Dec 24 24

35 min read

The Telemachy

The Exile Must Return

Odysseus battles gods, suitors, and fate returning home.

Athena

The Trojan War has ended. Odysseus has been abroad many years. He longs to return home to Ithaca, but Poseidon holds a grudge...

At home, his wife's suitors drain his wealth and plot to kill his son. To get home, this long-absent king will find himself a guest ("xenos") in the homelands of gods, monsters, and men.

From Odysseus, we'll learn resourcefulness, good fortune, and how to take a punch. Above all, we'll learn the forgotten art of xenia, and a new way to relate to those Zeus puts in our path.

I am Athena, goddess of wisdom and warfare. I will guide you through your own journey, just as I guided Odysseus through his.We'll now open with Book 1 and start one of the oldest epics known to man, Homer's Odyssey...

Sing to me of the man, Muse, the man of twists and turns driven time and again off course, once he had plundered the hallowed heights of Troy. (Fagles 1996)

Many towns did he visit, and many were the nations whose minds he learned. Much did he suffer by sea while trying to bring his men home.

Do what he might, he could not save them, for they perished through folly and ate the cattle of the sun god.Sing to me on this, O daughter of Zeus. Start from where you will.

Every Greek leader who survived the Trojan War has returned home by now, except for Odysseus, who is detained by the goddess Calypso.

The gods of Olympus pity Odysseus. All except Poseidon, who prevents him from returning to Ithaca.

But Poseidon is now abroad. He's gone off to the Ethiopians to accept a hecatomb of sheep and oxen and is enjoying himself at a festival held in his honor. While there, the gods meet in the house of Olympian Zeus.

Athena

Let me tell you, myself, what was said at the council of the gods. I was the first to speak. I addressed my father, Zeus.

'Father, son of Kronos, King of kings, it is for Odysseus that my heart bleeds, when I think of his sufferings in that lonely sea-girt island, far away from all his friends.'

'It is an island covered with forest, in the very middle of the sea, and a goddess named Calypso lives there, daughter of the titan Atlas, who looks after the bottom of the ocean, and carries the great columns that keep heaven and earth asunder.'

'This daughter of Atlas has got hold of poor unhappy Odysseus, and keeps trying by every kind of blandishment to make him forget his home. He is tired of life, and looks on Ithaca from a distance, straining for a glimpse of his homeland.'

'You, sir, take no heed of this, and yet when Odysseus was before Troy did he not propitiate you with many a burnt sacrifice? Why then should you keep on being so angry with him?'When I had finished, my father replied...

Zeus

'My child, what are you talking about? How can I forget Odysseus? There is no more capable man on earth, nor more liberal in his offerings to the immortal gods that live in heaven!'

'Bear in mind, however, that Poseidon is still furious with Odysseus for having blinded an eye of Polyphemus, king of the Cyclopes.' Though he will not kill Odysseus outright, he torments him by preventing him from getting home.

'Still, let us lay our heads together and see how we can help him to return; Poseidon will then be pacified, for if we are all of a mind he can hardly stand out against us.'

Athena

'Father, son of Kronos, our high and mighty king! If now it really pleases the blissful gods that wise Odysseus shall return — home at last — Let us dispatch the guide and giant-killer Hermes down to Ogygia Island...'

[There he shall] announce at once to the nymph with lovely braids our fixed decree: Odysseus journeys home — the exile must return!

While I myself go down to Ithaca, rouse his son to a braver pitch, inspire his heart with courage to summon the flowing-haired Achaeans to full assembly, speak his mind to all those suitors, slaughtering on and on his droves of sheep and shambling longhorn cattle.

From Craggy Peaks

Athena meets Telemachus at the gates of Ithaca.

Athena

In the last lesson, we heard that every Greek leader who survived the Trojan War has made it back home by now, except for Odysseus. His wife and son are in Ithaca. Twenty years on, they're losing hope that he’s still alive.I, Athena, have made it my business to get Odysseus home.

Athena fastened her shimmering golden sandals, everlasting, which allow her to soar like the wind across land and sea.

Seizing her bronze-shod spear, she swept from the craggy peaks of Olympus and lit on Ithaca, at the threshold of Odysseus’ gates. She was disguised like a stranger now, like Mentes, lord of the Taphians.

There she encountered the haughty suitors, lounging on hides of the oxen they had slaughtered, engaged in a game of checkers before the house.

Heralds and young attendants bustled about to serve them, some mulling wine with water in the mixing bowls, others wiping the tables with damp sponges and setting them anew, and yet others carving large sides of meat.

Prince Telemachus was seated among the suitors, his heart filled with grief. He imagined how, if his father were here, he would drive these suitors away and reclaim his pride of place.

Lost in these thoughts, he was the first to see Athena. Straight to the gates he went, mortified that a guest would be kept waiting. He grasped her right hand, took her spear.

Telemachus

"Greetings stranger! Welcome to our royal home. Have supper first, then tell us your business.”

Xenia

Athena disguises as xenos in Ithaca, explores "xenia."

"I, Athena, disguised as Mentes, have arrived in Ithaca as a "xenos." The word xenos has no equivalent in your language. You might translate this word as guest, host, stranger, foreigner, and friend. It means all of these at once.

I promised that an earnest study of "xenia" could change the way you relate to others.Before we continue the Odyssey, it's important to cover the basics. In this lesson, you'll do some writing. "Reading furnishes the mind, but writing makes knowledge one's own."

Suppose you're traveling. It's night and there's no such thing as a hotel. You need to eat, sleep, and bathe. What do you do?

As I've just done in Ithaca, you'd present yourself at a house of a similar social rank, and say, "take me as your guest."

You're a xenos, a stranger. You're a foreigner from another town (that's where the word xenophobia comes from). And, as soon as you enter their home, you're presumed to be a friend.

As soon as a guest comes into your house, a bond is formed. The host becomes a xenos. The guest becomes a xenos. This is a relationship that's expected to last.

Notice how Telemachus addresses me, "have supper first, then tell us your business." He welcomes me even though he doesn't know who I am.Imagine you're Telemachus. You've been raised to observe and value xenia. Explain to us why we must serve a guest's immediate needs before asking them who they are.

Xenia is done for its own sake, and not because one likes or knows the guest. It is a relationship without prejudice.As Telemachus, speak to me about a friendship that arose thanks to observing xenia for its own sake."

By Fair Means or Foul

Telemachus unknowingly hosts Athena

Athena

In the last lesson, we discussed "xenia." We'll now return to the story where Ithaca's suitors laze about Odysseus's palace, courting his wife and eating his food. They wantonly violate "xenia" as parasites on their host.

In contrast, Telemachus honors xenia and has invited me in for supper, even though I've disguised myself as the stranger Mentes.

Telemachus led the way as he spoke, and Athena followed.When inside, he took her spear and set it in the stand against a bearing-post along with the many other spears of his unfortunate father.

He then conducted her to a richly decorated seat, under which he placed a cloth of damask with a stool for her feet.

He sat them clear of the suitors, concerned his guest would shrink from food in the midst of their indolence.

A maidservant then brought them water in a beautiful golden ewer and poured it into a silver basin for them to wash their hands, and she drew a gleaming table beside them.

A staid housekeeper brought them bread and offered them many good things from the house.The carver fetched them plates of all kinds of meats and set cups of gold by their side, and a manservant brought them wine and poured it out for them.

Athena

Little does Telemachus know I am Athena. He simply partakes in the delight of being a host. Xenia, when observed, is a joy.And now come the suitors. Same feast. No xenia.

Then the suitors came in and took their places on the benches and seats.

Immediately, menservants poured water over their hands, maids went around with the bread-baskets, pages filled the mixing-bowls with wine and water, and they laid their hands upon the good things before them.

As soon as they had enough to eat and drink, they wanted music and dancing, the crowning embellishments of a banquet. So a servant brought a lyre to Phemios, whom they compelled to sing for them.

As soon as he touched his lyre and began to sing, Telemachus spoke quietly to Athena, with his head close to hers so no one else could hear.

Telemachus

'I hope, sir, that you will not be offended by what I am going to say. Singing comes cheap to those who do not pay for it, and all this is done at the cost of one whose bones lie rotting in some wilderness or grinding to powder in the surf.'

'If these men were to see my father come back to Ithaca, they would pray for longer legs rather than a longer purse, for money would not save them.'

'But he, alas, has met an ill fate, and even when people sometimes say he is coming, we no longer believe them; we shall never see him again.'

'And now, sir, tell me truly, who you are and where you come from. Tell me also truly, for I want to know, are you a stranger to this house, or have you been here in my father's time? In the old days, we had many visitors.'

Mentes

'I will tell you truly and particularly all about it. I am Mentes, King of the Taphians. I have come here with my ship and crew, on a voyage to men of a foreign tongue, bound for Temesa with a cargo of iron, which I shall trade for copper.'

'Our fathers were friends before us. They told me your father was at home again, and that was why I came, but it seems the gods are still keeping him back.'

'He is not dead nor on the mainland. It is more likely he is on some sea-girt island in mid-ocean, or a prisoner among savages who are detaining him against his will.'

'I am no prophet and know little about omens, but I speak as it is borne in upon me from heaven, and assure you that he will not be away much longer.'

'Odysseus is a man of such resource that even though he were in chains of iron, he would find some means of getting home again.'

'But tell me, and tell me true, who are these guests behaving so atrociously? What riot they make over the whole house; it is enough to disgust any respectable person who comes near them.'

Telemachus

'Sir, while my father was here it was well with us and with the house, but the gods in their displeasure have willed it otherwise, and have hidden him away more closely than mortal man was ever hidden.'

'I could have borne it better if he had fallen with his men before Troy, for then the Achaeans would have built a mound over his ashes, and I should myself have been heir to his renown.'

'But now the storm-winds have spirited him away we know not whither; he is gone without leaving so much as a trace behind him, and I inherit nothing but dismay.'

'Nor does the matter end simply with grief for the loss of my father; heaven has laid sorrows upon me of yet another kind.'

'For the lord from our islands, Dulichium, Same, and the woodland island of Zacynthus, as also all the principal men of Ithaca itself, are eating up my house while they pay court to my mother.'

'Who will neither point blank say that she will not marry, nor yet bring matters to an end; so they are making havoc of my estate, and before long will do so also with myself."

Mentes

'But there! It rests with heaven to determine whether Odysseus is to return, and take his revenge in his own house or not.'

'I would, however, urge you to set about evicting these suitors yourself. Call the lords to full assembly — lay your case before them, and call heaven to bear you witness.'

'Bid the suitors take themselves off, each to his own place.As for yourself, let me prevail upon you to take the best ship you can get and go in quest of your father who has so long been missing.'

'Then, having done all this, think it well over in your mind how, by fair means or foul, you may kill these suitors in your own house.'

'You are too old to plead infancy any longer. You are a fine, smart-looking fellow; show your mettle, then, and make yourself a name in story.'

'Now, however, I must go back to my ship and to my crew, who will be impatient if I keep them waiting longer; think the matter over for yourself, and remember what I have said to you.'

Telemachus

'Sir, it has been very kind of you to talk to me in this way, as though I were your own son, and I will do all you tell me.'

'Stay a little longer till you have taken a bath and refreshed yourself. I will give you a present, and you shall go on your way rejoicing; I will give you one of great beauty and value—a keepsake such as only dear friends give to one another.'

Mentes

'Do not try to keep me, for I would be on my way at once. As for any present you may be disposed to make me, keep it till I come again, and I will take it home with me.'

With these words, she flew away like a bird into the air, but she had given Telemachus courage and made him think more than ever about his father.He felt the change, marveled at it, and knew that the stranger had been a god.

Zeus Will Exact a Reckoning

Penelope mourns, Telemachus confronts suitors, plans assembly.

Phemius was still singing, and his listeners sat captivated as he recounted the sorrowful tale of the return from Troy and the hardships Athena had laid upon the Achaeans.Meanwhile, the suitors were loud and unruly in the covered cloisters, each one hoping to share Penelope's bed.

Penelope, daughter of Icarius, heard his song from her chamber upstairs. She came down the grand staircase, not alone, but accompanied by two of her handmaids.

When she reached the suitors, she stood by one of the pillars that supported the roof of the cloisters, with a steadfast maiden on either side of her. She held a veil before her face and wept bitterly.

Penelope

'Phemius, you know many other tales of gods and heroes, the kind that poets love to celebrate. Sing one of those for the suitors, and let them drink their wine in peace.'

'Stop this sorrowful story, for it breaks my grieving heart and reminds me of my lost husband, whom I mourn without end, and whose name was revered throughout all Hellas and middle Argos.'

Telemachus

'Mother, let the bard sing what he chooses; bards do not create the woes they sing of. It is Zeus, not they, who decides our fate, sending blessings or hardships upon mankind as he wills. Accept it and bear it; Odysseus is not the only one who did not return from Troy.'

Surprised by her son's words, Penelope returned upstairs with her handmaids, where she mourned her dear husband until Athena sent sweet sleep over her eyes.

Telemachus

'Shameless and insolent suitors, let us feast now and keep the peace. For it is a rare delight to hear a man with a divine voice like Phemius. But in the morning, meet me in full assembly, so I may formally demand that you leave.'

'Go feast at each other’s houses, turn and turn about, at your own expense. If you choose to persist in sponging off one man, beware, for Zeus will exact a heavy reckoning. When you fall in my father’s house, there will be no one to avenge you.'

The suitors bit their lips at his bold speech, astonished at his daring. The suitor Antinous, son of Eupeithes, spoke up.

Antinous

'The gods seem to have taught you to speak with bluster and arrogance; may Zeus never grant you to be chief in Ithaca as your father was before you.'

Telemachus

'Antinous, do not mock me, but if the gods will it, I shall be chief too. Is this the worst fate you can imagine for me? There are many men in Ithaca who may take the lead, but I will be master in my own house.'

Another suitor Eurymachus, son of Polybus, then replied.

Eurymachus

'It is up to the gods to decide who shall be chief among us, but you shall be master in your own house and over your own possessions.'

'No one in Ithaca will harm you or take what is yours. But tell me, my friend, about this stranger. What country does he come from? What family is he of, and where is his estate?'

'Has he brought news of your father’s return, or was he on his own business? He seemed a wealthy man, but he left so quickly that we did not get to know him.'

Telemachus

'My father is dead and gone, and even if I hear rumors, I no longer put faith in them. My mother does indeed sometimes consult a soothsayer, but I pay no heed to their prophecies. As for the stranger, he was Mentes, son of Anchialus, lord of the Taphians, an old friend of my father's.'

Telemachus spoke thus, but in his heart, he knew it had been the goddess.The suitors soon returned to their singing and dancing until evening. When night fell upon their merrymaking, they went home to sleep, each to his own abode.

Telemachus's room was high up in a tower overlooking the outer court. There he went, deep in thought. The old slave Euryclea went before him with a pair of blazing torches.

Euryclea had raised him since he was a baby and loved him dearly. Laertes, his grandfather, had bought Euryclea when she was young, paying the worth of twenty oxen. He treated her like a wife, though he never shared her bed, fearing his wife's resentment.

Telemachus opened the door of his bedroom and sat down on the bed. As he took off his tunic, he handed it to the good old woman, who folded it neatly.

After that, she left, pulling the door closed by a silver catch and bolting it with a leather strap. But Telemachus, covered with a woolen fleece, lay awake. He thought all night of the counsel Athena had given him.

Athena

In the next lesson, we'll hear Telemachus and Ithaca's lords in full assembly.

Hounds at His Heels

Telemachus confronts suitors, gains the gods as an ally.

Athena

Until my visit, Telemachus acted like a boy, helpless in the face of his mother's suitors. He's been suffering and brooding, waiting for some material advantage before taking action.Disguised as Mentes, I've inspired him to finally confront the suitors in open assembly.

Now when the child of morning, rosy-fingered Dawn, appeared, Telemachus rose and dressed himself.

He bound his sandals onto his comely feet, girded his sword about his shoulder, and left his room looking like an immortal god.

He at once sent the criers round to call the people in assembly; so they called them, and the people gathered thereon.

Then, when they were got together, he went to the place of assembly a bronze spear in his grip and two sleek hounds at his heels.

Athena endowed him with a presence of such divine comeliness that all marveled at him as he went by.

When he took his place in his father's seat, even the oldest councillors made way for him.

Telemachus

"Men of Ithaca, hear my words. My grievance is purely personal and turns on two great misfortunes which have fallen upon my house."

"The first is the loss of my excellent father, who was chief among you and was like a father to every one of you."

"The second is much more serious and will soon be the utter ruin of my estate."

"The sons of all the chief men among you are pestering my mother to marry them against her will."

"They infest our palace day and night, they butcher our cattle, our sheep, our fat goats, feasting themselves sick, swilling our glowing wine. No estate can stand such recklessness."

"We have now no Odysseus to ward off harm from our doors. All we'd do is parade our wretched weakness. A boy inept at battle. Oh I’d swing to attack if I had the power in me."

"Have respect, therefore, to your own consciences and to public opinion. Fear, too, the wrath of heaven, lest the gods wheel in outrage and turn upon you."

"I pray you by Zeus and Justice, do not hold back, my friends, and leave me singlehanded."

With this, Telemachus dashed his staff to the ground and burst into tears.

Athena

Telemachus' speech is what the ancient Greeks called parrhesia. It means speaking freely, even when there's great personal risk.For Telemachus, there's great risk. The suitors will plot to kill him after this speech.

More importantly, he has little to gain from this confrontation. There's no chance he could drive away the suitors himself. He admits as much:"We have no Odysseus to ward off harm from our doors. All we'd do is parade our wretched weakness. A boy inept at battle. Oh I’d swing to attack if I had the power in me."

Given he has everything to lose and nothing to gain, why do you suppose I told Telemachus to confront the suitors? Why didn't I advise him to wait for a more opportune moment?

Yes, he's still disadvantaged. Nothing has changed about his material situation. But the decision to stand his ground changed Telemachus himself. Even the lords of Ithaca notice this change.He sits in his father's chair, "a bronze spear in his grip" and "two sleek hounds" at his heels.

Over the next few episodes, we'll learn why the act of parrhesia is so powerful, even when things seem helpless.Pay close attention. It's a concept that can restore agency to anyone under any circumstance.

Matchless Queen of Cunning

The suitor Antinous blames Penelope's weaving trick

Athena

Despite great personal risk, Telemachus has accused the suitors of abusing xenia (hospitality) by eating his food, drinking his wine, and imposing on his mother, Queen Penelope.Antinous is the first to respond. Let's hear his retort (using the Robert Fagles translation).

Antinous

"So high and mighty, Telemachus — such unbridled rage! Well now, fling your accusations at us? Think to pin the blame on us? You think again."

"It’s not the suitors here who deserve the blame, it’s your own dear mother, the matchless queen of cunning."

"Look here. For three years now, getting on to four, she’s played it fast and loose with all our hearts, building each man’s hopes —"

"Dangling promises, dropping hints to each — but all the while with something else in mind."

"This was her latest masterpiece of guile: she set up a great loom in the royal halls and began to weave, the weaving finespun, the yarns endless."

"She would lead us on: 'Young men, my suitors, now that King Odysseus is no more, go slowly, keen as you are to marry me, until I can finish off this web...'"

"So my weaving won’t all fray and come to nothing. This is a shroud for old Lord Laertes, for that day when the deadly fate that lays us out at last will take him down."

"I dread the shame my countrywomen would heap upon me, yes, if a man of such wealth should lie in state without a shroud for cover.'"

"Her very words, and despite our pride and passion, we believed her. So by day she’d weave at her great and growing web — by night, by the light of torches set beside her, she would unravel all she’d done."

"Three whole years she deceived us blind, seduced us with this scheme... Then, when the wheeling seasons brought the fourth year on, one of her women told the truth and we caught her in the act — unweaving her gorgeous web."

"So she finished it off. Against her will. We forced her. Now Telemachus, here is how the suitors answer you — you burn it in your mind, you and all our people: send your mother back!"

"Direct her to marry whomever her father picks, whoever pleases her. So long as she persists in tormenting us, quick to exploit the gifts Athena gave her — a skilled hand for elegant work, a fine mind and subtle wiles too."

"We’ve never heard the like, not even in old stories sung of all Achaea’s well-coifed queens who graced the years gone by: Mycenae crowned with garlands, Tyro and Alcmena... Not one could equal Penelope for intrigue."

"But in this case she intrigued beyond all limits. So, we will devour your worldly goods and wealth as long as she holds out, holds to that course the gods have charted deep inside her heart."

"Great renown she wins for herself, no doubt, great loss for you in treasure. We’ll not go back to our old estates or leave for other parts, not till she weds the Argive man she fancies."

Athena

Antinous has explained that Penelope promised to pick a husband as soon as she had finished weaving a burial shroud for her father-in-law, Laertes (the old king).

But she's been deceiving the suitors for three years. To delay her decision, Penelope secretly unravels her weaving every night.This story is well-known in literature. Penelope's loom is a cultural icon of fidelity and guile.

We'll hear Telemachus respond in the next episode.

I See Mischief

Telemachus concludes his speech and sets out for Pylos and Sparta.

Athena

We're at the assembly in Ithaca where Telemachus is confronting the suitors in an act of parrhesia (speaking the truth).In the previous episode, Antinuous blames Penelope, the 'matchless queen of cunning' for their behavior. He insists Telemachus "direct her to marry." Telemachus responds...

Telemachus

"Antinous, how can I drive the mother who bore me from my father’s house? I will not do it."

"If you persist in sponging upon one man, heaven help me, but Zeus shall reckon with you in full."

As he spoke, Zeus sent two eagles from the top of the mountain. They flew on and on with the wind, sailing side by side.

When they were right over the middle of the assembly, they wheeled and circled about, beating the air with their wings and glaring death into the eyes of those below.

Then, fighting fiercely and tearing at one another, they flew off towards the right over the town.

The people wondered as they saw them and asked each other what this might mean; whereon Halitherses, the best prophet among them, spoke:

Halitherses

"Hear me, men of Ithaca, and especially the suitors, for I see mischief brewing for them."

"Odysseus is not going to be away much longer; indeed, he is close at hand to deal out death and destruction."

Halitherses

"Let us then be wise in time and stop this wickedness before he comes."

"Everything has happened as I foretold when the Argives set out for Troy, and now all this is coming true."

Eurymachus

"Old man, go home and prophesy to your own children. Odysseus has died in a far country, and it is a pity you are not dead along with him."

"As for Telemachus, I warn him to send his mother back to her father, who will find her a husband. Until then, we shall go on harassing him with our suit, for we fear no man."

Telemachus

"Eurymachus, and you other suitors, I shall say no more and entreat you no further. For the gods and the people of Ithaca now know my story."

"Give me then a ship and a crew of twenty men to take me to Sparta and to Pylos in quest of my father who has so long been missing."

"If I can hear of him as alive and on his way home, I will put up with your waste for yet another twelve months."

"If, on the other hand, I hear of his death, I will return at once, celebrate his funeral rites with all due pomp. I will build a barrow to his memory, and make my mother marry again."

Eurymachus

"Even if Odysseus himself were to come back, he would have little joy of fighting us, for we are many and he is but one."

"Now, therefore, do you people go about your business, and let speed this boy on his journey. If he goes at all—which I do not think he will."

On this, he broke up the assembly, and every man went back to his own abode, while the suitors returned to the house of Odysseus.

Athena

So why is truth-telling so important? We've discussed that Telemachus is powerless against the suitors. The rational thing to do would be to keep his mouth shut and wait for a better opportunity.

However, while he remained silent, he was trapped in his boyhood. The only way for the powerless Telemachus to gain power was to align himself with the all-powerful truth.

This is the virtue that Greeks saw in parrhesia. Truth begets power. The suitors will soon plot to kill Telemachus—precisely because he's no longer powerless. He's a threat.

Just as Telemachus has gained power, the suitors have lost it. They've isolated themselves from what is sacred.

They've disrespected their hosts (their prince and queen), their war hero Odysseus, the elder prophet Halitherses, and the portents of Zeus.How can the gods or even their neighbors now rally to their side? How can their own conscience support them?

This is the end of Book 2 of the Odyssey. The next episode is a writing exercise and a capstone to the Telemachy.

Parrhesia

Examining fear, truth, and political enemies.

Athena

We've finished Book 2 of the Odyssey. To conclude our study of parrhesia, let's write a short speech.

Risk is what distinguishes parrhesia from mere rudeness or bombast. We must risk losing friends, liberty, or life to engage in an act of parrhesia.

Before we can risk anything, we need enemies. To make enemies, let's get political. Consider this 2500 year old political personality test...Which do you fear more? The mob or the tyrant?

If you fear the tyrant, you're a classical Democrat ("the cure for the ailments of democracy is more democracy"). If you fear the mob, you're a classical Republican ("the tyranny of a multitude is a multiplied tyranny").

In academic circles, parrhesia is translated as "free speech" by Republican-leaning thinkers and "speaking truth to power" by Democratic-leaning ones.It's a concept that's shaped politics since the fifth century B.C.—from ancient Athens to modern America.

So let's start your speech by describing your enemy. Describe who threatens your world most? Does your world end in fire or in ice? By the hot rage of mobs or the cold oppression of tyrants?(Either speak from your own perspective, or speak from the perspective of a character you've created.)

Your enemies lords power over your world, but are they fiction or fact?One way to know is to consider the consequences of your speech. Do you risk friends, liberty, or life through truth-telling? Consider what's at stake for you or your character.

Now speak your truth. Dethrone your enemy. The opposite of truth-telling is flattery and rhetoric. Pay no attention to tact.Your sole objective is to win favor with the gods, just as Telemachus has done. Strip away any attempt to persuade. Speak everything and speak plainly.

Telemachus became his own man through parrhesia. In Books 3 and 4, he'll set out to Pylos and Sparta seeking news about his father.We'll skip these books since they're written as an epilogue for readers of Homer's Iliad. Instead, we'll pick up from Book 5.

The stakes are now set in Ithaca. Suitors plague Penelope against her will. Society is in disarray. King Odysseus is desperately needed back home. Let's now meet our legendary king, Odysseus, stranded on the island of Ogygia.