The famous epic poem by Homer, The Odyssey, tells of Odysseus’ tumultuous journey back to his home on the island of Ithaka. Odysseus, the main character in the epic poem, appears to be the hero slaying the monsters, but as his journey continues it becomes more difficult to distinguish who the monster really is. Upon closer inspection, the true monster is not one of the various mythical creates Odysseus faces, but is instead Odysseus himself. Passages from book nine and book 22 of The Odyssey, demonstrate how the true monster is actually Odysseus.
Odysseus and his men arrive on an island, in book nine, and enter a cave seeking to steal any valuable loot they can find. Polyphemos, a giant Cyclops, returns to his home, the cave, to find Odysseus …show more content…
A giant, one-eyed Cyclops, who bashes the brains of Odysseus’ men, dismembers them, and then consumes every piece, sounds like a frightening monster. However, Polyphemos’ barbaric actions are not much different from Odysseus’ slaughter of the suitors later in the epic poem. Both Polyphemos and Odysseus are associated to acting like a mountain lion. Polyphemos catches two of Odysseus’ men, “beats their brains out, spattering the floor,” and devours the men, “gaping and crunching like a mountain lion” (9: 303, 305). Similarly, the old Nurse finds Odysseus, “spattered and caked with blood, like a mountain lion when he has gorged upon an ox” (22: 419-420). These two quotes are remarkably similar to one another. The two scenes are further connected through comparing Odysseus and his men, to the suitors. The reason Odysseus and his men stop on Polyphemos’ island, is to steal whatever valuables they can find, which turns out to be Polyphemos’ property. In the same sense, the suitors back on Ithaka try taking Penelope’s hand in marriage to steal Odysseus’ property. When both Polyphemos and Odysseus arrive back to their homes, they butcher those who were trying to steal their property. Similarly to the Cyclops’ terrifying appearance and actions, after Odysseus slaughters the suitors, the old Nurse literally describes Odysseus as “terrifying” (22: 422). Now, all these similarities make Odysseus and Polyphemos sound almost identical to each other but, Odysseus is even more of a monster than Polyphemos. A common theme in The Odyssey, is nostos, “returning home,” and oikos, “home.” The majority of the epic poem is driven by Odysseus’ lack of understanding that he needs to just go home. While traveling around and destroying the homes of others, Odysseus almost loses his own. In chapter nine, Odysseus and his men invade the home of Polyphemos. On the other hand, due to being away for so
Odysseus and his men arrive on an island, in book nine, and enter a cave seeking to steal any valuable loot they can find. Polyphemos, a giant Cyclops, returns to his home, the cave, to find Odysseus …show more content…
A giant, one-eyed Cyclops, who bashes the brains of Odysseus’ men, dismembers them, and then consumes every piece, sounds like a frightening monster. However, Polyphemos’ barbaric actions are not much different from Odysseus’ slaughter of the suitors later in the epic poem. Both Polyphemos and Odysseus are associated to acting like a mountain lion. Polyphemos catches two of Odysseus’ men, “beats their brains out, spattering the floor,” and devours the men, “gaping and crunching like a mountain lion” (9: 303, 305). Similarly, the old Nurse finds Odysseus, “spattered and caked with blood, like a mountain lion when he has gorged upon an ox” (22: 419-420). These two quotes are remarkably similar to one another. The two scenes are further connected through comparing Odysseus and his men, to the suitors. The reason Odysseus and his men stop on Polyphemos’ island, is to steal whatever valuables they can find, which turns out to be Polyphemos’ property. In the same sense, the suitors back on Ithaka try taking Penelope’s hand in marriage to steal Odysseus’ property. When both Polyphemos and Odysseus arrive back to their homes, they butcher those who were trying to steal their property. Similarly to the Cyclops’ terrifying appearance and actions, after Odysseus slaughters the suitors, the old Nurse literally describes Odysseus as “terrifying” (22: 422). Now, all these similarities make Odysseus and Polyphemos sound almost identical to each other but, Odysseus is even more of a monster than Polyphemos. A common theme in The Odyssey, is nostos, “returning home,” and oikos, “home.” The majority of the epic poem is driven by Odysseus’ lack of understanding that he needs to just go home. While traveling around and destroying the homes of others, Odysseus almost loses his own. In chapter nine, Odysseus and his men invade the home of Polyphemos. On the other hand, due to being away for so