The Odyssey

Odysseus, the ruler of Ithaca, is the main hero of the story. He is the son of Laertes, the husband of Penelope, and the father of Telemachus. When the Trojan War broke out, Odysseus fought on the side of the Greeks, leading the Ithacan contingent. Known as a skilled strategist and warrior, he devised the famous trick of the Wooden Horse, which allowed the Greeks to infiltrate the walls of Troy and conquer the city after 10 years of fighting.

Odysseus’s most recognizable quality is his cunning. The narrative refers to him in the proem, or introduction, as the “man […] skilled in all ways of contending” (1), suggesting that Odysseus is a capable warrior and an intelligent strategist. Odysseus displays this cunning in his plan to escape the gigantic cyclops, Polyphemus, and he also shows a sly element of caution and deceit in his efforts to reclaim Ithaca. Odysseus’s cunning is what defines him as a hero, but he is also heroic in more traditional ways, demonstrating great strength, bravery, and prowess in warfare. Hinds’s artwork depicts Odysseus as a powerful and extremely muscular man who is middle-aged, given that he has spent 10 years fighting at Troy and another decade traveling home.