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In the Odyssey there are frequent occasions for disguise and dissimulation. Considering anonymity a peculiar case of disguise, Ulysses often disguises himself, making this a distinctive part of his personality. Of a different nature, metamorphosis is also a common phenomenon in the poem and in Greek mythology. Gods transform themselves and have the power to modify other beings, affecting their corporal nature by radical transformations. We explore metamorphosis's categories and functions in the Odyssey, how it helps constructing divine and human characters and how it influences weaving the poem's action. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Food topics are important in the epic discourse. In the Odyssey these topics unfold as a semiotic system associated to the alternatives of the narration, the development of the issues and the fate of the characteres. Gastronomic scenes describe the diverse functions of food and beverages, constitute a sign of humanity and indicators of the relation between actors and their social status. F. Hartog proposes that the poem could be read as narrative anthropology. In this perspective the gastronomic issue functions as a symbolic operator in the odysseic task of surveying the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]