With time come change, change in the human experience. That fact applies no differently to literature, specifically reflected through reading ancient prose with a modern lens. A relevant example is the relationship of a father and son in Homer’s Odyssey. Through characterization on the surface, this significant relationship appears quite distinct in contrast to such relationships today. However, these quite humane and sentimental relationships are no different than those experienced today—those of a father and son. Quite frankly, what is true of humans in the ancient world is true to humans today, ability to feel such potent emotion, to experience such a significant relationship yields the human need of affection and connection, as …show more content…
It is a substance filled human relationship which involved much, almost as the modern day phrase “keep it real” suggests, the true emotion, a sense of sanctuary, protection and understanding between the two, almost a notion of equality, recognizing each for his talents, finding respectability thereof. During this bond, Telemachus fills a gap that had lingered in his identity, especially through the foundation of his life, the bleeding gap of not having a father present, to fill that gap, that gap of understanding and companionship. A germane example would be that moment in today’s world that a parentless child, being instilled from place to place, is finally able to call a family his home. It is comparable to that emotional bonding time of that child, who has just been gifted with the ability to make that connection. It is that time of true human emotion that fills not only the moment, but the void, just as experienced by Odysseus and Telemachus. This special bond is so significant, the void thereof can be deemed impossible to fill. The emotion portrayed through this affectionate relationship is no different than that experienced by humans in ancient times.
However, the patriarchal climate of Ancient Greece makes room for discrepancy in the emphasis of such relationships, in the difference of values and beliefs. In Ancient Greece, the son was a prized possession, almost a material of the father, expected to
The Odyssey by Homer is an epic from Ancient Greece telling the tale of the great warrior Odysseus. It tells of Odysseus going to war and going through many trials to get back to his homeland, Ithaca. On Ithaca are his wife, Penelope, and his son, Telemachus. Throughout the epic, Odysseus faces many challenges and trials in order to get home to his family, and even after he finally does arrive. Through all of the trials, each being extremely difficult, he pushes on to reach his family. This shows there are definitely bonds in the families. Of these, one that is apparent upon multiple occasions is the bond between father and son. Of course, the only father and son relationship isn’t just between Odysseus and Telemachus. There are many other examples of this family relationship, such as Poseidon and Polyphemus. But not only does the father and son relationship play a large role in the Odyssey. All family relations in general play a surprisingly large part in the Odyssey. Throughout the entirety of the story, family appears to be a great stimulus to persevere through the problem, no matter how challenging or fearful. One extreme example is of course is Odysseus. He traveled for 20 years fighting to return to his family, through unimaginable danger and the loss of roughly three crews. Family also appears to cause extreme retaliation and revenge. A superb example is how Poseidon reacts after Odysseus and his crew blind his son, Polyphemus. Another grand example is when Odysseus
A hero isn’t shaped by his strengths but by the values he possesses. Homer’s epic, The Odyssey, reveals the moral and ethical constitution of the ancient Greeks. Over time, certain cultures have grown to value a number of human characteristics. Those who acquire such values become respected heroes. After the fall of Troy, the protagonist of the epic, Odysseus, set sail for his home, Ithaca, where his faithful wife and son were waiting for him. Over the course of his journey, Odysseus faced some of the most ferocious opponents known to the Greeks. Even through this formidable journey, Odysseus and his family have stayed true to the diverse aspects of the ancient Greeks. The Odyssey exemplifies the human ideals of hospitality, loyalty and
The relationships between parents and their sons in the Iliad are not relationships we expect to see in today’s society. The Iliad portrays the relationships between fathers and sons as something more than just physical and emotional. It is based on pride and respect for one another. The expectations of their son are more so to pass on their fathers reputable name and to follow in their father’s footsteps of being noble warriors. These relationships are the driving forces in the Iliad, making each son in the Iliad identifiable first by their father’s name. An outcome of the father–son relationships is ancestral loyalty among the characters which play a prominent role in war. Therefore, not only does the Iliad share a major war story, but
Pregnancy and birth were very symbolic in ancient Greece. Mothers birthed the baby with only the assistance of a midwife. Male physicians rarely helped unless it was necessary for the mother’s health. Mother’s saw this as shameful, because a women’s main purpose was to produce healthy babies. Religion was even involved during the birthing process. Women prayed to the gods, Eileithyia and Artemis for safe deliveries. Women did not have the proper sanitary measures and medicines available, under those circumstances the death rate was very high for mothers. Every mother desired to have a son. The beliefs and rituals of ancient Greece led its inhabitants to believe that sons were more capable than daughters. If a women had a son, an olive branch was hung on the
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.
In the Odyssey Telemachus has varying relationships with his mother, Penelope, the suitors, and his nurse, Eurycleia; a mother and son but also head of household and subordinate member of the household, a young boy and superior men, and a son and mother but also a master and servant. In the poem, Telemachus must find out what became of his father, Odysseus, who never returned home from the Trojan war. Meanwhile suitors from various places try to force his mother, Penelope, into marriage while they deplete all of Odysseus’ resources and destroy his house. With all of these complicated situations, Telemachus must take on a variety of different roles depending on who he’s interacting with. Based on the text, Telemachus has superior, strained, and complex relationships with his mother, the suitors, and Eurycleia.
he Odyssey, as written by Homer, intricately and excitingly weaves Colin Renfrew’s Subsystem Theories throughout the entire play. Many of the five subsystem theories can be seen and support understanding of the novel. Of the five systems, trade/communication, social/ political hierarchy and symbolic subsystems will be the focus of analysis in this paper. All of these subsystems come together in The Odyssey to explain the characters and their lives, and also how they fit into the society which they live in. To understand the growth and development of the characters, we must understand the systems theories, “many human actions have a meaning at several different levels, with undertones and overtones… it is the complex interconnectedness of the subsystems which gives human culture its unique potential for growth.” As this paper will demonstrate within The Odyssey, trade and communication, social and political hierarchy and lastly symbolic subsystems create adventure in Odysseus’s harrowing, yet exciting journey back to his kingdom and family. These specific subsystems add depth and excitement because we see how each specific one impacts Odysseus’s journey back home. They help us understand who Odysseus is a man and sympathize with all that he goes through. The communication subsystem helps explain how communication between people (and gods) in different lands aid to the success of his return home. We are able to see from the social subsystem how Odysseus and other men
Father and son relationships in The Odyssey are very important. This novel tells us the story of the hero Odysseus and his journey back home after the Trojan War. His complications start after the fight when he is on his way back. On his journey home, he encounters multiple challenging obstacles. However, Odysseus and the gods are determined to get him back home to his son. In The Odyssey by Homer, we see the importance of father and son relationships between Poseidon and his son Polyphemus and Odysseus and his son Telemachus and we can see which aspects of the relationship that the Greeks valued.
The monsters of Homer’s The Odyssey as written by Robert Fitzgerald all share traits in common, but there is always the small differences which make each close encounter more gripping than the last. When the not-so-glorious Odysseus, son of Laertes just manages to elude the cannibalistic clutches of the blinded Kyklops (IX) and takes to the high seas, he becomes arrogant and taunts his nemesis. He does not realize this, but the very words he uttered then sets the holy executioner upon the necks of his crew. Every island he passes or makes port at, his men become feasts for native monsters; however upon the beautiful island of Aiolia his men are not eaten, nor do they die at the hands of any mortal or immortal foe. What is so significant
Within the epic poem "The Odyssey", Homer presents the story of Odysseus's quest to find his home and his identity. According to Homer's account, with its origin in oral tradition, the two quests are interchangeable, as a mortal defines himself with his home, his geographic origin, his ancestors, his offspring, etc. But in addition to this Homer illustrates the other aspect of human identity, shaped by the individual and his actions so that he may be recognized in the outside world. Through this Homer presents Odysseus in two ways: the first his internally given identity as ruler and native of Ithaca, son of Laertes, father of Telemachos; the second the definition of the external world
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
Throughout vast journeys of many heroes, no other hero had a more complex journey than Odysseus. This journey is called The Odyssey, written by Homer. It is an epic poem or story told of a hero name Odysseus on a 20-year voyage trying to get back home from the Trojan War. The great epic poem known as The Odyssey and attributed to Homer was probably first written down around the eighth century BC, but the origins of the ancient story in myth, legend, and folklore and art appear to be much older. Greek Epic Hero When you think about Greek Epic heroes, Odysseus will most likely come to mind. Odysseus is the main character in Homer's poem "The Odyssey." "The Odyssey" is a narrative poem that describes Odysseus' adventures
The stories told in the Iliad and Odyssey are based on stories handed down over several generations, for they preserve (as we have seen) memories of an already quiet far distant past. The two pomes show clear connection in their language and style, in the manner in which their incidents presented, and in the combination of agreement with level, which distinguish their creation.
Thucydides and Homer, though they lived a relatively short 300 years apart, wrote about very different Greek cultures. While the Greeks who Homer wrote about in The Iliad were, in many respects, dissimilar to the Greeks in Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian War, this stands in marked contrast to the profound similarities that exist between contemporary cultures and those that Thucydides wrote of. There are, however, similarities between modern cultures and those in Homer’s writing, as well as differences between modern ones and those in Thucydides’ writing. Thucydides’ history is, therefore, a relational bridge between the cultures of ancient Greece and modern ones.
1) I was intrigued by the map because I myself have a biological father, and a man that I actually look up to as a father. I have been reading the Odyssey and the Iliad over the past couple months focusing on the story telling of the books and never paying much attention to the father aspect. I do remember many times when I was reading, I would start thinking that this sounded somewhat like the bible in terms of is speaking to family lineage so often, but I never really just focused on fathers in this book. I remember in book 9 of the Iliad, Phoenix is speaking to Achilles and says to Achilles “I have made you my son, I tried, so someday you might fight disaster back”. He goes on to try to speak words of wisdom to Achilles. This still lingers in my mind because I am trying to guide my 17-year-old step son to graduation and hopefully he will have a good life. That conversation reminded me of several conversations that I have with him. When I found this map, I figured I would dive in because fathers and father figures are huge issues in todays society, and I thought it would be fun to dive into fatherhood from an ancient standpoint.