The role of disguise in the odyssey
Book DESCRIPTION EVIDENCE
Athene disguises herself as Mentes and travels to ‘She assumed the appearance of a family
1 Ithaca and advises Telemachus to go to Pylos and friend, the Taphian chieftain mentes, bronze
Sparta to find out information about his father. spear in hand’
Athene Disguises Telemachus’ childlike and weak ‘Athene endowed him with such supernatural
2 features, and covers him with beauty and grace that all eyes were turned on him in
manhood. admiration when he came up’
Athene appears as Mentor to Telemachus as he ‘Athene drew near to him, and assuming the
walks away at the end of the Ithacan assembly. form and voice of Mentor, addressed him’
Then she disguises herself as Telemachus and ‘Disguising herself as Telemachus, she went
goes among the Ithacan asking to their help as he through the town, picked out her twenty men
journeys to Pylos and Sparta. She does this to and passed them each the word to forgather
secure a ship from Noemon and crew head for the good ship at nightfall’
Pylos.
It could be said that she disguises the suitors wits ‘and lulled the suitors into a state of pleasant
and intelligence to allow Telemachus to escape drowsiness, clouding their wits as they drank’
Then to avoid the suitors Athena again takes the ‘Athene, assuming mentors form and voice
appearance of Mentor and urges Telemachus to once more’
set sail.
Athena as Mentor visits Nestor with Telemachus ‘As she finished, bright-eyed Athene took the
3 and transforms herself into a vulture in front of form of a vulture and flew off’
them to show the favour of the Gods are upon
Telemachus.
Proteus, the old man of the sea In book 4 is ‘He will try all kinds of transformations, and
4 described to have shapeshifted to Menelaus, change himself into every sort of beast on
taking the form of a seal, water and fire. earth, and into water and blazing fire’
Athena appears to Penelope in a dream as her ‘Athene now had another idea. King Icasrius
sister Iphthime. had another daughter besides Penelope, called
Ipthime’
‘The goddess made a phantom now, exactly
like this woman and sent it to Odysseus’ palace
to save the unhappy weeping queen’
Athene disguises Odysseus’ weakness with ‘Athene put into his head to grab hold of a rock
5 wisdom when faced with how to survive the with both hands as he was swept in’/ ‘there
rocks surrounding Scheria. the unhappy man would of come to a
predestined end, If Athene had not given him a
good idea’
Odysseus uses a tree branch to cover his naked ‘after breaking off with his great hand a leafy
self when approaching the Princess Nausicaa of bough from the thicket to conceal his naked
the Phaeacians manhood’
Book DESCRIPTION EVIDENCE
Athene disguises herself as Mentes and travels to ‘She assumed the appearance of a family
1 Ithaca and advises Telemachus to go to Pylos and friend, the Taphian chieftain mentes, bronze
Sparta to find out information about his father. spear in hand’
Athene Disguises Telemachus’ childlike and weak ‘Athene endowed him with such supernatural
2 features, and covers him with beauty and grace that all eyes were turned on him in
manhood. admiration when he came up’
Athene appears as Mentor to Telemachus as he ‘Athene drew near to him, and assuming the
walks away at the end of the Ithacan assembly. form and voice of Mentor, addressed him’
Then she disguises herself as Telemachus and ‘Disguising herself as Telemachus, she went
goes among the Ithacan asking to their help as he through the town, picked out her twenty men
journeys to Pylos and Sparta. She does this to and passed them each the word to forgather
secure a ship from Noemon and crew head for the good ship at nightfall’
Pylos.
It could be said that she disguises the suitors wits ‘and lulled the suitors into a state of pleasant
and intelligence to allow Telemachus to escape drowsiness, clouding their wits as they drank’
Then to avoid the suitors Athena again takes the ‘Athene, assuming mentors form and voice
appearance of Mentor and urges Telemachus to once more’
set sail.
Athena as Mentor visits Nestor with Telemachus ‘As she finished, bright-eyed Athene took the
3 and transforms herself into a vulture in front of form of a vulture and flew off’
them to show the favour of the Gods are upon
Telemachus.
Proteus, the old man of the sea In book 4 is ‘He will try all kinds of transformations, and
4 described to have shapeshifted to Menelaus, change himself into every sort of beast on
taking the form of a seal, water and fire. earth, and into water and blazing fire’
Athena appears to Penelope in a dream as her ‘Athene now had another idea. King Icasrius
sister Iphthime. had another daughter besides Penelope, called
Ipthime’
‘The goddess made a phantom now, exactly
like this woman and sent it to Odysseus’ palace
to save the unhappy weeping queen’
Athene disguises Odysseus’ weakness with ‘Athene put into his head to grab hold of a rock
5 wisdom when faced with how to survive the with both hands as he was swept in’/ ‘there
rocks surrounding Scheria. the unhappy man would of come to a
predestined end, If Athene had not given him a
good idea’
Odysseus uses a tree branch to cover his naked ‘after breaking off with his great hand a leafy
self when approaching the Princess Nausicaa of bough from the thicket to conceal his naked
the Phaeacians manhood’
