Story: Dwarf Island

Along the sea Odysseus and his men traveled for months. They were growing tired and running low on food. They had drifted long from the land which they called home. As the days passed, all that surrounded Odysseus and his crew was water for miles, until one day. Finally, on the ninth day of the ninth month at sea, one of the crew members aboard the ship spotted a small island in the distance.

              As the crew sailed closer to the island they saw no immediate signs of civilization however many goats wondered the island. In addition, another member spotted crops which were growing across an open field. Lastly, Odysseus spotted nine huts on the corner of the island. As he and his crew landed the vessel on shore, they began to scavenge the island for much needed food. He and his crew took a lamb and some of the ripe plantains growing in the field. As the men began to replenish their bodies with the much needed food, Odysseus went out to explore the rest of the small island. As he crest the center of the island he finally spotted one of the inhabitants outside the hut. From which he deduced these creatures were dwarfs. He made his way back to his crew and told them of the news. Neither Odysseus nor his crew had ever seen a dwarf or the home of a dwarf and were immediately intrigued with curiosity and interest. Odysseus warned his crew of the unknown danger of the dwarfs and advised his crew that they should leave, since they had taken enough from the island already. However, the crew fought back the captain and the captain couldn’t resist his own inner curiosity, so Odysseus and his crew made a plan to sneak into one of the nine huts at nightfall.

Wikimedia Commons: Island Huts

              Upon nightfall, Odysseus and his men began to sneak across the island to the group of huts. Odysseys began looking for a door however could not find one. The rest of his crew began searching as well and found no presumable points of entry either. Then one of the members started yelling horrifically. Odysseus saw only shadows drag away one of his crew. Then suddenly he himself was surrounded by a group of nine shadows. The rest of the crew members fled to the ship across the island. The dwarfs captured the captain and took him inside the main hut on the island. As Odysseus was being carried inside, he caught a glimpse of the door hidden by palm leaves. Once inside the dwarfs began to argue about what to do with Odysseus and his other trapped crew member. The head dwarf in charge decided that at sunrise they would execute the thieves. All the dwarfs returned to their respective huts and the head dwarf went to rest as well in the main hut. Once, the head dwarf had fallen asleep, Odysseus and his trapped crew member devised a plan to escape. The only problem was they couldn’t find the key to which the door was locked with. The crew member asked: “How are we going to get through the door without the key?” Odysseus replied, “Simply, we’ll unscrew the door handle then put it on the other side.” And miraculously Odysseus and the trapped crew member escaped and trapped the head dwarf in his own hut. As Odysseus and his crew fled the island, Odysseus boasted with his victory and yelled with excitement. The dwarfs ran out to the edge of the island however were too late to hit Odysseus and his crew with their spears before they sailed away. And that was the last time Odysseus and his crew ever landed on an island on the ninth day of the ninth month.

Author’s Note: This story was inspired by The Land of the Cyclops in Homer’s Odyssey. I wanted to take some parts of the journey which Odysseus and his men did, however change the characters encountered and the method of escape. In addition, I included a reoccurring theme of the number nine throughout my storytelling. This is to symbolize a similar role in which wine played in the original sotry. Thanks for reading and I look forward to your feedback.

Bibliography: Homer's Odyssey, translated into English by Tony Kline. (2004).