Character Of Odysseus In Homer's The Odyssey

In Homer’s The Odyssey, the ability of Odysseus to improvise and mix truth and lies to deliver some of the most believable stories is what trademarks our hero in this epic. With the use of his quick wit, Odysseus controls first impressions and is able to craft a favorable image with each new encounter. In particular, when Odysseus is disguised as an old beggar he crafts a story for his wife that is part truth and part lie. By telling the story, Odysseus hopes to gauge his wife’s remaining emotional connection to her husband while also building his rapport and becoming a favorite of Penelope. The more Odysseus, disguised as a beggar, can show that he established a relationship with Penelope’s husband the more affinity Penelope will have towards the beggar. Also while telling the story, Odysseus can’t help but to boost his rapport for the sole purpose of talking himself up. The main significance of Odysseus telling the story is that he gets closer with Penelope without actually revealing himself to her.
As we analyze Odysseus fictional portion of the story we also see why he chose to adopt certain falsehoods in order to make a more believable story. For example, this story would make the third falsehood in which he has adopted the persona of a Cretan. Because Crete is on the opposite side of the map in Ancient Greece it is a lot easier for …show more content…
All the better, he gets to remind his wife about how great he is. In earlier books of the Odyssey, Odysseus does not hesitate to display his self-confidence or even boast about. For example, when Broadsea calls on Odysseus for being weak when Odysseus refuses to compete in the games, Odysseus shouts back and boats about how great of a champion he is. Odysseus in a sense is prepping his homecoming by rekindling the kingly image of him that lingers in people’s