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Odysseus: Difference between revisions
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Before the Trojan War, he was among those seeking to wed Helen, daughter of Zeus. He is credited with coming up with a plan to soothe the tensions among her contentious suitors. He proposed that all suitors must abide by Helen’s final decision in picking a husband and that each should swear an oath to protect the sanctity of this marriage, if it were ever threatened from outside (Herzberg 188). | Before the Trojan War, he was among those seeking to wed Helen, daughter of Zeus. He is credited with coming up with a plan to soothe the tensions among her contentious suitors. He proposed that all suitors must abide by Helen’s final decision in picking a husband and that each should swear an oath to protect the sanctity of this marriage, if it were ever threatened from outside (Herzberg 188). | ||
When this threat did come, from Paris of Troy, Odysseus was reluctant to fulfill the oath he had originally proposed. By this time he had wed Penelope, a cousin of Helen, and had a newborn son to care for. When the Greeks sent Palamedes to Ithaka to recruit their king, Odysseus faked madness in an attempt to dodge his pledged responsibilities. He | When this threat did come, from Paris of Troy, Odysseus was reluctant to fulfill the oath he had originally proposed. By this time he had wed Penelope, a cousin of Helen, and had a newborn son to care for. When the Greeks sent Palamedes to Ithaka to recruit their king, Odysseus faked madness in an attempt to dodge his pledged responsibilities. He hooked an ox and an ass to a plow, and began to sow salt down by the seashore | ||
(Herzberg 189). | |||
Palamedes saw through this trick and managed to get the better of wily Odysseus. He took up the infant Telemakhos and placed him in the path of the plow. When Odysseus turned away to avoid the boy, his sanity was proven (Herzberg 189). | Palamedes saw through this trick and managed to get the better of wily Odysseus. He took up the infant Telemakhos and placed him in the path of the plow. When Odysseus turned away to avoid the boy, his sanity was proven (Herzberg 189). | ||