Similes In The Odyssey Essay

The Odyssey: Developing the Plot of an Epic and Creating Love Through the Use of Similes

The odyssey is an epic poem reflecting on the journey of its main character, Odysseus’s journey home from the Trojan war. Odysseus is a prestigious figure in ancient Greece after using his intelligence and wit to defeat the Trojans in the Trojan war. He is a well-spoken, quick thinking, determined, and respectful person all around, and uses his charm and knowledge to make his way home to Ithaca where his wife and son are. Although Odysseus is smart and reasonable, Athena, the goddess of knowledge, many of the other immortal gods, nymphs, and at some point, even the dead help Odysseus along his journey by providing him with information that would help him overcome things that he would have not if he had not gotten the

Unfortunately, many of these obstacles proved to be too difficult for Odysseus’s men, and had taken the lives of them all and would have killed Odysseus if it had not been for the help of others. If the gods and others had not given these specific instructions and details for the obstacles along Odysseus’s journey, he might have never made it home, or even may have died along the way. Finally, Odysseus makes it home, but his troubles do not end here, because he has to fight the suitors whom have occupied his home since he’d been away at war. Throughout the odyssey, homer creates many scenes that depict the idea of “love,” defined by the coming together of two things to create life. Homer creates the idea of “love”, mainly through his use of Homeric similes and metaphors. A simile, which is the comparison of two unlike things using the words like or as, becomes known as a Homeric simile when homer, whom is known for his elaborate, effective, and vivid similes, uses them. In the Odyssey, the use of Homeric similes and metaphors demonstrate the idea of “love”, the