While on the island of the Cyclops, Ulysses decides to stay because he is curious about the people who live there. He hopes to enjoy the hospitality of the island's inhabitants. Ulysses’s decision puts his men in danger when they are confronted by Polyphemus, who traps them in his cave and eats two of the men. Greed and pride drive Ulysses’s choices. Ulysses wants to enjoy the spoils of the island, and he believes that his reputation as a great warrior ensures that the people living on the island will welcome him. While he leads the men out of the cave, he lets his pride endanger the group one more time. While leaving the island, he shouts out his own name to Polyphemus to let him know that he, “Ulysses,” is the one who has blinded him. Now knowing the real identity of his attacker, the Cyclops pleads with his father, Neptune, the god of the seas, to punish Ulysses.
In the story of the Cyclops, Ulysses comes across as a clever leader and a brave hero who saves his men using his intelligence. However, he also shows his mortal failings in his desire for fame and glory, which puts him and his men in trouble at sea.
