#telepen

The Telegony is called an unnecessary sequel to The Odyssey for good reasons.

The Odyssey ends with Odysseus returning home, reuniting with his family, and restoring order. It feels complete as it's one of the rare times a Greek hero gets something close to a happy ending.

But then The Telegony reveals that Odysseus had a son with Circe, Telegonus, who arrives and unknowingly kills him. After that, Circe turns Telemachus and Penelope immortal, marries Telemachus, and Telegonus marries Penelope.

I don't blame anyone for seeing it as bad fanfic that undoes the perfect ending Homer gave us.

But isn't that perfect when looking at Odysseus's story? It's one filled with actions that never stayed buries.

He blinded Polyphemus, so Poseidon spent years punishing him for it.

He survived Troy, but lost ten years in war and another ten years trying to get home.

The Phaeacians help him, and their ship is turned to stone for it.

Hell, just his whole crew dying for a mix of his and their stupidity.

His life is defined by consequences coming back to bite him, and Telegonus fits that pattern.

He isn't some random addition. He's the result of Odysseus's time with Circe, and that detour in his journey that felt like a pause didn't stay behind when he left.

It followed him, and it killed him.

And the most important thing to remember is how little of The Telegony we actually have.

What survives is a summary: Odysseus travels again, marries again, fights another war, returns home, dies, and then everyone gets paired off.

There’s no dialogue or insight that goes beyond these events.

How's his marriage with Penelope? Does she know the full story about Circe? How does she react to Ody's death and the identity of his killer?

How does Telemachus feel when meeting a half-brother who killed their father? Was Telegonus regretful when he found out the truth?

Were the marriages immediate or did they happen much later? Were they arranged, or did the pairs fall in love? What's Circe's role in all of this?

We just don't know.

Without any context, we're judging a skeleton and assuming the missing flesh was ugly.

Greek epics, just epics in general, rely heavily on characterization, speeches, emotional reactions—practically everything we don't have.

And in the end, the man of twists and turns wasn't brought down by a god or monster, but by someone from his past he never saw coming.

But then there's Tiresias' prophecy, that he would die gently of old age, far from the sea.

It can still happen. Odysseus could have still lived a full life, and perhaps he even reconciled with Telegonus to ensure no more family blood to be spilled.