One difference between our society and the society when The Odyssey was written is our society is very much less welcoming. Telemachus and the son of Nestor stayed their horses at the gate and where seen by Menelausπs servant. The Servant then told Menelaus that strangers were outside and asked if they should be let in. Menelaus called his servant a fool and ordered him to let the strangers in at once for a meal. Telemachus was then led to the bathroom to wash their hands, he was astonished of the beauty of the home. The servants washed Telemachus and anointed him with oil, and was brought woollen cloaks and shirts. The servants offered Telemachus many kinds of food, meats and drinks. Menelaus greeted him, saying after you are done with supper we will talk and I will ask you who you are. He also said to Telemachus that he must be the descendant from a line of sceptre-bearing kings, because poor people do not have such sons as Telemachus. In our society this would rarely if ever happen. The host is a very rich person with a beautiful home and is most likely rich. Rich people would not just let anyone of the streets into their home. They would think they would trying to steal. Menelaus did not even ask Telemachus who he was before he gave him dinner. This would also never happen in todayπs society. Most people do not let in strangers whether rich or poor and offer them a meal without getting to know that person first.

Menelaus tells a story of Ulysses in front of telememakghos and telemakhos cries. Why does he cry? Now a day if a man cryπs he is a pussy and is made fun of. Was it a custom? I think that he felt true emotion and couldnπt help it. Menelaus recognized this after the story and knew it was Ulysses son telemakhos. Melalaus also tells telemakhos that his father was basically a badass and that he would have kicked all the suitors out of the house. It doesnπt say in the text but I wonder how telemokhos feels about this? Does he feel proud of his fatherπs reputation? Or does he feel cowardly that he didnπt do this himself? Melalaus was a very good friend of Ulysses and talked highly of him. He told telemakhos stories of him. I think he will still search for his father after talking to Menelaus. He has heard more and more better things about him throughout his journey. Also finding his father will prove that he is not a pussy and will bring great pride to his family. I think telemakhos is trying to live up to his fatherπs status and wants to eventual prove that he is his son.

Alright, where to begin? Well, first off we learn of Telemachusπ journey to Sparta where he meets the kind and queen there and learns of his father. He learns his father was a great man and a hero, buy after troy got imprisoned on Calypsoπs island. The reader already knows this, but this is the first that Telemachus learns of his fatherπs whereabouts. The second thing that strikes me is the way that the gods are protecting Telemachus. It bears a remarkable resemblance to the classic, The Aeneid. Throughout that book Aeneas constantly demonstrates how much of a pussy he is and how good he is at screwing up. His mother, queen of the gods, comes down and saves him from certain death time after time after time. This isnπt the exact way it happens in the Odyssey but it is pretty damn close. Now, I am not positive on my facts, but if I am correct the Odyssey came before the Aeneid and Virgil just ripped off of all other story tellers for his book. Anyways, the book shifts from Telemachus worrying about his problems, to his mother worrying about him. We havenπt really heard much from her thus far, but she does chime in with her concerns about the apparent ambush on Telemachus as he returns to Ithaka. Now the gods are getting involved with the whole family. Nice to know the gods play favorites. Alright letπs seeä so Telemachus gets further in his quest to find his father, and Penelope finally gets a part in the book. Personally, after reading both the Aeneid and the start of the Odyssey, I am quite disappointed with the lack of heroicness of the so-called heroes. They need help from the gods, and canπt stand up to their enemies. I do have a few questions however. First off, why is Telemachus heading back home before setting out to find his father? Secondly, why do the gods always want the men to succeed on their own? They send help down and everything, but if they want the hero to be successful so badly, why the hell donπt they just go down there and beat the shit out of everyone who opposes them. Just for stories sake? I donπt knowä.

            Ok, so Telemakhos finally gets to Sparta with Pisistratus and they meet with the king and queen. The couple as Odysseus' son recognizes Telemakhos and they begin telling stories about the Trojan War and Odysseus' accomplishments there. What I don't understand is why they recount some of these stories to Telemakhos; it's not what he is looking for, he just wants to find out where he is. Eventually Menelaus reveals that he encountered Proteus, a divine sea spirit, who told him how to find his way back to Sparta. Proteus also revealed information about other heroes of Troy to Menelaus. This is how Telemakhos finds out that a Nymph named Calypso is holding his father captive. With this information Telemakhos returns to Pylos head back to Ithaca. While I know this story was written for drunken men in bars this last series of events seems kind of stupid. No one knows what has happened to Odysseus for 10 years and all of a sudden Telemakhos takes a simple trip to Sparta and finds out exactly where he's been all this time. Bullshit. Then the suitors back in Ithaca finally figure out that Telemakhos gone to find Odysseus and Penelope now is worried that she is going to lose her son as well as her husband. The suitors plan to attack Telemakhos when he gets back to Ithaca so that they will not have to deal with Odysseus, which seems ridiculous considering that they are trying to get with his mother. Now that Penelope is worrying Athena reassures her by sending a ghost-thing in the form of her sister to soothe Penelope and let her know that her son and husband will be ok.