Telemachus is Odysseus's son, and was an infant when Odysseus left for Troy. Telemachus is about twenty at the beginning of The Odyssey. He is a natural obstacle to the suitors desperately courting his mother Penelope, and although he has courage and good heart, he at first does not have the poise and confidence to oppose the suitors. He takes a trip to Pylos and Sparta in Books 3 and 4, and matures. Athena often assists him.