Circe (Book 10)

Locations

Aolia (Incest Island)

Place of Aeolus (God of winds). Odysseus is greeted with great Xenia, Aeolus gives him a gift of winds in a bag To allow them to get to Ithaca without trouble. After 9 days of sailing Odysseus hasn’t slept as he is scared his crew will open the bag. As soon as he falls asleep his crew grow curious of what’s in the bag, so they open it and the winds drag them back to Aolia. Aeolus doesn’t allow them to stay because he thinks they are cursed by the Gods, so they leave.

Telepylus (Laestrygonians)

Place with a harbour, protected from the ocean, all ships except Odysseus’ go into the harbour. Odysseus sees smoke and sends 3 men to check it out. The Laestrygonians are cannibals and so kill all the men in the harbour (11 ships). Only Odysseus’ ship makes it out.

Aeaea (Circe)

Tired from escaping they relax at the beach for 2 days. Odysseus sees smoke and sends an exploring party. Their crew split in 2, with Odysseus and Eurylochus as leaders. Eurylochus’ crew are sent to Circe’s Palace where they see domestic wolves and lions. Polites says they should go in, all of the men go in but Eurylochus. Circe gives them a meal with drugs to turn them into pigs. Eurylochus flees back to the boat and tells Odysseus. Eurylochus supplicates at Odysseus, begging for him not to go back. Odysseus let’s him stay and goes after his men. Odysseus kills a stag and meets Hermes who gives him moly (antidote for Circe drugs), and tells him to appear like he’s going to kill her till she offers to sleep with him. Before they sleep together she must swear to not hurt him. Everything goes to plan, Circe recognises Odysseus because Hermes told her this would happen. After receiving xenia from Circe she asks why Odysseus is upset, Odysseus asks her to free his men. After Circe turns the men back into humans she tells Odysseus to invite the rest of his men to her palace.

(a year passes)

Odysseus’ men convinced him that they should leave. Circe says that he needs to go to the underworld and talk to Teiresias (Theban prophet). Circe instructs them to go down and sacrifice a black ewe to Hades & Persephone and that Teiresias will tell them about the journey. The crew meet Elpenor, one of their men who died from falling off Circe’s roof, they go back to give him a proper burial