The Battle Of The Suitors In Homer's Odyssey

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Killian Stanley Syntax Aylmer Battle of the Suitors The battle between Odysseus and his wife’s (Penelope) suitors began when Odysseus gave his son, Telemachus, the signal. The two then drew swords and spears. Odysseus who is disguised as an old beggar sheds his rags and takes position at the entrance of the hall. The first suitor to be killed is Antinous, one of the leading suitors. He receives a spear to the neck. The other suitors, who are all (108) in the hall rush around the dead body of Antinous in shock. They start to threaten Odysseus and begin to search for weapons. The suitors still are unaware of the fact that they are all doomed to die. Odysseus then reveals himself. One of the other leading suitors, Eurymachos, begs for mercy but Odysseus tells the suitors to fight or to try escape. Odysseus had previously ordered two of his faithful servants, Eumaius and Philoetius to close/block all exits. Eurymachos is the next to die. As he leads a charge against Odysseus he is fatally hit with a spear to the heart. Now Telemachus goes down to the storeroom to retrieve an arsenal of weapons and shields for himself, his father and the two faithful servants. Then Telemachus’s inexperience is shown when he leaves the door to the storeroom open allowing the suitor Melanthius to acquire weaponry. But Telemachus also shows maturity…show more content…
He orders the 12 disloyal maids into the hall and instructs them to remove the suitors’ dead bodies and to clean the floors of the suitor’s blood. When this is done the maids are hung in the courtyard. Odysseus now sets about to try and get rid of the smell of blood from the house so he orders Eurycleia to fumigate the house by burning sulphur. When everything is completed Odysseus breaks down in tears probably as he is overcome with emotion or maybe because he realises his long journey and struggle is

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