The Odyssey by Homer | Book 23 Summary and Analysis

[0:08]In Book 23, the battle is at last over. All the treacherous suitors and maidservants have been slaughtered, and the action shifts to Penelope, who is in her room. She can't believe that her husband is home, literally. She's not sure it's actually him. When Odysseus finally shows up and assures her that it is indeed her long-lost husband, she asks, as a test, the maid to move their bed to a different room in the house. Infuriated, Odysseus reminds her that he carved that bed himself from an olive tree and that he built the room around it. It can't be moved at all. This final test by Penelope proves to her once and for all that her husband has indeed come home. Even though Odysseus and Penelope are at long last reunited, the book is not over yet. Odysseus still has one more thing to do. You may remember when Tyreus told him in the land of the dead that to live out a lasting, long peace, he'll need to drop an ore inland to appease Poseidon, that God he enraged in the first place. Now readers may be surprised here that the story doesn't simply end with the lovers at last reunited and beloved Odysseus reinstall as Icas king. In fact, this falling action takes place over the next two books, tying together all the loose ends and making sure that justice above all else is served. Why is Penelope so skeptical after all this time that it is, in fact, her husband that stands before her? Well, first of all, let's not forget the parable that comes up throughout the book of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra's relationship, the betrayal that happened and all the warnings that Odysseus received. In fact, the questioning shows her undying virtuous love for her husband and all her devotion.