In the first few lines of this epic poem, readers learn that Odysseus could not save his men, and they perished through their own fault and not because of him. Most of them died as a result of eating the sacred cattle of the sun god, Helios, despite the fact that they were warned, many times, to leave the cows alone, no matter what. One reason I think this information comes up at the very beginning of the text is that one of the poem's most important thematic subjects is humility and showing honor to the gods. When Odysseus's men fail to obey the warnings about Helios and his cattle, they break a cardinal rule of ancient Greece: always respect to the gods above all else. This is a theme that runs through the poem from start to finish.
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