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The odyssey of homer essay
The Odyssey literary analysis
The Odyssey: Notes Towards an Analysis of Homer’s Poem
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In most cultures, guests are generally treated with respect from their hosts. There are customs that both the guest and host must follow. These customs fall under the category of house etiquette. We can see one such example of the house etiquette of Ancient Greek culture in Book 1 of Homer’s Odyssey, when Athena visits Odysseus’s palace and is greeted by his son, Telemakhos. Athena enters the room carrying her spear on her left hand and Telemakhos takes it to put on a rack, yet we are not told why Athena carries her spear on her left hand or why Telemakhos has to take it away. This is similar to how most people view rules of etiquette. They don’t know why they follow these rules, but they do so because that is what the rest of society tells them to do. But what is the purpose of etiquette and why do …show more content…
They can be used to prevent others from thinking poorly of you. However, if not followed, they can hurt or damage relationships and foster malicious thoughts. These thoughts don’t have to be extreme, but they still damage your appearance to others. Think about it. In modern society, we have train etiquette, but a good amount of people show no regard to this type of etiquette. When was the last time someone shoved their way into the train before you could get off? Their rudeness was them not following proper train etiquette, such as waiting for others to get off the train before you get on. Whoever’s morning commute was delayed due to this person’s lack of etiquette harbored feelings of resentment towards the person who did not let them get off the train. Similarly, there are other rules of etiquette, which if not followed, have consequences on people other than yourself, whether slight or extreme, and continuous disregard to etiquette will tarnish your reputation greatly. If there isn’t an apparent reason to following a rule, it is usually because the consequences of not doing so do not affect
“What goes around comes around”,this great saying means that kindness is key. In the Odyssey by Homer, one important theme states how hospitality and kindness are always the best policy. Temptations and Obstacles represents a glimpse of allegory in life. Friendship is also a great thing in life because it's about support through tough and good times. Always feel generous with your kindness and support like Odysseus did on his journey.
...of ancient Greek society. The act of; providing strangers a meal, a place to sleep, and a welcoming spirit before they continue their journey, are strongly encouraged. The hosts don’t ask for the guests’ identity—to be polite—and treat them with courtesy. For instance, Nestor welcomes Telemachus to his island, and offers him to join a big feast without having the knowledge of where he came from or who he was. The guests are also expected to return the favor of kindness. On the other side of hospitality, the host-to-guest relationship isn’t as pleasant, and the gods strongly forbid the mistreatment of strangers. Going against their wishes will result in misfortunes. For example Cyclops got his eye blinded, and the suitors were deprived of existence. Thus, although the rules of hospitality aren’t written down, there are clear guidelines between generous and hostile.
When I was young, it was easy to wish for infinite days on earth and beautiful youth for all eternity. As time passes, and more knowledge is gained, this wish starts to diminish. Reading the Odyssey really highlighted the differences between mortals and immortals. Over the course of the story we discover how different characters develop in these categories.
A person’s character is developed and influenced by the experiences they undergo during their lifetime. For instance, someone who was isolated during adolescents will likely have difficulty communicating with others just like an abuse victim will be more inclined to have trust issues. All throughout The Odyssey, Odysseus goes through major misfortunes that continued to develop his character even after his return home. The decisions and judgments that he makes determine the evolvement in his character. Odysseus’ character was altered throughout the chorus of Homer’s epic poem The Odyssey, progressing from reckless to cautious, impulsive to patient, and egotistical to relatively humble.
Proper respect for others begins by a person respecting their self. Respect is developed by expressing honor, leadership, value, and trust in a person. If everyone respects everyone someday, the world will become a seventh heaven. It is important to be respectful for safety, to abide by the law, because children are influenced by their elders’ actions, and because God says so. Motivation from peers can help a person realize there is always room to improve the level of respect a person exhibits. Respect was, is, and always will be a positive attribute for everyone to strive for in their lives.
Throughout the Odyssey, there are many relationships that represent love between two people. These relationships show loyalty, compassion, and the wanting to be near one another. Two of these kinds of relationships are between Odysseus and Telemakhos, and Odysseus and Penelope.
For hundreds of years, psychologists have attempted to understand why toddlers selfishly refuse to share. Recently, many experts in the field agree that toddlers are incapable of sharing because of their lack of integral brain development. From birth through early childhood, a child can only recognize his own wants and needs. Around the time a child begins kindergarten, he starts to development his understanding of abstract concepts, such as empathy, and sympathy. However, some believe that humans never rid themselves of that original selfishness. In essence, humans are born selfish and hopefully become compassionate later on. The idea of a natural tendency towards selfishness
In The Odyssey, book nine and ten written by Homer, Odysseus constantly embodies the principal characteristics of a hero which are : cleverness, leadership, and selflessness. Thus, this character is regarded as an idol among the other characters and greatly captures the reader’s sympathy for his choices and the fruit to his actions in life. First, Odysseus displays cleverness in Book Nine when he tricks the Cyclops Poluphemus that his name is “nobody” in order to escape the horrors of the cyclop’s cave. He states: “Nobody--so my mother and father call me, all my friends” (Homer, 18). Second, Odysseus is a brave leader of his army especially in book ten when he displays leadership by motivating his comrades in keep trying to sail despite the
For example when Athena first visited Telemachus, he was shocked no one had greeted her and invited her in, telling her how they would feed and entertain her, and then find out what her need is. He sat her on an elaborate chair and himself on a bench without asking for anything in return. (1.118-124, 130-134) Not only was he shocked a guest was at the door, he made her more comfortable than himself, not even knowing she was a goddess. This shows the gods that people are behaving correctly and putting others comfort before their own. Homer did this to introduce the hospitality theme. He went farther into detail in this passage to tell the audience what hospitality was like during that time as well as characterize Telemachus. He sounds very generous when welcoming Athena into his house and the audience starts to understand who he is. However we see some characters that feel forced to be hospitable for fear of the gods rather than hope for them. Eumaeus showed this when he said "You too, old man of many sorrows, since the spirit brought you here to me, do not try to please me nor spell me with lying words. It is not for that I will entertain and befriend you, but for
Throughout The Odyssey the reader sees that Proper hospitality isn't a one way street, both the host and guest need to follow the hospital custom in order to have friendly associations. Telemachus’s treatment of the suitors was the epitome of proper hospitality. However, the suitors role as “guests”, didn't follow the common ancient greek role of courtesy when one is in a stranger's home. They imposed themselves on the household, insulted their host Telemachus, consumed the wine, devoured the livestock and refused to leave when their presence and intentions toward Penelope were obviously not wanted. Penelope tells the suitors in the hall, “Others who go to court a gentlewoman, daughter of a rich house, if they are rivals, bring their own beeves and sheep along; her friends ought to be feasted, gifts are due to her; would any dare to live at her expense?” (325. 220-223). Penelope gestures to the suitors that their behavior is ill-mannered. Most men asking for a woman's hand in marriage in ancient Greece would shower her with gifts and compliments. However, the suitors seem to be doing the opposite to
When it comes to hospitality, Greeks stand atop the list of all cultures for their generosity and politeness towards strangers. “Philoxenia” is the Greek word for “the love of strangers”. Philoxenia is demonstrated in several different cases in Homer’s The Odyssey. According to Greek customs, hospitality is respected by the immortal gods. If the Greek code of hospitality is not performed correctly, or not performed at all, the consequences may be very severe, gods may unleash their wrath to whoever does not follow this tradition of thoughtfulness. Homer suggests both positive and negative commentary on his own world through the examples of hospitalities that provide The Odyssey.
Hospitality today is nothing like it was in Ancient Greece. Today, good hospitality is being friendly and respectful to a guest. In Ancient Greece, hospitality was something people had to do, or face the wrath of Zeus. Zeus’s law of hospitality is that any stranger that comes to your home, the host must be willing to feed, entertain, and maybe offer them a bath and anything else they might be in need of without question until those things had been given, and also give them a parting gift. The guest, in turn, would not be a burden in any way. In The Odyssey, most people follow the rules of hospitality, but there are others who do not. The Greek concept of xenia shows the serious priority the Greeks place on the laws of the gods.
Social norms are more like the moral laws for different communities of humans. An example of social norms is the handshake. In the U.S. when you meet someone new you are expected to shake their hand as a form of greeting and a gesture of good will. If you do not then people will judge you because they judge people as unfriendly if they do not shake hands. In other countries there are different types of greetings like bowing in china and Japan. Refusing to bow is insulting to the other person and you are directed to do it by social norms. Different social norms are created by people who all believe the same thing and ensure that everyone does it. For example, People will make each other shake hands to ensure that everyone does
No one would know right from wrong and the world would be a very dangerous and scary place. Even though the norms differ from culture to culture, each one has their specific rules that everyone should follow, or should follow. Norms give this world a direction in where it should be and where were heading. Imagine if we lived in a society where you could commit crime with no consequences. No one would be doing good deeds, because they would be getting no rewards, and everyone would be double dipping their chips. That does not sound like a very fun or safe place to be
Norms can also be broken but violating these norms would be considered rude of disrespectful. Along with these norms there are also laws. Laws are the “binding rule created through custom or official enactment that defines correct behavior and the punishment for misbehavior” (Miller 2011: 175). The system of a law is more common among state type societies. State type societies such as Los Angeles, New York, Pittsburgh, just to name a