Why does the Odyssey begin in the middle of Odysseus’s journey?

The Odyssey begins in the middle of the tale, a narrative technique known as in medias res. Rather than starting chronologically from the beginning of Odysseus’s journey, Homer plunges the reader into a crucial situation—the state of affairs in Ithaca nearly 20 years after Odysseus left for the Trojan War.12

This approach creates immediate interest by focusing on the tension surrounding Penelope and her son, Telemachus, as they deal with arrogant suitors in the absence of the king. By starting at this point, the narrative moves directly forward, while the history of Odysseus’s harrowing travels and previous adventures is revealed later through flashbacks and his own retelling to the Phaeacians. This structure contrasts with beginning a story ab ovo (from the egg), or from the earliest chronological point, allowing the epic to maintain a more dramatic and engaging pace.12