Pénélope

Pénélope is a figure from Greek mythology, most famously known as the wife of Odysseus, the king of Ithaca, and the mother of Telemachus. Her story is primarily told in Homer's Odyssey.

During Odysseus's long absence following the Trojan War, Pénélope remained loyal to him, resisting the advances of numerous suitors who had invaded her home and consumed Odysseus's wealth. These suitors demanded that she choose a new husband, believing Odysseus to be dead.

To delay her remarriage, Pénélope devised a cunning stratagem. She announced that she would select a suitor only after she had completed weaving a burial shroud for her father-in-law, Laertes. However, each night, she would secretly unravel the portion she had woven during the day, effectively postponing the completion of the shroud indefinitely. This act of weaving and unweaving became her defining characteristic and a symbol of her intelligence and fidelity.

After twenty years away, Odysseus finally returned to Ithaca, disguised as a beggar. Pénélope, though initially unable to recognize him, tested him by asking him to string Odysseus's great bow and shoot an arrow through twelve axe heads, a feat only Odysseus could accomplish. When Odysseus succeeded, she finally revealed herself, and together they defeated the suitors. Pénélope's enduring loyalty and cleverness have made her a significant figure in Western literature and culture.