The Adventures of Ulysses Chapter Summary & Analysis - Section 8, The Land of the Dead Summary

Section 8, The Land of the Dead Summary

Ulysses sails west toward Tartarus in accordance with Circe's foretelling. Ulysses does not sleep on the rough seas that are plagued with fog. He sends Elpenor to climb the mast to see ahead, but Ulysses stumbles against the mast, sending Elpenor to his death. A gull appears, and the Hellenes follow the gull. As Ulysses sleeps, several sailors whisper their belief that Ulysses killed Elpenor intentionally in order to follow his spirit to Tartarus. The sea slopes and narrows into the River Styx. At Ulysses' orders, the Hellenes disembark. They cut the throats of two black goats in order to be able to talk to the dead. Ulysses' mother, Anticleia, admonishes Ulysses for his disbelief that she would die. Many ghosts chide Ulysses for coming to Tartarus during his life. Ulysses asks for Teiresias and, learning that the prophet is coming, beats the ghosts away from the blood in order...
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