The Odyssey - Book 4 (MENELAUS AND HELEN)

• Menelaus was entertaining some relatives in his house to celebrate the impending weddings of his son and his daughter (not to each other) 
• His daughter, the princess would marry the son of Achilles- as he had promised in Troy. Menelaus was sending her to Myrmidon's in a chariot and horses- Achilles son was king here. 
• His son "gallant Megapenthes" was marrying Alector's daughter from Sparta. 
• They were banqueting "under the high roof of the great hall" a minstrel sung "divinely" to the lyre as two acrobats danced. 
• Telemachus and Nestor's son arrived and Eteoneus saw them and ran to tell his Menelaus they had strangers at their gates. "Men whom I take by their looks to be of divine descent" "tell me whether we should unharness their horses for them or send them on to find someone else to entertain them"
• Menelaus told his squire Eteoneus to stop being so unhospitable towards the guests so he invited Telemachus and Nestor's son to the banquet. 
• The servants tied up the horses in the stable. 
• Maids bathed and rubbed oil on Telemachus and Nestor's son. 
• They were served various meals and had wine poured into gold cups. 
• Menelaus stepped up and asked who the guest were. 
• "The whole place gleams with bronze and gold, amber and silver and ivory" 
• Menelaus heard Telemachus talking and questioned him, he then began to speak of his travels and the death of his brother Agamemnon. 
• Menelaus then begins to speak of Odysseus- he speaks about how people will mourn over Odysseus although it is unknown if he is dead or not. 
• Telemachus wanted to cry because of hearing Menelaus' kind words about his father. 
• Menelaus knows that it was Telemachus but wanted for him to say something about it. 
• Telemachus still hasn't told Menelaus his name. 
• Helen later confronted Menelaus saying that their visitor is surely Odysseus' son. 
• Menelaus agrees "you point out a resemblance I can see too" "Odysseus' feet were just the same and so were his hands, the movement of his eyes, the shape of his head and the way his hair grew"
• Nestor's son Peisistratus said that Telemachus was indeed Odysseus' son. 
• Menelaus explains how Odysseus underwent the horrific events for his sake and how Odysseus was the only one who didn't reach home. 
• Helen cried at Menelaus' words- Telemachus and Menelaus did the same, Nestor's son cried at the thought of his brother, Antilochus whom Dawn killed. 
• Peisistratus asks Menelaus about his brother- whom he never got to know. Menelaus tells him that he is happy now- he has sons who are like him, are good leaders and have intelligence. 
• Helen put a drug into a bowl and their wine which had the power to rob grief and anger- banishing all painful memories, no one could shed a tear that day. The drug was given to her by an Egyptian woman, Polydamma. 
• Once Helen drops the drugs into the wire she begins to tell a story of Odysseus. 
• "He disfigured himself with appalling lacerations and then dirty rags on his back" "disguised as a beggar he looked utterly different from the Odysseus of the camp by the ship"
•  Odysseus went to the Trojan city - undetected by anyone. Helen was the only one who penetrated his disguise but when she questioned him his answers were clever. Helen had promised Odysseus she wouldn't disclose his name to the Trojans, he then gave her the full details of the Achaeans plans. 
• After Odysseus killed a number of Trojans with his "long sword" he got back to the Argive camp with a lot of information. 
• Helen finishes her story and Menelaus thanks her and carries on with another story of the Trojan war. 
• he recalls the story of sitting inside the Trojan horse. He says Odysseus saved the whole army. 
• Telemachus thanks Menelaus and asks him if he can go to bed. 
• Helen then instructs the maids to make the beds up for Telemachus and Pesistratus- they slept in the forecourt of the palace. 
• In the morning Menelaus went to Telemachus and asked him what brought him there. 
• Telemachus tells Menelaus "I came to find out whether you could give me any news of my father" he says how the palace is packed with enemies who are slaughtering his sheep and cattle, competing for his mothers hand in marriage 
• Menelaus was disgraced by the suitors trying to take Penelope's hand in marriage, he says that if Odysseus was to hear about the suitors there would be trouble. 
• Menelaus began to say what he;s heard from the Old Man of the Sea (Proteus - god)
• The Gods sent Menelaus (on the way home from the Trojan war) to the island of Pharos for 20 days. 
• Eidothee has taken pity on Menelaus and came to his rescue- Menelaus asks her for help in getting home. 
• She tells him that the old Man of the Sea (immortal) owns the island (and owes allegiance to Poseidon)- he would tell them whatever they want to know but first they would have to defeat the God- which is something which is rarely done by mortals. 
• Eidothee describes the plan - Menelaus is to choose 3 of his best men from his crew and they will pretend to be seals and then pounce on the Old Man, then Menelaus needs to ask which God is giving him difficulties. 
• When Dawn appeared Menelaus led 3 of his men to the sea, Eidothee met them carrying the skin of four seals. She covered each mans skin with the seal skin- the smell of fish was so strong, they couldn't stand it and so she applied ambrosia to each mans nostril which "killed the stench of seals"
• They waited until morning, then multitudes of seals came out of the sea and lay on the shore. At midday the Old Man emerged and began to count his seals (entirely unaware of the fraud). 
• After the Old Man had counted the seals he lay down. The men changed and grabbed hold of the Old Man. 
• "He began turning into a bearded lion and then into a snake, and after that a panther and a giant bear. He changed into running water too and a tree in leaf. But we set our teeth and hung on grimly"
• the Old Man eventually gave up and asked Menelaus which of the Gods conspired with him to catch him. 
• Menelaus replies, asking him who has confined him on the island and asks how he can return home. 
• The Old Man tells him he should have offered rich sacrifice to Zeus and all the other gods if he wanted to get home quickly across the "wine dark sea"
• Menelaus says he will take the Old Mans advice but he also wants to know if anyone had an accident at sea or died on the way home from Troy. 
• The old man explains how many were killed, commanders died but "there is a third who though still alive is a prisoner somewhere in the vastness of the seas"
• He then goes on to talk about Agamemnon and his death but Menelaus wants to know who the third is.
• The Old Man explains to Menelaus how the third is Odysseus, but he is trapped on Calypso's island and it is impossible for him to reach home. 
• He then tells Menelaus his own destiny and then "sank into the waters of the sea"
• Menelaus and his 3 men then ran back to the ship and them with the rest of the crew prepared rituals. He then set off home and "the immortals sent him a favourable wind"
• Menelaus then tells Telemachus to stay in his palace for 12 days or so more and then Menelaus will send him off in style "with glorious gifts three horses and a chariot"
• Telemachus says he needs to go to Pylos, where his friends are waiting for him- he explains how he would rather Menelaus and Helen keep the gifts they offer him- which is a polite reaction to good xenia. 
• Menelaus tells Telemachus he likes the way the boy speaks and how he has the "right blood in his veins"
• During their talk the guests have arrived at king Menelaus' palace for the banquet

Back at Odysseus' palace: 

• Outside Odysseus' palace the suitors were throwing discuss and javelin. 
• Noemon asked Antinous if they had any way of knowing when Telemachus was coming back- because Telemachus borrowed Noemon's ship but now he needs it back. 
• The suitors had no idea that Telemachus had left and so asked Noemon exactly when he left and who he took with him. 
• Noemon told him that he gave his ship to Telemachus and that any man who was asked to be a member of the crew could hardly refuse that offer. 
• Noemon went back to his fathers house- leaving Antinous furious. 
• Antinous plans to take a fast ship and 20 crew members to catch Telemachus and give him a grim end to the journey. 
• Medeon, the herald had been ease dropping and told Penelope the suitors plans. 
• Penelope also finds out that Telemachus has gone in search of Odysseus. 
• "Penelope was overwhelmed by the anguish that racked her"
• She's disappointed that Telemachus left her in the end. 
• Eurycleia tells Penelope that Telemachus made her promise not to tell her for a dozen days, or until Penelope questioned his absence. 
• "He didn't want the tears to spoil your lovely cheeks"
• Eurycleia comforted Penelope. 
• Penelope prayed to the gods that Odysseus is alive and Telemachus is safe.
• The suitors left on a hunt for Telemachus (20 suitors in total)
• Athene made a phantom of Penelope's sister, Ipthime and send it to Penelope to comfort her but says he will return home. She lets Penelope know Athene is on her families side. 
• She says she cannot say whether Odysseus is dead or not.