Growth of Telemachus

Q Tabarestani, Worthely Burke, and Mason Mings                               The Kinkaid School

English 9-3                                                                                               November 8, 2012

The Evolution of Telemachus in The Odyssey

At the start of the Odyssey, the reader is introduced to Telemachus, son of the great Odysseus, and Homer provides a few characteristics that truly depict the character. First, the book describes Telemachus as a daydreaming man with a “heart obsessed with grief” among a crowd of dangerous suitors ready to kill him for the kingdom (Book 1: 133). He is also portrayed as being helpless and powerless which leads to his rather low self-esteem. He longs for his father to “drop from the clouds and drive these suitors” away from him and his lonely mother (Book 1: 135-136). On the other hand, when Athena arrives disguised as Mentor, Telemachus shows hospitality and generosity towards his guest. During this time, the suitors continue to mock and belittle him but “cool-headed Telemachus” remains calm and follows the instructions of Athena to set sail and find his father (Book 1: 445). As he prepares to leave, he begins to give orders to his followers and calls a full counsel which shows that his bravery and courage have increased slightly. He also is still immature because he continues to go to Athena for assistance and says, “leave me alone to pine away in anguish” which reiterates his inability to handle his issues. In addition, Athena gets annoyed by Telemachus and tells him not to speak anymore nonsense to the suitors. As the Book 4 progresses, Homer begins to describe Telemachus as “clear-sighted” and demanding as he searches for clues on the location of his father (Book 4: 325). He is said to have a “newfound tact” or sense of diplomacy (Book 4: 667). Overall, at the end of his search for Odysseus, Telemachus truly shows a  different side of his character with new abilities such as maturity, courage, and self-esteem which is shown throughout his dialogue with the kings and Athena.

  After Telemachus returns home to Ithaca and is convinced that the beggar in disguise is Odysseus, the reader sees another growth of Telemachus that can be interpreted in several ways. First, we see a more cunning Telemachus that “[maneuvers] shrewdly” and mocks the suitors into trying to string the bow (Book 20: 285). He also builds the strength to defend his father in the presence of sardonic suitors and Telemachus does not even take into account their attitude towards him. Once the slaughter begins, which he also took a major role in planning, he stands by his father with persistent courage and massacres most of the sin committing suitors. However, in Book 23, Telemachus shows a little immaturity towards his mother when he says, “cruel mother, you with your hard heart” because she has not yet embraced her husband (Book 23: 112). He does not realize what she is planning and jumps to conclusions like many young teenagers do in modern times. All in all, through books 20-24, Telemachus demonstrates his loyalty towards his father, immaturity to his astonished mother, and the strength to overpower the suitors who had ruined his life for many long years. He truly grew as the story progressed from a lonely, spineless, and weak boy to a strong, diligent, and witty young man.