Examples Of Figurative Language In The Odyssey

In “The Odyssey” an epic poem by Homer, personification is used to give human characteristics to emotions that a character is feeling or going through. The first example of personification is found when Scyla attacks Odysseus’s crew and takes six of his men. Odysseus’s feelings about what happened are described as,” Deathly pity ran through me” (p. 921). This is personification because pity is a feeling, and a feeling can’t literally run, Homer means this as it is unexpected and it is like shock to Odysseus, almost as if a sword was being driven through him. The next example of personification describing feeling is when Odysseus wakes up to his men who have eaten the cattle of the sun.

Homer’s epic poem The Odyssey translated by Robert Fagles completely illustrate Odysseus’s journey home after The Trojan War. Separated into twenty-four different books, the poem describes the hardships Odysseus faces and how he overcomes obstacles. Though this poem is composed for listeners and may seem incomprehensible, Homer includes a plethora of literary devices to help audiences better understand, follow, and enjoy the context of The Odyssey. Throughout this poem instances of epic simile, foreshadowing, epithet, and xenia are included to help the poem flow.

The sirens in both texts have different views on the song and how it allures people. They describe what it does to people who come in close proximity of the song.

Homer first utilizes hyperboles to express the hazard of the situation that Odysseus and his men face. One of Odysseus’ men Eurylochus is the first one to face Circe’s wrath as when one of the men manages to escape her lair. He then recounts the perilous adventure to the rest of the men, demonstrating the precariousness of the situation but his prevailing wit to stay back and not be seduced by Circe’s advances. This riskiness of the situation is first demonstrated Eurylochus comes back to the men on the ship in tears-- “numbing sorrow had stunned [him] to silence--tears welled in his eyes, his heart possessed by grief” (272-273). Homer uses alliteration in “sorrow” “stunned” and “silence” that demonstrates the strong desolation and overall emotional pain that Eurylochus felt, after

The Odyssey by Homer is a great text that manipulates the skill of storytelling bringing out the meaning of being human, the spiritual and physical homecoming. It is an archetypal epic expedition essential for understanding ourselves and other modern texts following the same pattern. The text brings out the ancient Greek beliefs and customs that are essential in studying Western Literature through the evaluation of different characters, and the themes manifested are essential in establishing a good foundation for any literature student. The themes therein such as leadership skills, folly, retaliation, mythology, death, ogres, temptation seduction, deceit, and warfare make the text an essential student companion in the quest of comprehending literature.

The Odyssey is a story made up of stories. Because there is very little action that happens in the present, the presence of storytelling within the Odyssey is something that characterizes it and makes it unique. The spreading of stories serve to form legends and myths that can have the effect of shaping a culture. In addition, since stories were such an important aspect of entertainment in Greek culture, stories also shape the audience, either by entertaining them or creating feelings of sympathy in them. The function of storytelling in the Odyssey, is to evoke emotions and leave powerful, lasting impressions on the audience. However, the stories that are told

Themes, in literature, give purpose to a story, and that is why figurative language is the best way to convey them; not only can it help the author get their idea across, but it also allows the reader to interpret the meaning in their own perspective. Homer, when he wants to highlight an idea, he utilizes figurative language to exaggerate and uncover the theme, in this case it’s obedience.

Novelist and poet, Rainer Maria Rilke once said, “The only journey is the one within”(Rainer Maria Rilke Quotes). Meaning, what makes a journey important is how one changes and learns from the experience. The claims made in this quote are well proven in relatively new literature and even one of the oldest poems still studied today. The Odyssey is a famous, well known epic poem. It was written by the renowned poet, Homer, in ancient greek times. The Odyssey follows a man known as Odysseus, he just left fighting in the Trojan war after years. Odysseus has quite the adventure due to the gods’ and goddesses’ constant manipulation, all in the hope of reaching his homeland, Ithaca, and beloved family. Quite the opposite, much younger and shorter “The Journey” is a poem written by Mary Oliver in the 1900s. This poem relays what a journey really is and the purpose of going on journeys. Despite the differences between The Odyssey and “The Journey”, the two both use figurative language to convey a very similar message. People embark on journeys to fill an empty void and learn what they appreciate in life.

“A man who has been through bitter experiences and traveled far enjoys even his sufferings after a time”- Homer. Why do people go on journeys? What is the benefit, if anything? The Odyssey, written by Homer, describes the life of a man, Odysseus, who undertakes a journey to reach a destination. Leaving his home town of Ithaca, he arrives at Troy for the Trojan War.

The Odyssey, by Homer, is a story about a hero from the Trojan war named Odysseus, who throughout his story, has to overcome many different challenges that test his strength and reveal many things about himself. In this excerpt, Odysseus and his men travel to a land where they discover the Kyklopes. In the excerpt from the heroic poem The Odyssey, Homer alludes that Odysseus and his men believe that they are better than the Kyklopes by using various connotations. Throughout the story, Odysseus and his men call the Kyklopes “ignorant” and claims that their society is more developed than the Kyklopes.

Homeric or epic similes can be found all throughout The Odyssey written by Homer. A simile is the comparison of two unlike objects using like or as. Homer’s similes are considered to be “epic” because of how elaborate they are to help the audience “feel” and picture a scene. One of the most glorified scenes in The Odyssey, full of epic similes, is when Odysseus stabs the eye of Cyclops Polyphemus. As soon as Polyphemus fell asleep from the over-consumption of wine, Odysseus put his plan into motion to escape the Cyclops’ cave. Courage took over Odysseus and Homer writes:

Context and quote- Henry makes an allusion to Homer’s Odyssey during his speech in the Virginia Convention. “We are apt to shut our eyes against a painful truth, and listen to the song of that siren till she transforms us into beasts” (81).

During the course of history, the world has seen many fine works of literature like Homer’s epic, Odyssey. This book is a standard against which to compare all literary novels. The symbolism permeates the pages drawing the reader into the intriguing plot that includes twists within the central theme. Also, the author intelligently uses imagery and diction painting dramatic images in the reader's mind - building upon major the themes.

Homer’s epic poem The Odyssey follows Odysseus on his long journey home. The Epic also includes the stories of Odysseus’ family left behind: the travels of his son, Telemachus, and how plenty, of what we would now call “home wreckers”, suitors pressured his wife, Penelope, into marrying one of them. The characters are beautifully crafted and the story is truly epic. All the elements presented can bring in any reader from any century, the Cyclops, the Gods, the trickery of Penelope, and the disguises of Odysseus, are all legendary literary hooks . There are many things to learn—about writing, about the world around us, the world ahead of us, and the past behind us—from The Odyssey. (26) It is undeniably evident that this ancient text has

In the poem The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Samuel Taylor Coleridge uses Figurative language to portray the different moods, tones and scenes that are displayed throughout the story being told. A constant figurative language that is used throughout this poem is the use of repetition and its different forms, such as alliteration and anaphora. Each one of these devices are used to give character to the writing and emphasize a certain point. The use of irony is also being displayed, specifically in part II starting on lines 37, where the mariner explains the amount of water there was, but not one drop to be drank. This also represents a hyperbole because it exemplifies the immense thirst of the mariner and how he can’t have any of the large