Lecture Notes: Book 10 of The Odyssey

Key Events

• Visit to Aeolus

  • Odysseus and his crew sail to the home of Aeolus, Master of the Winds.
  • They stay for a month.
  • Aeolus gives them a pouch of wind to aid their journey.

• Close to Ithaca

  • After resuming their voyage, they come close to Ithaca within ten days.
  • Odysseus falls asleep; a crew member opens the pouch of wind.
  • The winds blow them off course again.

• Encounter with the Lastragonians

  • They reach a land inhabited by giant cannibals, the Lastragonians.
  • The Lastragonians spear and eat several of Odysseus' men.
  • Odysseus and remaining crew escape.

• Arrival at Aeaea and Meeting Circe

  • Land at Aeaea, encountering Circe, a nymph with superhuman powers.
  • Circe turns Odysseus’ men into pigs using a potion.
  • Odysseus seeks help from Hermes.

• Odysseus' Response

  • Hermes advises Odysseus to find a plant to counteract Circe's potion.
  • Odysseus finds the plant and overpowers Circe.
  • Circe swears an oath not to harm Odysseus or his men.

• Stay on Aeaea

  • Odysseus and his crew become complacent, staying for a year.
  • Alpenor, one of the men, dies after falling off a roof while drunk.

• Circe's Instruction

  • Circe instructs Odysseus to visit the land of the dead to speak with Tiresias.

Themes and Analysis

• Odysseus' Judgment Issues

  • Odysseus repeatedly shows poor judgment:
    • Failing to guard the pouch of winds carefully.
    • Allowing his men to be killed by cannibals.
    • Falling into temptation with Circe and staying over a year.

• Hospitality and Leadership

  • Odysseus' obligation as a leader to his men, even in death.
  • Importance of providing proper burial rites, highlighted by Alpenor's death.

• Moral and Ethical Codes

  • The narrative explores themes of hospitality that extend to the afterlife.
  • The responsibilities of leadership and the consequences of neglecting these duties.