Telemachus


 * Telemachus (Telemachos)

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 * Basic Information**

Telemachus (literally, "far-away fighter") was born in Ithaca a few years before the Trojan War began. He was the son of Odysseus and Penelope. He was the Prince of Itaca because his father was the King and his mother was the Queen.


 * Early Life**

Because Odysseus was under the Oath of Tyndareus, King Agamemnon sent Palamedes to tell him that he should join them in taking back Helen from Paris of Troy. Odysseus did not want to join the war which led to him pretending to be a mad man. When Palamedes threatened to kill the infant Telemachus, Odysseus revealed that he is not mad, and he will join the war.



Because Odysseus was fighting in Troy for 10 years and wandering home for another 10 years, Telemachus grew up not knowing his father, but he knew his name because his mother told him it was Odysseus. He also grew up trying to find out who his father is even if some may assume that he was dead.


 * The Suitors of Penelope and The Quest for his Father

Since a lot of people thought Odysseus was dead, many young suitors came to marry the queen old enough to be their mother. These young men only wanted the riches Queen Penelope had. They even lived and ate at the palace.

Telemachus was then visited by Athena who favored him in the form of Mentor. As Mentor, Athena told Telemachus to search for his lost father by telling him where to go- Pylos and Lacedaemon **. After a long search with the help of King Nestor's son Pisistratus, Telemachus finds out that his father is being held captive in Calypso. When he returns, he visits the swineherd Eumaeus under the prompting of Athena, and discovers that the beggar staying with the swineherd at the time is indeed his father. He then accompanies Odysseus and the swineherd into the hall where they kill all the suitors.



When Penelope challenges the suitors to string Odysseus' bow and shoot an arrow through twelve axeheads, Telemachus is the first to attempt the task. He would have completed the task; however, Odysseus stops him before he can finish his attempt. Following the failure of the suitors at this task, Odysseus reveals himself, and he and Telemachus bring swift and bloody death to the suitors.



Short Video [|Slaying of The Suitors] media type="youtube" key="cWaHqiKjzWY" height="385" width="640" Here's a visual aid of what more or less happened and why it happened. Note: Greeks did not use the Sai(s).


 * Characteristics**

Because Telemachus sheltered by his mother most of his life, he he has not gained the masculinity that comes with adulthood. For instance, when Telemachus calls the people of Ithaca for council in the square, after telling the people of his plight, he bursts into tears.

He gained his masculinity at the end of the story when he returns to Ithaca. This is manifested in the way he joined is father in the slaying of the suitors.


 * Role**

Although Telemachus isn't the main protagonist of the Odyssey, he is truly one of the important characters because he is the one responsible for bringing back his father's former honor and glory. He is seen as a weak character at the start, but then he turned into a role model who earned is place in Greek society.

He is shy and humble. (Nestor's son had to tell his father that Telemachus was in fact the son of the hero, Odysseus.)


 * Trivia**

Telemachus is favored by Athena.

There is a St. Telemachus who tried to stop a gladiator fight and got stoned to death.

Telemachus is a character in Ulysses 31- an anime based on the Odyssey in a futuristic setting.



= **SUMMARY OF HIS STORY** =

==Telemachus is the prince of Ithaca because he is the son of King Odysseus and Queen Penelope. Because his father fought at the Trojan War for ten years and was lost at sea for another ten years, he grew up without a father and people started to assume his father was dead. Now, Queen Penelope was thought to be widowed which is why lots of suitors came to marry her for her riches. Telemachus was advised by Athena in the form of Mentor to go to Pylos and Lacedaemon where she believed Telemachus would get help because his father was a hero. After asking around for a long period of time, Athena tells him to go to the swineherd, Eumaeus. He meets with the beggar who hangs out with the swineherd, and finds out that he is in fact his father, Odysseus. (This is the Climax of the Story.) As father and son, they return to the palace to slay all the suitors.==


 * Sources

Information

http://www.mlahanas.de/Greeks/Mythology/Telemachus.html http://www.pantheon.org/articles/t/telemachus.html http://homepage.mac.com/cparada/GML/Telemachus.html

Images

http://dayya.files.wordpress.com/2009/02/waterhouse_penelope_and_the_suitors.jpg

http://www.mlahanas.de/Greeks/Mythology/Images/FlMentorTelemachus.jpg

http://www.mainlesson.com/books/church/odyssey/zpage273.gif

http://library.thinkquest.org/04oct/00018/Cosmic%20Odyssey/synopsis/telemachusbig.jpg

Video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cWaHqiKjzWY**