So far in our reading (Books 1-4) we haven't actually met Odysseus. We have only others' statements about him, which are a mixed bag at best. Descriptions such as "excels all men in wisdom" (1.79), "mastermind of battle" (1.193), "godlike" (1.260), "great-hearted" (2.92), "hero" (3.159, 173, et. al.), "fearless" (3.303), "god-appointed" (3.778), and "excelled in every strength" (3.817) appear alongside descriptions such as "cunning" (1.312), "sheer cunning" (2.135), "wily" (2.181), and "crafty" (3.281).
Who exactly is Odysseus? A great-hearted, god-appointed hero? A wily and cunning human strategist? Both? Neither? Now that you've gotten further into the text and have actually "met" Odysseus, have your initial impressions of him changed? If so, to what extent and why? Be sure to defend your position with cited textual evidence (Page.Line #) as above.
