Odyssey Books 9 & 10
Characters
Book 9
Book 10
Plot
Book 9
Book eight leaves off on Alcinous asking Odysseus about his story and identity. Odysseus tells the Phaeacians about his travels after the Trojan War, starting with a short story about his ships being ravaged by a storm and sent to the island of the lotus eaters, a land full of intoxicating fruit that sends the greeks into a sate of complacency, making them forget about their motivations, their home, and the people that they love and that love them.
Book 10
Odysseus's crew then travel to the island of the Cyclopes, where they start to steal the Cyclopes food and supplies from their cave. Polyphemus, one of the Cyclopes, soon returns to his cave and grows hostile, eating some of Odysseus's crew and capturing the rest to eat later
Odysseus fights and blinds Polyphemus after getting him drunk. When Polyphemus asks Odysseus's name, he says it is "no man" so when Polyphemus's neighbours come asking who is hurting him, he says that no one is.
After blinding Polyphemus, Odysseus and his crew escape the island and as they are sailing off, Odysseus makes a fatal mistake. He tells Polyphemus that he was bested by Odysseus. Because of that, Polyphemus knows the name of his enemy and can tell Poseidon, who is furious.
Odysseus goes to the island of Aeolus. When they arrive, there is a banquet happening for the children of Aeolus. Odysseus stays there for a month, telling stories of Troy to Aeolus, and at the end of the month, Aeolus gives Odysseus a bag of winds that would send his ships home. They sail off, and when they have almost reached Ithaca, Odysseus’s men act on their feelings. His men had been jealous and suspecting of him, and the fact that he receives many gifts, so they open the bag, let the winds loose, and are sent back to Aeolus.
Odysseus asks for more winds, but Aeolus refuses, convinced that Odysseus is cursed by the gods. Odysseus then sails to the Laestrygonians, a race of giants. Wary of new people because of his past experiences, Odysseus sends a group of scouts to meet the giants and scope out the scene. The giants target the Odysseus’s crew and start to eat them. As Odysseus and his crew members sail away, all of their ships (excluding Odysseus's) are sunken by the Laestrygonian cannons. Odysseus had anchored his ship further from the land than his crew members on instinct, and it saved his life.
Odysseus, now with only one ship, sails to Aeaea. Aeaea is home to the witch-goddess Circe, who drugs a portion of Odysseus’s men and turns them into pigs. As Odysseus goes to rescue them, Hermes approaches him and warns him about Circe, giving him an antidote so that he will not be affected by the drugs. With that, Odysseus heads to the palace of Circe. When he drinks the mixture and is not affected, Circe is surprised. Odysseus then pulls out his knife in a threatening manner, and she sort of submits, putting her guard down and proposing that they make love. Odysseus makes her swear an oath that she will not betray him, and when she does, he agrees to stay with her for a while. The men are turned back into humans, and they and Odysseus stay at Aeaea for a year, living in luxury.
After a year passes, Odysseus decides to depart and tells Circe of his wishes. She tells him that he may leave if he wants, but he must first go to Hades and find the Theban prophet for his advice on returning home.
Themes
Book 9
Book 10
Characters introduced or further explained in book nine include the Lotus-Eaters and the Cyclopes (specifically Polyphemus). These two groups of characters were met by Odysseus on his journey, the tale being recalled by Alcinous's request. Both groups demonstrate ideas that were frowned upon by the Greeks, and represent obstacles in Odysseus's journey.
In book ten, Odysseus's story is continued and readers continue to meet chraacters encountered within the journey. Aeolus, the god who gave gifts of guiding winds to Odysseus, was introduced in book nine along with the Laestrygonians, a race of human-eating giants. Readers also meet Circe, a goddess who threatens but eventually helps Odysseus and his crew.
In book nine, the concept of Xenia is prevalent, as both Odysseus's crew and the Cyclopes break the hospitality laws. The Cyclopes in the Odyssey represent the opposite of greek society ideals: they are reclusive and antisocial, do not have a formed community, break Xenia, fail to honour the gods, and even consume humans.
In book ten, Xenia is both broken and reinforced, as Aeolus demonstrates its importance initially and then denies it, while Circe initially acts as a threat against her guests before changing roles and hosting them for a year at her island.
In book ten, readers get a hint of the demonisation of women in ancient greek society and specifically in the Odyssey, as Circe is initially represented as an enemy of Odysseus. The goddess is portrayed in a typically "male" role, as she is dominant for the first part of the situation, and it is only when Odysseus fully "dominates" her that she backs down. This role reversal gives light to the clear almost fear of women that men in the Odyssey feel.