es and calamities before finally make his great homecoming to Ithaka and Penelope. The names by which he is called, such as "Odysseus of the many designs," show that he is to be admired as much for his native cunning as for his strength and bravery. In nearly every way, Odysseus is a more complete and likeable figure than Achilles, and we cannot help admiring him even when he misbehaves. As the goddess Kalypso, with whom he dallies on one of the many stops on his voyage home, says to him affectionately, "You are so naughty... you will have your own way in all things" (Lattimore, 1968:93). Yet Odysseus tells his next hosts, Arete and Alkinoos, that neither Kalypso nor any other woman could ever win over his heart, which remains with Penelope and the home he has not seen in almost twenty years. As an epic hero, Odysseus can best be described as a brave and cunning figure who conquers with his brain when he cannot win with his brawn. He is also a man's man, beloved of men as well as women; Alkinoos' response to him is typical; the king and father of Nausikaa tells him shortly after they have met, "...how I wish that, being the man you are and thinking the way that I do, you could have my daughter and be called my son-in-law, staying here with me" (Lattimore, 1968:119). This cannot be, of course, but there is more than one suggestion that Odysseus is seriously tempted, not only by the various women he encounters in his long journey, but also by the prospects of new wealth and nobility. Odysseus has his tender side, too, and we often see him in a sentimental and homesick mood in spite of the many pleasurable incidents of his travels. In parting from Alkinoos, he reminds us of his fondest wish: "May I return to my house and find there a blameless wife, and all who are dear to me unharmed" (Lattimore, 1968:199). When Odysseus does finally reach his homeland, he finds not only Penelope, Telemakos and Laertes waiting for him, but a crowd o...
