Around line 300, Odysseus recounts the prophecy that Tiresias had made about the King's further adventure and death in old age? Why would Homer remind us of this prophecy, just as the poem achieves its goal of bringing Odysseus home and reestablishing him successfully as master of Ithaca?

The blind prophet Tiresias is often used as a symbol of fate, knowledge, and power; in the Odyssey, Tiresias inhabits the underworld and meets Odysseus when he goes there, showing him how to return to Ithaca, reminding the audience that Odysseus' journey continues, and there's more to be told, displaying Odysseus fate.