The Odyssey Characters: Complete Analysis
The Odyssey features complex characters representing different aspects of society, each embodying themes of the novel.
Odysseus is the clever Greek hero trying to return to Ithaca after the Trojan War. Penelope is his faithful wife who fends off suitors for 20 years. Telemachus is their son, now grown, who goes searching for news of his father. Athena is the goddess who helps Odysseus. Poseidon is the god who makes Odysseus's journey hell because Odysseus blinded his son, the Cyclops. You also get Circe the witch, Calypso the nymph who holds Odysseus captive for seven years, and the suitors who are trying to marry Penelope and take over Odysseus's kingdom.