I find that, in general, Odysseus has not been favored by the gods throughout his adventures and challenges. He has escaped death and stayed safe for so long, but not with ease. He has made it though many, many tests, including but not limited to the Trojan War, being held captive, escaping Calypso’s custody, Poseidon destroying his raft, defeating the Cyclops, and escaping the Laestrygonians. In some of these specific instances, it is the gods specifically working against him. Poseidon returns from Ethiopia to hear that Odysseus has escaped Calypso’s captivity, and sends an earthquake to hurt him on his journey. This time, Poseidon specifically targets Odysseus. Later, Odysseus and his men leave the island of Aeolus with a gift in hand. This gift, in the possession of Odysseus, is opened by his crew while Odysseus slept which is a sign that they either don’t trust him or are very greedy. The ‘gift’ turns out to be a curse, and it created terrible weather, sending the boats back to the island. This time, King Aeolus doesn’t receive his guests with such grace. Instead, he says to Odysseus, “Away from my island – fast – most cursed man alive! It’s a crime to host a man or speed him on his way when the blessed deathless gods despise him so. Crawling back like this – it proves the immortals hate you!” (Book 10, Lines 79-83). This is obviously a curse of the gods that hurts him so often.
I agree that Odysseus is very much hated by the gods. I just really don’t understand why. Do you guys have any ideas or explanations? In other words, I see how it would be so, but I just don’t understand exactly what he has done to make him deserve this treatment.
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