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In this book of The Odyssey, Odysseus and his crew are met with more violence and more temptations of bounteous food and witchcraft.
After escaping Polyphemus, the cyclops, Odysseus and his ships reach the well-fortified floating island of Aeolus. King Aeolus has six sons and six daughters and has married them to each other. Aeolus’ people constantly feast. Aeolus hosts Odysseus and his men for an entire month. When it is time for them to leave, he gives Odysseus a sack that contains all the winds trapped inside, except the west. Zeus has made Aeolus a master of all the winds. Aeolus gives Odysseus’ ships the west wind to set sail for home.
They sail nine days and actually come within sight of Ithaca. Odysseus is tired, having taken charge of the navigation for the whole nine days, and falls asleep. Meanwhile, some of Odysseus’ men who have become jealous plot against Odysseus. They suspect that Aeolus has given Odysseus treasures which they think he is hoarding for himself. They find the sack containing the winds and open it. The winds burst out. They drive all of Odysseus’ ships back to Aeolus’ Island. They land and once more head to Aeolus’ palace where they find the king and his court feasting, as usual. Odysseus begs for Aeolus’ help. But this time the king is not so welcoming. He assumes that Odysseus and his men must have been cursed by some god for them to have suffered such ill luck, and he believes it will be a crime to host them in such circumstances. Odysseus and his men have no option but to leave the island.
They row another six days and come to the Laestrygonians’ land, Telepylus. It is a place of cattle and sheep farmers. Odysseus’ fleet anchor in the harbour while Odysseus anchors his ship just outside the harbour. Odysseus scales a high rock to look inland. He sees a plume of smoke. He sends three men to investigate. They come across King Antiphates’ daughter. They question her and she directs them to her father’s palace. There, they encounter a huge woman who summons King Antiphates. He grabs one of the men and tears him apart to eat. The other two men escape back to the ships. The king lets out a roar which warns other Laestrygonians. They swarm down to the harbour. The Laestrygonians are a giant-like race, and they fling huge rocks at the ships and skewer the crews with spears. They take their victims home to eat. Meanwhile, Odysseus sees what is happening and cuts his anchor rope to escape. His is the only ship to evade destruction.
Odysseus and his men now reach Aeaea, the island of Circe. Odysseus again scales a high crag and again sees smoke inland. He resolves to first feed his men and then send them out to scout. He hunts and kills a huge stag and presents that to his men to lift their spirits, saying “we won’t go down to the House of Death, not yet” [Book 10, line 192], which we later see turns out to be ironic foreshadowing. Odysseus and his men feast on the stag and then sleep. The next morning Odysseus tells his men that the directions of east and west can’t be determined on the island. It is difficult to determine the sun’s position here. It is obviously a strange light. He suggests his men go to investigate the source of the smoke he has seen. The men are fearful at this suggestion, given their recent experience. Odysseus splits his men into two groups, one to be led by himself, the other by Eurylochus. Eurylochus’ group is chosen by lot to investigate the smoke. The group of men is in tears as they leave to go on their mission. They come to Circe’s palace. Wolves and lions, bewitched with drugs by Circe, roam about the grounds of the palace. They nuzzle at the men but do not attack. Eurylochus’ men find Circe in the palace weaving at a great loom. Polites, a captain, urges the men to call to Circe. They do. Circe opens her doors and welcomes them. Only Eurylochus refuses her hospitality. Circe mixes a potion for the men which wipes away their memories of home. She then strikes them with her wand and turns them into pigs.
Eurylochus runs back to the ship. He can barely speak; he is so overcome with emotion. Finally, he recounts to Odysseus what has happened. Odysseus demands to be led back to the palace, but Eurylochus is too fearful. Odysseus sets out for Circe’s halls alone. But first, he is met by the god Hermes, who appears as a young man. Hermes warns Odysseus about what has happened to his men, and tells him that Odysseus will suffer the same fate if he is not careful. He offers Odysseus a drug made from a plant, moly, which will act as an antidote to Circe’s potion. He advises Odysseus to use it. Once Circe’s spell fails, he tells Odysseus, he must threaten Circe with his sword, and she will then cower and offer to take him to bed. But Odysseus must first make Circe swear an oath, not to try to harm him further or take away his courage, and she must release his men.
Odysseus enters Circe’s palace and all goes according to Hermes’ prediction. When Odysseus fails to turn into a pig Circe is wonderstruck. She realises he must be Odysseus whom Hermes has previously warned her will come. She suggests that Odysseus go to bed with her, but Odysseus first demands she swear an oath not to plot against him again. She swears the oath. Then Circe’s handmaids bring in silver tables and golden trays and cups, as well as bread and wine, while a blazing fire is made to heat water. Circe bathes and soothes Odysseus, and then Odysseus is encouraged to eat. But he has no desire for food. Circe is offended. She thinks Odysseus still distrusts her. He says he will eat if his men are restored to their normal forms and released. So, Circe goes to the pens where the men are held as pigs and transforms them back to men, except now they are stronger, taller and younger looking than before. Circe then tells Odysseus to return to his ship, beach it properly and stow his cargo safely in a cave, before returning to her.
When Odysseus returns to the ship the men waiting there greet him tearfully. They are eager to hear about the fate of their comrades. Odysseus orders them to haul the ship ashore and stow their cargo in caves, and tells them they must return with him to Circe’s halls. They all follow his orders willingly, except Eurylochus, who fears to return, believing it is another trap. Odysseus becomes so enraged at him that he considers cutting Eurylochus’ head off. He has to be restrained by his men. The men suggest that Eurylochus can stay and guard the ship. Even so, Eurylochus follows them when they leave.
When they reach Circe’s palace they find she has been looking after Odysseus’ crew. The crew have been bathed and fed. Circe says she understands the tribulations they have suffered on the open sea. She says they are burned out husks and their spirit and courage must be restored. She urges them to eat from the feast she has provided. They do. A year goes by like this. Some captains finally approach Odysseus to make a move towards leaving the island. Odysseus goes to Circe and pleads to return home.
Circe says Odysseus and his men should not stay against their will. But first, she tells Odysseus, he must travel to the Underworld to the House of Death, to find blind Tiresias who will tell them how to return home. She explains to Odysseus how to find the way into the Underworld, and says that while they are in the Underworld they must make libations to the dead which the dead must not enjoy until they have questioned Tiresias.
The next morning they leave Circe’s Island, but not before Elpenor, who has gotten drunk the night before and slept upon the roof of Circe’s palace, dies. Startled awake that morning, he has forgotten where he is and has leapt off the roof, breaking his neck.
As they prepare to begin their journey, Odysseus tells the men about their mission to the House of Death. The men are distraught. Meanwhile, before they leave, Circe tethers a ram and black ewe close by the ship without the men seeing her do it.
Odysseus’ journey from the island of the Cyclopes seems to go well, initially. King Aeolus’ help sees Odysseus almost return to Ithaca, only to have his fleet cruelly blown back. From there, things only get worse. I have numbered the stages of the journey for clarity:
For Book 9 of The Odyssey I discussed the idea of the ‘Natural Man’ and the ‘Natural World’ which are recurring themes in this story. I used the term ‘Natural World’ rather than ‘Utopia’ because of the connotations that word has of perfection. By the use of ‘Natural World’ I meant to describe a place that is free of privation; a place where its inhabitants live without effort or want. Because of the fecund or bountiful nature of these kinds of places, there has been little need to develop a system of rules and laws which govern them. For a fuller explanation, return to the page for Book 9 of The Odyssey.
Book 10 continues themes and repeats motifs found in earlier books of The Odyssey. For instance, this idea of a bounteous ‘natural world’ is again visited.
We are told that the island inhabited by King Aeolus and his people is a ‘floating island’. Some modern artists interpret this detail as meaning that the island floats in the air, like the Hallelujah Mountains on Pandora in the film Avatar. Rather, I think of it as more like Sea Star Island from the 1967 film, Doctor Dolittle, which floats in the sea. The island must float in the sea since Odysseus and his men are able to land on it. But Homer’s description has a mythic quality. We sense that the island is isolated and self-sufficient in a way that would normally be impossible. We are told,
Presumably the island would be hard to find if it floats about, which would make trade with other nations difficult, too. But this does not seem to be a trading nation. The islands “sheer rock cliffs” and “ramparts of indestructible bronze” suggest it is a place ideally situated to keep the world out rather than engage with it. And this impression is supported by other details we learn about this society. We learn that King Aeolus has six sons and six daughters whom he has married off to each other, rather than seek matches with other suitable men and women from other kingdoms. As modern readers, our first thought will turn to the issue of incest, but it is possible that Homer is using this detail to emphasise the sense of an isolated nation. This sense of isolation is supported by the fact that this is also a place of plenty, as we have seen in other places described so far in the The Odyssey. We are told the island has “delicacies aplenty” and the island’s inhabitants “feast on forever . . . All day long / the halls breathe the savour of roasted meats . . .” [lines 11 – 12] The island of Aeolus is bountiful enough that it can host Odysseus and his crews for an entire month without any apparent problem.
Like the Phaeacians, King Aeolus, we might presume, attributes his perfect situation to the gods, since he is loathe to offend them when he suspects that Odysseus is under some curse. Instead of helping him a second time, he turns Odysseus away.
The Laestrygonians bear some resemblance to the cyclopes, from whom Odysseus and his men have recently escaped. There are obvious comparisons to be made. Both are a giant race with a propensity for violence and cannibalism. Like the cyclops, Polyphemus, the Laestrygonians use boulders to hurl at Odysseus’ ships, except they are sighted and they have more success.
They are also a society of shepherds. Polyphemus keeps goats and sheep in his cave at night and shepherds his sheep in the pastures during the day. Of the Laestrygonian land, we are told it is a place:
This bucolic idyll is the only apparent industry we know that sustains the cyclopes and the Laestrygonians.
There is small detail in the Laestrygonian plot which mirrors Odysseus’ experience as he approaches Alcinous’ palace in Book 6. Homer lulls us into a false sense of security by replicating the meeting with Nausicaa, with the meeting of the unnamed girl, King Antiphates daughter’, who is drawing water when Odysseus’ men meet her. Like Nausicaa, she directs them to her father’s palace. But instead of receiving welcome upon arriving, they are attacked.
Little more is known about the Laestrygonians. Unlike the cyclopes who do not seem to have a leader and live more as an anarchic collective, the Laestrygonians have a king. However, since the episode with them is so brief, we learn nothing of their society or laws, except they, too, must be an isolated people, judging by the unprovoked violence they inflict on Odysseus’ men. Like the cyclops, Polyphemus, they obviously do not respect the customs of xenia, a term which encompasses the rules and customs of hospitality afforded to visitors and strangers.
There are obvious comparisons to be made between Circe and Calypso. However, we must remember that at the point in time that Odysseus meets Circe, he has not yet met Calypso. As Homer’s audience, we know of Calypso because the narrative is non-linear. This story is being told to King Alcinous and the Phaeacians after Odysseus has left Calypso’s island, Ogygia.
Both Circe and Calypso practise sorcery, and they are the only two women who seduce Odysseus on his journey home by using sorcery or by benefitting from the bargaining power sorcery has given them.
Both Calypso and Circe are able to introduce Odysseus to an enticing ‘Natural World’ of plenty. When Odysseus returns to Circe’s halls with the men who had been left at the ship, he finds the men formerly turned into pigs are now “feasting in her halls”. This continues:
Though Circe has no apparent industry or trade, her world represents another place of plenty, producing sustenance for Odysseus’ crew for an extended period of time. It is another place of ease, free of responsibility or toil.
There is also some comparison to be made between Odysseus’ experience on Circe’s island, Aeaea, and the land of the Lotus Eaters of Book 9. The effect of the drug Circe first administers to Odysseus’ men has, for all practical purposes, the same effect as the Lotus flowers. Of the effect of the Lotus flowers we are told:
In this instance the men become lethargic and lose any sense of responsibility to their crew or their families at home.
Of Circe’s potion we are told that,
Circe’s potion has the same influence as the Lotus flowers. In both instances Odysseus and his men are tempted to forget their mission which is to return to their families.
Circe’s strategy of bewitchment is abandoned because of the oath she swears to Odysseus. But we see that the promise of an easeful life has nearly the same effect upon them. They waste another year on her island, forgetting their mission to return home.
Book 10 is a microcosm of The Odyssey, just as Book 9 is. The repetition of themes and motifs show that Odysseus and his crew face two fundamental threats that strike at their core purpose: to return home. The first threat is in the form of violence from races like the cyclopes and the Laestrygonians. The second threat is more subtle, since it resides in the enticements offered in lands that make the men forget their mission and their homes: places of plenty which offer lives of ease which seem preferable to lives of toil and responsibility to which they are sworn to return.
As Odysseus introduces Circe into his story, he describes her as “the true sister of murderous-minded Aeetes” [line 151].
Aeetes is the subject of another famous mythological tale. Aeetes was the King of Colchis. He was given the Golden Fleece by Phrixus, who had been saved by a golden ram sent by Nephele, his mother. His stepmother had plotted to have Phrixus and his sister, Helle, sacrificed, to placate the gods for a famine that she had, in fact, orchestrated. Helle died during the escape, but Phrixus survived because Aeetes sheltered him and even gave him his daughter in marriage. Phrixus gave the Golden Fleece from the ram that saved him to Aeetes in gratitude.
Jason and his crew of Argonauts (the men who sailed in the ship The Argo) set out on a mission to steal the Golden Fleece from Aeetes. Aeetes agreed to give the Fleece to Jason if he accomplished several tasks. In the end, Jason fled with the Golden Fleece and Aeetes’ daughter, Medea. Among others, Medea would later kill their two sons in vengeance for Jason leaving her to marry another woman.
As for “murderous-minded Aeetes”, that may be harsher than he deserves. Some versions of his story have him killing Phrixus for the Golden Fleece, but others suggest Phrixus gave it willingly. In these versions of the story, Aeetes kills no one.
As an addendum to this story, Circe is associated with the escape of Jason and Medea from Colchis. When Jason and Medea flee, Aeetes pursues them. To stop her father’s pursuit, Medea kills her brother, Absyrtus, and throws pieces of his body overboard. Jason and Medea are able to escape because Aeetes stops to collect the pieces of his son’s body.
Jason, Medea and the Argonauts go to Circe afterwards and show her the bloody sword used to kill Absyrtus. She purifies them of their murderous act by sacrificing a pig and letting the blood drip on them. However, they do not tell Circe the details of what they did.
Like Book 9, Book 10 recounts several incidents from Odysseus’ wanderings: King Aeolus; the Laestrygonians and Circe. In this instance I have tried to order the works of art in a roughly chronological order to help represent the progression of the story as well as the incidents within it. However, I have placed Alessandro Allori painting first because it includes three key aspects of the story within the one painting.
I have given this painting by Allesandro Allori, a 16th century Italian Mannerist painter, the title that it bears on Wikipedia. However, it is clear with only a cursory glance that Allori’s scene bears no resemblance to this title. Circe, in the foreground, is a passive figure in this painting. She is not poisoning anyone. The painting is alternatively called ‘Odysseus and Circe’ and ‘Circe, with Odysseus and Hermes’ on other sites. This last title is the best, I think, of those available.
The painting shows three scenes simultaneously. The middle scene shows Odysseus speaking with Hermes, who is wearing his winged helmet. It is at this moment in The Odyssey that Hermes forewarns Odysseus of the danger he faces if he enters Circe’s palace, and advises him how to overcome Circe, both by using the plant, moly, as an antidote, and aggression against Circe. The plant is visible, being passed by Hermes to Odysseus. We can interpret this middle scene as a kind of present moment in the painting, since the other two scenes, in foreground and background, take place before and possibly after this moment.
In the background we see the attack of the Laestrygonian cannibal giants against Odysseus’ fleet of ships, which takes place before Odysseus and his men reach Circe’s island. They lift boulders into the air to throw at the ships. All ships in the harbour, but one, are sunk in this scene. Presumably, it is Odysseus’ ship which is the undamaged ship, although in Homer, Odysseus’ ship survives because it is anchored outside the harbour.
We can presume the foreground to either represent a future moment in the story, or it might represent Circe before the arrival of Odysseus’ men. Here Circe sits with a lion and a wolf, the kind of creatures Homer tells us she enchanted and that roam about her palace. She holds her wand, which she will later use to turn Odysseus’ men to swine, lazily in her hand. Behind her sits a book, presumably a book of spells. Guy Tal, in his essay on this painting, suggests that Circe’s representation here, looking downward with her cheek on her hand, her posture and her gaze, coupled with the book she ignores, were all common motifs of the melancholic figure. Tal argues that witches were associated with melancholic natures, and that the painting was part of a Christian debate about the existence of witches and their purported magic. Allori rejected the reality of modern witches. This is why, Tal argues, Circe is not shown transforming Odysseus’ men into swine. It is also why the title currently attributed by Wikipedia is not suitable. If you wish to read Guy Tal’s essay, it is a PDF file you can download by clicking here.
This painting is a fairly straight forward representation of King Aeolus handing Odysseus the bag of winds. However, it has some interesting details. The painting obviously represents two groups: Odysseus and his men on the right and Aeolus and his court on the left. Except for the figures of Aeolus and Odysseus, who face each other, almost all main figures on either side of the painting turn their heads backwards. This is possibly done for two reasons. First, it emphasises the momentary nature of the scene, as these figures suggests a departure. Second, it is for the benefit of composition, which gives greater emphasis to the two key figures and the bag, which is the subject of the painting. Interestingly, the woman with her breast inexplicably bared to the left of the painting (typical in mythic scenes) is mirrored by the figurehead of Odysseus’ ship. Furthermore, the woman’s red dress, which flows away from her to the right, is also mirrored by the figurehead, whose tail curls to the right, also, like the dress. I cannot make anything of this detail, except to think that the whole composition suggests a moment of harmony through the balanced composition, as Odysseus and his men leave. This is in stark contrast to the angry reception they will receive from King Aeolus when they return.
This Roman fresco from the first century BCE is a relatively simple representation of the destruction of Odysseus’ fleet by the Laestrygonian giants. To the left of the image, we see one of the giants in the water, violently handling a ship that is already mostly sunk. Behind this ship, in the water, we see the heads of three figures who have yet to be caught by the Laestrygonians. One giant, standing on a rocky outcrop, centre foreground, clearly has a boulder raised above his head, ready to throw at a ship. The two boats closest to shore are already damaged, too.
The topography of the painting closely resembles Homer’s. Odysseus describes the harbour in The Odyssey:
The artist who rendered this mural over two thousand years ago seems to have captured the topography described by Homer quite well.
First, a note about the artist. ‘The Master of the Legend of the Magdalen’ is a rather inelegant name given to an artist who has never been identified, responsible for a polyptych (a work of art divided into sections, usually three or more) that featured scenes from the life of Mary Magdalen. The artist was an early painter from the Netherlands who was active somewhere between 1483 and 1527.
There is no specific date given for this painting which is based on Book 10 of The Odyssey. It is one of two paintings I have found by this artist based on scenes from Homer. Like Allesandro Allori’s painting, above, it appears to depict more than one scene concurrently. However, there is little information about the painting. The Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center which stores the painting, states that the “Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge.”
So I can only speculate about the details of the painting, but I will give my reasoning as I go. Some details at first seem quite bizarre and inexplicable. If you wish to view a detailed high-resolution image to see these details better, click on the link, above.
The painting seems to represent three key scenes from Book 10 of The Odyssey, which appear chronologically, left to right, as they appear in Book 10 of The Odyssey.
In the first scene is on the left of the painting we find a naked man who appears twice. He seems to be blessing a soldier, who also appears twice. This soldier is possibly Odysseus and the naked figure is possibly King Aeolus. This interpretation is based upon their second appearance in which the naked man forces one of the blue figures from this section of the painting into a sack. These figures appear to float and most of them have their hands to their mouths, representing the act of blowing. So, I assume they represent the winds Aeolus places into the sack for Odysseus before his departure.
The central part of the painting represents the painting’s main subject. The Laestrygonian giants are in the act of capturing and murdering Odysseus’ men, or hurling boulders at Odysseus’ fleeing men and their ships.
In the background, in the top right of the painting, we see a third scene which I assume represents Circe and Odysseus. A woman kneels before a soldier, possibly representing Circe’s submission to Odysseus after she fails to turn him into a pig. There is a dragon which is part of a menagerie of creatures (including one that looks like a donkey on the body of a human, dressed like one of Odysseus’ men). This might be a more fanciful interpretation of the enchanted animals like lions and wolves kept my Circe, and the transformation of Odysseus’ men.
John Flaxman was a neoclassical sculptor and draughtsman. He was commissioned to illustrate both The Iliad and The Odyssey. Flaxman began his commission in 1792. He had a plan that the drawings would eventually be adapted into a series of bas-reliefs, although he never achieved this.
This drawing of King Antiphates and his wife attacking one of Odysseus’ men reflects the two-dimensional design required for bas-relief. Antiphates was the king of the Laestrygonians, the race of cannibal giants. Antiphates kills one of Odysseus’ scouts without provocation and eats parts of him. His wife, whom Homer describes as “a woman huge as a mountain crag”, first meets the men when they enter the palace and summons her husband. She is entirely complicit in the violence, as suggested by her aggression in this image.
Wright Barker’s portrayal of Circe is luscious. The white marble steps are opulent; a fine accompaniment for her white dress, along with the red interior of her palace which suggests her sexual nature and seductive power. Her arm is outstretched, welcoming, and the diaphanous veil that sweeps about her accentuates her mystical allure. The red poppies in Circe’s hair are repeated by the red poppies strewn across the steps, like a sexual invitation. The lyre she holds in her left hand suggests the musicality of her voice, which Homer describes as “spellbinding” when she sings, sitting at her loom, weaving.
The presence of lions and wolves is in keeping with the animals Homer describes inhabiting Circe’s palace. Homer states, “she’s bewitched them herself, she gave them magic drugs”. Given that this is what happened to Odysseus men, who were turned to pigs, it is likely that these creatures were formerly men, which is part of the accepted tradition of Circe’s story. However, it is also possible that Circe has merely bewitched lions and wolves to make them tame. It is unclear, but the first version of the story is more exotic and prefereable, and most Circe’s character. Either version of the story represents her power to dominate and tame.
In this instance Barker has chosen to place a tiger skin on Circe’s steps, which she walks upon; a clear signal of her domination of these animals and posibly the men she has transformed. It is unclear why it is a tiger, an Asian animal, but it is certainly more exotic, possibly implying Circe’s own exotic and mysterious nature.
Briton Rivière’s portrayal of Circe is in stark contrast to Wright Barker’s. Instead of a hypersexual seductress, Circe is dressed modestly with her hair tied back. The painting portrays the scene just after Circe has turned Odysseus’ men into pigs. Rather than a seductress, we here have her a woman in a moment of quiet contemplation. Rather than starring out at us alluringly, as Barker’s Circe does, Rivière’s Circe is unconcerned about an audience, with her back half turned against us. The painting suggests a woman pleased with the power she has exerted over these men, which allows her to live alone and independent on her island.
This Pre-Raphaelite painting by John Waterhouse was the first of three Waterhouse produced with Circe as his subject. The painting depicts the scene in which Circe intends to turn Odysseus into a pig. Homer describes the process. Circe gives her victim a potion to drink and she then completes the transformation by touching them with her wand. Here, she holds both potion and wand in either hand, aloft. Her translucent dress and flowing hair suggest her seductive power. The armrests of her throne each have a roaring lion as a motif, recalling the lions and wolves that roam about her palace.
There is a pig either side of Circe’s throne. They are two of Odysseus’ men, transformed. The pig at the right of the painting is easy to see. The pig on the left skulks behind the throne, almost disappearing into the shadows.
The mirror behind Circe allows Waterhouse to complete the scene. On the left side of the image we see the reflection of Odysseus’ ship. On the right we see the reflection of Odysseus, warily approaching Circe.
This Greek terracotta calyx-krater from the 5th century BCE, helps continue the story through works of art. It depicts the moment just after Circe has discovered that she has no power to transform Odysseus. Odysseus acts on the advice of Hermes, who has told Odysseus to act aggressively at this point:
Circe appears to be fleeing from Odysseus. She has dropped what appears to be a mortar and pestle, likely used in the concoction of her potion, and it has not even hit the ground, such is the speed at which she has reacted.
‘The Sorceress’ was the third painting John Waterhouse produced with Circe as his subject. This is a more contemplative and subdued Circe, compared to his Circe who offers the cup to Odysseus in his 1890 painting. The presence of a flask and a technical book represent the studied nature of Circe’s magic. She leans upon her wand as though it is a familiar and trusted tool. The spilled wine cup suggests long hours of toil. Maybe it is a potion she has worked upon. Circe stares out of frame, lost in thoughts of a problem that has eluded a solution. She therefore does not seem to notice the three leopards gathered on the other side of her table, clearly subservient to her. We might presume these are men she has transformed. In the background, left, appears what might be Circe’s loom and weaving, which, like other female characters in The Odyssey she is busy at when Odysseus’ men find her.
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