In The Odyssey, Athena, the daughter of Zeus and goddess of wisdom, often uses her divine powers to disguise her appearance and meddle in the affairs of the mortals. Although she is regarded as the “goddess of wisdom,” there are instances in the epic that show Athena relying on her strength as an immortal as opposed to her intelligence. When Athena enters Odysseus’ home, she takes on the persona of Mentes to tell Telemachus that his father is still alive. However, she is met with disgruntled and drunk suitors, and her strength is manifested:
“[Athena] caught up a powerful spear, edged with sharp bronze, heavy, huge, thick, wherewith she beats down the battalions of fighting men, against whom she of the mighty father is angered, and descended in a flash of speed from the peaks of Olympia, and lighted in the land of Ithaca, at the doors of Odysseus at the threshold of the court, and in her hand was the bronze spear. She was disguised as a friend, leader of the Taphians, Mentes” (1.99-105).
This quote showcases Athena’s strength instead of her wisdom because she takes on the persona of a powerful male—a seemingly unnecessary step since she could easily remove the suitors from Odysseus’ home on her own abilities. It seems as if she is more concerned with appearing powerful as opposed to accomplishing the task at hand which would end all of the fighting—announcing to Telemachus that his father has returned home to Ithaca.
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