The Odyssey, an epic poem by Homer later adapted into a play by Simon Armitage, is a narrative depicting the journey of the greek hero Odysseus back to Ithaca after fighting in the Trojan War. His voyage spans twenty years, and throughout the course of his trip back home, Odysseus and his men encounter various obstacles that they need to overcome. Since Odysseus is essentially the leader of his crew, it is most often his responsibility to defeat the enemy and solve the problem at hand. At times, his actions could be classified as violent and unjust, such as him causing unnecessary conflicts with enemies and resorting to killing them. Nonetheless, Odysseus is still a war veteran, and has been exposed to this brutal style of solving issues for
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Here, he is telling the suitor that the only way his obnoxious actions can be repaid is by his own death. In other words, Odysseus is declaring that he is going to kill him. And so, he shoots and kills him, as well as all of the other suitors. This action, while seemingly very abrupt and uncalled for, is Odysseus’ way of giving the suitors (who to him are his enemies) what he thinks they deserve. Odysseus is accustomed to the sequence of actions that consists of killing his enemy in order to defeat them due to all of his war experience; it can be easily argued that he does not know any other way to “win” because of the numerous years he has spent fighting on a battlefield. It makes sense that his mindset could have been severely altered by his acquiring PTSD from his time spent in the war. Him having PTSD could cause him to elicit violent, extreme responses during times of conflict even when they might seem unnecessary, which he does in this scene with the suitors. Therefore, his actions in this scene where he fatally shoots the suitors are more understandable and forgivable if Odysseus is read as a character having …show more content…
According to “Can PTSD be linked to violence?” written by Jessica Pishko published in Pacific Standard, Anthony Giardino, an expert in combat veterans and their post-war struggles states, “Because military personnel have been conditioned to kill, desensitized to the act of killing, and taught to deny to themselves that they have in fact killed, combat veterans who suffer from the judgement-altering effects from PTSD… are less culpable than others suffering from the same mental illnesses” (15). Here, Giardino clearly states the fact that veterans suffering from PTSD are less blameworthy for violent actions post-war because they are so accustomed to killing their enemies. This applies to Odysseus’ case especially since he has spent such a long period of time in battle; ten years of fighting can have a profound impact on someone’s mindset. If he is read as a character suffering from PTSD, his violent tendencies are explained by the fact that veterans with PTSD are not only more inclined to commit violent acts post-war, but they can be seen as more
Here, he is telling the suitor that the only way his obnoxious actions can be repaid is by his own death. In other words, Odysseus is declaring that he is going to kill him. And so, he shoots and kills him, as well as all of the other suitors. This action, while seemingly very abrupt and uncalled for, is Odysseus’ way of giving the suitors (who to him are his enemies) what he thinks they deserve. Odysseus is accustomed to the sequence of actions that consists of killing his enemy in order to defeat them due to all of his war experience; it can be easily argued that he does not know any other way to “win” because of the numerous years he has spent fighting on a battlefield. It makes sense that his mindset could have been severely altered by his acquiring PTSD from his time spent in the war. Him having PTSD could cause him to elicit violent, extreme responses during times of conflict even when they might seem unnecessary, which he does in this scene with the suitors. Therefore, his actions in this scene where he fatally shoots the suitors are more understandable and forgivable if Odysseus is read as a character having …show more content…
According to “Can PTSD be linked to violence?” written by Jessica Pishko published in Pacific Standard, Anthony Giardino, an expert in combat veterans and their post-war struggles states, “Because military personnel have been conditioned to kill, desensitized to the act of killing, and taught to deny to themselves that they have in fact killed, combat veterans who suffer from the judgement-altering effects from PTSD… are less culpable than others suffering from the same mental illnesses” (15). Here, Giardino clearly states the fact that veterans suffering from PTSD are less blameworthy for violent actions post-war because they are so accustomed to killing their enemies. This applies to Odysseus’ case especially since he has spent such a long period of time in battle; ten years of fighting can have a profound impact on someone’s mindset. If he is read as a character suffering from PTSD, his violent tendencies are explained by the fact that veterans with PTSD are not only more inclined to commit violent acts post-war, but they can be seen as more