Ulysses
American Heritage Dictionary:
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U·lys·ses
(yʊ-lĭs'ēz') 
n. Mythology
Odysseus.
n. Mythology
Odysseus.
[Latin Ulixēs, Ulyssēs, from Greek dialectal Olusseus, variant of Greek Odusseus.]
Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy:
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Ulysses
(sirens) In Odyssey 12, 39. 200, Homer relates how Ulysses has himself tied to the mast in order that he may hear the sirens' song, yet not follow all other sailors who, having done so, are driven to follow the sound, shipwreck, ashows that it may be advantageous not to be free, and so is a focus for debates over paternalism, and the relation between higher and lower inclinations, or reason and desire (for a spectacular example, see Democritus). Although sirens are popularly depicted as floppy Victorian nymphs it should be remembered that in early representations of the legend they are more formidable, sometimes depicted as birds with women's heads, or even male and bearded, with claws like vultures. They are representatives of alienating, god-like powers whose force we should know but against which we must be forearmed.
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American Heritage Dictionary
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy
The Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy. Copyright © 1994, 1996, 2005 by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.
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Dictionary of Cultural Literacy: Mythology
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Edited by E.D. Hirsch, Jr., Joseph F. Kett, and James Trefil. Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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