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In other words, Telemachus in his anger neglects Odysseus' command to  (16.277). The difference between the reactions of Odysseus and Telemachus points up the latter's youthful and inexperienced temperament.27 |
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Telemachus' temporary loss of control does not endanger the revenge scheme and he soon regains his calm (338ff.). Thus, when he is again provoked, and this time is himself the direct butt of the suitors' attacks ( : 374), he is outwardly very composed: |
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but he paid no attention,
but looked across at his father silently, always waiting
for the moment when he would lay his hands on the shameless suitors
(Od. 20.3846) |
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Telemachus is no longer paying attention to the suitors' words, but the insight which the narrator gives us into his mind ( ) speaks volumes: in his youthfulness he is impatient (note  ) to begin the punishment of the 'shameless' suitors. Whereas at the beginning of this book Odysseus (29, 39) was still pondering the question of how to kill the suitors ( ), for Telemachus it is now only a matter of time ( ). His certainty that the moment of revenge is near is reflected in the use of the future indicative ( ) instead of the optative, which is elsewhere found after  .28 In 21.431, finally, a movement of Odysseus' eyebrows puts an end to Telemachus' long waiting, and their revenge can begin. |
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We see that in general Telemachus matches his father in restraint, only once losing his temper, with no untoward consequences. His unspoken thoughts reveal to the reader his real feelings (grief, impatience, and, of course, revenge), which characterize him as a young man. But father and son are not the only members of the family who are capable of hiding their thoughts and feelings. There is also Penelope. |
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Penelope's Unspoken Thoughts |
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In 16.303 Odysseus announces to Telemachus that Penelope is to be excluded from their revenge scheme, and indeed she is not reunited with |
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27 Note that all three casts elicit a critical comment from the other suitors as well: 17.4837, 18.4014, and 20.32237. |
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28 Cf. Il. 2.794; 7.415; 9.191; 18.524; Od. 23.91, and see Monro (1891) 283. |
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