Telemachus In Odysseus

Telemachus was the son of Odysseus, mighty king of Ithaca and hero of Athena. Telemachus was a mere infant when Odysseus set sail for Troy where he helped to conquer the Trojans and retrieve Menelaus’ wife Helen. Despite emerging victorious from the Trojan war, Odysseus hadn't succeeded in returning home to Ithaca, and so twenty-one years after his departure for Troy, his family and kingdom believed him to be dead. Telemachus had lived his entire life without his father and as the Odyssey begins, although twenty-one years of age, Telemachus seems to be a child and not a powerful young man. Telemachus was first portrayed as a somber young lad who's heart was stricken with grief for the loss of his father. He was daydreaming and keeping to himself

Athena, the goddess of wisdom, wants to make the homecoming of Odysseus successful. The successful homecoming according to Athene’s plan won’t be accomplished just by the mere return of Odysseus to Ithaka. The definition of Athena’s version of Odysseus’ homecoming includes the return of Odysseus to Ithaka followed by establishing the proper order in Odysseus’s

In The Odyssey, the reader is easily able to distinguish that Odysseus is a hero in the story. He is a god-like figure. Odysseus’s wife, Penelope, is a hero and seen by many readers as such especially females. Both possess characteristics of heroes and they deserve to be considered such but that does not mean that they are the true hero of the story. Their son Telemachus is the true hero in The Odyssey. The reader should be able to identify with him the most and realize everything that has happened in his life and he deals with it with extreme heroism. He handles the situation in his life the way every human being should.

Three traits that Odysseus and Telemakhos share are clear-headedness, eloquence, and showing strong emotion. They are portrayed with these traits in the Odyssey, composed by Homer. Odysseus is a renowned military strategist, warrior, and the King of Ithaca. He was forced to go to war against Troy twenty years ago, and since then has traveled all over the Aegean trying to find a way back home. Meanwhile, his son, Telemakhos, has developed into a full-grown man from the mere infant he was when his father left for war. He has searched far and wide for news of his father, still hoping, along with his mother, Penelope, that Odysseus is still alive somewhere and somehow, even though most have assumed he is dead. Through his ventures, Telemakhos

Odysseus’ and Telemachus’ journeys or nostos were both very similar and different. They parallel each other in some ways but they are also completely different at other times. Telemachus starts as a younger, less mature boy, and without the presence of his father during his childhood, he becomes a timid, shy and spineless boy who is greatly pampered by his mother. He has even more to achieve, being the son of a world-famous father, and this is a very difficult reputation to live up to. His journey, and after that the killing of the suitors who took advantage of him really show how his journeys and problems throughout the book mature him from being a shy, timid boy into a mature man. Odysseus’ journey also taught him about many things

Your topic of gaining courage is a fitting description for Telemachus, as he develops more confidence in his role in adulthood. Initially, Athena’s words set forth words of familial responsibility in lines 300-304 with, “Telemachus, you’ll lack neither courage nor sense from this day on, not if your father’s spirit courses through your veins-now there was a man, I’d say, in words and action both!” (Homer, trans. 1996). Athena’s advice and encouragement to him remind him that because of his birthright Telemachus is destined to take the reigns of courage and not to live in fear amongst his mother’s suitors, but to claim his authority in his home. You also brought up important points regarding how the suitors insulted and taunted him, which led to his decision to venture off and look for his father.

After twenty long years away from his family, Odysseus still has motivation to return to Ithaca. Odysseus could have stayed with the princess of the Phaeacians, but instead he wants to go home to his family. Odysseus’ wife, Penelope and their son, Telemachus motivate Odysseus. Alkinoos offers Odysseus his daughter’s hand in marriage: “My daughter should be yours and you my son-in-law, if you remained. A home, lands, riches you should have from me if you could be content here” (Homer 120). Odysseus refuses the king’s offer: “O Father Zeus, let all this be fulfilled as spoken by Alkinoos! Earth of harvests remember him! Return me to my homeland” (120). Odysseus knows that his family has been waiting for him for years. The motivation to see his family and homeland help Odysseus win his battles and continue his journey home.

Homer’s The Odyssey tells the story of young Telemachus with the task of finding his father, Odysseus while also finding himself. As the hero of this journey, Telemachus develops into a noble, brave, and strong man, through complications inflicted by others’ mental endurance. By overcoming these obstacles Telemachus develops into the universally known stereotypical hero. However, the same cannot be said for the heroes of William Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying and Lewis Carol’s Alice in Wonderland. At the end of their journeys, Jewel and Alice become different kinds of heroes; instead of becoming a stereotypical plucky adventurer, they each develop different traits to benefit themselves along their journey.

That is, of course, with a little help from Athena. For the first time since Odysseus had left for Troy, an assembly is called by Telemachus. This is an example of him attempting to live up to his father’s name. Although the assembly is ultimately unsuccessful, for the first time he confidently speaks out against the suitors. Telemachus puts shame on the suitors for attacking his defenseless home without his great father being there. “They squander everything. / We have no strong Odysseus to defend us / and as to putting up a fight ourselves / we‘d only show our incompetence in arms. / Expel them, yes, if I only had the power.” (2. 62-66). At this point, he still only wishes he had the confidence and power to expel the suitors. He really admires his father and believes that only Odysseus can save them now.

Most people in Ithaca believe that Odysseus won’t return or that he he’s dead although his wife, Penelope, constantly kept faith in him. Telemachus goes out on a journey to search for his father who’s been missing for 20 years. He’s determined to bring his father home. Telemachus had to grow up without his father and after so long citizens of Ithaca lost the expectation of Odysseus coming back.

In the years Odysseus has been gone, Penelope has remained faithful. She held hope to the fact that one day her husband would come back to her but upon her husband's arrival she seems to feel as though this is bizarre and impossible. “Why do you mock me? haven't I wept enough? Telling such wild stories,interrupting my sleep, sweet sleep that held me, sealed my eyes just now” (XXIII.16-18).This quote displays the derision Penelope feels, not only is this surreal for her she discerns this as being completely disrespected. Although in the 22 books before this she is shown as longing for her dear husband to come back, this shows signs of her changing her feelings because of the amount of time and distance between Penelope and her husband. After this altercation, Odysseus not only feels disrespected but he feels mortified as to why his loyal wife would treat him as though she’d never seen him a day in her life. This altercation truly affected how each member of the family viewed one

This statement is very telling as it defines not only the appearance of the great Odysseus, but also the son he left behind. Furthermore, it begins to develop a timeline of actions by announcing that Odysseus left home when Telemachus was only a baby. Nestor recognizes that Odysseus ' appearance, vivacity, and personality are apparent in his progeny, Telemachus. This is encouraging to Telemachus as he hears that he resembles the great king Odysseus. As Telemachus presses for news of what has become of his father, Telemachus learns that his father may yet be alive and held captive by a goddess-nymph named Calypso. He then glorifies the strong will of Orestes and encourages Telemachus to do the same: "And you, my friend - / how tall and handsome I see you now - be brave, you too, / so men to come will sing your praises down the years." (3, 226 - 227).

Athena plays a very significant role in the Odyssey ensuring that Odysseus and his family are aware of their surroundings before they experience them and also making sure they are safe when being threatened. Athena takes a great liking to Odysseus because she sees the same cunning characteristics in him that she also sees in herself, and she takes it upon herself to ensure that he is safe on his return home to Ithaca. To give Odysseus greater happiness on his journey home after being away for 20 years, she makes sure that his family is safe and that he has the opportunity to take control back of his kingdom. Athena safeguards Odysseus’ family not only by giving Telemachos and Penelope both

Now we return to the re-encounter of the father and the son. They spend twenty years apart from each other undergoing trials and hardship that poise them for their final confrontation. Telemachus and Odysseus both arrive on the island of Ithaca within more or less the same time period. And they both, out of prudence and devotion, seek safety in the swineherd's security; in this they are analogous. Odysseus' restraint is shown when he abstains from revealing his identity to his son until Eumaeus has exited. Before father and son first recognize each other, and before Telemachus knows that he is talking to his father, an interesting phenomenon occurs in which both father and son demonstrate their humility and likeness to each other. The event involves Odysseus offering his seat to Telemachus and Telemachus refusing the offer. The significance of this event is that Odysseus, who is in disguise as a beggar, is a more dominant man than Telemachus and modest enough to offer his seat. Telemachus in turn knows that he is a better man than a beggar but refuses chivalrously to take the beggar's seat. The

To begin, Penelope thinks of Odysseus and immediately lets her emotions out: “Odysseus—if he could return to tend my life / the renown I had would only grow in glory. / Now my life is torment … / look at the griefs some god has loosed against me!” (The Odyssey, 18.285-288). Furthermore, Homer expresses Penelope’s sadness by making her sink “on her well-built chamber’s floor” and through her “sobbing uncontrollably” (The Odyssey, 4.810-813). Clearly in Penelope’s mind, Odysseus’ absence is not something she can easily forget. Homer introduces Penelope as a very caring and devoted wife.