Odysseus In Homer's Odyssey

Reality is very comparable to the Odyssey in multiple ways. Throughout the Odyssey, Odysseus faced trials that tested his character and that challenged him. When Odysseus was in the cave of the cyclops, Polyphemus, he was trapped and had to find a clever way to escape. On his way home to Ithaca Odysseus stopped on an island where Helios’ cattle graze. He and his men there would be consequences if they ate any of the cattle. Odysseus was hungry but he did not eat the cattle, his men did not have as much self-control. Sometimes life gives us temptations that might be hard to resist even though we know there are consequences and sometimes there are times where our brains might need to be used to get out of a sticky situation. First, Odysseus wanted to return to his home in Ithaca to his loved ones. On the way home Odysseus and men landed on the land of the cyclops. Polyphemus, the cyclops on the island refused to let Odysseus and his men leave once they arrived in his cave.

Odysseus and his men had already been warned that if they ate the cattle they would have to face consequences. They were getting hungry because their food supply was running low. Odysseus was going to use his willpower and resist and he was going to try to help the others resist but he fell asleep. While he was asleep he men ate the cattle and as soon as Odysseus woke up he found out what they had done and still would not take part in it. Every once in awhile we all face the temptation of something that we are craving. It may be fitting in, so we do whatever it takes. It may be starvation, so we take what we need even if it is not the right thing to do. We know there will be consequences but for some reason we only think in the moment and not about the future. For the case of Odysseus’ men their consequence for eating the cattle was death, “... and all the men were flung into the sea” (pg