(Eurylokhos addressing Odysseus in front of the entire crew.)
“Are you flesh and blood, Odysseus, to endure
more than a man can? Do you ever tire?
God, look at you, iron is what you’re made of.
Here we all are, half dead with weariness,
falling asleep over the oars, and you
saying, ‘No landing’–no firm island earth
where we could make a quiet supper. No:
pull out to sea, you say, with night upon us–
just as before, but wandering now, and lost.
Sudden storms can rise at night and swamp
ships without a trace.”
The Norton Anthology of World Literature Second Edition Volume A. Book XII: 331-341
Some like to say that, in life, there are winners, and there are losers. Eurylokhos is a loser. Though cautious and compelling, he makes a grave mistake questioning the authority of the hero and gathering the troops against him. Eurylokhos’s ambition (but ultimate failure) arouses the thoughts of of hero v. layman binary in the Odyssey. It seems clear that Odysseus is the leader as a result of his tactical skills, fighting abilities, and abundant confidence. However, it is apparent that Eurylokhos is not the leader because, well, he does not embody these qualities. Yet–and his trepidation directly opposes Odysseus’s might–he publicly denounces Odysseus for his relentlessness in continuing their journey while all the men are “half dead with weariness, falling asleep over the oars…” It appears that this is a fatal mistake for everyone, except our hero Odysseus.
Through 11 books of the Odyssey, the reader wonders how Odysseus came to be alone on the sea, and it is here that we unearth that mystery. The rebellious Eurlokhos causes the death of the entire crew because he spoke out against Odysseus. Odysseus is hesitant to anchor near the island of the Sun because of the temptation of eating from the Sun’s animals. He is well aware of the dangers of slaughtering the Sun’s animals. Yet, hunger overtakes the entire crew when they chanted “Aye!” to Eurlokhos’s suggestion that they defy Odysseus’s order and slaughter the animals while he sleeps.
This is not the first instance of Eurlokhos’s defiance. Earlier, in book X, he questions Odysseus’s instruction that the remaining crew member’s go to Kirke’s house. He ultimately joins the group, but Odysseus nearly draws his sword to kill Eurolokhos for disputing his word. Odysseus’s harshness is clearly warranted, since we understand what transpires when the hero’s authority is defied: complete destruction. Odysseus only agreed to have the company anchor on the island of the Sun because the majority sided with Eurolokhos. He had them all swear an oath that they would not eat of the Sun’s animals and they did so swear. Yet, again, Eurlokhos rallied the troops to defy Odysseus’s word, yet, this time it is while he sleeps, so there is no hope for order. All perish, all but our hero Odysseus.
There is an apparent progression in Eurolokhos’s defiance. From personal, to communal, to absolute treachery, he attempts to undo the order of leadership in the Odyssey, causing the obliteration of all. Only the leader, the hero remains.
Eurylochus (our translators transcribe his name differently!) is a fascinating character to track. I think you’re right that he operates as a kind of foil for Odysseus–and that be becomes one after his initial, utterly traumatizing encounter with Circe (how different from Odysseus’ reception by the goddess!).
The distinction between “winners” and “losers” feels oddly contemporary to me (even the “losers” of the Trojan war, the Trojans, are treated with enormous respect in story and song; it is as though the outcome of a conflict matters far less, in this world, than valor, honorable comportment, and virtue along the way. But it is an interesting distinction. One literary critic, David Quint, points out that Odysseus himself is a kind of “loser” in these books, never getting anywhere, only constantly returning to places he’s been (Aeolus’ home, Circe’s island) and endlessly delaying. If a “winner” gets where he’s going, gets to a goal, then Odysseus… isn’t that. Yet he’s still the hero. A very strange kind of hero, in a very strange kind of story.