Circe

by

Madeline Miller

Telegonus Character Analysis

Telegonus is Circe’s and Odysseus’s son, although Odysseus never learns of his existence. Telegonus’s name means “far away,” which represents how Circe has him far away from everyone else and tries to keep him for herself alone. Although she never explicitly states why she decides to have a child, she seems to be inspired by both Daedalus’s and Odysseus’s affection for their sons (although, when Odysseus actually meets his son Telemachus as an adult, the love evaporates quickly when he sees that his son is not like him). It is also implied that Circe decides to have a child to alleviate her loneliness while in exile and to give her a purpose beyond mere survival. When Telegonus is born, Circe loves him deeply, and also knows that, because of her boundless love for him, he is “the thing the gods could use against [her].” Her fear of the gods’ involvement is almost immediately realized when Athena starts trying to kill Telegonus, because she knows that he will grow up to kill Odysseus. Circe is ignorant of this prophecy and does everything in her power to keep her son alive, including creating a protective barrier around the island. But Telegonus grows up restless and always wanting to leave the island. Circe wants to keep him with her on Aiaia forever, but she also wants him to have a happy life, one where he can feel free as she never felt when living with Helios. Telemachus loves stories of heroism and virtue, and he is childishly sure that Odysseus, his father, is a hero. He leaves Aiaia to meet his father, but the prophecy comes true, and he accidentally kills Odysseus with his spear tipped with Trygon’s poison tail. He is consumed with guilt, but it lessens over time as he gets closer to his half-brother Telemachus and Telemachus’s mother Penelope, who tell him of Odysseus’s true nature. Telegonus eventually leaves Aiaia for good when Athena offers him the opportunity to create an empire in the west.

Telegonus Quotes in Circe

The Circe quotes below are all either spoken by Telegonus or refer to Telegonus. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Power, Fear, and Self-Preservation Theme Icon
).
Chapter 19 Quotes

“Why can you not be more peaceful?” I whispered. “Why must it be so hard?”

As if in answer, a vision of my father’s halls drifted up: the sterile earth floor, the black gleam of obsidian […] I had laid quiet and still, but I remembered the ravening hunger that was in me always: to climb into my father’s lap, to rise and run and shout, snatch the draughts from the board and batter them against the walls […] shake [Helios] for every secret, as fruits are shaken from a tree. But if I had done even one of those things there would have been no mercy. He would have burnt me down to ash […]

Why should [Telegonus] be peaceful? I never was, nor his father either, when I knew him. The difference was that he was not afraid to be burnt.

Related Characters: Circe (speaker), Helios, Telegonus
Page Number: 258
Explanation and Analysis:

How would you know? I wanted to say. Often those men in most need hate most to be grateful, and will strike at you just to feel whole again.

Related Characters: Circe (speaker), Telegonus
Page Number: 263
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 21 Quotes

An owl passed its wings over my head. I heard the sound of scuffling brush, the beak snap, A mouse had died for its carelessness. I was glad Telemachus would not know of those words between me and his father. At the time I had been boasting, showing off my ruthlessness. I had felt untouchable, filled with teeth and power. I scarcely remembered what that was like.

Related Characters: Circe (speaker), Telegonus, Telemachus, Odysseus, Athena
Page Number: 310
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 22 Quotes

“When I was young, I overheard our palace surgeon talking. He said that the medicines he sold were only for show. Most hurts heal by themselves, he said, if you give them enough time […] I took it for a philosophy. I have always been good at waiting, you see. I outlasted the war and the suitors. I outlasted Odysseus’s travels. I told myself that if I were patient enough, I could outlast his restlessness and Athena too […] And while I sat, Telemachus bore his father’s rage year after year. He suffered while I turned my eyes away […] But this world does have true medicines. You are proof of that. You walked the depths for your son. You defied the gods. I think of all the years of my life I wasted on that little man’s boast. I have paid for it, that is only justice, but I have made Telemachus pay as well.”

Related Characters: Penelope (speaker), Circe, Telegonus, Telemachus, Odysseus, Athena
Page Number: 329-330
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire Circe LitChart as a printable PDF.
Circe PDF

Telegonus Quotes in Circe

The Circe quotes below are all either spoken by Telegonus or refer to Telegonus. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Power, Fear, and Self-Preservation Theme Icon
).
Chapter 19 Quotes

“Why can you not be more peaceful?” I whispered. “Why must it be so hard?”

As if in answer, a vision of my father’s halls drifted up: the sterile earth floor, the black gleam of obsidian […] I had laid quiet and still, but I remembered the ravening hunger that was in me always: to climb into my father’s lap, to rise and run and shout, snatch the draughts from the board and batter them against the walls […] shake [Helios] for every secret, as fruits are shaken from a tree. But if I had done even one of those things there would have been no mercy. He would have burnt me down to ash […]

Why should [Telegonus] be peaceful? I never was, nor his father either, when I knew him. The difference was that he was not afraid to be burnt.

Related Characters: Circe (speaker), Helios, Telegonus
Page Number: 258
Explanation and Analysis:

How would you know? I wanted to say. Often those men in most need hate most to be grateful, and will strike at you just to feel whole again.

Related Characters: Circe (speaker), Telegonus
Page Number: 263
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 21 Quotes

An owl passed its wings over my head. I heard the sound of scuffling brush, the beak snap, A mouse had died for its carelessness. I was glad Telemachus would not know of those words between me and his father. At the time I had been boasting, showing off my ruthlessness. I had felt untouchable, filled with teeth and power. I scarcely remembered what that was like.

Related Characters: Circe (speaker), Telegonus, Telemachus, Odysseus, Athena
Page Number: 310
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 22 Quotes

“When I was young, I overheard our palace surgeon talking. He said that the medicines he sold were only for show. Most hurts heal by themselves, he said, if you give them enough time […] I took it for a philosophy. I have always been good at waiting, you see. I outlasted the war and the suitors. I outlasted Odysseus’s travels. I told myself that if I were patient enough, I could outlast his restlessness and Athena too […] And while I sat, Telemachus bore his father’s rage year after year. He suffered while I turned my eyes away […] But this world does have true medicines. You are proof of that. You walked the depths for your son. You defied the gods. I think of all the years of my life I wasted on that little man’s boast. I have paid for it, that is only justice, but I have made Telemachus pay as well.”

Related Characters: Penelope (speaker), Circe, Telegonus, Telemachus, Odysseus, Athena
Page Number: 329-330
Explanation and Analysis: