Identity is a theme that runs strongly throughout The Odyssey. While much of Homer's work is devoted to Odysseus' journey, an examination of his son Telemakhos provides an excellent example of character development. From the anxious and unconfident young man to which Book I opens to the courageous exactor of his father's estate, Telemakhos undergoes notable emotional maturation. The spiritual journey illustrated by Telemakhos, through his own personal odyssey, provides strong evidence that the epic is, indeed, about identity. When Odysseus left Ithica, Telemakhos was only an infant. Now twenty years later, Telemakhos is faced with the hoggish suitors and shows little sign of hope for the future. In fact, when Athena approaches him as Mentor, he gives this grim description of his situation: "they eat their way through all that we have, and when they will, they can demolish me" (I.297-298). Telemakhos is rightfully anxious about the problems at hand. He doesn't remember his father, whom he refers to as "a man whose bones are rotting somewhere now" (I.199), and holds out little faith "in someone's hoping he still may come" (I.206-207). This shows Telemakhos' realization of the scope of his problems at hand. He is not naive to the suitors intentions, and seemingly too him, he is left alone to contend with them. It is here that Telemakhos displays emotional immaturity and a lack of confidence. Though he may realize the necessary strength of one who could overtake his enemies, he cannot identify these capacities within himself. Fortunately, Athena's encouragement comes just at the right time. She encourages that he "call the islanders to assembly, and speak your will, and call the gods to witness: the suitors must go scattering to t... ... middle of paper ... ...cked the poise necessary to take back his home. With his courage intact, and his father by his side, Telemakhos and Odysseus formulate a plan to avenge their household; both men display outstanding fortitude. In commanding the servants (Eurikleia, to be specific), Telemakhos "spoke so soldierly that her own speech halted on her tongue" (XIX.38-39). At this point it is clear that Telemakhos has reached fulfillment and strength in his identity. Throughout the Odyssey, Telemakhos journeys to come to terms with the character that his lot in life necesitates. While he realizes who this identity is at an early stage, it is not until he gains the confidence largely through the support of Athena, and ultimately from his father, that Telemakhos is able to achieve self-discovery. The strength of his coming of age story heavily emphasizes the Odyssey as tale of identity.
At the beginning of the book Telemakhos is troubled with the suitors trying to marry his mother. He tries to keep them in line but they are rampant, especially when they're drunk. They kill Odysseus's herd for their own feedings and disrespect the house of Odysseus. So Telemakhos is obliged to search for his father because he is his last and only hope of keeping the suitors away. He is determined to search for his father and must find him at all costs. When Odysseus is stuck on the island of Kalypso, Athena had obliged him to leave the island in search of his home, Ithaka. She tells him of the memories he had there and he remembered how much he had longed for Ithaka. So he was determined to get home. Just like how Telemakhos was determined to find his father. They were destined by the gods to come together. In book 16, it talks about Telemakhos and his father talking to each other planning how they were going to take over the suitors. They talked and talked and were happy to see each other.
In Odyssey, Homer creates a parallel between Odysseus and Telemachos, father and son. The two are compared in the poem from every aspect. One parallel was the quest of Telemachos, in correlation with the journey of his father. In this, Odysseus is developed from a childish, passive, and untested boy, to a young man preparing to stand by his father's side. This is directly connected to the voyage of Odysseus, in that they both lead to the same finale, and are both stepping-stones towards wisdom, manhood, and scholarship.
At some point in their life, many people experience feelings of inadequacy or uncertainty. In “The Odyssey” by Homer, one of the main characters Telemachus experiences both of these feelings. He feels that he is not good enough, especially compared to his father, Odysseus, who many people refer to as a great leader. In the beginning of “The Odyssey”, Telemachus’ home has been taken over by suitors, each with the goal of winning over his mother, in hopes to marry her and become king. Telemachus is not fond of these men in his home, but does not have the confidence to get rid of them. Lastly, at this point in the story, Odysseus, Telemachus’ father, has been gone for approximately twenty years, most of Telemachus’ life. Telemachus has been
Through modern culture, most people are familiar with the whole storyline of The Odyssey. Odysseus leaves Troy and embarks on an epic journey filled with adventure and fantasy. However, most readers are unaware that there are actually two journeys that are unfolding simultaneously throughout Homer’s epic. Telemachus’ journey greatly differs from that of his father, Odysseus. While it might not be filled with as much adrenaline and adventure as his father‘s journey, Telemachus’ quest is certainly one that should be noted. It is the story of his coming-of-age. Telemachus greatly matures into a more capable young man. However it is debatable if he will every become the man that his father is.
After he gets together a crew he begins to take charge, and “Telemachus shout[s] out commands to all his shipmates: ‘All lay hands to tackle!’ They [spring] to orders” (106). Telemachus at this point is beginning to find his own voice. He is driven by the desire to find Odysseus and it is bringing out an authoritative side to him which the men seem to respect. Despite some of the crew being older than him they listen and respond positively to his orders. Once they reach their first destination, Pylos, King Nestor addresses Telemachus and his crew. At the start of this interaction Telemachus is quite fearful and intimidated by the king. Thanks to Athena however, “poised Telemachus answer[es], filled with heart, the heart Athena herself inspired, to ask for the news about his father, gone so long, and make his name
“Fit out a ship with twenty oars, the best in sight, sail in quest of news of your long-lost father. First go down to Pylos, question old King Nestor, then cross over to Sparta, to red-haired Menelaus, of all the bronze-armored Achaeans the last man back. Now, if you hear your father’s alive and heading home, hard pressed as you are, brave out one more year. If you hear he’s dead, no longer among the living, then back you come to the native land you love, raise his grave-mound, build his honors high with the full funeral rites that he deserves, and give your mother to another husband.” This passage explains Telemachus and his whole dilemma.
In the opening books of The Odyssey, the reader is presented with an unsettling situation. One is placed in the city of Ithaka, ten years after the fall of Troy, yet king Odysseus and his men have not returned to their kingdom. This means that there have been ten years in Ithaka with no leadership and no means of law enforcement. In consequence, the lower men of society attempt to seize power. The result is a myriad of suitors spoiling Odysseus’ home, trying to steal his wife, and finally a neglected son trying to keep the estate from crumbling before his eyes. Telemachus has had no father to guide him nor any authentic mentorship to help him handle the suitors taking over his father’s estate. This proves to be an enormous obstacle to his ability
The Odyssey is filled with emotion and adventure. Homer’s ability to show and give the reader a visual of each and every scene gives the story its unbelievable significance. To all the people who read his work there is something to be captured within every sentence, each one different in its own, unique way. Through tales of courage and defeat, friendship and love this book tells of all the values within the life of a single, solitary man, and his journey to attain what is true and dear to him. And this journey is known to all of us as The Odyssey. The Odyssey is a test of human devotion and trust through the gods, the mortals, and the obstacles through which they venture. No matter where they go or what they do, humans are tested for certain characteristics everyday of their lives, whether they realize it or not; and The Odyssey is just one of those many miraculous tests.
The relationship between Odysseus and Telemakhos is a blind love. That is because they never really got to know each other because Odysseus has been gone for most of Telemakhos’ life. One example of this blind love is when Odysseus hears about how the suitors are mistreating and stealing from Telemakhos. Odysseus gets so irate that he was then even more determined than ever, to return to his family. Telemakhos also exhibits the same kind of blind love towards his father. Even though people have told him that his father was dead, he never believed it. He felt that his father was alive and was willing to sacrifice his life to prove it. Telemakhos was inexperienced at directing a boat, but he was willing to try because he felt something inside of him that gave him the strength to go on. Thus, this relationship between Odysseus and Telemakhos gave both of them the courage to overcome the hardships ahead of them.
The Hero’s Journey is never an easy one. This particular journey, as detailed in Homer’s The Odyssey, is one of struggle, loss, heartache, pain, growth and triumph. It is comprised of many steps that Odysseus has to overcome and battle through in order to achieve his final goal of reaching his home and his loved ones. From the Call to Adventure to the Freedom or Gift of living, Odysseus conquered them all. The story begins in the middle of the story, as many of the oral Greek traditions did, with the Journey of Telemachus to find his father. Although Telemachus has not yet met his father, it is almost as if they are journeying together, where the end of both of their journeys results in being reunited. Telemachus journeys from being a boy to becoming a man, while out in the sea Odysseus is battling Poseidon to return to the home that wife that he loves and the home he has left behind.
In the first four books of Homer’s The Odyssey, the character of Telemachus undergoes a dramatic evolution. When Homer first introduces him, he appears to be an unsophisticated youth, wallowing in self-pity. After the goddess Athena intervenes, he becomes, seemingly, a man of courage, strength, and resolve. On closer analysis, however, one remains to wonder if this transformation is genuine. The rapidity of his change in personality and the assistance he requires from the goddess at every stage in his journey suggests that he is not yet a hero in the mold of his father, the great Odysseus.
In the opening of Homer’s epic, The Odyssey he explains that Odysseus left Ithaca about 20 years ago to fight in the Trojan War, leaving behind a wife and a young son. After other men had returned from the war, people assumes that Odysseus did not make it home. This encouraged many suitors to come. In book II after being prompted by Athena in disguise Telemachus calls for help from the leaders of Ithaca. Although Telemachus’ use of rhetoric in his speech is strong, it is ultimately ineffective because he has too much of an emotional appeal. His overall persona is seen as weak. As well as the fact that the men of Ithaca are still unable to see where the blame should properly be placed.
“The Odyssey” is an epic poem that tells the story of Odysseus and the story of his many travels and adventures. The Odyssey tells the main character’s tale of his journey home to the island of Ithaca after spending ten years fighting in the Trojan War, and his adventures when he returns home and he is reunited with his family and close friends. This literary analysis will examine the story and its characters, relationships, major events, symbols and motifs, and literary devices.
In the Odyssey, Telemachus, son of great hero Odysseus, who grows up in the world of greed and disrespect where the suitors take over his palace and court his mother, is one of the most significant character throughout the whole epic. His father, Odysseus, leaving the land Ithaca for 20 years, is the only warrior alive in Trojan war who hasn’t make his return home. During Telemachus’ expedition to search for the news of his father, he is under a process of maturation from the beginning in which he is mere a shadow of his father to the end in which he becomes more and more like him in terms of initiative, sensitivity and socialization.
middle of paper ... ... In Homer’s Odyssey, both Odysseus and his son Telemachus embark on long, difficult journeys; Odysseus trying to return from Troy to his home in Ithaca, escaping Calypso and the island of Ogygia, and Telemachus from Ithaca to Pylos and Sparta in search of his lost father. While The Odyssey tells of the courage both men demonstrate during their respective travels, their quests are the results of the intentions and desires of gods. Odysseus is trapped in exile on Ogygia by the will of Poseidon, whose anger Odysseus attracts when he blinds the Cyclops Polyphemus, son of Poseidon, and by the love of Calypso, who wishes to make Odysseus her husband.