The 1896 painting “Odysseus and Polyphemus” by Arnold Böcklin presents a tense moment between Odysseus’s crew and Polyphemus, as they attempt to escape the island of the cyclops by boat after Polyphemus was blinded. While most interpretations of the tale depict the crew escaping without further conflict or confrontation after Polyphemus is blinded, this painting captures a completely different standpoint, with Polyphemus acting out in one final burst of frustration with Odysseus, hurling a rock in the direction of the men. This contrasts the common depiction of the men escaping unscathed, with Polyphemus unable to find them thus calling out upon his father Poseidon to curse them. Although it depicts a slightly different narrative, it provides a prolific image of inhospitality, with a harrowing image of the crew making their escape from the island. This painting helps represent various senses of emotion, including arrogance, frustration, and fear, all of which lead to the near demise of Odysseus and the rest of his surviving crew.

This painting presents an interesting alternative to the reading of the book in the sense that Polyphemus managed to follow Odysseus and his crew to the boat, and attempted to fight back as they were leaving. Odysseus and his men fight against the pounding waves against the large sharp rocks of the island. It suggests that Polyphemus was still vengeful after being blinded and chased down the voices of the men, where he attempted to kill them. His blank expression and lack of any visible eye in the painting entails that he was still blinded in this interpretation. This image continues the narrative that Polyphemus does not practice the same form of hospitality as Odysseus, but an interesting detail is that Odysseus is calling back to shore from the front of the boat, seemingly taunting Polyphemus. This contrasts the heroic efforts that the men are exhibiting as they row away from shore, and certainly contrasts from the book’s depictions of Odysseus’s leadership. Despite the intense nature of the scene, Arnold Böcklin highlights the arrogance of Odysseus in contrast to the treacherous scenario that he is actually in.

While the book provides a captivating encounter with Polyphemus, the painting holds a awe factor with the intensity of the waves counteracting Polyphemus taking one last act of defense for his home. In my personal interpretation of the painting compared to the book, the painting visually shows what appears to be a heroic escape from the island, while it was really a hostile interaction of arrogance, as depicted in the final scenes of Odysseus taunting the cyclops. To me, without previous context it would be nearly the opposite of the actual narrative. In actuality, the painting doesn’t necessarily show the acts of Odysseus and his crew as inherently wrong, but rather heroic. This could be glorification of the crew’s escape, but it also recounts a unique depiction of the story. A reader could interpret Odysseus’s whole adventure as a heroic epic, but despite the overall heroic appearance of the painting, there is a subtle hint that Odysseus is still naive.