Ulysses. Called "Odysseus" by the Greeks, one of the principal Greek heroes in the Trojan War, was a son of Laertes, or, according to a later tradition, of Sisyphus, and was married to Penelope, the daughter of Icarius, by whom he became the father of Telemachus. During the siege of Troy he distinguished himself by his valor, prudence, and eloquence, and after the death of Achilles, contended for his armor with the Telamonian Ajax, and gained the prize. He is said by some to have devised the stratagem of the wooden horse. The most celebrated part of his story comes after the Trojan War. Among his adventures he entered the cave of the Cyclops and escaped with some sheep. One of the gods gave to him a bag of winds which should carry him home, but the winds were let loose and his ships driven to an island inhabited by the sorceress Circe. After many wanderings and strange adventures, a ship was provided to convey him to Ithaca, from which he had been absent twenty years. During his absence his father Laertes, in grief and old age, had withdrawn into the country; his mother Anticlea had died; his son Telemachus grown to manhood and his wife Penelope had rejected all the offers that had been made to her by the importunate suitors from the neighboring islands. In order that he might not be recognized, Athena metamorphosed Ulysses into an unsightly beggar. He was kindly received by Eumaeus, the swineherd, made himself known to him, and a plan of revenge was resolved on. Penelope, with great difficulty, was made to promise her hand to him who should conquer the others in shooting with the bow of Ulysses. As none of the suitors were able to draw this bow, Ulysses himself took it up, and, directing his arrows against the suitors, slew them all. Ulysses now made himself known to Penelope. The people rose in arms against Ulysses; but Athena, who assumed the appearance of Mentor brought about a reconciliation.
