Antinous of Ithaca

Antinous is presented in the Homeric / Ithacan narrative as the son of Eupeithes and a principal member of the group of suitors who occupy Odysseus's household during the hero's long absence after the Trojan War. Within the narrative he rises to a leadership position among the suitors, driving initiatives against Odysseus's family — most notably plotting against Odysseus's son Telemachus and pressuring Penelope to remarry — and thereby functions as a central human antagonist whose actions justify Odysseus's violent retribution when he returns.

The primary sources supplied give no detailed physical description of Antinous's features, dress, or stature. He is characterized through actions and social bearing: over‑confident, violent, and dominant among the suitors. Narrative highlights that he publicly strikes a beggar (Odysseus in disguise) with a chair and presumes authority in the great hall, comporting himself as a leader of the palace occupiers rather than being depicted by specific bodily traits.

Antinous possesses no supernatural powers in the Homeric material; his 'abilities' are social and practical: influence by virtue of noble birth and rank among the suitors, capacity to organize other men (he sends a band to ambush Telemachus), and readiness to use physical violence (assaulting the beggar). His prominence makes him a focal target for Odysseus's retribution, and he is the first suitor killed — struck by an arrow through the throat while drinking in the great hall.