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Examples Of Obstacles In The Odyssey

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The Obstacles Faced by Odysseus There are always going to be a moment in life when it feels like giving up is the only solution. Sometimes if one digs a little deeper like Odysseus did, goals in life can be achieved. Odysseus was faced with multiple obstacles that were difficult to overcome. However, the toughest are Penelope because she tested Odysseus’s loyalty and mental strength, Scylla and Charybdis kept Odysseus from being capable of using his physical strength, and Calypso tested Odysseus’s honor to his loving relationship with his wife Penelope and his ability to separate greed from his goals in life. Penelope was Odysseus’s greatest obstacle, testing his mental strength and loyalty to their marriage. However, his wife Penelope was the most challenging obstacle of all. She definitely tested his mental strength and loyalty on multiple occasions. For example, when Odysseus arrived on the island of Ithaca and was finally reunited with his beloved wife Penelope, it was imperative that he was to remain disguised. This was …show more content…

Scylla and Charybdis were extremely difficult for Odysseus to overcome, mainly because he was used to using manpower and wisdom to escape from dangerous situations. Furthermore, Odysseus knew he could not use his strength to conquer Scylla and Charybdis, instead he had to try and choose the lesser of two evils even though he knew he would lose men either way. It was a great pain for Odysseus when he had to leave his men behind. He heard their “voices come down to [him] in anguish, calling [his] name for the last time” and Odysseus had to fight the urge to turn back and try to save his men from their inevitable peril (Homer 838). To summarize, during Odysseus’s travels he met his second most difficult obstacle, Scylla and Charybdis who compelled Odysseus not to use his intelligence and

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