ipl-logo

Odysseus Quest For Immortality In Homer's Odyssey

713 Words3 Pages

Gilgamesh’s quest for immortality. Frodo’s quest to banish the evil that plagues his world. A man’s quest to get home. While Homer’s epic poem The Odyssey might not seem as grand an adventure as other famous stories, It does contain one of the best protagonists in literature. Homer is a King who simply wants to get home after a ten year war, but runs into constant struggle with giant monsters, tempting enchantresses, and magical bird people. However, Homer made Odysseus as a relatable character by having him be prideful and irresponsible, flaws shared by most of humanity, as well as quick-thinking person to keep the story interesting. One trait of Odysseus is that he’s incredibly prideful. For instance, in Book Nine, Odysseus screams his name …show more content…

For example, in Book Ten, Odysseus leaves a bag of winds given to him by Aeolus in order to get home out on the deck without telling his men what’s inside. They then proceed to open the bag, launching the boat away from home, and Odysseus is quick to blame his men for the event(1-55). He fails to see his fault at first, and instead lashes out at his men who were not solely at fault here. Should he have took the time to look at his own actions, as a true leader should, he would be able to avoid looking like a fool to the gods. In addition, in the First Book, Odysseus says that he was kept hostage by Circe in his report to the King of the village who rescued him(19-30). He acts as if he had no fault, even though he stayed with her because of his own volition. He even brags about his loyalty to his wife that he did not keep, saying he was remaining loyal in his heart. Finally, he blames the gods for his misfortune, saying that “destruction he [Zeus] had in store and death for those who sailed them.” (9.481-482) His disrespect got him on this long quest when he denied to honor Poseidon, but he’s willing to blame the gods if any misfortune happens his way. He’s not willing to admit that he might have had bad luck or that he made a mistake, because he thinks the gods must always have some nasty trick in store him! He fails to take responsibility for his flaws, like a kid who blames his sister for eating the last cookie when he did

Show More
Related
353 Words | 2 Pages

He didn’t tell his men what the Bag of Winds was. Odysseus’ men-thinking it was treasure-opened up the bag only to find wind, leading them farther away from Ithaca. He didn’t tell his men what Circe said about Helios cattle. So the men killed the cows for food. Odysseus was also irresponsible because he never told the truth and he disobeyed the gods.

Read More
850 Words | 4 Pages

One night, Odysseus prayed to the gods for help, but instead, they put him to sleep. When he woke up, he realized that his men broke their promise. Helios’s daughter told her father of this incident, so Helios (the god who drives the sun) threatened Zeus he would abandon the sky and shine in the underworld (the land of the dead). Zeus made a deal with Helios: Zeus would solve the problem with a thunderbolt. Odysseus displays frustration towards the gods because he could have

Read More
196 Words | 1 Pages

In part one of Homer’s Odyssey, Odysseus uses his epic hero qualities to help him out on his quest to get back home to Ithaca. He’s shows superb intelligence when fighting the cyclopes in “Book 9.” That’s a quality of superhuman intelligence that Odysseus possessed all throughout his entire journey. Another epic hero quality that helped Odysseus was help from Greek gods and goddesses. In part two of Homer’s Odyssey, Athena helped out Odysseus when he got back to his home land.

Read More
1764 Words | 8 Pages

In the book called The Odyssey by Homer, it mainly follows the story of a king of a village called Ithaca, hundreds of years ago-This man, is named Odysseus. Odysseus goes through many adventures after the victory of the Trojan War. However, this is where Odysseus, is not being as strong as a great war hero and a king as he should be. Although Odysseus was seen as a very strong person, physically and mentally, he lacks the appreciation and the care of his crew throughout the trials and didn’t think through many of his actions thoroughly and how they would affect not only his crew but people around him.

Read More
1141 Words | 5 Pages

For example, Odysseus taunted Polyphemus and incited the wrath of Polyphemus and Poseidon, which led to the deaths of all his crewmembers. That was incredibly unwise, and not worthy of a leader who is responsible for the protection protect of his men. However, Odysseus learns his lesson, and realizes that he needed to grow through his horrifying experience of the earlier deaths. By the time Odysseus finally returns to his home, he not only has a burning desire to avenge his family by killing the suitors, but he also attained a greater understanding for the suffering of others. Even after Odysseus had satisfied his desire for revenge by killing the suitors, he refuses to gloat, and made sure

Read More
831 Words | 4 Pages

In real life we make our own decisions, and some of those decisions lead to bad outcomes, even though we don’t blame ourselves for many of our mistakes, we are to blame. In Greek Mythology, humans make many important decisions in their life, many of them lead to horrible endings. In the journey of Odysseus, he made many choices throughout his journey that eventually led to the death of all his crew members. In other stories from mythology like the stories of Theseus and Icarus, they made decisions that led them and their loved ones to life threatening situations. Even Zeus once stated “My word, how mortals take the gods to task!

Read More
856 Words | 4 Pages

In the beginning of the book Odysseus is impulsive and arrogant. After Odysseus blinds and defeats the Cyclops, he cannot contain himself. Out of pure impulsiveness and the inability to be humble, Odysseus yells out to the Cyclops, “If any man on the face of the earth should ask you/ who blinded you, shamed you do so–say Odysseus,/raider of cities, he gouged out your eye,/Laertes’ son who makes his home in Ithaca!” (Homer 9.556-562). Odysseus is so impulsive he has to scream out his name to the gods and the Cyclops.

Read More
584 Words | 3 Pages

What if you did something amazing by putting your mind to it? It would be awesome, right? But what if lots of people did this at the same time? This is what happened during the Age of Reform. Tens of thousands of Americans joined into different movements made to improve the state of being of the U.S.

Read More
415 Words | 2 Pages

He acts extremely self centered, self righteous and all important. Odysseus does not show any respect for his men after everything they have been through. This is after the Cyclopes after they sailed away. He does not take any responsibility for what happened at the cyclopes land. Even though a mature person would have already taken responsibility for what happened.

Read More
639 Words | 3 Pages

Sometimes Odysseus could be arrogant and that took away from people thinking highly of him. His pride turned into arrogance when he defeated Troy. His arrogance created difficulty for him and his crew to get back home. The Odyssey observes, “Endure, my heart; you’ve suffered worse than this” (Homer 309). This is when Odysseus is Odysseus’ is struggling

Read More
500 Words | 2 Pages

In the epic story the Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus is returning from the Trojan war, and on his way home he finds many obstacles ahead of him. Odysseus is the ruler of Ithaca and he is trying to return home to his land. Many creatures try and stop him from achieving his goal of returning home, but he and his crew have to push through and get home. Odysseus portrays bravery and courage leading his crew through these tough challenges. Odysseus heroically leads his crew and himself through dangerous obstacles, but also foolishly endangers them during the journey home.

Read More
557 Words | 3 Pages

The Odyssey is an age old classic read around the world. In the Odyssey, Homer tells the story of the wayward Odysseus. The story follows the protagonist as he makes his way back home, dealing with man-eating Cyclopes, a vengeful god, and a possessive nymph. During the story, the reader sees many sides of Odysseus as he dealt with his tribulations, such the cunning and witful side, but also the pompous and indulgent side. To begin with, Odysseus is trapped on an island with the nymph, Calypso.

Read More
618 Words | 3 Pages

Odysseus and Aeneas visit the Underworld at crucial points in each story. They both seek answers and knowledge not available in the mortal world. Odysseus’s and Aeneas’s experiences had many differences, and some similarities as well. Odysseus visits the Underworld after his grueling experience at Troy, and is confronted by his past. Odysseus sees Elpenor, and is hit with the guilt of her body being unburied.

Read More
968 Words | 4 Pages

The Epic of Gilgamesh and The Odyssey have been a part of human literature for several years. Both poems are from the category of epic poetry and have a time difference of at least one thousand years apart. Their themes explore different aspects of human cultures and ideologies. The Epic of Gilgamesh is a poem from early Mesopotamian culture while the onset of the Greek civilization inspired The Odyssey. The main characters for these epics are Gilgamesh, a demigod and ruler of Uruk, and Odysseus a great warrior returning home to his wife from war.

Read More
591 Words | 3 Pages

Just as Achilles is confronted in the Iliad with the problem of balancing his honor with his pride, Odysseus repeatedly faces situations in which self-restraint and humility must check bravado and glory-seeking. In his early adventures, he fails these tests, as when he taunts Polyphemus, inflaming Poseidon. As the epic progresses, Odysseus becomes increasingly capable of judging when it is wise to reveal himself and when it is appropriate to rejoice in his

Read More

More about Odysseus Quest For Immortality In Homer's Odyssey

Related Topics

Open Document