What can be inferred about Odysseuss leadership style by analyzing his approach to his crew while they are on the Island of the Cattle of the Sun?

In book 12
of the Odyssey, the enchantress Circe warns Odysseus of a number of dangers
he will encounter during his long trip home. Among them are the Sirens, the straits of Scylla
and Charybdis, and Helioss cattle on the island Thrinacia, of which Circe warns,

if you harm them, then I forewarn you of the destruction both of
your ship and of your comrades; and even though you may yourself escape, you will return late,
in bad plight, after losing all your men.

Odysseus and
his crew reach the island exhausted from their many perils, but Odysseus immediately tells his
crew they should continue, relating to them,

how carefully
Circe warned me to shun the island ... for it was here, she said, that our worst danger would
lie.

His second-in-command, Eurylochus, calls him cruel
and made of iron, saying the men are worn out and need to rest for one night before they set
sail in the morning. The men approved his words, and Odysseus sees no recourse but to relent
that heaven meant us a mischief, but still making his men swear not to kill any of Helioss
flock.

The next morning, the sea is impassable and remains so for a whole
month, until Odysseus and his crew run out of food. Odysseus consistently reminds his crew of
their oath, and even prays for thembut he falls asleep while doing so, during which time the men
slaughter some cattle and begin to feed. Shortly afterwards the sea becomes passable again, the
crew sets sail, and they are all drowned in a tremendous thunderstorm.

At
this point in the poem, Odysseus seems to be a man resigned to the workings of fate. One might
expect him to try to force his men to leave the islandsimilar to how he clasped the mouths of
his fellow warriors shut inside of the Trojan horseor trick them into leaving the island of
their own accord, a tactic often utilized by one of Western literatures most reliable
tricksters. Instead, he attempts to lead his men on the island of Thrinacia with piety: through
humility, oaths and prayer. It is unsurprising that Odysseus has turned pious by this point in
his personal journey. After his own display ofin boasting his name to the Cyclops Polyphemos,
Poseidon turned against Odysseus, who seems now to have learned his lesson. Odysseus seeks to
fulfill every prophecy and undergo every trial for the rest of his journey.

One darker reading of Odysseuss conduct on Thrinacia is that he has ceased to care
about the lives of his crew. It is important to remember that this portion of the
Odyssey is being narrated by Odysseus himself. It would come as no
surprise, therefore, for the wily king to paint himself in the most pious light possible. The
question might not be what we can infer about Odysseus the leader, but rather if we should trust
Odysseus the narrator.