Book 9 of the Odyssey from Polyphemus's Point of View

Joel Schain Period 2 3/28/10 Book 9: In the Eyes of Polyphemus This morning was like any other day. I got up to see the sun rise, and then I went into the forest to find something to eat for breakfast. Most days were quiet in the land of the Cyclopes. All you could hear were your own thoughts, and the occasional chirp from a nearby bird. Most of the inhabitants kept to themselves, and no one entered others’ property without previous consent of the owner. This morning was different though. I could hear multiple voices coming from afar.

I looked into the distance to see a vessel anchoring back at the beach. There were about 15 crew members on the ship from what I could see. At the time, I didn’t think much of it. “Just a couple of humans lost at sea,” I said to myself. Unfortunately, I didn’t have much luck when hunting. All I managed to catch was a small boar, that didn’t satisfy my appetite the slightest. When I returned back to my fields, I gathered all of my sheep so I could bring them back to my cave. When I came close to my home, I heard the voices of the humans once again.

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But this time, they were much louder. To my surprise, the entire crew from the ship had made themselves comfortable in my cave. My mood changed very quickly, and I roared with anger. Right as I entered the cave, two of the men attempted to escape, but were caught and dropped into my mouth before they could say a word. After that, I rolled a round boulder in front of the entrance, trapping everyone else in my cave. A muscular, tall man clothed in brown armor approached me shortly after. I watched the perspiration slowly run down his face as he opened his mouth to speak. I apologize, sir, for trespassing on your property. ” The human explained. “What is your name, human?! ” I roared. “My name is nobody, and I am the captain of this crew,” the man replied. I nodded and shouted, “For I am the Cyclops Polyphemus, son of Poseidon! ” When the day began to die, I settled down to get ready for bed. I figured I would keep Nobody and his crew for the night for a free meal the next day. In the morning, I awoke at dawn, and went out into the fields to pasture my sheep. I made sure to put the boulder In front of the door to ensure that none of the humans would escape.

When I returned, Nobody was standing before me holding a glass bottle with a burgundy colored liquid inside. “I stand before you with a piece offering, Polyphemus,” Nobody exclaimed. “This is wine. It makes you feel good and it’s delicious as well. ” The man got on his knees, and set the bottle by my feet. Normally, I would think an act like this was a trap, but I am the only one strong enough to move that boulder away from the entrance, so they can’t kill me. I grabbed the bottle of wine, and gulped it all down in seconds flat. The taste was like nothing else I had ever had in my life.

It was so delicious that I couldn’t help myself. “More! ” I shouted. The man handed me the remainder of wine and I shoved the whole bottle in my mouth immediately. Not long after, I began to feel different than I had ever felt before. It was hard to stand, and I couldn’t walk in a straight line. I didn’t feel myself, but I felt good anyway. Suddenly, my mood flipped, and all my anger just disappeared. I collapsed onto the ground, but I didn’t feel any pain. That is the last I remember of that night. I woke up the next morning in great pain, and unable to see.

I screamed at the top of my lungs, and moved the boulder from the entrance to go get help. “Nobody is killing me! ” I yelled. I felt the fur of the sheep on my legs as they left the cave to graze in the fields. I had no idea what was going on, and why I couldn’t see. But I knew nobody had something to do with it. Not long after that, I heard a shout in the distance. “Polyphemus, you have been conquered by the great Odysseus! ” At that moment, I was so filled with rage, that I didn’t know what to do with myself. With nothing left to do, I lifted up a prayer to my father, Poseidon, to one day, make Odysseus pay.



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