The Odyssey In Homer’s epic, The Odyssey, Odysseus is bestowed with great abilities. But along with this potential, he is cursed with great arrogance. Conveying that even the labeled ‘perfect’ among us have fatal flaws that causes pain and suffering among the ones closest to them. The author, Homer, uses Odysseus’ arrogance to create a melancholic atmosphere to convey the idea that arrogance is a fatal flaw that will lead those around them to pain and suffering.
Penelope, his wife, is greatly affected; as many greedy suitors disrespect her and move into their home to try and win her hand in marriage. Throughout ‘The Odyssey’, the greed and folly of men play a huge part in increasing the difficulty and severity of Odysseus’s situations and ultimately change his fate and the directions of his journey. The greed and folly of men are largely represented by Penelope’s suitors. In the very first book of The Odyssey, the disgusting actions of the suitors were introduced to the readers.
The Greek’s viewed man’s character as flawed. The sum of a man’s human traits is defined as human nature. Human nature is the reason for the evils and the flaws of this mortal life. In The Odyssey, the main character Odysseus constantly demonstrated these flaws while on his journey. He continually struggled on his journey and through life.
Odysseus: Perfectly Imperfect In this epic poem, The Odyssey, Homer illustrates that Odysseus’ encounter with the Cyclops exemplifies his curiosity and arrogance, which allows him to defeat the Cyclops despite his weaknesses. A phrase that is commonly known throughout the United States is, “curiosity killed the cat.” Once you pry too deep into a situation in which you’re unwelcomed, the being you’re prodding becomes irritated, and eventually lashes out.
These pages from The Odyssey set an adventurous yet determined tone that is communicated by the antithetical; savagery versus purity. From the beginning, Homer starts off with a comparison by using metaphors and imagery. Lines 113-124 depict a land full of the immense and wild Cyclops. He describes how unkept and uncivilized they are by saying, “...without a law to bless them.”
During the assembly, one of the suitors, Antinous, blames Penelope for the suitors' prolonged stay at Telemachus's home. He claims that Penelope has been leading them on for almost four years and provides an anecdote of one of her tricks used to delay the suitors' pursuits. In short, Antinous demands Telemachus to have Penelope marry one of the suitors, or they will all remain and continue to feast away at his father's wealth. However, Telemachus asks, “Antinous, how can I drive my mother from our house against her will, the one who bore me, reared me too?” (Homer 97).
loy·al·ty ˈloiəltē/ noun the quality of being loyal to someone or something. a strong feeling of support or allegiance. Loyalty is very strong and very meaningful, like true love or brotherhood. Loyalty has to be earned, not just given away. In The Odyssey, the epic poem by Homer, Odysseus’ crew is steadfastly loyal to him and follow nearly his every direction, even though they are given many reasons not to be.
Odysseus uses his powers as king quite unfairly. The Odyssey, written by Homer around 3,000 years ago is an epic poem about how Odysseus restores justice to Ithaca. As Odysseus returns home, he brings with him a style of fear, revenge, and brutal justice. Ithaca's fear of Odysseus’s style of justice is restored in two ways. The first reason is how fear is restored to Ithaca.
An epic hero is someone who is characterized commonly on their nobility and bravery. However ,there are more attributes epic heros can posses. For example Odysseus, the protagonist in Homer's retelling of “The Odyssey”, shows many forms of excessive arrogance and pomposity. After conquering Troy, Odysseus and his men set off on their way home.
Imagine being apart from your family for over ten years, fighting for your life in a war, and in the many battles and problems you will face on your way home from war. Would you be able to fight a cyclops, pass a dangerous whirlpool and have to face the fact that your crew betrayed you? In the novel The Odyssey written by Homer, Odysseus must do all of these things and more. He has been away from his wife, son and many other family members for over ten years now, fighting for his life on his journey home after fighting in the Trojan war.
Have you ever felt tempted to cheat on your homework or on a test? Have you been prideful of what your status or accomplishments? In Homer’s epic poem The Odyssey, the brave hero Odysseus encountered these obstacles of temptations and pride that people today still face. Therefore, temptation and pride were Odysseus’ greatest enemy throughout his journey back to Ithaca, as they distracted him on his voyage, prevented him from getting home, and displeased the gods.
Greed can be a good thing if it is used for the right reasons. For example, greed can be the key that leads to success. If a person wants to achieve recognition, they’ll go extreme measures to make it happen such as inventing something, excelling in their studies, or even being the best. However, in most cases, greed can lead to disaster. Having the desire to obtain something a person already possesses is selfish.
When writing The Odyssey, Homer organizes the story in a unique yet confusing way. The reader follows Odysseus in his journey that is written out of order and confusing to follow for the reader. Odysseus journey also provides many different themes for the reader to follow leads to even more confusion for the reader. In The Odyssey, the structure Homer uses and his own arrogance leads to a confusing nameless main character for the start of the story, the many different themes, and non-chronological events only lead to confusion for the reader throughout the story. Homer's choosing to keep Odysseus nameless at the beginning of the story creates a confusing start for the reader.
“Now I will bring them on as a trial for my suitors. The hand that can string the bow with greatest ease, that shoots an arrow clean through all twelve axes- he’s the man I follow, yes forsaking this house where I was once a bride,” (Od. 19.648-652). As soon as Penelope utters these words Odysseus urges her and assures her that her once lost husband will be home in time before the suitors can complete this task. This reassures Penelope that the beggar indeed is Odysseus.
1. How would receiving the scholarship be transformational in your life, and why are you deserving of a scholarship? Receiving a scholarship would be transformational to my life because it would allow me to keep attending this school. I'm an out-of-state student, so money is a current issue for my family. While we have enough money for me to attend college next year, I need to do my part and help contribute to my educational goals.
