Introduction to Emily Wilson’s new translation of Homer’s “Odyssey” (post 2) says Odysseus “contains multitudes” and “creates multiple identities for himself”

“Odysseus himself seems to contain multitudes: he is a migrant, a pirate, a carpenter, a king, an athlete, a beggar, a husband, a lover…a fighter, a liar, a leader, and a thief…a man who cries…self-interested sacker of cities…seems to be constantly changing—in appearance, behavior…He is able to be, at different times, young or old, strong or weak, a beggar or a home owner, a victim or an aggressor…He switches roles not only through the magical power of Athena, which transforms his appearance, but also through the magical power of his own words, through which he creates multiple different identities for himself” (1).

The two classics professors, Thomas Van Nortwick (post 1) and Emily Wilson, seem to be arguing that Odysseus has multiple personality, but I reserve judgment until I read the poem myself.

1. Homer. The Odyssey. Translated by Emily Wilson. New York, W. W. Norton, 2018.