Antinous of Ithaca

In the Epic Cycle, Antinous (also Antinoüs; Latin: Antinous) or Antinoös (Ancient Greek: Ἀντίνοος, romanized: Antínoös), was the Ithacan son of Eupeithes, best known for his role in Homer's Odyssey.

One of two prominent suitors of Penelope vying for her hand in marriage,^[1] the other being Eurymachus, Antinous was presented as a violent, mean-spirited, and over-confident character who wilfully defiles Odysseus' home while the hero is lost at sea.^[2] In an attempt to kill Telemachus, the son of Odysseus and Penelope, Antinous sends out a small band of suitors in the strait between Ithaca and rugged Same where there is a rocky isle called Asteris, to intercept the young prince on his journey back to Ithaca from the hall of Menelaus.^[3] The plan, however, fails, as Telemachus avoids the trap with help from the goddess Athena.

Antinous is a prime example of disregard for the custom of xenia (guest-friend hospitality); rather than reciprocating food and drink with stories and respect, he and his fellow suitors simply devour Odysseus' livestock. He also shows no respect for the lower-classed citizenry, as is exemplified when he assaults a beggar, who is actually Odysseus in disguise, with a chair, which even the other suitors disapprove of.^[4] Antinous is the first of the suitors to be killed. Drinking in the Great Hall, he is slain by an arrow to the throat shot by Odysseus. Eurymachus then tries to blame Antinous for the suitors' wrongs.^[5][6][7]

In one account, Penelope was seduced by Antinous and was sent away by Odysseus to her father Icarius.^[8]