STORIES FROM THE ODYSSEY Retold by H. L. HAVELL B.A. Late Reader in English in the University of Halle Formerly Scholar of University College Oxford Author of _Stories from Herodotus_, _Stories from Greek Tragedy_, _Stories from the Æneid_, _Stories from the Iliad_, etc. [Illustration: Reading from Homer] "O well for him whose will is strong! He suffers, but he will not suffer long; He suffers, but he cannot suffer wrong: For him nor moves the loud world's random mock Nor all Calamity's hugest waves confound Who seems a promontory of rock, That compass'd round with turbulent sound In middle ocean meets the surging shock, Tempest-buffeted, citadel-crown'd." TENNYSON CONTENTS INTRODUCTION TELEMACHUS, PENELOPE, AND THE SUITORS THE ASSEMBLY; THE VOYAGE OF TELEMACHUS THE VISIT TO NESTOR AT PYLOS TELEMACHUS AT SPARTA ODYSSEUS AND CALYPSO ODYSSEUS AMONG THE PHÆACIANS THE WANDERINGS OF ODYSSEUS THE VISIT TO HADES THE SIRENS; SCYLLA AND CHARYBDIS; THRINACIA ODYSSEUS LANDS IN ITHACA ODYSSEUS AND EUMÆUS THE RETURN OF TELEMACHUS THE MEETING OF TELEMACHUS AND ODYSSEUS THE HOME-COMING OF ODYSSEUS THE BEGGAR IRUS PENELOPE AND THE WOOERS ODYSSEUS AND PENELOPE THE END DRAWS NEAR; SIGNS AND WONDERS THE BOW OF ODYSSEUS THE SLAYING OF THE WOOERS ODYSSEUS AND PENELOPE CONCLUSION PRONOUNCING LIST OF NAMES ILLUSTRATIONS READING FROM HOMER (L. Alma Tadema) PENELOPE (The Vatican, Rome) TELEMACHUS DEPARTING FROM NESTOR (Henry Howard) ODYSSEUS AND NAUSICAÄ (Charles Gleyre) ODYSSEUS AND POLYPHEMUS (J. M. W. Turner) CIRCE (Sir E. Burne-Jones) THE RETURN OF ODYSSEUS (L. F. Schützenberger) ODYSSEUS AND EURYCLEIA (Christian G. Heyne) INTRODUCTION The impersonal character of the Homeric poems has left us entirely in the dark as to the birthplace, the history, and the date, of their author. So complete is the darkness which surrounds the name of Homer that his very existence has been disputed, and his works have been declared to be an ingenious compilation, drawn from the productions of a multitude of singers. It is not my intention here to enter into the endless and barren controversy which has raged round this question. It will be more to the purpose to try and form some general idea of the characteristics of the Greek Epic; and to do this it is necessary to give a brief review of the political and social conditions in which it was produced. I