Many people blame God for their misfortunes. They see him as the reason for all of their problems. They would have a better life if God would stop getting in their way. This is not a new thought; however, even the Greeks before Christ felt this way. In Homer’s Odyssey, many of the characters express the troubles that the gods have caused them, and the gods argue the exact opposite. The gods claim, “Mortals! They are always blaming the gods for their troubles when their own witlessness causes them more than they were destined for.” The Odyssey demonstrates that humans and not the gods are responsible for their own strife. Odysseus exemplifies how men cause themselves more trouble. On his travels home, they find an island inhabited by Cyclops. Odysseus and his sense of adventure determine that they should ask for a gift from the Cyclops. So, Odysseus sails to a cove near one of the Cyclops’ camp and investigates the camp with twelve of his best men. Eventually, the Cyclops returns, traps, and eats some of Odysseus’s men. In the end, Odysseus and the remnants of his search party managed to blind the Cyclops and escape. While they are sailing away, Odysseus taunts the Cyclops twice. The first time the Cyclops throws a rock that pushes the ship to shore, and the second time he prays to Poseidon and then throws a mountain. Poseidon answers the Cyclops’s prayers later by making Odysseus’s trip home as difficult as possible. Odysseus laments to each person that he meets how unfair
Life in The Odyssey
In The Odyssey, Odysseus is constantly being challenged. He is being challenged, so Homer can show us the standards for life in The Odyssey. There is no doubt that Odysseus is a great man, Homer even says so in the beginning lines of the text. Although Odysseus is a great man, he also makes mistakes but not any that he doesn 't pay for. We learn the representation of life in The Odyssey through Odysseus ' challenges. Throughout the book, Odysseus specifically struggles with arrogance
“Homer’s Odyssey is the only surviving poem from a cycle of poems called the Nostoi (“the Returns”), which told of the returns home of the various Greek heroes at Troy” (Norcott, 2012). The Odyssey is one of many accounts of the Greek heroes that took part in the Trojan War. Odysseus’ story was just one that survived after all of these years. The story came out as an Epic only because of how the people revered the heroes as they started many trends, such as Odysseus’ Trojan horse. “These epics lie
8th century, The Odyssey, is Homer 's epic of Odysseus ' 10-year struggle to return home after the Trojan War. Odysseus defining character traits, such as nobility, courage, thirst for the glory and the appealing confidence in his authority dominated the storyline throughout. The many themes of this epic mainly focus around the Greek hero Odysseus however in my essay I will attempt to analyze hospitality. Hospitality shaped an important part of social interactions in The Odyssey. Although Greek society
During, Homer’s, The Odyssey many strengths were tested throughout the entire book. This book was a mythological Greek folk tale that was created between the eleventh and eighth century B.C, therefore it is filled with many exaggerated stories about the Gods and treacherous adventures Odysseus had ventured on. He encounters a cyclops and after battles a six-headed monster. His crew discovers their talent for making mistakes such as being turned into pigs by Circe and letting strong winds out of the
extend his journey in The Odyssey by several years. Homer constructs Odysseus by attributing both godly and human characteristics to him, allowing readers to admire him while simultaneously relating to him. The combination of these revered traits coined Odysseus as being an omnicompetent man, polumetis, in the eyes of the Mycenaean’s and in the eyes of most modern day readers. This shows that the popularity of Odysseus transcends time; however, modern interpretations of The Odyssey in cinematic productions
Thus far in The Odyssey, Homer has introduced several characters. The Gods discussed what they should do about Odysseus’ struggles as he attempts to get home to his wife and son. Athena then appears to Telemachus as Mentor, an old friend of Odysseus’. She convinces him that he should set sail in order to find out if his father is dead or alive and to take back control of his father’s kingdom from his mother, Penelope’s, suitors. Antinous, one of her suitors, then tells Telemachus of Penelope’s deception
The Odyssey by Homer is more light in tone than the Iliad, of the same author: The good wins while the evil is punished. Even though the gods are still strict, the relationship between Odysseus and Athena is a more sincere and equal a relationship than between God and Man in the Iliad. Odysseus is distinguished not only by his bravery, but largely by his intellect and cunning. He is the type of resourceful man whom never gives up, thinks of the causes, is reverent and never gives in. The Odyssey is
Throughout the Odyssey, the hero, Odysseus is portrayed in two different and contradicting lights: the wise hero and the capricious leader blinded by his own pride. The epic writer, Homer, embodies the theme of hubris throughout Odysseus’ journey home. The idea of hubris, a trait of excessive pride, significantly develops personalities of characters within The Odyssey, and Homer ultimately creates a statement about excessive pride. The dual portrayal of Odysseus leads the reader to ultimately
Jonathan Martial
11/7/14
Major Authors: Homer
Love: How Far Will They Go To Obtain It – Greece’s fostering of love
There are many ways an individual may view The Odyssey with a myriad of variations of the same view. One of these many variations can be the aspect of love and its effects on the characters within Homer’s epic. Love, in Odysseus’ case, governs his will to get back home to his wife, son, and kingdom from his long and tiring journey. During his journey Odysseus undergoes a series
Homer’s Odyssey makes use of its epic qualities to narrate the lives of three men. The tale begins with Telemachus, a young prince who leaves his homeland to learn about his father and about himself at the same time. Through the use of this initial event, Homer creates a chronological structure that is further observed through the introduction of the story’s main character, Odysseus, the king of Ithaca and the father of Telemachus. Both father and son long to see each other after a decade of separation