False Homecomings in the Odyssey

The majority of the Odyssey is an account of Odysseus' adventures (or, rather, misadventures) trying to reach his homeland of Ithaka. Several of these adventures are false homecomings, the most prominent of which is his imprisonment on Kalypso's island. This false homecoming is strikingly different from what one would expect of Odysseus' real homecoming, but similar enough for parallels to be drawn between the two. Homer uses this false homecoming to foreshadow Odysseus' true homecoming. …

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