Cyclops Polyphemus And Odysseus Comparison

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Cyclops Polyphemus
According to Homer’s Odyssey, the Cyclops Polyphemus refers to a huge giant who was the son of renowned Poseidon and Thoosa. The story behind the Cyclops Polyphemus has been widely described in the Odyssey and the Theocritus' poem. The poems are quite instrumental in the comparison of the giant and the nature of existence in the ancient times. The two points of view will be explored in order to draw the nature of the giant before making comparisons and contrast.

The Homer’s Odyssey (EH 298-314)
Firstly, it is important to know that Odyssey was a son of Anticlea and Laertes and king of the Ithaca. Cyclops Polyphemus appears in the book of Odyssey as a huge giant that feed on human flesh. In his poems he described the return of the Cyclops Polyphemus for the Trojan War and on reaching the entrance of the cave he decides to block the entrance before embarking on his usual habit of eating men. In this case, …show more content…

Hellenistic age allowed the use of the Polyphemus to refer to the ability of the sea nymph to be used to woo young women into love. The era managed to turn the huge, ugly and savage creature into a typical romance hero was an achievement of the Hellenistic era.

Comparisons and contrast: similarities
The Ovid tries to bring out the aspect of the creature in various ways. Firstly, all the narratives acknowledge that the Polyphemus was a huge being. Secondly, Polyphemus was known as a son to one of the humans but happens to have grown huge due to his ways of living that include eating human and heavy meals (Sacks & Murray, 1995). Thirdly, the nature of Polyphemus was dynamic and presented a revolutionary way of presenting the nature of the giant. The themes of love, hate, fear, murder, wit and war is developed through the transformation of the nature and character of the Polyphemus.

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