| Penelope | (Greek mythology) the wife of Odysseus and a symbol of devotion and fidelity |
| Telemachus | Son of Odysseus and Penelope; helps his father kill the suitors |
| Mentor | Ithacan friend of Odysseus, Often Impersonated by Athena; helps Odysseus and Telemachus make decisions |
| Athena | Daughter of Zeus and goddess of wisdom; Athena assists Odysseus and Telemachus – she often appears in disguise as Mentor, an old friend of Odysseus. |
| Odysseus | Husband of Penelope – King of Ithaca and hero of the Trojan war |
| Polyphemus | a Cyclops who is the son of Poseidon. At one point he imprisons Odysseus |
| Poseidon | God of the sea; He despises Odysseus for blinding his son, the Cyclops Polyphemus, and constantly hampers his journey home. |
| Calypso | (Greek mythology) the sea nymph who detained Odysseus for seven years |
| Circe | (Greek mythology) a sorceress who detained Odysseus on her island and turned his men into swine |
| Charybdis | (Greek mythology) a ship-devouring whirlpool lying on the other side of a narrow strait from Scylla |
| Scylla | (Greek mythology) a sea nymph transformed into a sea monster who lived on one side of a narrow strait |
| Melanthe | Melanthius is a treacherous and opportunistic goatherd who supports the suitors, especially Eurymachus, and abuses the beggar who appears in Odysseus’s palace, not realizing that the man is Odysseus himself. |
| Antinoos | the most arrogant of penelope’s suitors. he leads the compaign to have telemachos killed. He is the first to die when odysseus returns |
| Eurymaios | The loyal shepherd who, helps Odysseus reclaim his throne after his return to Ithaca. Even though he does not know that the vagabond who appears at his hut is Odysseus, he gives the man food and shelter. |
| Suitors | Men who live in Odysseus house trying to force Penelope to pick one for marriage |
The Odyssey Characters
April 24, 2020