In book nine of The Odyssey, the story of what happened to Odysseus and his crew immediately after the Trojan War is being recounted to the reader. After pillaging the city of Ismarus for some time, Odysseus and his men are driven away by a strong counter attack by the Ciconian reinforcements. As they left Ismarus, Zeus sent a heavy storm which rained upon the crew for nine days, causing significant damage to the fleet. As a result of the storm, they were forced to make port in the land of the Lotus Eaters. Odysseus sent a scouting party of three men to explore the land and report what kinds of people inhabit it. However, he was barely able to drag them back to his ship after they consumed the lotus fruit, which caused them to be intoxicated and make them feel like they never wanted to leave the island and return home. After leaving the island of the Lotus Eaters, Odysseus and his crew then sailed and landed in the island of the cyclopes. Odysseus took twelve of his best men with him to explore the land and they discovered a cave filled with a bevy of milk, cheese, and sheep. Odysseus went against the crew’s wishes to take what they could and leave quickly and decided to wait for the host to return and offer them gifts as was customary in Greek culture. However, when the host came back to his cave and discovered a group of strangers eating his food in his home, he became upset and began to eat the intruders. Odysseus had to use his wits and his intellect to come up with an escape plan as he and his crew were not strong enough to overpower the cyclops or move the giant boulder that blocked the entrance to the cave. Odysseus came up with a plan to get Polyphemus drunk and tell him that his name was “Nobody”, hoping that Polyphemus wouldn’t alert his neighbors by saying that “Nobody” is attacking him. Once that was done, he would then stab his eye to blind him. He also made sure to let Polyphemus move the boulder and tend to his flock of sheep before beginning his plan. Once his plan was executed and he and his crew escaped on the underbellies of the sheep, Odysseus would let his ego get the best of him by revealing his real name to Polyphemus. Now knowing exactly who tricked him, Polyphemus called upon his father Poseidon to curse Odysseus and his crew as a punishment. This particular passage illustrates how Odysseus carries intelligence and wit that attracts the attention of the wisdom goddess Athena, yet is also burdened with extreme hubris that is ultimately his and his crew’s downfall. 

In order to escape the cave of Polyphemus, Odysseus had to use his strong intellect instead of brute strength. He began to put his plan into motion by offering Polyphemus some wine and telling him, “…Drink some wine, sample the merchandise our ship contains…Do you expect more guests, when you have treated us so rudely?” (Wilson 251). As a result of the offer, Polyphemus was tricked into getting drunk and allowed his guard to be lowered so Odysseus could stab his eye to blind him. Despite being able to use his wits to his advantage, Odysseus also displayed extreme hubris and greed. As he and his crew were escaping the island, Odysseus shouted to Polyphemus, “If any mortal asks you how your eye was mutilated and made blind, say that Odysseus, the city-sacker, Laertes’ son, who lives in Ithaca, destroyed your sight.” (Wilson 256). By revealing his true name to Polyphemus, he allowed himself to be cursed by Polyphemus, which resulted in all of his men killed and his journey home extended even longer and filled with more sorrow. 

Although the Odyssey ends with Odysseus reuniting with his family and retaking his throne, he is shown to be vulnerable throughout many parts of his journey like he was in this particular book. His fatal flaw of hubris was put on display and would ultimately serve as foreshadowing for the rest of the story. The irony in a man of Odysseus’ intellectual level acting as foolish as he did proves how Odysseus is a mortal with flaws just like any other man, despite being seen as a legendary hero.