In the Odyssey, Odysseus went on a long and hard 20 year journey as he tried to return home to Ithaca. When he got home, he found out that there were multiple men pursuing his wife and his possessions. Odysseus planned to get revenge against the suitors.
Most people think that the three sections of the Odyssey- “Argus”, “The Suitors”, and “Penelope”- are not only a brief rest or “calm before the storm” leading up to Odysseus’ revenge against the suitors, but serve other important functions.

First of all, the scene with Argus, Odysseus’ dog, shows how things had been when Odysseus was gone for 20 years. This was the first part of his plan- he wanted to see if people took care of his dog. His dog was literally treated like poop. On page 901, Homer (the author) says: “Treated as rubbish now, he lay at last upon a mass of dung before the gates- manure of mules and cows…” This showed that some people weren’t loyal to Odysseus.

Also, the encounter between Antinous (the leader of the suitors) and Odysseus (disguised as a beggar) reveals the suitors’ personalities. Odysseus saw how arrogant Antinous was when he bumped into Antinous’ table and when he insulted him. On page 902, Antinous says, “God! What evil wind blew in this pest? Get over, stand in the passage! Nudge my table, will you? …” Then, Odysseus cursed him saying that Antinous would die before his wedding. This is ironic because we know that Odysseus is planning to kill all the suitors and no one will marry his wife. The other suitors were mortified and some thought he was a god in disguise.

The conversation between the disguised Odysseus and his unsuspecting wife (Penelope) shows her character. We see that she still believes that Odysseus is alive and she still cares about him. She says to him on page 905, “If he returned, if he were here to care for me, I might be happily renowned!” She had been delaying her marriage the suitors had tried to get her to do by weaving a shroud for her father in-law during the day and unweaving it at night. This showed her intelligence because she got away with doing that for three years.

This part of the Odyssey serves significant purposes other than a momentary break in the story.