What was the effect of the Lotus plant in The Odyssey?

Odysseus' ship was blown off course to a land of
Lotus-eaters:

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As they were about to round the southern tip of
Peloponnesus, their ships were driven by strong wind to Libya, where they met the
Lotus-eaters.

This was a
beautiful area filled with a beautiful flowering Lotus plant. These people would eat the
Lotus plant which is a type of flower with seeds. Odysseus sent some of his men to scope
out the scene. Three of his men set out to find out about the Lotus-eaters. The
Lotus-eaters gave them some of the Lotus plants. Odysseus' men began to care less about
going home. The Lotus plant is very powerful. It causes those who eat it to
forget:

The
plant Lotus caused anyone to eat the flower or seeds to forget who he was, and his only
interest was to eat more of the
plants.

The Lotus plant is so
powerful until Odysseus had to force his crew back on the ship. They only longed to eat
more of the Lotus plant. In fact, they wept bitterly when Odysseus forced them aboard
the ship for home:

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Odysseus dragged his wailing men back to the
ships, and they again moved out to
sea.