I don't wanna forget this stuff!

So I'm not sure how this post will turn out because I'm just planning on saying what I wanted to say this morning in class before I forget about it. So, first off, is Telemachus kind of a jerk to his mom? I mean, on one hand he gets some courage and stops moping so he can tell the suitors to leave. It may not work, but at least he did it. But then when the bard is singing about Odysseus' journey and Penelope (if I got the name wrong, I'm sorry) asks for the bard to stop the song, Telemachus seems to almost snap at her. I mean, sure maybe he thinks she should be over Odysseus, but at the same time, he was grieving not that long ago. Also, he seems to not want his mother to be with any of the suitors. To be honest, I don't care that much about the reason, but if he thinks that his mom shouldn't stop the bard from singing about Odysseus, I think it wouldn't be unreasonable to think that his mom would be ready to marry again. Maybe Telemachus just had a lot of pent up rage and frustration and his mom was the unfortunate receiver of this, but that's not a good excuse.

Next off, is it just me, or are the suitors extremely stupid? I mean, they were fooled for THREE years? Now, maybe Penelope was just working on a really big web (I'm assuming this just means she's weaving some project, not a literal web, but who knows?) but still, I doubt it would take three years unless she was knitting nice scarves, matching gloves, and matching hats for all of the suitors. And even then I highly doubt it would take that long to finish this. And from the looks of it, she would've gotten away with fooling everyone for an even longer amount of time if that one woman that was in on the queen's secret didn't spill the beans. Sure, I feel bad that the suitors seem to be tricked and lied to, but seriously? It's kind of hard to feel sorry for people when they're stupid (I hope this doesn't offend anybody or anything, I mean solely in the context of these epics, where I swear there's always a group of stupid people)...

The next order of business, the violence of the suitors. I mean, there's literally a part where they say that if Odysseus were to come back, he wouldn't be able to beat all of them, and "Even if Odysseus of Ithaca did arrive in person,/...Here on the spot he'd meet/a humiliating end if he fought against such odds" (101). So, maybe I'm reading this incorrectly, but these suitors are saying that even if Odysseus came back, they'd more or less humiliate him and kill him. Really? They're THAT desperate to marry Penelope? They'd kill her husband? Man, that would make for a terrific conversation at the table, just imagine it, "Hey honey, do you remember the time I killed your previous husband and married you? Wasn't that just a riot?" or maybe, "Hey Penelope, you should marry me, I'm the one that landed the killing blow on Odysseus, so I'm the manliest and best suited for you!" I mean, what would they hope to accomplish? If Odysseus returned alive and these suitors killed him, I feel like it would have a high chance of guaranteeing that Penelope wouldn't marry them.

Furthermore, really Athena? I mean, yes Poseidon is out of town right now, but you're sending Telemachus, the son of Odysseus, out to search for Odysseus. Okay, that doesn't sound terrible, but did you forget that Poseidon is the reason that Odysseus is lost at sea right now? Or maybe that Poseidon can more or less control all of the ocean? So you send Telemachus out when Poseidon's away, great, but what about when Poseidon returns? What's stopping him from making Telemachus get lost? I feel like this wasn't thought through very thoroughly. Also, who's gonna be stopping the suitors if Telemachus is gone? I mean, it seems like there needs to be a strong male figure around, so who's gonna fill those shoes? Telemachus doesn't have a son to do that, and I don't feel like the suitors would be good choices...

Lastly, I want to talk about Telemachus' age. Now, I always imagined that Telemachus was around the same age as Achilles' son. Achilles left for Troy when his son was around 3 or something. Later, it's mentioned about how Achilles' son was there to kill king Priam. Now, in the art depictions, Achilles' son looks to be around 18, which is older than what he should be (13, since the Trojan war was around 10 years). And assuming Odysseus has been lost for around another 10 years, I'd say that Telemachus could be around 23, like Neoptolemus (also called Pyrrhus). I think that Telemachus wouldn't be older than 23, but I also feel like it's possible that Telemachus is younger than that. Not as young as Aeneas' son, Ascanius, who would be around 14 (I think, again, this is all estimates) at this point when Odysseus is lost. Since it's been said in class that Telemachus is close to becoming a man, or at least is at the age where he can be considered one, since he's able to be sent out on a voyage (or mission, or quest, or whatever searching for his dad can be called), then I think he's at least 16. Now, this is a Greek epic, but the Greeks and Romans had similar cultures in some aspects, and I remember that the Roman boys came of age when they turned 16. So, I'd assume that Telemachus is no older than 23, but no younger than 16. Of course, since it's never mentioned, and I'm not some ancient scholar or anything, I could be wrong, but that's the estimate I have for ya'll.

So I have all this written down now so maybe I won't forget it. Or I still might. No idea. You might agree with me, or disagree. Either way, I can't really make you agree or disagree, so feel free to think what you will. I'm tired after writing for 30 minutes straight so I think I'm done here. Enjoy, or don't, up to you.