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Odysseus Weaknesses In Homer's Epic Poem The Odyssey

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In Homer’s Epic Poem The Odyssey, Odysseus struggles against gods, mythical creatures and his own weaknesses in order to return home to Ithaca. Odysseus washes up on the shores of Phaecia and is taken in by the Phaeacians after having his ship overthrown by Poseidon. The Phaeacians questions who Odysseus is, and Odysseus recalls his encounters with gods and mythical beasts after trying to get back home after fighting in the Trojan War. He speaks of tales of how he was cursed by Poseidon by blinding Polyphemus, his encounters with Circe and Calypso, his venture to the land of the dead to see Tiresias, and how all his men died because they ate the cattle of Helios. After finishing his story, the Phaeacians return Odysseus to Ithaca. Once there …show more content…

Odysseus suffers abuse from the suitors, especially Antinous who throws a stool at him. Penelope has been avoiding marriage to one of the suitors by weaving a shroud for Laertes and unweaving it at night and whenever she finishes it, she would pick a man to marry. The suitors eventually find out about this so Penelope puts up a final contest, whoever could shoot a bow cleanly through twelve axe heads would become her husband. All the suitors fail and Antinous stalls his turn, so Odysseus as a beggar, shoots twelve arrows cleanly, and then shoots Antinous. He, Telemachus, Eumaeus and Philoetius kill all the suitors. Odysseus in his true form visits Penelope, however Penelope is distrustful and tests Odysseus to see if he is …show more content…

Odysseus and his men tie themselves to rams so they can escape when Polyphemus moves the boulder. When morning came, Polyphemus lets the rams out, unknowing of Odysseus and his men tied to their bellies. Each of Odysseus men gets out one by one until it is finally Odysseus’s turn, “Last of them all, my ram, the leader, came” (Homer 97). Odysseus is the last to get out so his men could get out safely first. While exploring Polyphemus’s cave, Odysseus’s men tell him they should go back, but he insists they stay to see the caveman in the cave. Odysseus’s men press Odysseus to take the cheese and leave the cave, but Odysseus responds, “how sound that was! Yet I refused, I wished to see the caveman” (Homer 968). Odysseus refuses to leave the cave because he wants to see the caveman. Odysseus then finds him and his crew stuck in the cave and in danger because of Polyphemus. Although Odysseus’s bravery helps him and his crew escape safely so they can continue their journey back home, his curiosity put him and his crew in danger in the first place and if they never got stuck in Polyphemus’s cave, they could have gotten back to Ithaca

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When they saw each other, Penelope didn’t recognize him since it has been years since they’ve seen each other. Odysseus showed that he had the guts to Odysseus aged a little bit more and his hair was grey and he had a long beard

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Odysseus tells Penelope that the soldier might not make it back alive from the battle. The soldier then tells Penelope to wait, only until Telemachus becomes a man. When Telemachus becomes a man then Penelope is allowed to marry one of the suitors. This makes Odysseus a hero because, The King goes to fight for Ithaca knowing that Odysseus might not make it back alive.

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On his way to Penelope’s room, Odysseus gets insulted by her maid, Melantho. Penelope’s rebukes Melantho for being rude and because she needs to ask the beggar things about her husband. She asks, “Who are you? Of what people? Where is your town and kindred?”

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The Odyssey, written by Homer, is an epic poem about Odysseus’ twenty-year journey back home to Ithaca. The Odyssey begins in media res, which means in the middle of. In this epic poem Odysseus faces many obstacles like the Cyclops, Polyphemus, Circe, Sirens, the Lotus Eaters, and most importantly Poseidon. After being held captive on Calypso's Island for 7 years, Odysseus finally returns home, reunites with his son Telemachus, and defeats suitors who were trying to court his wife. Although Odysseus achieved his goal of returning home, he not only lost the trust of his crewmates but also their lives.

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When Odysseus and some of his crew stumble across Polyphemos’ cave, his crew suggests they take the goods from the cave and run. But Odysseus refuses and “‘wished to see the cavemen, what he had to offer- no pretty sight, it turned out, for my friends’”(151). As illustrated Odysseus refuses to listen to his crew’s advice, and as a result, several of them are eaten. Odysseus throughout the story shows several other instances of hubris, where he does what he wants regardless of the advice given to him by others. Ultimately his crew pays for his hubris, as they all die due to Odysseus’ refusal to listen to Kirke’s advice and avoid the island where Helios keeps his cattle.

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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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When Odysseus finally returns home, he has Athena disguise him so he can look at how his home has been going without him. Everyone besides his wife, son, and two other of his men have been disloyal to him and there is a group of suitors there who have overstayed their visit trying to get Penelope to be their wife. Odysseus locks the suitors all in one room where the

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Throughout the Odyssey, it has become clear that Odysseus has a lot of weaknesses especially ones that revolve around his behavior which causes the life of others at times. The Odyssey is a long and complex epic poem that tells the story of a legendary hero named Odysseus. Odysseus is the King of Ithaca, a small island in Greece, and he is known especially for his quick-thinking, courage, cunning and resourcefulness. The Odyssey begins after the end of the Trojan War, in which Odyseeus played a key role as a warrior and strategist. After the war, Odysseus is on adventure to return back to his home back in Ithaca to his wife, Penelope, and his son Telemachus.

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(9.145-293) Book nine shows Odysseus becoming overwhelmed by the situations he gets his men and himself into because of his curiosity or boastfulness. While trapped, he watches six men eaten by the Cyclops and is told that the gift that Polyphemus will give him is to eat him last. Despite this information and gruesome sights he keeps a cool head and strategizes a way to outsmart the cyclops, defeating his brawn with brains. Odysseus, while attempting to sail home to Ithaca, is forced to make a decision to sail through rocks that could sink his ship or choose to sail by one of two monsters, either Scylla or Charybdis.

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Odysseus has many trials and tribulations throughout his journey home to Ithaca. He experiences captivity, is offered immortality, is subjected to marriage propositions, and escapes the wrath of gods while he defies death and maintains his composure. Odysseus tricks Polyphemus, then he moves forward and kills the men who are pursuing his wife. Odysseus triumphs over those who seek him dead and remains faithful to his ultimate goal of returning to Penelope’s arms. Odysseus is a hero because he is audacious, has tactical acumen, and is altruistic as his actions in the following adventures prove.

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When Odysseus and his men are trapped in the Cyclops’s cave he realizes he needs to encourage them if they want to successfully get out of the cave. When his men were ready to poke the Cyclops in the eye, Odysseus states, “...and cheered my men along with battle talk to keep their courage up…” (Homer 380). This character's behavior shows that even though Odysseus was frightened himself, as a good leader he is, he put his men before himself to make sure their needs were taken care of. Due to the fact that Odysseus puts others before himself which shows leadership qualities, he can be considered a

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Upon Odysseus arrival to Ithaca, Athena hides his identity to help him defeat the suitors. She turns him into a very old beggar to conceal his identity from everyone, most importantly the suitors. Odysseus reveals himself to his son Telemachus, cowherd and the swine herd. The nurse Eurycleia recognizes him because of a scar he got years ago by a boar’s white tusk. Penelope doesn’t recognize Odysseus at first sight because of the disguise.

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Odysseus’s wife Decides to have a contest to see who will be her next husband.

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In Homer’s” The Odyssey,” Odysseus shows intelligence by creating a plan to escape the cyclops, coating his ear from the Sirens song, and listing to Athena during this voyage. While traveling back home to Ithaca, Odysseus comes up with a plan to escape The Cyclops. When Odysseus and his men come upon the land of the cyclops. They walked into a cave that belong to Polyphemus which was gone at the time. Odysseus decided they would stay to meet him.

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Throughout the story, Odysseus demonstrates his courage that ultimately allows him to survive. One of these moments was during his journey back to Ithaca, where he faces a race of man eating giants called the Cyclops. Odysseus originally stops his ship there to relish a feast while on his journey back to Ithaca, but while doing so, out of curiosity explores the island. Soon, he finds a deserted house and decides to wait of the owner. The owner was unknowingly one the Cyclops, named Polyphemus.

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