Odysseus, An Egotistical Cretin

Odysseus tells Athena, whom he believes is a shepherd, a false account, of how he came to Ithaca, primarily since he needs to keep his identity a secret, familiarize himself with the situation on Ithaca and formulate a plan to execute the suitors. He perceives that he has arrived in a mist-shrouded and unknown land. And thus secondarily, he needs to present a feasible reason for being alone and stranded with copious amounts of treasure for safety reasons as well as to allay suspicion in relation to his identity. Athena affects how he tells his lie because he can see and listen to her. To manipulate her more effectively, Odysseus exploits these factors to produce a story specifically tailored to the information Athena provides.

Odysseus considers Athena’s, or the shepherd she appears to be, appearance and response to his inquiry about where he is; by doing this Odysseus can form ideas about her social status, her intelligence, her nationality, and if she is hostile and unwelcoming or friendly. He does with the intention of creating a lie that she will believe as well as of sending a clear message that fulfills his primary goals concerning the suitors and himself. Athena is masquerading as a young man, a shepherd “…like a King’s son, all delicately made.” and is holding a hunting lance. (Fitzgerald Book 13, Page 237, Line 282) From this physical appearance alone Odysseus first knows he is not a lord or royalty as he is a shepherd and obviously would not be out dressing as a shepherd if he were royal or wealthy. He also knows that the shepherd is most likely going to know the immediate area fairly well since he probably lives and tends animals in the region. Additionally, he notes that the shepherd is carrying a weapon an...

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...im to aid him, and placed himself in a position to make a move against the suitors. Regrettably, his meticulously well-crafted narrative is not exceptionally useful as Athena was the shepherd all along. She went to advise him, unnecessarily, not to disclose his identity and did not need to be convinced to help him. Athena thoroughly enjoys his lie because as the goddess of wisdom, she appreciates the cunning with which he has established an alternate identity. She then warns him about the suitors, disguises him, and sends him on his way. Unfortunately, for this particular instance, his story only functions to amuse and impress Athena. Had there actually been a shepherd, he would have placed himself in a remarkable position to manipulate the shepherd and move forward with slaughtering the suitors; at the small cost of portraying himself as an egotistical cretin.