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Choices That Changed Odysseus In Homer's The Odyssey

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Journey When I was in sixth grade I started playing the cello with very little experience, and with the development I have gone through the past three years has not just made me a better cello player. That experience gave work ethics, and the values of hard work skills to help me through life. Life is like a huge adventure, and it’s the journey that makes the destination worth it. Furthermore, as people move through life they go through a frustrating struggle of attempting to reach a goal, and that destination is nothing without the journey. To start off, as we move through life the choices we make molded us into an individual. The reading The Odyssey is based on many choices that changed Odysseus. As Odysseus tells his story of his journey, and how choices made by him and his men affected him he expresses the immense pain this adventure caused him. The text author states “But not by will nor valor could he save them, for their own recklessness destroyed them all-children and fools, they killed and feasted on the cattle of Lord Helios, the Sun” (Homer 10). Odysseus’s men made the choice to kill and eat the cattle of the sun god in which they payed their lives for. The choice they made changed them and cost them everything …show more content…

In the poem “Ithaka” by C. P. Cavafy make it clear to make the journey one to remember. The author says many time keep Ithaka in mind, but take your time on the voyage. In light of this, text makes clear “Ithaka gave you the marvelous journey. Without her you would have not set out. She has nothing left to give you now” (Cavafy 32-35). In the poem Ithaka was developed as a person, and once they reach her all they have is the memory of the voyage. Once anyone reaches their goal all they are gifted with is the joy of success, and the enlightenment of how they got

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When people get lost without a way home, they will usually sacrifice everything to get home. Being on the way home for ten years already caused Odysseus to make the brash decision of sailing past Scylla, even after Circe had warned, “No mariners yet can boast they've raced their ship past Scylla’s lair without some mortal blow”(9.108-109). This brash decision lead to death of some of his crew, he sacrificed his men for himself. Odysseus also decided that in order to get home he and his men we to go, “to the House of Death”, which is extremely dangerous. So many things could have gone wrong, they may have never even made it out to get out.

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In The Odyssey, Odysseus faced many adversities that caused him to have to stand up and take charge of the men who were sent on this epic adventure after the Trojan War. The Trojan War was a ten years war that was caused because of the abduction of Helen by Paris. Helen was a very beautiful woman whom every man desired to have. Thus, Paris kidnapped her and took her away to Troy. In order to win this forever lasting war Odysseus came up with the idea of building the Trojan Horse.

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Depending on Others, Can Teach Self-dependence From a young age people are often told, contradictory things. People are told that they should try to do things on their own, but are also told that, if they need help they should ask for it. These conflicting messages are exceptionally difficult for soldiers trying to assimilate back into society after the war. As soldiers return home, they often try to live self-dependently, but sometimes they need help and have to depend on others. This effects Odysseus because when he needs help, he has to rely on the gods to lead him the right way.

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Decisions are a part of an everyday life. It helps us distinguish the pathways we want to go on. However, not all of us happen to be smart when making decisions. Odysseus certainly is an odd person, choosing what to do left and right. His choices are the key part to his personality and near-downfall many times.

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In 'The Odyssey' an epic poem written by Homer, a Greek poet, tells the tale of how the King of Ithaca, Odysseus, goes on an eventful adventure that costs him 20 years and all of his men. In this epic poem, Odysseus demonstrates many strengths and weaknesses. Odysseus' strengths are put to use and show how smart he can be. However, his weaknesses put him through many hardships and show what he needs to work on. Odysseus has many strengths.

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The main character Odysseus in the Odyssey written by Homer is generally thought to be a great hero; however, he shows more traits of a quite flawed character on closer inspection. Around the beginning of Odysseus’ journey home after the war, Odysseus decides to take a detour to the home of a cyclops deciding to not listen to his men’s suggestions to leave while they still could; consequently, it does not end well: “Ah, how sound that was, Yet I refused. I wished to see the caveman, what he had to offer no pretty sight it turned out, for my friend” (9.130-132). This thought by Odysseus shows that he realized his decision to go to the mysterious island wasn’t the most rational one and that his men’s pleas to leave were the better option, but he decides to be stubborn and place his curiosity before his men’s safety resulting in a non-heroic

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“Hero may not be braver than anyone else they’re just braver 5 minutes longer” (Ronald Reagan). This is true in literature in The Odyssey by Homer, the reader can see Odysseus being brave and not backing down on Greek hero Zeus is always brave Odysseus is like God, Zeus because his super human bravery Odysseus is like Zeus because brave and role model. Odysseus and Zeus are similar because there role models. First, Odysseus goes to investigate the Cyclopes cave. As stated, “My oars… slowed, men followed filling breeches by the role lock” (homer, 9 79).

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Odysseus, the man of many wiles, was a man of many strengths both as a leader and a man, whom suffered many weaknesses like all men do. Odysseus displays his many strengths and struggles throughout his mighty journey in The Odyssey of Homer, a verse translation by Allen Mandelbaum. In book 18, Odysseus displays his great physical strength as a man while disguised as a beggar with this powerful quote. " But don't provoke my fists; do not incite; however old I am, if we should fight, your chest and lips would run with blood; that done, tomorrow we'd be spared another ruckus—I doubt that you'd be visiting with us again—here in the halls of lord Odysseus." (Homer 361)

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Odysseus’s Traits Throughout the Odyssey, the main character Odysseus goes on an epic adventure with his focus being to get home to his wife Penelope, and his son Telemachus. He faces many obstacles dealing with characters such as the Cyclopes, Poseidon, Aeolus, Athena, Helios, Calypso, Zeus, Hermes, Scylla, and Circe. Odysseus’s men are some of the most valuable people to him throughout the Odyssey. He always puts himself in front of danger for them to protect them even though they all died from an unexpected turn of events soon before he returns home. When Odysseus comes home he greets his twenty year old son and straightens things out on his homeland, Ithaca.

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In one of the most heartfelt moments of The Odyssey, Odysseus meets his mother in Hades on his journey back to Ithaca and discovers of her passing. So she spoke, and my heart yearned To embrace the ghost of my dead mother.

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831 Words | 4 Pages

These stories prove that Odysseus made all of his own decisions and he is the one to blame for many of the deaths of his men. In conclusion, there are many more times in The Odyssey where Odysseus sacrificed more and more of his men because of his own choices and

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In this essay I will be talking about how temptation affects Odysseus and the rest of the characters in the story. I will be talking about how Odysseus is personally affected by the temptation. I will be talking about what Odysseus does to keep himself from falling for his desires. I will also be talking about how Odysseus helps himself in the end. Odysseus is a moral man.

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688 Words | 3 Pages

The Odyssey by Homer revolves around the character, Odysseus, and his ten-year struggle to return home after the Trojan War. As the epic’s idol, he displays the combination of a clever, handsome, and courageous man popular among the mortals as well as the gods. Essentially, he embodies the ideals of the ancient Greek culture, being adorned with many favored characteristics of the era. However, an intriguing aspect of Odysseus lies in his personality. As the protagonist, he does not manifest the entirety of a stereotypical hero because Odysseus has a fatal flaw—his arrogance.

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656 Words | 3 Pages

The cave is dark and musty. The beast is gruesome: nasty, brutish and gross. He gobbles down men and sheep for breakfast, lunch and dinner. With only one eye, decaying, rotted teeth, and the stench of his rancid breath filling the confined cave, the journey Odysseus had embarked on, did not look like it had a bright future. But, this was part of the journey that he had agreed to.

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909 Words | 4 Pages

There are many lessons Odysseus and is men learn on their journey home in the Odyssey. Unfortunately, only Odysseus makes it home and the rest of men are dead because of their foolish actions. In the Thrinacia and The Cattle of the Sun episode of the Odyssey Odysseus’s men once again disobey him and cost them their lives. The men and Odysseus learn valuable lessons throughout their epic journey, but in the episode the most important lessons they learn are; temptation can lead to death, being obedient can save your life, and trust your instincts. If Odysseus’s men would have been more obedient to their leader Odysseus perhaps all of them would have made it back home alive.

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