The OdysseyThe Ancient Greek tale of Odysseus, cursed to wander the perilous world on his epic voyage home. The decade-long Trojan War has come to an end and Odysseus, the King of Ithaca instrumental in securing victory for the Greeks, finally sets sail for home. But his adventures are far from over. Cursed by the god Poseidon to wander the earth for ten years, he must battle monstrous creatures—even facing the land of the dead—before returning to Ithaca, where still more dangers await him. In his long absence, Odysseus’s wife, Penelope, and son, Telemachus, have endured a violent crowd of suitors who occupied the royal palace. Together with The Iliad, Homer’s epic poem of the Trojan War, The Odyssey is one of the oldest surviving works of Western literature. Samuel Butler’s beautiful English prose version, first appearing in 1900, remains one of the most beloved and acclaimed translations of this timeless tale. This ebook has been professionally proofread to ensure accuracy and readability on all devices. |
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Common terms and phrases
Achaeans Aegisthus Agamemnon Alcinous answered Ulysses Antinous Argives began brought Calypso child of morning Circe cloak cloister crew Cyclops daughter dead dear dinner drink-offering Dulichium eat and drink Eumaeus Euryclea Eurylochus Eurymachus eyes Father Jove fell friends gave ghost give goats goddess gods gone hands head heard heart heaven house of Hades husband Icarius immortal island Ithaca Jove killed king Laertes land Laodamas live look maids matter meat Melanthius Menelaus mind Minerva mother Neptune Nestor never night once Penelope Phaeacians Pisistratus Polybus prayed presents Pylos reached round sail seat sent servants sheep ship shirt sleep soon sorrow spear spoke stay stranger suitors swineherd Teiresias Telemachus tell Theoclymenus things threw told took town Troy Ulysses Ulysses answered wash whereon wife wind wine woman women