Penelope, Odysseus's fateful wife
Penelope, wife of Odysseus. She had a lot of suitors, who said Odysseus was dead and that she should marry one of them.
She told the suitors that when she was finished weaving a particular tapestry, she would marry one of them. She wove the tapesty by day and unravelled it by night, so that it was never completed.
Penelope tricks the suitors by telling them she will choose a new husband once she finishes weaving a burial shroud for Laertes, but she secretly unravels the cloth every night. This delay tactic gives Odysseus time to return home and deal with the suitors himself.
Penelope delays choosing a suitor by telling them she will marry once she finishes weaving a burial shroud for her father-in-law, Laertes. However, she secretly unravels her weaving each night to prolong making a decision.
Wait for her to finish weaving
Penelope , the wife of Odysseus , awaited the arrival of her husband weaving a tapestry and , to thwart her suitors , unraveled this same tapestry at night because she had promised to marry once the tapestry was completed .
Penelope held a contest for the suitors: Whoever could string Odysseus' bow and fire an arrow through twelve axe handles would be able to marry her. This is a trick Odysseus did when he was younger. Only one who can accomplish the feat would be considered man enough to marry her. None of the suitors could do it except for Odysseus, who was still disguised as a beggar.
Penelope weaves a shroud for Laertes, Odysseus' father, in an attempt to delay her suitors while she waits for Odysseus to return. She promises to choose a suitor once the shroud is completed, but she unravels her weaving every night to buy more time.
Penelope's plan to test the suitors is to promise to choose a new husband once she finishes weaving a burial shroud for her father-in-law, Laertes. However, she secretly unravels the shroud at night to stall for time and see who remains loyal to her and Odysseus.
Penelope told the suitors that she would choose a suitor once she finished weaving a shroud for her father-in-law, Laertes. However, she secretly unraveled the shroud each night to delay its completion, buying time to avoid selecting a suitor.
Penelope's weaving story can be found in Book 2 of Homer's Odyssey. In this story, Penelope tricks the suitors by weaving a shroud for her father-in-law Laertes during the day and secretly unraveling it at night to delay her remarriage.