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Poems and their analysis
Detail about character essay
Poems and their analysis
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More handpicked essays just for you.
Poems and their analysis
Detail about character essay
Poems and their analysis
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Homer writes about stubborn characters who are challenging for Odysseus because he is losing their trust everyday that him and his crew were not back home to their families. Although he is known for being a cunning and intelligent character, he is not the most mentally stable person. Odysseus has had his hypocritical moments which have caused plenty to question his leadership skills.
The Odyssey written by Homer and the Siren Song, by Margaret Atwood both use imagery, symbolism, different tones and different point of view to depict Sirens. The Odyssey surrounds a man who hears the Sirens song, but uses different tactics to survive it, although the Siren Song is written as if the written is a siren trying to prey on the readers. The difference of narrators tells the story of the Sirens in two very different
In these three texts, somethings are the same, and some are not. Homer likes to emphasize on three main things; the heroism of Odysseus, the magic powers of sirens, and the steps Odysseus uses, told by Circe, take to get past the sirens. Whereas, “O’ Brother Where Art Thou,” emphasizes where Pete gets turned into a toad (according to Delmar), the spell of the sirens is being controlled by making the three men drink moonshine, yet the sirens still sing a song in the background. Lastly, Atwood emphasizes around the ideas, the sirens do not like being stuck on the island, the content of the song is stated many times, and that the three sirens are bored of being on the island. The authors of these three texts primarily emphasized their own things, they easily felt that their ideas were more important.
Throughout Atwood’s poem, the idea of the Siren from the Odyssey is applied in order to drive her message through
In both songs, similar techniques are used to lure the man in when compared to The Odyssey as the Sirens use their songs, a useful attribute, to draw the man nearer to their island. Moreover, knowledge of the mythological Sirens allows the reader to understand that those who cross paths with them become eaten by the creatures. In a similar manner to the Sirens, the men’s lives (in the songs) are ruined due to the fact that the females tricked them. In “Sirens Song,” the author wrote, “He turned to the other cheek / As he turned to leave”, suggesting that the man and his wife are splitting up (Miss May I). Throughout the song, it also becomes clear that the man cheated on his wife by becoming attracted to another woman.
“The Odyssey,” written by Greek poet Homer is an epic tale depicting the brutally enduring quest home of the Greek hero, Odysseus. Within this heroic story, women play a very large and pivotal role in Odysseus’s trip home from the Trojan War. In his attempt to get back to his wife, Penelope, Odysseus’s progress is constantly hindered by the intervention of women who will do anything in order to either convince the heroic figure to stay with them or have him killed. The intentions of the women in the epic are all very different but one of the most prominent roles lies in the seductresses and the alluring women who will deeply influence Odysseus. Most importantly, Penelope plays a large role in portraying the importance of women’s roles in the story.
Everyone is scared of the snare. It doesn’t matter who or what a person is scared of, but everyone is scared of something. People who are looked at as “heroes” are people who are considered to not have any fear. In reality, a good leader identifies fear and acts upon it. Heroes such as Odysseus from The “Odyssey” by Homer and the mother of the young girl from “The Leap” by Louise Erdich, didn’t let their fear stop them.
Sirens are devious creatures found in Greek mythology and The Odyssey. There are many depictions of them with different traits, but none are more well-known than the Sirens from "Siren Song" and The Odyssey. The sirens in "Siren Song" are portrayed to be smarter by being more manipulative and calmer. The Sirens in "Siren Song" are shown to be smarter than the Sirens in The Odyssey by being more manipulative. The Sirens in this poem make the hero feel special and convince them that only they can save the sirens and listen to their song which is said to "Work every time,"(Atwood 27), while the Sirens from The Odyssey are not as convincing, only yelling at people to listen to their songs.
The Odyssey and the poem "Siren Song" both portray sirens ;however, in The Odyssey, the focus is on resolving the "problem" of the sirens, no differently than any other obstacle on his journey, whereas "Siren Song" focuses on the siren as more than merely an obstacle. They share, however, the preying of the siren upon hubris and the desire to be special, as well as, by what happens, illustrating the allure of the sirens in the spite of the pain that may be suffered to get there. The Odyssey initially describes the actions of Odysseus much more than the sirens. The beginning discussion does describe the sirens at all;it merely states that they were approaching the island of the sirens, and then for the first ten lines it does not even begin to consider the sirens.
Mythical creatures known as Sirens have a feared reputation among sailors who are lured by their seductive songs to their deaths on the rocks surrounding their island. These Sirens are known for their appearance in Homer’s epic, The Odyssey where they attempted to lead Odysseus and his crew to their demise with their mysterious song. These Sirens also have a role in the poem “Siren Song” by Margaret Atwood. Homer portrays the sirens as seductive, irresistible, and powerful while Atwood portrays the Sirens as deceptive, cynical, and pathetic. The contrast between Atwood’s melancholy Sirens and Homer’s malicious Sirens is shown through literary devices such as diction, imagery, point of view, and tone.
The Odyssey is often cited as an epitome of the hero’s journey and the monomyth. The hero of the story, Odysseus is on a 10 year battle homeward from the Trojan War to see his wife and son again. With the help divine intervention, Odysseus is able to return home and save his wife from the evil suitors who have continuously tried to win her. One could easily argued that Odysseus is an exemplar of the hero, but there is another story: Odysseus is the opposite of a hero and is not worthy to be called such. He is the villain where the gods are the hero.
In The Odyssey, references to musicians or poets like the author, Homer, are often used to enhance the story and the character of the poem’s hero, Odysseus. Homer inserts himself and his identity as a storyteller into his story this way, creating a comparative relationship between himself and his hero. Homer’s comparative relationship, expressed through the use of the character Demodokhos, the use of deities, and descriptions of Odysseus himself, stresses the importance of storytellers as most fit to understand heroes and their stories. As directed by the poet, storytellers in the poem are most able to provide insight into those they speak about because of the similarities between them and their heroes. Directly embodying Homer and other poets,
In The Odyssey, Sirens symbolize the personal temptation that Odysseus has to face; they attempt to seduce him by mimicking the same promise of understanding that home has to offer but without the labor required of the journey. Initially, they are introduced as merely being the transfixing, alluring seductresses that they are most known for. But through analyzation of the text and further reading, it is worthy of mentioning that there is more to Sirens then we make out to be.
In spite of the fact that Homer’s Odyssey is an epic story of a man’s gallant journey, women play a huge part throughout. Their unique yet controversial personalities, intentions, and relationships are vital to the development of this epic and adventurous journey of Odysseus. The poem by Homer was written at a time when women had an inferior position in society, yet that didn’t stop them from being any less influential. All of the women throughout the Odyssey possess different qualities, but all of them help to define the role of the ideal woman.
The Odyssey by Homer bares a multitude of symbols, such as the sirens, Calypso, and Circe. However, in the story they are more than temptresses meant to lure Odysseus away from his task at hand with their alluring voices and beautiful visages. The mesmerizing women are personifications of the faults of men. When Odysseus succeeds in escaping their clutches it makes him more heroic because he doesn’t suffer from the flaws many others before him have died from. Calypso, the banished nymph of Ogygia kept Odysseus on her island for eight years due to her love for Odysseus.