A Comparison Of Characters In The Odyssey And Homer's The Odyssey

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“The Odyssey” is a book that is compiled of a multitude of other smaller pieces of text in which each correspond with one another. This compilation of texts was written by Homer. Additionally, C.P. Cavafy’s poem,“Ithaka”, illustrates the main morals within Homer’s “The Odyssey”. Overall, both Cavafy’s “Ithaka”, as well as Homer’s “The Odyssey” expound the proposition that life is more about the journey rather than the destination. Foremost, both Homer’s “The Odyssey” and Cavafy’s “Ithaka” expound the proposition that life is more about the journey rather than the destination due to the perils faced along the way. For example, Odysseus and his men encounter a cyclops whose name is “Polyphemus”, and the following description is attributed to Polyphemus: “He was as tall and rugged as an alp. One huge eye glared out of the center of his forehead” (Odysseus, Book 9). According to this description, Polyphemus is essentially a beast. Polyphemus later eats six of Odysseus’s men, and is one of the greatest perils that Odysseus and his men face throughout the duration of “The Odyssey”. Additionally, in Cavafy’s “Ithaka”, Cavafy writes “As you set out for Ithaka, hope your road is a long one, full of adventure, full of discovery. Laistrygonians, cyclops…” (Cavafy, Lines 1-4). In the above quote, Cavafy describes the dangers of the cyclops, Polyphemus. However, despite being in grave danger, Odysseus and his remaining men escape and resume their strenuous journey, which is ultimately