Fate of the Suitors explained

What happens

Themes in this chapter

• Fate and Free Will

  Ulysses' return and the suitors' downfall are guided by divine intervention (Minerva) yet also by Ulysses' own cunning and actions.

• Hospitality and Its Violation

  The suitors violate the sacred code of hospitality by consuming Ulysses' wealth and disrespecting his household, leading to their punishment.

• Jealousy and Revenge

  Ulysses' vengeance against the suitors is driven by their usurpation of his home and their mistreatment of his family.

Characters to notice

• Ulysses

  Returns to Ithaca after twenty years, disguised as a beggar by Minerva; reunites with Telemachus and slays the suitors.

• Minerva

  Appears to Ulysses as a young shepherd, informs him of the situation at his palace, and metamorphoses him into a beggar; later directs him to reveal himself to Telemachus.

• Telemachus

  Son of Ulysses, returns from searching for his father; assists in the plan to defeat the suitors and helps Ulysses in the final battle.

• Penelope

  Wife of Ulysses, who has been besieged by suitors for years; she agrees to a trial of archery to decide her suitor.

• Eumaeus

  Faithful swineherd who receives Ulysses in disguise and later aids in the attack on the suitors.

Key passages

• “Then threw Telemachus His arms around his father's neck and wept. Desire intense of lamentation seized On both; soft murmurs uttering, each indulged His grief.”

  Telemachus embraced his father and both wept deeply, overcome with emotion.

  The reunion of Ulysses and Telemachus after twenty years.

• “Soon as he perceived Long-lost Ulysses nigh, down fell his ears Clapped close, and with his tail glad sign he gave Of gratulation, impotent to rise, And to approach his master as of old. Ulysses, noting him, wiped off a tear Unmarked. ... Then his destiny released Old Argus, soon as he had lived to see Ulysses in the twentieth year restored.”

  Ulysses' old dog Argus recognized him and wagged his tail in joy, but was too weak to approach; Ulysses shed a tear, and Argus died content after seeing his master again.

  The touching moment of recognition between Ulysses and his faithful dog Argus.

• “Come, my friends, 'Tis not too late to seek a newer world. Push off, and sitting well in order smite The sounding furrows; for my purpose holds To sail beyond the sunset, and the baths Of all the western stars, until I die.”

  Ulysses urges his companions to join him in seeking new adventures, sailing beyond the known world until the end of his life.

  From Tennyson's poem, reflecting Ulysses' restless spirit after his return.