...Name: Hagar El Zohiry Class Section: 91066 October 27, 2015 Loyalty is one of the major themes discussed in both “The Odyssey” and “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” Loyalty is seen through Penelope and her husband in the book, and McGill and his friends in the film. In this paper I will explore and compare the theme of loyalty in both the film and the book. Loyalty is seen in many aspects of the book, one of which is Penelope’s wait for her husband for twenty years without committing any act of infidelity. Moreover, she was in a very dangerous situation because of the suitors, and she didn’t just give up in order to survive. Instead she used her intelligence and fooled the suitors by telling them that she will choose after she is done with the shroud....
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...Homer’s The Odyssey are probably the most famous of the epic. This is because of the fact that this is where much of the action of Odysseus’s journey back to Ithaca is described. However, these books work greatly as a whole. The Odyssey’s Book Nine through Twelve contain many major themes that help develop the characters in the collective piece. These selected books from Homer’s The Odyssey have many themes and values that including the importance of loyalty. Odysseus is often portrayed as a very loyal person. The very point of his journey is to return to his home in Ithaca to his wife and son. Odysseus is also very loyal to his crew and goes to great lengths to ensure their safety, such as using wax to put in their ears so that they could not hear the songs of sirens. Loyalty is also important to many of the creatures that Odysseus and his crew...
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...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....
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...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...
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...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....
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...The epic The Odyssey by Homer accommodates many themes, one of them being Loyalty. Odysseus wife Penelope is a symbol of loyalty throughout the epic. Penelope’s loyalty towards her husband is seen in many ways. She is the epitome of a devoted wife. Examples of this can be seen in her creative ways of putting off many suitors who have taken over the house in Ithaca. Another example is seen in the clever tasks she has the suitors complete to keep them distracted and her self unwed. All of these tie into the general theme of loyalty in the Odyssey. In the beginning of the epic we see Penelope and the suitors in the house of Ithaca waiting to see which suitor penelope shall marry. Due to her loyalty to her husband she conjures up a plan in which...
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...In the epic “The Illustrated Odyssey”, by Joel Skidmore, and in the movie “The Odyssey”, directed by Andre Konchalovisky, they both focus on Odysseus’s 20-year journey battle in the Trojan war and his return home to Ithaca. First and foremost, in his absence and warnings to move on, Odysseus family remained loyal and true. His wife Penelope and his son Telemachus stayed loyal in many ways. Even though Odysseus was gone for 20 long and hard years, he had no reason to be concerned about his family. His son, his wife, and the great Greek hero himself showed a huge theme of loyalty throughout both the movie and the book. To begin with, Penelope was very loyal to Odysseus in many ways. Even after her own husband had demands for her to move...
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...EXAMINATION OF DUTY AND SELF CONTROL IN THE ODYSSEY Aashna Jamal INTRODUCTION Under the rule of Zeus, events did not occur in isolation but in interdependence causing there to be a flux in the totality of events and the whole drama being played on a cosmic plane. The central theme of Zeus’s rule is the preservation of his “ oikos” or household management where the prevalence of order over Chaos is of utmost importance. In this paper, using the Odyssey as a case study, I will examine the thematic importance of the decisions taken by a hero in accordance to or defiance of self control and pietas and the consequences they lead to. These expectations are clearly marked out for the reader who waits in anticipation to garner the fate of the hero. I will analyse the themes of self control and pietas or duty in the Odyssey and discuss their special significance in this epic. I will then briefly talk about the Hindu concept of duty or Dharma with reference to the Ramayana. I however do not intend to use the concept of monomyth coined by Joseph Campbell also referred to as the hero's journey(which is a basic pattern that its proponents argue is found in many narratives from around the world.) in comparing these epics. The example of the Ramayana will only serve my purpose of highlighting the theme of duty in mythologies across the world. Lastly, I will conclude with the importance of inspecting these themes because of their significance to the plotline. Georg Wissowa notes that pietas was...
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...mature like cut diamonds, emotions construct not only minds but also the hearts and souls of everyone. To be able to express anything close to explicit human emotion, especially when it comes to converting such into words, is an otherworldly art only prodigies can master. And when it comes to prodigies, history raises the classic words of The Odyssey by Homer, The Epic of Gilgamesh, and Antigone by Sophocles and puts them on a pedestal of perfect implementation. Throughout the course of these stories, there is one uncut emotion that makes today’s world go round: love. Often times in life people search for the perfect partner -- a true love and a happily ever after. In The Odyssey, Odysseus and Penelope could be considered a power couple even in modern-day society. Although Odysseus is gone for twenty years, he never forgets his faithful wife in Ithaca. This love seems to help him persevere through the many hardships that he encounters on his journey home. On the other hand, Penelope, of course, maintains balance in the scale of affection by unraveling his shroud and delaying her marriage to the suitors...
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...After twenty years away from his family and Ithaca, Odysseus’ dear wife Penelope continues to remain loyal nonetheless. In The Odyssey, Book I, lines 325-345, the principal theme is one of loyalty between Odysseus and Penelope as well as Penelope and her responsibilities. This theme is enforced through the use of diction- specifically alliteration and word choice- as well as characterization. One of the ways in which Homer stresses the idea of loyalty in Book I, lines 325-345, is through the use of diction, in particular; alliteration and word choice. Homer’s use of alliteration- which is described as the repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of words which neighbour each other- throughout the passage creates alliteration putting...
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...The Odyssey v. The Hobbit In the stories "The Odyssey" by Homer and "The Hobbit" by J.R.R. Tolkien, there are many similarities. The main characters, Odysseus and Bilbo, are trying to get themselves and their crews home. Bilbo and Odysseus have many things in common such as their cunning abilities in trickerySome of the similarities between the two are the settings, the challenges, the enemies, and coming home. First, the setting comparison. One place that can be compared in both stories is 'The Land of the Dead' in "The Odyssey" to 'MirkWood', which is a forest, in "The Hobbit". Both places have masking around them so that it is difficult to see, for example, the fog in 'The Land of the Dead' and the thick trees in 'MirkWood'. Both are also filled with dead people, though none are actually seen in "The Hobbit", but are frequently talked about....
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...The Odyssey was written by homer as an ode detailing the adventures that Odysseus went through until he was able to return to his home in Ithaca. The labors and hardships that Odysseus went through were after the Greek had emerged victorious in their battle at Troy. However, there were some gods who were displeased with a proclamation that Odysseus had made and due to that he was made to wonder in the seas for ten years before he returned to Ithaca (Foley, 10). The recollection of those tribulations are written and document by Homer who was a Greek scholar and poet and throughout the years there have been constant questions about whether the story was true or fabricated. However, the story remains one of the best-written documentaries on the...
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...Odyssey Odysseus did a lot of things throughout his travels. Lots of sleeping around and sailing to different islands. He has been banished to other places not aloud to go back home. The three main themes in the story are, the loyalty he has for Penelope, the revenge from the Gods, and temptation from other woman. In the story the Odyssey a God named Odysseus gets into a fight with another man and Odysseus steals his wife. He sails away with her and hides out for a little bit. After a few years he comes out of hiding to go back to his island, except he went the long way and totally passed the island. He eventually gets to a island with his men. They find a cave and get trapped with a cyclops who tries to eat them because they were eating his food and trying to steal his goats. He goes to other islands and has to fight to get back on the sea. In one part he had to find a potion to get his friends to stop thinking they were animals. In the end he finds his way back to his wife and has to show himself worthy of “marrying” his wife again. He could show that he is worthy by winning the “game” that his wife was planning to weed out the men...
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...Homer writes the theme of loyalty heavily into the Odyssey as demonstrated by the relationship that is had between Telemachus and his father, Odysseus. The prince, who does not have much of a memory of his father, is still determined to find information on what had happened to Odysseus and making sure the former king “’won’t be far from loved ones any longer’” (2: 183). The only knowledge the prince has about his father is what he’s been told by others and he firmly believes what they say and misses the man he has never known. He is loyal to his father by making attempts to bring him home to rid the palace of the suitors that plague it and to once again, be with Penelope. He praises the way his father ruled over the people like “’a father...
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...Father-Son Relationship in The Odyssey The Odyssey introduces the theme of father-son relationships to exemplify how influential fathers were at the time. Fathers act as role models to their sons and can determine their actions even if there is a physical and psychological space and difference between them, like Odysseus and Telemachus. The reader is able to gain greater insight into the nature of ancient Greek society by analysing these father-son relationships for their complexities and circumstances of their familial ties. With each father-son relationship shown, Homer offers a unique perspective about the roles that were available to both father and son. Book 1-4 Throughout the Telemachia, we learn that Telemachus has been forced to grow up without the influence of his father and has been directly affected by Odysseus’ absence. When he confides in Athena under the guise of Mentor, he proclaims that he does not have solid proof that he is in fact Odysseus’s son and doubts that he is still alive. However, the dialogue between both Athena and Telemachus initiates Telemachus’ spiritual development. So, when the pre-economy of Odysseus and Telemachus re-uniting is fulfilled – Telemachus will be in the position to assist his father in killing the suitors and to restore the natural order in the Ithacan society. Telemachus first asserts his male privilege by ordering Penelope from the public rooms of the palace, indicating to the suitors of his intention to assert his claim...
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