Odysseus and his crew were in sight of the homeland they had waited so long to see, when a band of rebel crewmen opened the bag creating a great gale that blew them back to Aeolus. When Aeolus saw this he believed that Odysseus was cursed and banished him from the island. This is not the only time Odysseus was betrayed by his men and suffered a great price. When they landed on the island of Hyperion, bad winds prevented them from leaving. Food soon became low; and when Odysseus fell asleep, the crew killed the cows of Hyperion against numerous warnings. Hyperion was infuriated to see this and had all of Odysseus' men killed in a great storm. Odysseus learns that the gods must be respected in order for any man to succeed. During his journey Odysseus uses what he has learned from his mistakes to return home and kill the suitors. On the island of the Kikones, and with his encounter with Polyphemus, Odysseus learns that bragging can bring damaging circumstances. On Ithaca Odysseus never brags to the suitors and is able to enter his house without the suitors knowing his real identity. He takes the punishment of Antinoos and the other suitors without saying a word and is able to observe those who have invaded his house. Odysseus is able to see who is loyal and who is not and take his revenge with the suitors never knowing who he was until the final moment. Odysseus also learns to respect the gods. When he landed on Aeaea, the island of Circe, he follows the instructions given to him by Hermes so that he can overcome Circe and free his men. In Hades Odysseus follows the instructions that Circe had given him very closely; entering and leaving Hades without misfortune. Odysseus emerges out of Hades "considerably chastened" (Bernhard 202) and again heeds Circes advice by using wax in the ears of his crew to pass the Sirens. Odysseus becomes a better man through his journeys and is able to return to his homeland to restore his name.
