Leadership: Telemachus

Book 22 begins after Odysseus’s victory in the archery contest. Penelope decides to host an archery contest where the winner will get to marry her, but to win one of the suitors has to shoot an arrow through 12 axes, something only Odysseus could do. At the end of Book 21, Odysseus shocks everyone by being able to complete this impossible task and he finally sheds his disguise at the start of the next book. The suitors don’t recognize Odysseus at first but they quickly fear for their lives after he starts picking them off one by one. Before the fight, Telemachus hid the weapons from the suitors but Melanthius is found stealing them and is tied up for his crimes. A full battle is being raged in the palace and Athena appears disguised as Mentor. She doesn’t join the battle at first but once she does, the battle ends and those left alive try to put the palace back in order. Odysseus orders Telemachus to kill all of the disloyal servant women. I chose to closely read the passage about Telemachus’s massacre of these women. The passage introduces images of birds, a common image throughout the Odyssey, and images of traps. Specifically, the passage compares the brutal hanging of the slave girls to trapping a dove or thrush in a net. This image communicates the cruelty of Telemachus’s actions by comparing it to the ensnarement of birds known for their amity. Despite the image’s indication of wrongdoing, the rest of the text seems to commend Telemachus for his leadership. 

This passage compares the murder of the slave girls and the ensnarement of doves and thrushes in order to show Telemachus’s leadership. In Homer’s view, “[a]s doves or thrushes spread their wings to fly/ home to their nests, but someone sets a trap- /they crash into a net” (22.468-470). Doves and thrushes invoke images of peace and feelings of serenity in the reader, so the purpose of trapping these birds is to show the reader the extent of the cruelty towards these women. However, the selection of doves and thrushes in this image could also mean that Telemachus is restoring the peace by trapping these “birds”. Homer describes the ensnarement as a “bitter bedtime” almost as if the birds are stubborn children, refusing to go to bed. The birds, representing peace, are finally put to bed by the mighty Telemachus and all is right in the world. Throughout the Odyssey, Telemachus struggles with his identity as the son of a mighty warrior; is he too young to be strong like his dad? Or can he prove himself? This passage confirmed my speculation that Telemachus will go to great lengths to prove his strength and leadership. The narrator is showing the complicated relationship between violence and victory in the world they live in. 

Book 22 is a pivotal part of the Odyssey. Odysseus is back from his journey and he is expelling the suitors who took advantage of Penelope and Telemachus’ hospitality. In the killing frenzy, Telemachus struggles with his identity and whether he is strong enough for leadership. The narrator uses images and metaphors of trapping birds in their nest to communicate Telemachus’s ascension into a powerful position. The murder of treacherous slavegirls marks a point in Telemachus’s journey where he has become worthy of being called his father’s son.