This is the untold story of Odysseus after he found his way back home. In other words, this is a part of Odysseus’ life that Homer failed to record. This also marks the beginning of the philosopher Socrates, who is just a brilliant scholar waiting to emerge. At the end of The Odyssey, Odysseus was told by Athena to go on a mission. However, the mission he received is not the one written by Homer. No, for to appease the god Poseidon, Odysseus must reveal Socrates to the Greeks, so that in future years, the Achaeans will not fall under the influence of men such as Gorgias and Polus. Only one problem: Socrates left everything behind in Athens and ventured off to Italy with his friend. The story begins at Ithaka, where Odysseus, now victorious over the suitors, faces his journey ahead. He and his son, Telémakhos, wait at the docks, where a ship is being prepared for launch. Athena stands by in the form of Mentor, Odysseus’ friend. Socrates has left his home in Athens to help his friend in Italy. Now, the time has come for his return. The Greeks need a real philosopher. What they need is Socrates.

Athena: Odysseus, you know what you must do.

Odysseus: Yes, oh Grey-Eyed Goddess. I will go and find Socrates, and bring him back here to Greece. Only then will Poseidon be pleased.

Athena: Farewell brave hero. Good luck on your journey.

Odysseus: I will burn a thousand offerings for you upon my return.

Athena: One last thing: Poseidon will be occupied in Olympus for a month. You must return with Socrates before then.

Odysseus: Thank you Pallas Athena.

Telémakhos: Father, your ship is ready to launch.

Odysseus: Good, my son. We shall go immediately.

At this, Odysseus began his journey, bound for Italy. After some days of travelling, Odysseus landed at Rome. After asking the locals for the philosopher, he finally reaches the home of Allesandro. He ventures inside, where he encounters Socrates’ friend, A man well into his sixties, leaning on a long, slender cane. Odysseus mistakes this Italian man for Socrates, and as they are introduced, Socrates comes up from his place at a table and confronts Odysseus. Odysseus measures up Socrates, and sums up that he is not quite young, but definitely not old yet. Though he doesn’t look old, Odysseus can clearly see that Socrates holds wisdom beyond his years.

Odysseus: Hello? Socrates? I must speak to you!

Allesandro: I am not Socrates, but follow me, and I will lead you to him.

Socrates: Ah! Come in! You have come at quite an opportune time!

Odysseus: Socrates, I must take you back to Greece. We are in dire need of your knowledge and wisdom.

Socrates: But first Allesandro and I need to finish our conversation. We have been debating whether a wrongdoer is worse off than the man who suffers by the hand of the wrongdoer. Perhaps you could help us? I have heard of your cleverness, why not join us?

Odysseus: Son of Sophroniscus, if I were willing to enter into conversation, will you go back with me to your homeland?

Socrates: Agreed. But first, can we agree on something?

Odysseus: What is it?

Socrates: While we have this conversation, there will be no general descriptions used only to bend the truth for answers. It’s called mind messing. Have you ever been mind messed before?

Odysseus: I don’t think so.

Socrates: I’m mind messing you right now.

Odysseus: You are? I don’t really feel anything.

Socrates: That’s the “art” of it. Some philosophers, particularly orators, believe that by sugar-coating their words, they will appeal to the masses, and consequently be able to direct them into thinking anything the orator wants them to.

Odysseus: Understood. So where do we begin?

Socrates: Let’s start it plain and simple: What is worse: to be a wrongdoer, or to be one who suffers by the hand of the wrongdoer?

Odysseus: The majority of the time, suffering would be worse.

Socrates: What makes you say that?

Odysseus: Well, so long as you do not offend the gods, wrongdoers tend to get what they want. I should know. I know some kings who are wrongdoers, and they make their people suffer. But they are able to be happy by doing whatever pleases them.

Socrates: Ah, but kings have to do what their more powerful subjects want them to do. Otherwise they would be overthrown in a matter of months. Am I not correct in this assumption?

Odysseus: What you say is the truth.

Socrates: Tell me, as a king such as yourself, you have to do some things that your subjects want, correct?

Odysseus: Yes.

Socrates: So consequently, those in power do what seems right to them, but do not do what they want. For what man wants and what man think is right are two different concepts, the better of which is what man thinks as right.

Allesandro: Of course. But tell me this: I fought in World War I, a war in which countries fought because of the spirit of nationalism and a race to become a world power. I, however, was not filled with as much of a sense of nationalism as the rest of the armed forces. I even deserted at one point. How can this be worth to suffer wrong for, and perhaps die for?

Socrates: Fighting is not necessarily a wrongdoing. It is what one is fighting for that counts. In this account, you are right. You risked suffering wrong for the invasion and persecuting of your country and your people. Either way, you may have suffered wrong. I commend you for your understanding of conversation. You possess the three qualities necessary: the knowledge, the goodwill, and frankness, not needing to elaborate or “sugar-coat” ideas that you have already been clarified. You too Odysseus. So far you are getting closer to understanding the truth, little by little. First, to understand wrongdoing, would you first like to define what justice is?

Odysseus: I believe justice to be natural justice, for the powerful rule the weak. To have order, the better must rule.

Socrates: But is a slave not more powerful than their master?

Odysseus: Slaves? They are the lowest in all social systems. How are they powerful?

Socrates: You are a soldier Odysseus. A man on the battlefield can be judged by how much they can endure and by how much damage they can deal out.

Odysseus: Yes, I have been tested in this manner many times over the course of my adventures.

Socrates: In much the same way a slave is tested. Every day they endure bad treatment from their masters. Much of it is quite brutal.

Odysseus: Yes. But I still maintain that the better and wiser must rule.

Socrates: But are those leaders in control of themselves?

Odysseus: What? Of course they are.

Socrates: Don’t leaders have to practice temperance in order to be in control of their pleasures and appetites?

Allesandro: I can answer this one. That is what temperance is after all, control of one’s self.

Socrates: Good. As you can see Odysseus, effective leaders must practice temperance.

Odysseus: Ha! Temperance shows weakness. How can a leader be effective when he is known to be weak?

Socrates: To practice temperance, one must be disciplined and strong. It is very difficult to deny yourself pleasures, and is therefore a sign of strength.

Allesandro: But why would anybody try temperance when they have all the pleasures and treasures they could possibly need? Surely pleasure is the good that man searches for?

Socrates: While in the war, Allesandro, did you ever happen to suffer any wounds?

Allesandro: Yes. I was in the hospital for quite some time.

Socrates: And you found pleasure when given medication?

Allesandro: It definitely lessened the pain.

Socrates: So it was painful while being given your medication?

Allesandro: Yes, I believe I said so myself.

Socrates: So you did. While being provided medicine, you felt pain as well. I can hardly relate good with pain, can you?

Allesandro: I cannot. However, you point to only one example. Anybody can associate what happened during a war with pain. I hated the pain so much I ran away from it. And narrowly escaped from it. You aren’t tired of conversing yet, are you? I have heard philosophers tire easily.

Socrates: Ah! My good friend, do you dare use this against me? I fought for my home, Athens, and risked my life. And as I have heard from Odysseus here, it is time to return to it.

Odysseus: Ah yes, I expect to have my ship sea-worthy again by tomorrow. We will leave for Athens in the morning.

Socrates: If we do not finish our conversation today, we can always resume our argument tomorrow. However, I refuse to leave it unfinished, for I hold it dishonorable to leave a debate incomplete.

Allesandro: It is growing late. We should gather our things and prepare to leave Socrates. Do not worry; we will resume our conversation tomorrow.

Reluctantly, Socrates accepts and shows Odysseus to his room. Socrates and Allesandro gather their things in preparation for the following morning. After all three of them went off to bed, each reflected on their argument, trying to think of new points that could benefit them. The next morning, Telémakhos finishes the last of the necessary preparations and goes into the city to summon Odysseus, Socrates, and Allesandro. The three leave the home of Allesandro, and embark on their long journey home. After some delays, they finally cast off from Italy, and Odysseus is in a race to get to Athens with Socrates before Poseidon returns. While pondering this, Odysseus is confronted by Socrates, who is eager to finish what they had started.

Socrates: So far, we have determined that a sound-minded, temperate person is at the same time a brave and pious, which leads them on to be good and achieve happiness. Inversely, an evil person will lead a wretched and shameful life. We all can agree that our souls are, while apart from it, an important part of our bodies and reveal the true nature of the man. What would you say makes the human soul good?

Odysseus: Virtue, I would suppose.

Allesandro: Yes, I would say that the human soul is defined by the man who shelters it.

Socrates: Ah, it is the actions! You are both correct. Virtuous actions are what make the human soul good. Now, inflicted pain in any form upon another man would be said to stain the wrongdoers soul.

Odysseus: It would appear so.

Socrates: How would you judge the actions of a man who avoids wrongdoing, but suffers from the wrongdoers?

Allesandro: I would say that he has done the right thing.

Socrates: And so his soul would be better, and he would be a better person?

Odysseus: Of course.

Socrates: Then it would appear that it is better to suffer wrong than to do wrong.

Odysseus: I’m glad we finally have reached our conclusion. Now, You must teach such things at Athens. Many people have been awaiting the day when they would be able to listen and learn from a philosopher such as yourself.

Inspired by these words, Socrates decides that he will begin to teach the truth to the Athenians, and defend them from orators. After several days of traveling, the group finally land at Athens. They say their farewells, and Socrates, along with Allesandro, depart. In the years to come, Socrates would become quite famous and one of the best philosophers. However, he would later be viewed as a man of deceit and be put to death. His legacy would continue on through his students, such as Plato, and through his students’ students, such as Aristotle. As for Odysseus, he finally appeased Poseidon and was able to live in luxury with his wife. He always kept Socrates’ lessons in mind, and lived the rest of his life virtuously.

Works Cited Get Him to the Greek. Dir. Nicholas Stoller. Writ. Nicholas Stoller. Perf. Russell Brand and Jonah Hill. DVD. Universal, 2010. Helprin, Mark. A Soldier of the Great War. New York: Harcourt, 1991 Homer trans. Robert Fitzgerald. The Odyssey. New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 1998. Plato. Gorgias. London: Penguin Books, 2004.