Summary: Book 12

Odysseus returns to Aeaea to bury Elpenor and spends one last night with Circe. She foretells the obstacles that he will face on his way back home. She also explains him the ways on how to counter them. As he sets sail, Odysseus briefs his men about Circe’s advice. As they approach the island of lovely Sirens, Odysseus, as advised by Circe, plugs his men’s ears with beeswax and asks them to bind him to the mast of the ship. He alone hears the songs coming from the island, promising to reveal the future. The Sirens’ song is so seductive that Odysseus begs to be released from his chains but his faithful crew only binds him tighter.

Once they have crossed the Sirens’ island, Odysseus and his crew must navigate the straits between Scylla and Charybdis. Scylla is a six-headed monster who, when ships pass, devours one sailor for each head. Charybdis, on the other hand, is an enormous whirlpool that can swallow the entire ship. Odysseus sticks his course against the cliffs of Scylla’s lair. As he and his crew stare at Charybdis on the other side of the strait, the heads of Scylla swoop down and eat up six sailors.

Odysseus next reaches Thrinacia, the island of sun. He wants to avoid it entirely, but Eurylochus, the outspoken crew member, persuades him to let his crew take rest.  A storm keeps them stranded for a month. At first, the crew survives on its provisions in the ship. When the provisions run out, Eurylochus instigates the crew members to disobey Odysseus and slaughter the cattle of Sun. They do so one afternoon when Odysseus is sleeping; when the sun finds out, he directs Zeus to punish Odysseus and his men. As soon as the Achaeans set sail from Thrinacia, Zeus brews up another storm, which destroys the ship and drowns the entire crew to death. Only Odysseus survives, and just barely. He is swept all the way back to Charybdis, where he escapes narrowly for the second time.
He eventually reaches Ogygia, Calypso’s island, afloat on the timbers of his ship. Here Odysseus breaks from his story and tells the Phaeacians that he sees no reason to repeat his experiences on Ogygia.

Summary: Book 13

After finishing his account of his wanderings, Odysseus looks forward to leaving Scheria. The next day, Alcinous loads gifts on the ship that will carry Odysseus to Ithaca. As soon as the sun goes down, Odysseus sets sail for home. He sleeps the whole night, while the Phaeacian crew steer the ship. He remains asleep even when the ship reaches Ithaca the next morning. The crew gently carries Odysseus to the shore along with his gifts and then set out for their return journey. On seeing Odysseus in Ithaca, Poseidon is enraged at the Phaeacians for assisting his nemesis. He complains to Zeus, who allows him to punish the Phaeacians. Just as the ship with the Phaeacian crew is about to reach Scheria, the prophecy mentioned at the end of Book 8 is fulfilled. The ship suddenly turns to stone and sinks to the bottom of the sea. The onlookers ashore realise that the prophecy has been fulfilled. Taking a lesson, they resolve to abandon their custom of helping wayward travelers.

Back in Ithaca, Odysseus wakes up to find himself in a country which he doesn’t recognise. Athena has covered it in mist to conceal its true form while she plans his next move. At first, he curses the Phaeacians, thinking that they have dumped him in some unknown land. But Athena, disguised as a shepherd, meets him and confirms that he is in Ithaca. Odysseus acts to conceal his identity from her until she reveals hers. Athena is impressed with Odysseus’ tricks and declares that it is time for him to punish the suitors. She guides Odysseus to hide in the hut of his swineherd, Eumaeus. Athena also informs Odysseus that Telemachus has gone in search of him. She gives him the appearance of an old vagabond so that no one recognises him.

Summary: Book 14

Odysseus meets Eumaeus outside his hut but the swineherd fails to recognise his master. Still, he invites the withered traveler inside his hut. Odysseus has a hearty meal of pork and listens as Eumaeus heaps praise upon the memory of his former master. He fears Odysseus is lost for good and scorns upon the behavior of his new masters, the vile suitors. Odysseus expresses hope that Eumaeus will see his master again quite soon, but Eumaeus does not believe him. He has met too many vagabonds looking for a handout from Penelope in return for the concocted news of Odysseus. Still, the swineherd is sympathetic to his guest and puts him up for the night. He even lends Odysseus a cloak to keep out the cold. When Eumaeus enquires the traveler about his origin, Odysseus tells a lie that he is from Crete. He fought with Odysseus at Troy and made it home safely, he claims. But later on, a trip to Egypt went awry, and he was reduced to poverty. It was during this trip that he heard that Odysseus was still alive.