The Odyssey is about one man's epic struggle to return to his homeland to deal out a fair death to the suitors who have invaded his son, wife, great hall, and homestead. There are many reasons as to why Odysseus waits so long to kill the suitors, however here we will discuss the few main points, which Homer makes relevant throughout the whole story. Homer shows us that one of Odysseus's few, but key flaws is the reason to why he postpones the suitors death. Odysseus has a problem with revealing his identity too early, which you will see causes him problems and delays his journey home throughout the story. Also, it will be proven that it is very important to Odysseus's morality to know if his wife was faithful, what maids and servants were loyal, and which suitors if any did not attend in the unlawful doings to Odysseus and his home. Last but not least, Odysseus also postpones the suitors" deaths so he can find their weaknesses and their flaws to put them to death by this very meaningful way. Besides the obvious fact of the right place and the right time to clear out the suitors, the preceding claims will show you why Odysseus chooses to wait until everything is perfect for killing the suitors.
The first reason that is probably the most important and evident throughout the book is Odysseus's problem with revealing his identity too early. A persons" identity, to Homer, is what makes ones life have purpose. In essence, one lives to prove themselves .
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to their followers. Whether it is with friends or foes, Odysseus is always displayed with having this weakness, and him revealing it to early only comes back to hurt him. This is ironic because Odysseus is supposed to be a well-controlled man but his anger comes over him in situations with his enemies, which only hurts him in the long run. For instance, as Odysseus escapes the Kyklopes island on his boat, he turns and yells his real name to Polyphemos, the one eyed giant only to taunt him.
