Book Fifteen

  Athene arrives in Sparta, she tells Telemachus to return home because the suitors are becoming more troublesome and are putting pressure on his mother to marry, she says his mother might marry one of them in his absence. She also informs him of the plot against his life.  She tells him to sail at night and to avoid the straits of Samos, where they are lying in wait. He is to land at a different harbour; he must then go to the swineherd’s hut.

 Book Fifteen  Telemachus urges Menelaus to let him go home. He says he is afraid for his property because no one is in charge of this, in his absence. Menelaus and Helen present gifts to Telemachus. They then partake in a farewell feast at Sparta’s palace.  As they depart an eagle passes by with a goose in it talons – it is assumed this is an omen of some kind, “did heaven send this omen for us two or for you”. Helen says that the eagle is just like Odysseus, who will return and pounce on the suitors.

 Book Fifteen  Peisistratus and Telemachos speed off to Pylos. Telemachos asks Peisistratus to take him straight to his ship and not to Nestor’s palace. He cannot afford any more time for hospitality. When they reach his ship, his crew are promptly ordered to get the boat ready for departure.  Before his departure, while praying to Athene, Telemachus meets a man called Theoclymenus. He is a fugitive, on the run, being pursued by relatives of a man he killed. Theoclymenus asks if he could go with Telemachus. The young prince agrees.

 Book Fifteen  Back at Ithaca Odysseus tells the swineherd that he intends to go to the palace to get a job as a servant. Eumaeus advises him to stay with him until the prince Telemachus returns. He must stay where he is because he will be offered no hospitality by the suitors.  The stranger (Odysseus) asks about the king’s mother and father. Eumaeus tells him: Laertes prays inconsolably for death because of the loss of his wife, the queen, and his son Odysseus. The queen died of a broken heart.

 Book Fifteen Eumaeus, finally, tells Odysseus about his own sorry story. He was from noble birth; his father was king of Syrie. This island was a place of wealth and peace. A Phoenician woman who served at their table was seduced by a Phoenician trader to return with him back to his native land. She stole the prince (Eumaeus) and some riches from the royal palace and brought these with her, but on their return the ships were wrecked and Eumaeus washed up on Ithaca; that’s how he came to be there.

 Book Fifteen Finally, Telemachus and his crew arrive safely on Ithaca. Overhead, an eagle is clutching a dove in its claws, some of its feathers fall from the sky. Theoclymenus says this is a sign from heaven, “In all Ithaca there is no more royal house than yours. No yours is the power for all time”. Telemachos sets off for Eumaeus’ farm.

 Book Fifteen: Important Points  Note that Athene is on hand to help Odysseus’ family once again  Note the maturity of Telemachus – he now makes important decisions, shows leadership e.g. he says, decisively to Peisistratus that he will not go to Pylos because he must be on his way. He takes on board Theoclymenus, (a risk here because this man was a complete stranger) also there is no Athena around to assist him, he can manage on his own. His order to his men, to ready the boats for departure, is confident and self-assured.  Telemachus has mixed easily with the great Heroes of the Trojan War; the world of the heroic.

 Book Fifteen: Important Points  Note the omen (goose) and how Helen of Sparta interprets this. This omen is the first of many such signs from the heavens.  Be aware of Eumaeus continuous help to Odysseus (who is disguised). The simple herdsman is a model of humility and loyalty.  Note that an eagle passing by Telemachus’ right shoulder is a sign that his royal house is indeed a powerful one.

 1.Describe Athene’s role in this book. 2.Describe the two omens that Telemachus witnesses and what they mean. Book Fifteen: Questions