Odysseus arrives with Neoptolemus, son of slain Achilles, on the island where Philoctetes has been marooned for nine years. He had been hurt on is foot, bitten by a poisonous serpant. The pain was so great, putting him in such great agony, that his wailing was becoming a drag on the Greek parties outside of Troy. Menelaus and Agamemnon instructed Odysseus to maroon him.
Now, Odysseus is back to try to win Philoctetes prized possession, a bow that once belonged to Heracles. The bow is necessary to win the siege of Troy. Odysseus instructs Neoptolemus to win the bow away from Philoctetes by tact and by cunning. Neoptolemus balks at the trickery, but Odysseus explains that he cannot win it back himself, that the bow is needed for Neoptolemus himself to win the final battle, and that Neoptolemus will be doubly revered back at the camp if he succeeds. The sweet-talking works. Odyssues also sets up a back-up plan: if too much time passes, he will send another sailor in disguise to try another tack. Odysseus returns to the boat.
With additional soldiers in support (playing the Chorus), Neoptolemus waits for Philoctetes to appear. They here a cripple coming back to the cave-dwelling, and are shocked by the wretched life he must lead. Philoctetes arrives and questions the strangers. Neoptolemus introduces himself-- they've never met before, he coming late to the war. Philoctetes expounds on his own circumstances and curses Agaememnon, Menelaus, and Odysseus as he tells of his marooning and his subsequent terrible life. He tells of visitors who take pity on him and leave food and supplies, but none will take him home. The Chorus is moved to pity.
Neoptolemus explains further his own situation. He tells of his anger at Odysseus, which is the story Odysseus instructed him to tell-- though it is not at all clear that the anger isn't genuine. After Achilles' death, he expected to receive his father's armor, but it was given to Odysseus instead. He, too, [says he] hates Agamemnon, Menelaus, and Odysseus with a burning passion.
Philoctetes is confused by the power-play, but Neoptolemus explains that Ajax was not around to stop it-- he's dead. Along with Antilochus and Patroclus. The group laments that war seems to take the best and brightest, while letting the devious like Odysseus to live. Philoctetes also asks of the fate of Thersites [?], who seems to be still alive.
Neoptolemus is ready to go, but Philoctetes begs him for passage off the island. Literally begs. The Chorus, moved once again, assents to his request. Neoptolemus is moved as well, and agrees. Philoctetes is overjoyed.
But one of the sailors from back on the boat arrives in disguise, presumably sent by Odysseus.
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I'm not doing justice to the emotional impact of the conversations so far. Philoctetes horrible fate is genuinely moving, and as the play progresses we can see the effect he has on the other characters. Neoptolemus and the Chorus were not planning at all to rescue Philoctetes from the island, but in meeting him they felt they had no choice. It was the only decent thing to do. And we can sense Neoptolemus is turning on Odysseus little by little.
Speaking of, Odysseus's cleverness is far more pronouned in this play than it has been in his other appearances, it seems to me. I never got the sense in the Iliad that it was all that impressive, except that Homer kept saying that it was. In the Odyssey, I just looked at him as playing the hero. But here, his deviousness has taken on a much more sinister quality. So far, it looks like Odysseus is the villain.
This is a consequence, I think, of Sophocles vastly different attitude toward war than that of Homer. Where Homer praised war-making qualities, Sophocles is much more focused on the tragic consequences of war-- the experience of the Greeks in the previous century would probably do that to a guy. Therefore, those who excel at war so successfully can't actually be all that great. And so we see Odysseus about to royally screw what appears to be a noble gesture.
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