Examples Of Persuasive Speech On The Odyssey

Good afternoon New Trier board members. As a New Trier graduate of 2026 and the head of editorial in the New York Times, I’ve come today to urge you to continue teaching The Odyssey. Often referred to as one of the all time greatest works of fiction, Homer’s The Odyssey is over 2800 years old and still read today. As an ancient poem, not even originally written in English, some question what is so special about this. As a staple in many highschool English classes, including New Trier, The Odyssey has sold over 20 million copies since 1961. While many of you clearly disagree, I argue that The Odyssey needs to continue being part of the curriculum. Although the poem was written thousands of years ago, Odysseus and other characters have human

Although it has been around for so long, one thing has tied it together; how human it is. Students need to read The Odyssey in order to understand that people have the same feelings and desires as those thousands of years ago. In a time revolving around technology with never ending workloads, it’s key to understand that humans still have the same core characteristics as they did in a much simpler time when face-to-face relationships were higher valued. One example is the strong mother-child bond that many high schoolers can relate to. On page 191, Odysseus is able to talk to his mother in ghost form after she has passed away. She died while he was away at war; this is the first time he’s able to speak with ther. Odysseus’ mom explains to him how she died, saying, “…only my loneliness for you, Odysseus, for your kind heart and counsel, gentle Odysseus, took my own life away.” While the specific wording used is different then modern day, the message is still clear. Loneliness is something felt by all which was especially magnified during isolation in covid. The admiration she feels towards her son is not something that would be uncommon today, as I’m sure many of you have a meaningful connection with your children. It’s important for students to understand these experiences and the powerful relationships that they have. While times have greatly changed, the shared feelings and experiences we have now compared

This is sometimes done through humor and wit, but ends up proving a bigger picture. The most obvious example of this is Odysseus when he fights off Polyphemus on page 156. When asked what his name is, Odysseus replies, “My name is Nohbdy: mother, father, and friends, everybody calls me Nohbdy.” While this is witty and tricks Polyphemus, Odysseus gets too full of himself and reveals who he is, which ends up making his life awful. As someone who is quite full of himself, Odysseus shows a great example that people both then and now are all flawed. Throughout the entire story, it becomes clear that Odysseus is laced with arrogance. It’s not uncommon for people to be overly full of themselves. The modern day parallel can be seen in political campaigns or people running for a position of power. This scene is captivating while demonstrating key lessons even from stories long ago. Furthermore, The Penelopiad by Margaret Atwood is based off of The Odyssey and told from Penelope’s perspective. While The Odyssey leads you to believe that Penelope was unaware of Odysseus’ true form when disguised as a beggar, The Penelopiad offers additional insight. Page 106 is an example of this. After returning from his adventure and war, Penelope sees Odysseus for the first time. He’s still disguised as a beggar although she can see through his deception. She explains, “I didn’t let on I