# Jove — The Odyssey character guide

> Jove in The Odyssey by Homer.

**Role:** major

**Also known as:** Zeus, Father Jove, Saturnian Jove, cloud-compelling Jove, the Thunderer, Olympian Jove

**First appearance:** 0001-the-odyssey

## Snapshot

The thunderer who rules Olympus, weighing mortal folly against divine will and finally sanctioning Ulysses' long-delayed return.

## Who they are

Jove opens the poem brooding on Aegisthus, proof that men blame the gods for sorrows they bring on themselves, yet he pities Ulysses and lets Athene press his case. He is sovereign but not simple: he thunders assent to an unnamed slave woman's prayer, a sign heard by the disguised king. His decrees set the poem's moral weather, balancing Neptune's grudge against the slow machinery of homecoming.

## Relationships

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

_psychological_

Jove (Zeus) is the supreme god who sometimes aids Ulysses but also allows his trials, representing a distant, fate-controlling power.

### [Pallas Athene](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_odyssey_se/characters/pallas_athene)

_family_

Jove is the father of Pallas Athene, and they interact as divine parent and child, often discussing mortal affairs.

### [Telemachus](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_odyssey_se/characters/telemachus)

_psychological_

Jove influences Telemachus' fate from afar, sometimes sending omens or signs that guide his journey.

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

_psychological_

Jove (Zeus) is the supreme god who sometimes aids Ulysses but also allows his trials, representing a distant, fate-controlling power.

### [Telemachus](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_odyssey_se/characters/telemachus)

_psychological_

Jove influences Telemachus' fate from afar, sometimes sending omens or signs that guide his journey.

### [Pallas Athene](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_odyssey_se/characters/pallas_athene)

_family_

Jove is the father of Pallas Athene, and they interact as divine parent and child, often discussing mortal affairs.

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

_psychological_

Jove (Zeus) is the supreme god who sometimes aids Ulysses but also allows his trials, representing a distant, fate-controlling power.

## In the story

### [The Odyssey](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_odyssey_se/chapters/the-odyssey)

The king of the gods, who oversees fate and divine interventions.

## Links

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