseus is her favorite and protege.
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Calypso - The sea nymph who keeps Odysseus captive for nine years and who,
in hope of making him her husband, offers him immortality.
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Circe - The enchantress who transforms the crew of Odysseus into swine
and who, when she finds that she cannot conquer Odysseus, takes him as
a lover and helps him with advice and supplies on his voyage home.
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Elepnor - A young seaman in the crew of Odysseus who dies in an accident
on Circe island and whose spirit reproaches Odysseus in Hades.
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Eurycleia - The faithful and devoted old nurse of Odysseus, recognizes
him by the scar on his leg.
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Eurymachos - The second most important suitor; he is as evil as Antinous,
but far more soft and cowardly.
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Helen - The wife of Menelaos, king of Sparta. She was the cause of the
Trojan War.
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Hermes - Son of Zeus, the ambassador of the gods, conductor of the dead
souls to Hades, and patron of travelers, merchants, and thieves.
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Helios - The god of the sun. Also known as Helios. It is his cattle which
is eaten by Odysseus' crew.
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Menelaos - King of Sparta, husband of Helen, and brother of Agamemnon.
Like Odysseus, he too has a series of misadventures on his return home
from Troy.
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Nestor - King of Pylos, father of Peisistratus. A very wise and garrulous
old man, one of the few survivors of the Trojan War.
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Odysseus - King of Ithaca, husband of Penelope, father of Telemachus, son
of Laertes. He is the first of the Greek epic heroes to be renowned for
his brain as well as his muscle.
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Penelope - The wife of Odysseus. She is serious and industrious, a perfect
wife and mother in many aspects.
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Polyphemps - A one-eyed Cyclops who held Odysseus and his men captive in
his cave until he was made drunk and blinded by Odysseus.
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Poseidon - Younger brother of Zeus, god of the sea and earthquakes, father
of Polyphemus. Because Odysseus is a sailor and must travel home by ship,
Poseidon is able to do him much harm. The god bears a grudge against him
because of his rough treatment of Polyphemus.
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Scylla - A sea monster with six heads whom Odysseus and his crew must pass
during their voyage.
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Sirens - Two beautiful maidens who dwell in a flowery meadow on an island
somewhere between that of Circe and of Scylla. They tempt passing mariners
to their deaths by their tantalizing songs.
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Telemachos - The son of Odysseus and Penelope. He is just entering manhood
and is very self-conscious about his duty, and his father's reputation
as a hero, which he feels he must live up to.
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Zeus - The supreme god and king of Olympus. He is officially neutral in
human affairs; his duty is to carry out the will of Destiny, but he is
often sympathetic towards humans.