Proci

The Suitors of Penelope (also known as the Proci) are one of the main subjects of Homer's Odyssey.

In The Odyssey, Homer describes Odysseus' journey home from the Trojan War. Prior to the Trojan War, Odysseus was King of Ithaca, a Greek island known for its isolation and rugged terrain. When Odysseus departed from Ithaca to fight for the Greeks in the war, he left behind a newborn child, Telemachus, and his wife, Penelope. Although most surviving Greek soldiers return shortly after the end of the fighting, Odysseus did not return to Ithaca until 10 years after the end of the Trojan War.

During Odysseus' long absence, unmarried men started to suspect that Odysseus died in Troy or on the journey home. Under the pretense of courting Penelope, these unmarried men, called “the suitors”, took up residence in Odysseus' home and vied for her hand in marriage. Rather than simply rejecting the suitors, Penelope devises a plan to delay their courtship. She claims she will choose a husband after she has finished weaving a funeral shroud to present to Odysseus' father, Laertes. For three years, Penelope weaves the shroud during the day and dissembles it at night to bide time awaiting her husband's return. The suitors learn of Penelope's plan when one of her maidservants, Melantho, revealed it to her lover Eurymachus. Upon finding out about Penelope's deception, the suitors demand that she choose a husband from among them.

The suitors acted disrespectfully in Odysseus' home, drinking their wine and eating their food. Odysseus' son, Telemachus, now a young man, was frustrated with the suitors. Telemachus lamented to Athena (disguised as Mentes, one of Odysseus' guest-friends) about the suitors disrespectful behavior. In return, Athena urged Telemachus to stand up to the suitors and depart to find his father.

Once Odysseus returns home (whom Athena initially disguises as a beggar so he can plot his revenge in secret), his son Telemachus tells him that there are 108 suitors: 52 from Dulichium, 24 from Same, 20 Achaeans from Zacynthus, and 12 from Ithaca. Together, Odysseus, Telemachus, and Philoetius kill the suitors and the maidservants.

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