Book IV-- The Red-Haired King and his Lady
|Summary|Characters & Their Lessons|Literary Devices|Symbolism|Connections|Links & References|
Summary
Book IV of The Odyssey is more of a passive, non-aggressive book, with lots of dialog. In fact, most of the book is dialect.
Telemakhos, the son of Odysseus, and Peisistratos departed from Pylos (click here for a picture), the city-state where Nestor had treated them to a feast, and had also invited them into his home. Telemakhos and Peisistratos arrived in Sparta to see the king of Sparta, Menelaus and ask about Odysseus’ whereabouts (click here for map).
Once arrived in Sparta, they are greeted as guests of honor in Menelaus’ palace. Menelaus and Mount Olympus. Menelaus then tells Telemakhos (unaware of his identity) how he misses Odysseus, which then Telemakhos begins to weep. Menelaus then recalls his stories of Troy, and the great heroes that fell on the fields of battle.
Helen, the wife of Menelaus, emerges from her room and instantly recognizes Telemakhos as the son of Odysseus. As all of the guests sit down to enjoy a feast provided by the hosts, Helen slips a drug into every one of the guests’ meals. Helen then tells the story of how Odysseus, disguised as a beggar, infiltrated the walls of Troy. Menelaus, however, tells a different story, and tells the famous story of the Trojan Horse, and how Odysseus came up with the idea to infiltrate Troy, and to slaughter the Trojans.
The next day, Menelaus retells the story of how he returned from Troy. He claims that when stranded in Egypt, he was forced to capture Proteus, the Old Man of the Sea. Proteus then told Meneláus how to get back to his home, and how Ajax died in Greece after surviving the Trojan War. Menelaus also reveals that he was told by Proteus that Odysseus is alive, but he is emprisoned by the sea nymph Kalypso.
Meanwhile, back in Ithaca, the suiters have discovered Telémakhus’ journey to search for his father, and they set up a trap to execute him on his return. Penelope, the wife of Odysseus and mother of Telemakhos, discovers the plot to kill her son, and she begins to become distressed. Athena, disguised as Penelope’s sister tells her not to worry, as Athena, a goddess, is on their side.
Characters & Their Lessons
Character: Telemakhos
Description: He is the son of Odysseus. Telemakhos came for word of his father, but only found out that he was with a nymph named Kalypso.
Lesson: From all of the stories that he heard, Telemakhos learned about all of the dead at Troy and how proud many people were of his father. This gave him more of a reason to believe that his father would some day come home.
Character: Peisistratos
Description: He is son of Nestor. Peisistratos’ role in the book was only to assist Telemakhos in his travels.
Character: Menelaos
Description: Menelaos is the king of Sparta. His role is to welcome Telemakhos and Peisistratos. As he described all of his adventures, Menelaos realized that his visitor was the son of Odysseus.
Lesson: One lesson that King Menelaos learned in this situation is that having many riches and treasures does not make up for the lost souls of others.
Character: Helen
Description: Helen is the wife of Menelaos. She is not the brightest bulb in the box. After basically starting the ten year war outside of the gates of Troy, she cannot have the best relationship with the man she ran away from (Menelaos). You can imagine that anyone that runs away to a different country to start a war that lasts ten years cannot be very intelligent. Helen showed her true colors when she drugged the wine so no one would cry, and then went on acting like nothing had even happened. Here, Helen used her powers to make people feel better, but not completely defeat the purpose of telling stories.
Character: Penelope
Description: Penelope is the wife of Odysseus.
Lesson: She begins to learn to trust and have faith in the gods and goddesses. When she trusts that her sister knows that Telemakhos will be alright because Athena will be on her side. In today’s world, a person could simulate this situation by confirming their faith in a certain religion. In this book Penelope also learned not to trust the suitors. Since she found out from Medon that the suitors were plotting to kill Telémakhos upon his return to Ithaka she knew for certain that they were not good men.
Character: Eteoneus
Description: He was one of Menelaos’s companions in arms. He carried Menelaos' weapons in the battle of Troy.
Character: Medon
Description: Medon is the herald at Ithaka. He was polite to Penelope when all of the suitors were rude.
Character: Athena
Description: Athena is goddess of wit, intelligence, strategy, and warfare; she is also the daughter of Zeus.
Literary Devices
Click
Here to find out more about literary devices and sybolism.
Conflict
Man vs. Himself: Telemakhos vs. Himself-
Telemakhos has to fight against himself from crying when he hears his father’s name mentioned.
Man vs. Society: Telemakhos vs. Suitors-
The suitors want to kill Telemakhos so that he cannot become king and they will have better chances of marrying Penelope.
Repetition
Both 'The red-haired captain Menelaos' and 'Clear-headed Telemakhos' are repeated throughout the book.
Metaphor--Lines 330-331
“When the young dawn with finger tips of rose made heaven bright…” This basically means, “In the morning,” or “When the sun rose…”.
Diction
Line 78:
Luminous- radiating or emitting light
Line 378:
Detained- to keep waiting
Line 861:
Pensive- expressing thoughtfulness
Imagery
Lines 20-21- “Two lithe tumblers moved out on the song with spins and handsprings through the company.”
Lines 854-856- “So, passing by the strap-slit through the door, the image came a-gliding down the room to stand at her bedside and murmur to her…”.
Simile
“Eteoneus left the room like an arrow…”
Metaphor
“A bad business. Telemakhos had the gall to make that crossing, though he said he could not. So the
young cub…”
Metaphor
“My lord, my lion heart, gone, long ago…”
Dialogue
This book also includes a lot of dialogue between characters. There are so many quotes that I will not write them all down. Dialogue is just when two or more different characters talk with each other and what each person says would be in quotes (“”).
Turning Point
This book is also one of the
turning points in The Odyssey. Telemakhos finally finds out what has happened to his dad and probably has more of an idea that he is alive because he is on an island that belongs to a goddess/nymph named Calypso.
Symbolism
Anointing--Line 53
Anointing is believed to cleanse and purify people and objects. It is used in many cultures, especially when anointing the sick. Often olive oil is used to anoint.
Trojan Horse--Lines 293
Some say that the Trojan Horse symbolizes peace, while others think that it was a trick when used in Troy.
High Chamber--Line 840
By praying in a room high above the ground, someone can be closer to the sky, and in that case, closer to all of the gods.
Disguise--Lines 848
Athena disguises herself as a woman whom Penelope trusts in one of Penelope’s dreams. Because Penelope trusts this woman, Athena’s message to her will most likely be better received.
Gifts--Lines 659-669
Menelaos tries to give Telemakhos many gifts before he leaves. Menelaos likes Telemakhos so he wants to show that even more. By giving precious gifts, Telemakhos might trust Menelaos more than he did before.
Storytelling
Telemakhos and Peisistratos listen to many of Menelaos’ stories. All of the stories have to do with what he had gone through in the past. The stories show how both he and the gods reacted in certain situations.
Feasting--Line 73
When Telemakhos and Peisistratos appeared before the king, Menelaos greeted them and invited them to sit down and eat with every one else. Every one was feasting in the first place as a celebration.
Sleeping/Dreaming--Lines 46-47
When Penelope fell asleep, she was relieved of all of the worries that she had about Telemakhos. As she dreamed, Athena disguised herself as a trusting woman and reassured her that every thing would turn out all right.
Telemakhos
Telemakhos is now twenty years old, and is currently being guided by Athena, disguised as Mentor, Odysseus' war buddy. He is just about to go through his early stages of manhood. His journey throughout Books I-IV can be an entire symbol for how the average young adult goes through those stages. Telemakhos not only leaves to find his lost father, but he also goes looking for himself, much like the young adult today does.
Conections
Paris Hilton
In this section of The Odyssey, Helen had a lot to say. One may relate her to a talk show host. She is just as talkative; however, she is not as bright as most of the hosts. Another comparison of her to a current celebrity is the connection between her and
Paris Hilton.
Going Off
Telemakhos has the biggest part within this section. After finding a new friend, and people he can trust, he ventures off into a new world. This idea of a “new place” is a huge part of our everyday lives. For instance, when one graduates from high school to go off into the world, whether to go off on to college, or to go join the work force, we leave the people we feel comfortable with in order to help us achieve a goal we have in life. This idea is in Telemakhos and how he “graduates” off from those who he is comfortable with off into unknown territory.
The Homeric Hymn to Demeter
One of the mythologies that this book and the whole Odyssey relate to is
The Homeric Hymn to Demeter. First of all, when Telémakhos and Peisístratos are greeted at Sparta, which relates to the ancient Greek culture. Secondly, in
The Homeric Hymn to Demeter they also greet their guests kindly, probably because
The Homeric Hymn to Demeter was written by the same person and in the same time period.
Stories
In many cultures and religions stories are shared between generations. These stories are usually shared orally. Many times, people will gather together and have a good time just sharing their stories. Some people may act their stories out, but everyone has their own way.
Links & References
For some extra help on Book IV, try clicking
here or
here.
This Section By:
Megan K., Cam N., Jeff Q.
