Scylla
Scylla is the cliff-dwelling monster with six long-necked heads in Odyssey Book 12. She seizes six members of Odysseus’s crew as they pass, while CharybdisCharybdisCharybdis is the engulfing sea danger opposite Scylla in The Odyssey. Odysseus first passes by ship and later returns alone after the shipwreck, escaping by clinging to a fig tree until floating wreckage reappears.Open the full entry threatens destruction on the other side of the passage.
Contents5 sections
Key facts
A Many-Headed Creature in the Cliff
CirceCirceCirce is a goddess associated with drugs and transformation in Greek mythology. In The Odyssey she turns members of Odysseus’s crew into pigs, later restores them and gives essential guidance for their onward journey.Open the full entry describes Scylla as a dreadful inhabitant of a high cliff, with twelve feet, six long necks and densely toothed heads. She reaches from her cave for sea creatures and for people aboard passing ships. This is the specific form presented in the Homeric episode.[1]
A Course Chosen Against a Worse Disaster
Charybdis on the other side can engulf the whole ship. Circe therefore recommends passing quickly near Scylla, accepting the loss of six rather than total destruction. The route is a choice with a fatal cost, not a safe alternative.[1]
The Loss of Six Crew Members
OdysseusOdysseusOdysseus is the legendary hero of Ithaca, protagonist of The Odyssey and a Greek leader in The Iliad. His long return from the Trojan War to Penelope (Greek mythology) and Telemachus centers on cunning, disguise, endurance and recognition.Open the full entry withholds the full danger from his crew for fear that they will stop rowing. He arms himself, yet Scylla seizes six men while their attention turns to Charybdis. His retrospective account presents the sight as among the most painful he witnessed.[1]
The Pairing with Charybdis
Scylla and Charybdis represent adjacent but different dangers: one takes crew members, the other may engulf everyone. Circe’s insistence on rapid passage shows that martial courage cannot remove every risk.[1]