Odysseus In Homer's 'The Odyssey'

Improved Essays
The Odyssey Questions

Question 8.

Yes, Odysseus remains hopeful in a particularly bleak situation.

B. Blinded by Odysseus and his men, Polyphemus fills with rage and guards the cavern exit with ill intent to kill any who dare attempt escape. Although little hope remains in the hearts of Odysseus’ men, he knows that there must be a way for him and his comrades to escapes death’s outstretched hands. While many would have been consumed by overwhelming feelings of grief and despair, Odysseus uses those emotions, as well as an overlying sense of fear, to fuel his rapid thought process and figure out an ingenious escape plan almost too crazy to actually succeed. Knowing that death is near, the king of Ithaca quickly goes to work, silently preparing
…show more content…
One of the earliest cases in which Odysseus reveals his selfish nature is after he and his crew scarcely manage to escape Polyphemus’ cavern with their lives. Once back aboard his ship, he orders his crew to begin rowing away from the island silently and with great speed, so as not to alert the Cyclops of their escape. As the men are pulling away from shore, Odysseus waits until he is as far away from the island as his shouting can be heard. Aiming his stinging remark at the now blinded Cyclops, Odysseus cries out that the Gods, and Zeus himself, have brought this upon Polyphemus. Filled with rage, and perhaps a bit* of shame, the towering Cyclops flings a piece of the very hills in the direction from which Odysseus’s insult came. The large piece of land narrowly misses the bow of the ship, and it causes a rush of water that pushes the ship almost completely back to shore. Panicked and afraid, the crew vigorously row to a safe distance again, whereupon Odysseus once more prepares to belittle and taunt the still fuming Cyclops. The crew’s disbelief quickly turns to discontent, and they make their anger and worry known with several muttered remarks on how Odysseus should bait the Cyclops no further, lest his throw be accurate this time. Selfishly, the King of Ithaca chooses his pride over his crew’s safety and lets Polyphemus know that it is Odysseus who has bested him. Again, the maddened Cyclops hurls a large boulder at the boat and only just misses. The splash propels …show more content…
After the Cyclops Polyphemus returns home to find that his cavern is filled with Odysseus and his men, he promptly eats two of the men before rolling a large, heavy boulder in front of the entrance, effectively trapping the others. That night, as the monstrous Cyclops lay fast asleep, the King of Ithaca crept to his side with his sword drawn. Resting the sharp point of his sword over the monster’s midriff, Odysseus suddenly comes to the realization that if he slays Cyclops he and his men would be forevermore trapped within the dank cavern. To kill the Cyclops would potentially doom his men, but to let Polyphemus live would mean that every day more and more of his men would be eaten. Odysseus has an important decision to make, one that would decide the outcome of his years-long journey. The King of Ithaca waits patiently for the morning to arrive, and he is then forced to stand by and watch as Polyphemus makes a meal out of another brace of men. The Cyclops and his sheep leave the cave, leaving Odysseus and his men to plot their escape. That night, after the Cyclops has returned and feasted upon two more men, Odysseus lulls the horrible creature into a drunken stupor and then sleep using the fiery liquor given to him by Euanthes’ son, Maron. The King of Ithaca and four of his men brandish the searing stake they roughly hacked from a fallen olive tree, and they drive it into the eye of the sleeping Polyphemus with all of their strength. The Cyclops is blinded, and thus

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    This tension is making Odysseus show his true character that one would not think he would show. He is showing the side that no one knows and he is not as noble as one might think he would be. At present time, Odysseus is an incredibly arrogant person. Contemporary readers of the Odyssey expect Odysseus…

    • 1948 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    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.…

    • 1566 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    The Odyssey, still today, is one of the most recognized epic poems of all times. An important theme evident throughout the epic poem is hospitality. Hospitality, the friendly and generous reception and entertainment of guests, visitors, or strangers, is very important to the gods and goddesses. It is just as important for the guest to honor the host as it is for the host to honor the guest. A violation of the expected treatment of a guest or host during ancient Greek times would often result in violence.…

    • 1248 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    How Is Odysseus Selfish

    • 477 Words
    • 2 Pages

    This decision is perhaps the most selfish decision that Odysseus makes during his whole journey since it leads to the loss of 8 men.. To make matters worse, even after finally escaping the island of the Cyclopes and capturing the sheeps, Odysseus lets his pride get to him when he feels the need to share his real name and where he comes from with Polyphemus so that he can take credit for his strategy of escaping the cave. “I would not need them in my glorying spirit, but let my anger flare and yelled: ‘If ever immortal man inquire how you were blinded, tell him Odysseus, raider of cities,took your eye: Laertes’ son whose home’s on Ithaca” (Page 85, Odyssey,…

    • 477 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Odysseus is seen as a hero and leader by all his comrades who returned from the Trojan War. According to his fellow commanders, like Menelaus, he has strength, courage and restraint. In Ithaca, preceding the war, Odysseus was viewed as a kind merciful king, adored by his people. Though when voyaging home, Odysseus displays his stubbornness in making decisions, overcome by the need to gain glory and prestige above all else.…

    • 1296 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Odysseus's abandonment of his fatherly duties bears resemblance to his responsibilities as the King of Ithaca as well. Odysseus betrays the loyalty of his people by killing all of the suitors, “[ripping] their lives out...never [giving] a chance of flight or rescue” in order to satisfy vengeance for his injured ego (Homer, 22.319-320). The killing of the town's best men results in the fathers declaring war against their king. The leadership of a king and his people relies on trust, and Odysseus’s vengeful actions against his own people results in him losing credibility as a King. Not only does Odysseus severe his ties with his subjects in Ithaca, he also exploits the trust and confidence that his crewmen place on him.…

    • 1239 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    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).…

    • 954 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    ITHACA — The shrewd, courageous and tactful Odysseus has returned to Ithaca after 20 years. Disguised as a beggar, he has slaughtered the suitors who have plagued his house for years. With no word of Odysseus for ages, it seemed hopeless for his wife Penelope to see him once again. Stubborn and unwilling to marry the brazen and selfish suitors, she prolonged her marriage by unweaving her web. By doing so, it may have been the perfect amount of stall time for Odysseus’s return.…

    • 911 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Many people have told me what makes an epic hero. Strength, courage, and achieving immortality. When I heard about all of these traits one person came to mind when they said them, Odysseus. Odysseus is a Greek soldier that fought in the war against the Trojans, and because of him, the Diomedes were victorious in the war. Yet, that wasn't the end for Odysseus, he and his men faced many challenges on their way back home.…

    • 469 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    One day Odysseus found himself trapped in the cave of Polyphemus who began killing his men. Odysseus then plied Polyphemus with wine and while he slept Odysseus pierced his eye with a burning stake. When Polyphemus woke he tried to sink Odysseus and his men escaping the island to the ship with rocks, but Polyphemus failing in the attempt, prayed to his father Poseidon to avenge…

    • 67 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Odysseus says, “They tied me up, then, plumb amidships, back to the mast, lashed to the mast, and took themselves again to rowing. Soon as we came smartly within hailing distance, the two Sirens, moting our fast ship off their point, made ready, and they sang.” This shows that, Odysseus proved a great deal of loyalty to his men, sacrificing himself so that they could sail passed the Sirens island successfully. Another example of Odysseus using his virtues was when Athena, the goddess of wisdom and courage disguises Odysseus as a beggar and he uses his patience, so he can get his kingdom and Penelope back without being killed by the suitors. On (1026.…

    • 788 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In Homer’s The Odyssey, towards the beginning, Homer used the specific appositive “raider of cities” to illuminate the negative side of Odysseus when he plundered a town without any self control. Later, when Odysseus is fighting for justice by killing the suitors, at one point, Homer narrates, “And Odysseus raider of cities struck Eurydamas down” (Homer 418). When Odysseus is fulfilling his revenge against the suitors, he is still described as a raider of cities by Homer. Now, since Odysseus is fighting in the name of justice against the sinful suitors, is Homer still using the appositive in a negative way?…

    • 1598 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    “For the sin of their mouths, the words of their lips, let them be trapped in their pride”(PRV 59.12). Pride stems from deceitfulness, and those who spread lies become trapped by their own vice; evil befalls those who devise deceit and treachery. Jacob and Odysseus, men from mythologies of radically different religions, both possess the inclination to seize personal distinction through guile and proudly rely on their own virtue and skills. As a result, both of them are beset with hardships. Yet over time they both realize their shortcomings, recognize their dependence on the divinity and with its guidance redeem themselves of the troubles derived from their lies and deceit.…

    • 1252 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In the Odyssey, Odysseus travels a long journey back to his home, Ithaca, after fighting in the Trojan War for 10 long years. However, I strongly believe Odysseus himself was the reason that he witnessed a long journey returning to his homeland. If he hadn’t made specific decisions, I’d expect that Odysseus would be able to return earlier. In the epic, I believe that three major decisions could’ve helped Odysseus sail back towards home sooner if he had chosen the right choice. One of the significant decisions is Odysseus’ accord to rest on the Cyclops’ island and approach the Cyclops’ cave.…

    • 785 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    In Book 9, Odysseus and his men come to the land of the cyclopes, where they meet Polyphemus, the one-eyed giant son of Poseidon. The ensuing interaction between Odysseus and Polyphemus is crucial to the plot development of the story. Consequences of this interaction affect characters throughout the rest of the narrative. While this is important, the more crucial point of this interaction is the glimpse readers get into the psyche of both Odysseus and Polyphemus. Their relationship brings into question the morality of each…

    • 1666 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays

Related Topics