...A deity falling in love with him, a sorceress trying to turn him into an animal, and a cyclop eating his men and cursing him are few of the things Odysseus goes through in The Odyssey. First written in the 8th century, The Odyssey is an epic written by Homer. The Odyssey tells the story of a war hero named Odysseus who is trying to get home after successfully defeating Troy. When he finally lands on his island, Ithaca, after 20 gruesome years Odysseus is greeted by 108 suitors trying to wed his wife, plotting to kill his only son, and living in his palace like they own it. Odysseus retaliates by killing all of the suitors. Even though it may seem like it was an inhumane thing to do, it’s clear Odysseus murdering the suitors was a just decision. To start with, the suitors were at fault because they were planning on killing Odysseus’s only son, Telemachus. Killing his only son meant that Odysseus would not have an heir to take over his throne and land. This gives the suitors more chances of becoming the king. In the text, it states, “Moreover, they are plotting to murder Odysseus’s son, Telemachus, before he can inherit his...
Words: 674 - Pages: 3
...The revenge on the suitors, by Odysseus, his son Telemachos and others caused massive chaos in books 21 and 22. The suitors disrespected Odysseus’ household by eating and drinking in his home and courting his wife and for this they were killed ruthlessly. Penelope proposed that if any of the suitors can shoot the arrow through all twelve axes she will leave the house and go with them. When Odysseus finally returned home to Ithaca, he was disguised as an old beggar by Athena. Odysseus shot the arrow through the axes and then shot a second arrow through the throat of Antinous. The suitors were shocked as Odysseus revealed himself and then started shooting at them. Philoetius and Eumaeus had locked the doors in the hall and so the suitors had nowhere to go. Telemachus got more shields and swords from the storeroom to arm Eumaeus and Philoetius, but he forgot to lock it on his way out. Melanthius went to the storeroom and got arms for the suitors. When Eumaeus and Philoetius saw him they tied him up and later he was tortured and killed. However, Athena disguised as Mentor, encouraged Odysseus and later participated in the battle. Odysseus and his men killed several suitors while receiving only slight...
Words: 538 - Pages: 3
...Through The Odyssey, the theme of hospitality is extremely important. In Grecian culture, being is a good host is highly valued and expected by guests. Hospitality was one of Zeus’s ground rules of ancient society. It is a crime against Zeus to commit an offense against a host or guest. Hospitality is an honorable characteristic. It was believed that not being hospitable would result in punishment from the gods. Throughout the Odyssey, three distinct events show the importance of hospitality during the Homer era. The first is Odysseus and the Phaeacian’s who are honorable hosts. The next is the suitors occupying Odysseus’s house, who are shown as horrible guests. Lastly, Odysseus is the guest of Polyphemus, who is an awful host. By comparing and contrasting these three events, one can show the importance of hospitality. The fear of Zeus compels the characters...
Words: 1077 - Pages: 5
...Vengeance is a cruel thing and in The Odyssey there is a lot of it. In the story The Odyssey, Odysseus let vengeance take over his mind. Vengeance is a bad thing to think about and you shouldn’t let vengeance take over your mind. Odysseus wanted to kill the people that were eating his food, drinking his wine, and trying to marry his wife. I believe that the most important topic in the story The Odyssey is vengeance. An example of vengeance is when Odysseus and his men stabbed the giant cyclops’ eye with a big spear on fire. Odysseus and his men stabbed the giant cyclops’ eye because the cyclops trapped them inside his house. The cyclops also ate one of Odysseus men. Than Odysseus let vengeance take over his mind and poked the cyclops eye. After Odysseus and his men poked the cyclops eye, they tried to escape and another of his men died. When Odysseus and his men escape the cyclops house they went straight to their boat and left. The cyclops told his dad Poseidon to revenge him and kill Odysseus and his men....
Words: 432 - Pages: 2
...The Odyssey is great book with many stories like it and different version of the story like the movie The Odyssey and the movie that is based of of it called Brother Where Art Thou. But in this Essay I will be writing about the similarities and differences between these three similar stories. Like how the time period of Brother Where Art Thou it’s set in a totally different time period so that’s a pretty big factor or the fact that the movie is missing a lot of parts because the book is really long and they can’t include everything because that would take forever. So first I going to go over the similarities and differences to the Odyssey book and the Movie. So some of the similarities is that the suitors do eventually get killed by odysseus...
Words: 527 - Pages: 3
...Although “The Odyssey” by the Greek poet Homer is considerably an epic quest of a Odysseus’s lionhearted adventure, Penelope played an incredibly large role in Odysseus’ success demonstrated in her motherly ways, faith, and wit. Motherly figures are consistent throughout “The Odyssey,” and are essentially viewed as pitiful beings, full of melancholy, rather than true “supporters" of their sons and husbands in long periods of absence, due to military needs or personal quests. In some illustrations, mothers are depicted as weak without a steady male figure to guide them. However, this role is broken through the perceived character of Penelope. Due to the fact that Telemachos was incredibly young when Odysseus was drafted, he is doubtful that...
Words: 636 - Pages: 3
...“The Odyssey” Paper The hero’s journey is an archetypical template for the majority of stories that was first identified by the American scholar Joseph Campbell. The hero’s journey is also frequently referred to as the monomyth. As it appears in the tales of so many cultures, the monomyth is significant because it helps to identify the values and beliefs of a society. Perhaps most often, the hero’s journey is found in ancient Greek myths and legends. One of the most notable examples of the monomyth in Greek literature is “The Odyssey”, which was written by Homer around the end of the eighth century BCE. In the epic poem “The Odyssey”, Telemachus matures into a brave adult capable of sitting next to his father as the Prince of Ithaca. Telemachus’ hero’s journey begins with his Call to Adventure...
Words: 965 - Pages: 4
...Hospitality In The Odyssey. Hospitality is very important in the epic poem The Odyssey written by Homer. If people do not show hospitality, they will be punished, although they might be rewarded for showing respect to elders. In The Odyssey written by Homer the epic poem exposes many instances of hospitality. Some instances are when Odysseus comes home as the beggar encountering the suitors. Next suitors enter the Penelope’s home, and wrecking her home and cattle. Another instance Polyphemus does not respect Odysseus and his many by rapidly asking them questions. If people do not show hospitality they might be punished. One character that was punished for not showing hospitality is the Cyclops. The epic states “ ‘Strangers,’ he said, ‘who...
Words: 375 - Pages: 2
...In the hero's journey, a courageous figure will leave out of his comfort zone to safe the population from destruction. The Odyssey follows the “The Hero's Journey” dramastically as the epic continues. Odysseus being a important soldier and war hero he keeps the role of being a brave of all. Being Odysseys he repeatedly faces situations in which humility is being demolished. In his adventures he fails these tests as when he taunts polyphemus inflaming poseidon. By following the outline from hero's journey Odysseus goes through the first threshold when he left for war and got the ultimate boon when he came home and retrieved his wife. Penelope, Odysseus wife has been told to marry a suitor during this long journey,...
Words: 295 - Pages: 2
...The Odyssey is an epic poem written by Homer. The Odyssey is about the ten year journey of Odysseus trying to get home. He faces many challenges but eventually makes it back home. An epic poem must have a epic hero, plot, setting, archetypes, and themes. The Odyssey has all of these characteristics. The three that are the most present are epic plot, archetypes, and epic themes. Epic plot is a very present in The Odyssey. Epic plot consists of a long journey with many complcations. Throughout Odysseus’ long journey, he faces many challenges and peril. One instance of epic plot is that in the ninth book where Odysseus encounters the cyclops, Polyphemus. Polyphemus traps him inside his cave. Odysseus uses his intuition to get out of the cave. Another instance of epic plot is in the twenty-second book during the mass killing of the suitors. Divine intervention occurs on the behalf of Odysseus. “Athena’s presence becomes known to all, as the shape of her shield becomes visible above the hall” (1260,1261). Athena interferes by protecting Odysseus from the suitors’ arrows. Epic plot can also be...
Words: 605 - Pages: 3
...Critical Analysis: The Odyssey | One of the major themes in this epic The Odyssey is loyalty and perseverance. King Odysseus has been away from his land of Ithaca, wife Penelope and son Telemachus for twenty years. Ten of those years were spent with his faithful crew fighting in the Trojan War and the other ten years was spent trying to return home. Penelope didn’t lose faith in her husband after a rowdy and disrespectful crowd of suitors came and uprooted the palace. Penelope has a cunning that indicates she is a good mate for her wily husband. Antinous complains of it at the assembly in Book 2. The queen has a clever tactic as she worked on a weaving for three years, a shroud for the eventual funeral of her father in law in. Clearly buys her times to fool the young suitors. Her tactics eventually fail her after her malicious servants tell the suitors what the queen has been doing. I have to commend Odysseus for his perseverance on trying to get home to Ithaca and to his family. During Books nine thru twelve is where he did most of his wandering at sea thanks to Poseidon. In these books elapsed a little over seven years of his journey. I believe those year was the longest test of Odysseus loyalty and perseverance to return home to Penelope. Odysseus has to have two affairs just to continue his journey to Penelope. While thinking about his family constantly, he still remains very loyal to his men when the goddess- enchantress Circe turns them into animals....
Words: 1215 - Pages: 5
...of men and women evolved? Not really. Women still work and watch over the house and such while the men go out to be breadwinners, but there’s still the underlying sexism that women are the ones who should be doing only the real woman’s work, raising the family, maintaining the house, etc. Men are still free to do as thy wish while no one bats an eye, whereas women are scrutinized for their non-conforming actions. This pushes females to morph, pressed by their situation, into more complex characters. A perfect example would be “The Odyssey” by Greek poet Homer. It’s very much an epic tale of male oriented heroic quests when, however, women play an incredibly large role as well. This epic tale revolves around Ulysses’...
Words: 1286 - Pages: 6
...A Women's Role in The Odyssey "So by day she'd weave at her great and growing web- / by night, by the light of the torches set beside her, / she would unravel all she'd done.", stated Antinous in book two on page 21 of The Odyssey. By saying this Homer, the author of this epic poem, shows that women used their wits to out smart men. Women mortal and immortal show great influence over the men in the poem. The women not only seduced and guided the men in The Odyssey they were also over looked and forgotten. The Odyssey is mainly describing a mans long journey home after the Trojan War, but women play an important role in the story. Different roles women present in The Odyssey can be explained by looking at Athena, Calypso, Circe, and Penelope. Athena, the Goddess of Wisdom, used her knowledge and abilities to guide Odysseus. Throughout all of The Odyssey Athena majorly impacts Odysseus and his son, Telemachus. In the book one of The Odyssey, with Zeus' consent Athena disguised herself as Mentes, one of Odysseus' old friends and seeks out Telemachus....
Words: 957 - Pages: 4
...Kirke is introduced to the audience as a seductress, and a witch. She tricks Odysseus’ men and turns them into swines or pigs using her magic, and now she has lured Odysseus into her arms. For example, in the citation above Kirke is using her role as a women to seduce Odysseus into her bed. But, Odysseus is clever. He makes a deal with her, the deal is that his men are turned back into men if he sleeps with her. Kirke is now one of the bad guys. It seems like Kirke’s only weapon against Odysseus is her beauty, and her magic. This shows that the role of women were very limited. The only power they had over the men were their bodies. It is absurd that women in the Odyssey exist to satisfy men’s needs. They are also there to give birth to men’s...
Words: 364 - Pages: 2
...How Xenia is Key in The Odyssey In the epic poem, The Odyssey, Homer shows how the Ancient Greeks relied on each other for hospitality which was known as Xenia. Xenia is an Ancient Greek Value and it made the Greeks allow strangers into their homes for food and a place to sleep. The Greeks were also not allowed to ask questions because Xenia was based on showing generosity to anyone who showed up to your door. This was because it could be a god disguised as a civilian, and usually the homeowners were supposed to give the stranger a gift when they arrived at their door for this reason as well. When someone did not follow the rules of Xenia, they were disciplined; like the suitors getting killed, and the Cyclops getting his eye poked out by Odysseus....
Words: 796 - Pages: 4
