Yes, Penelope’s initiation of the marriage contest does seem psychologically plausible. Odysseus has been gone for 20+ years, it's okay for Penelope to have lost hope in her husband coming back and finding a new king. Does it seem plausible in general? No, being able to shoot an arrow through 12 axe handles does not show skill and leadership to be a king.
Once Penelope sets her competition, Antinous tries to delay it so they can sacrifice to Apollo, the archer god. “Gibe the bow a rest for today, leave it to the gods - at dawn the Archer God will grant a victory to the man he favors most.”
Before Odysseus, Telemachus almosts succeeds and wins Penelope’s competition. However Odysseus “shook his head and stopped him short”, and instead he takes the bow and wins the competition.
Telemachus orders Eumaeus to “Carry on with the bow, old boy.” to give the bow to …show more content…
“Odysseus aimed and shot Antinous square in the throat.” Making him unable to speak out against anyone ever again.
Book 22 gives an homage to Book 12 when Odysseus and his crew are stuck on Helios’ island and his men slaughter and eat one of his sacred cattle. Helios furiously demands Zeus to punish them, and so he promises “I’ll hit their racing ship with a white hot bolt.” In Book 22, the suitors are eating and feasting in a room that does not rightfully belong to them, resulting in their deaths.
Telemachus inadvertently makes the mistake of leaving the storeroom open with all the shields and weapons; the Odyssey has a way of making things work out by having Odysseus go make Eumaeus remember that he left it open. “The blame’s all mine… Go, Eumaeus, shut the door to the