In the aftermath of Odysseus’ departure for the Trojan war and his misfortune at sea, Telemakhus has grown into a young man and Penelope has fallen into depression. Both mother and son have lamented Odysseus’ absence and apparent death for years; to make matters worse, all of Ithaka’s eligible men have flocked to Odysseus’ home to eat his livestock and court his wife. However, the anguish in Telemakhus’ heart is soon addressed by the goddess Athena, who comes in the form of a weary traveler to assure Telemakhus that Oddyseus is not dead. As Athena guides Telemakhus in his confrontations and travels, it becomes apparent that Telemakhus is a brave and intelligent (albeit young and inexperienced) boy.…
In the epic poem ,the Odyssey, by Homer relates Odysseus’ heroic journey to his home in Ithaca after the defeat of Troy. His prideful boasting about the victory has the god, Poseidon, pitted against his voyage home, and in Odysseus’ absence, suitors take over his home and threaten his wife, Penélopê, and his son, Telémakhos. In her attempts to bring Odysseus home, Athena urges Telémakhos to begin his own travels in search of his father. During Odysseus’ trial to return to Ithika appearance reveals itself in diffrent ways to aid Odysseus and Telemachus.…
In The Odyssey, Homer presents a double standard to the reader. While the author really applause the men who are unfaithful to their wives, the women remain faithful to their husbands. This concept is shown through the epic's two main characters, Odysseus and Penelope. Odysseus is unfaithful to his wife Penelope. Calypso, a goddess has captured Odysseus, the hero of Homer's epic poem, when his ship is blown off course.…
In The Odyssey, Odysseus, the king of Ithaca, and his battle-hardened crew face many challenges and perils, all while Penelope has problems to deal with herself. Penelope is crowded by power hungry suitors who…
As a former suitor of Helen, Odysseus is a part of a pact made between the other suitors to “defend [Helen] from all injury and avenge her cause if necessary” (Bulfinch). With this pact in mind, King Menelaus “[calls] upon his brother chieftains of Greece to fulfil their pledge” (Bulfinch) and sends Palamedes to Ithaca to recruit Odysseus. Odysseus, however, “[is] very happy in his wife and child” (Bulfinch) and feels “a sense of duty [and]…
In “The Odyssey by Homer many characters disguise themselves as someone they are not as an act of trickery. They do this to hide who they really are. One of the greatest offenders of this is Odysseus. Odysseus changes his appearance many times, with the help of Athena, to confuse or fool others. Odysseus hides behind Athena’s magic when he is around Nausicaä.…
Odysseus discovers that he can utilize his fame to impress the gods and those around him to gain even more respect, which provides him with tools to return home. This provides evidence of how kleos is a predominant theme within the text, which allows Odysseus to fulfil his goal to return home. After arriving at the city of Troy, home to the Phaiákians, Odysseus impresses the people because of his personality and charming looks given by Athena. Alkinoös, king of the Phaiákians, is so impressed by Odysseus’s charm that he offers him his beautiful daughter, Nausikaa. Odysseus rejects this offer and asks to return home instead.…
One of the major ways Athena helps Odysseus is when she warns him of his Supreme Ordeal; the final test that proves whether or not Odysseus has proved himself a hero and king. When Odysseus arrives in Ithaca the first person to greet him is Athena, with bad news that suitors have taken over his kingdom and have been using his wife, and queen of Ithaca (Penelope) to become king, by trying to persuade her into marriage. Homer writes in Part Two of “The Odyssey”, “ he arrives in Ithaca after an absence of twenty years. The goddess Athena appears and informs him of the situation at home. Athena [...]directs him…”…
The human-god relationships and their purpose in ancient civilizations often tell much about the beliefs and ideals of the culture as a whole. The connection between humans and their gods in both ancient Hebrew and ancient Greek culture are similar, but also vary in multiple ways. Both of these relationships can be seen between the humans and their gods in literature from the time period, specifically the relationship of Moses and God in Exodus, and between Athena and Odysseus and Telemachus in The Odyssey. The relationships and individual connections are defined differently in each story. The similarities and differences of both cultures is seen by comparing the human-god relationships and their purpose in both stories, leading to an overall…
Throughout The Odyssey, Homer enlightens us in the tribulations Odysseus faces as he fights to return home to his loving wife and son. He uses his mind and cunning abilities to outwit the creatures he encounters along the way. As we follow his travels, he faces many different types of women. Including Athena-the protector, Penelope-the loving wife, and Calypso-the devastatingly beautiful goddess-nymph.. These women are all so different, yet all so alike as well.…
Odysseus says, “’I wanted to see [the Cyclops] and claim the stranger’s gift… So we lit a fire and made our thank-offering, and helped ourselves to as many cheeses as we wanted to eat; then we sat inside till he should come back with his flocks’” (111). Odysseus is impulsive and does not think before he acts. He is very selfish and only wants to see what glory the Cyclops gives him. He expects everyone to bow down to him, let alone know who he is, contrasting Odysseus when he fights the suitors at the end of the story and receives glory from his city. When Polyphemus, the Cyclops who happens to be Poseidon’s son, returns home, he traps Odysseus and his crew in his cave.…
Athena disguises herself as a shepherd when Odysseus reaches Ithaca. She informs Odysseus that he must take revenge against the suitors because they want to wed his wife, and overtake his palace. Here again, we can see the importance of goddess Athena in Odysseus's life. She is constantly at his side, providing him with knowledge and support. Athena's assistance to Odysseus is also seen in Book Thirteen of the poem.…
Now you're probably wondering, who's Odysseus? Odysseus is the husband of Queen Penelope and father of Prince Telemachus. Odysseus also fought with the Greek heroes against Troy. But more importantly Odysseus played the Hero of Homer's poem, "Iliad." Which brings me to the primary source of it all.…
The fate of Odysseus is to suffer an arduous journey home; the Fates do not appear in the epic but instead use the will of the gods to act this out upon Odysseus. The opposition to Odysseus’ safe journey home comes in the form of the god Poseidon who is angered with him for blinding his son. While his patron goddess Athena does everything in her power to help him reach his native land. The mixture of the actions of the two deities is what causes Odysseus’ fate to come to fruition. One could also assume that Athena admires Odysseus because he possesses so many of the traits that the goddess is the pillar of.…
169-170) The main conflict in the Odyssey is that while Odysseus is out at sea, everyone in Ithaca believes that he is dead, and they are trying to convince the queen to marry. Penelope is the queen of Ithaca, without the king of Ithaca, Odysseus. In present time, it would be completely normal for an individual man or woman to hold a throne or specific governmental status on their own, but in the twelfth century B.C. it was not an everyday occurrence. Penelope held the throne all by herself, as a woman in Ancient Greek culture, while the suitors courted her for years on end and well overstayed their welcome.…