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Coping Mechanisms In Homer's Odyssey '

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Aly Willard Kravchak Honors Humanities period 2 September 1, 2015 Coping Mechanisms Everyone has some way to deal with the stress of his or her lives, even characters from books. Some of methods the of managing stress are adaptation and conversion. Adaptation is altering oneself to conform to the stressors they are coping with. When a person uses conversion, they convert their time and energy into another concern other than their initial problem. Odysseus had already fought in a war and now he was struggling to get home, he had so much stress that "The gods were all sorry for him"(Homer 3). Penelope was home without her husband in a male-dominated world with men pillaging her home and her son departing on missions as well. Throughout Homer’s …show more content…

In the beginning after Odysseus escapes from the Cyclops, his strong sense of pride can be detected. “'I am Odysseus son of Laertes, known before all men for the study of crafty designs, and my fame goes up to the heavens'” (Homer 105). Before any of the adventures he partakes in in this book, he had fought in a war. As if the fears of being in a war wasn't enough, he had to continue to be brave throughout his abnormally long journey home. It’s hard to detect that he is tense because of the way he handles it. He subsists by adapting. He adapts from having almost too much pride to being more sensible and …show more content…

They had to face their problems head on and deal with the stress they had been put under in Book 18. Penelope came to terms with her fears concerning her missing husband. Odysseus finally comes to the epiphany that some things are left up to the gods and not everything is controlled by a man’s decisions. “Of all the creatures that breathe and move upon the earth, nothing is bred that is weaker than man. He thinks no evil thing can ever come upon him, so long as the gods give him power and his knees are nimble; but when the blessed gods bring sorrow, he has to bear this also, unwillingly yet with patient heart” (Homer 228). Odysseus finally sees both the upsides and the downsides to being a

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