Similarities Between The Odyssey And Oedipus

The Odyssey and Oedipus the King
Destiny, it is either an inescapable fate or driving force that shapes the character of a person. It is the main defining point that dictates the rest of a person’s life, seemingly able to drive a person to whatever they desire as quickly as it could take it away. In the ancient Greek culture, the writers illustrated the gods as power supernatural beings that had the control of the people’s fates. An example of the many faces destiny can hold can be shown in a comparison of two well-known stories, The Odyssey and Oedipus. In both the Odyssey and Oedipus, the authors portray destiny in a different light. While one shows it as unbeatable odds, the other shows it as trials that the character must overcome to …show more content…
As his journey continues, Odysseus character starts to change. He seems to show maturity and is not as arrogant as before. A good comparison would be when he is in the cave the Cyclops and the Cyclops asks for Odysseus name, in which Odysseus wittily replied nobody. When the Cyclops’s guard is down then Odysseus blinds him. He and his men are able to escape from captivity of the Cyclops and are safety onshore, then chooses to reveals his identity. The Cyclops, which is revealed later in the text, is the son of Poseidon, hears him and prays to his father that Odysseus never makes it back to his destination. Cursed by Poseidon, the god of sea, Odysseus’ journey home is impeded by the god whom is trying to make it impractical and near impossible to return to Ithaca. In spite of Poseidon’s constant meddling efforts to stop Odysseus’ return, Odysseus defiantly reaches Ithaca with the help of another god who instead favored him, Athena. Athena helped in part by guiding him through his perils. When he meets characters in the text he does not address himself formally, instead he takes precaution into not revealing his identity, in fear of making a grave mistake. She also advised Odysseus’ son Telemachus on what to do so that he may not rush an attempt to take back his father’s home. She was most important because without her help Odysseus may have been killed …show more content…
Destiny isn’t necessarily rigid. There are different ways to go about fulfilling a single destiny, such as in both cases of Odysseus and Oedipus. Both characters had control over their actions, and chose their own individual paths to take to their destiny. Had Odysseus instead chose to stay with Circe he may have returned home, but it would have been too late to save his kingdom and his family. And had Oedipus stayed with his family he may have seen something in his father that made him want to kill him, and his only justifiable means to the throne would be to marry his mother. These paths would have changed the outlook each of the characters had about the gods and destiny. So is destiny a good thing or just bad? Maybe destiny is a bit of both. Believing that there is a destiny for every person could be a beacon of hope for some, but shackles for others. It would give those with a bright future and ambition, a brighter future and more ambition. While others will begin to see life as pointless and futile, and will see it like there is no point in living a scripted life in which their actions have no meaning beyond what was laid out for