# Calypso — The Odyssey character guide

> Calypso in The Odyssey by Homer.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** fair Calypso, the nymph Calypso, Calypso of the radiant hair

**First appearance:** 0005-book-iv-conference-of-telemachus-and-menelaus

## Snapshot

A radiant nymph who keeps Ulysses on her island for seven years, offering immortality he refuses to accept.

## Who they are

Calypso rules Ogygia as both paradise and prison, her affection for Ulysses indistinguishable from possession. She offers him deathless youth and a goddess's bed, yet he weeps on her shore each day for a mortal wife and a rocky island he may never see again. Her grief when the gods finally order his release exposes how deeply the story's heroes are also its captors.

## Relationships

### [Ulysses](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_odyssey_se/characters/ulysses)

_romantic_

Calypso is a nymph who keeps Ulysses as her lover on her island for years, creating a relationship of captivity and affection.

### [Ulysses](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_odyssey_se/characters/ulysses)

_romantic_

Calypso is a nymph who keeps Ulysses as her lover on her island for years, creating a relationship of captivity and affection.

### [Ulysses](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_odyssey_se/characters/ulysses)

_romantic_

Calypso is a nymph who keeps Ulysses as her lover on her island for years, creating a relationship of captivity and affection.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_odyssey_se/characters/calypso
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_odyssey_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_odyssey_se/characters