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Book XXIV In Homer's Odyssey

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Many have argued that the ending of Homer’s Odyssey does not in fact end with book XXIV, but rather, Homer originally ends in book XXIII when Odysseus and Penelope go to bed together. Those who believe this statement say that the rest of book XXIII and book XXIV were later added by someone other than Homer. The notion that the book ends before the end of book XXIV is completely preposterous. First, book XXIV is where Larities is reunited with his son, Odysseus. This reunion is something that the reader needs to see happen to tie up that loose end. Odysseus is reunited with Telemachus and Penelope and Odysseus knows what happens with his mother, so Odysseus must also meet his father again. Additionally, in Book XXIV, is where the parents of

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