Square in the back
it struck Odysseus, just under the right shoulder
but he stood up against it – steady as a rock,
unstaggered by Antinous’ blow – just shook his head,
silent, his mind churning with thoughts of bloody work.
– Homer
The Odyssey, Book 17, lines 510-514. Antinous hurls a stool at Odysseus and it strikes him in the back. Despite the pain and humiliation it must have caused, Odysseus chooses not to stand up for himself and fight back. Here he shows his maturity and self-restraint, but also his cunning. For maintaining his disguise as a weak beggar helps to lull the suitors into a false sense of security, making possible his eventual attack on them. In a metaphor Odysseus’ mind is compared to a "churning" cauldron bent on murder. A simile likens him to a rock in steadiness.