Literary Analysis of "The Odyssey"

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The Odyssey is a celebrated epic filled with many different themes, motifs, styles, and characters that could be examined in vast detail, but the theme of hospitality is a reoccurring one throughout the entire narrative. Homer writes about examples of both great hospitality and very inhospitable characters in his epic poem. Hospitality in The Odyssey creates definition of how individuals are either punished or rewarded by the gods. In the time of The Odyssey, not only large tracts of land separate civilizations, but also natural barriers and mythical obstacles. People could not have made the journeys that they made if they were not able to rely on other peoples for food, shelter, protection, and supplies. There are several examples of people showing hospitality because of their sincere desire to serve the gods. There are also those who show hospitality only because they fear the punishment of the gods. Generous Hospitality Early in the epic, Telemakhos is shown hospitality by both Nestor and Menelaos as he searches for his long lost father. At Nestor's palace Telemakhos was given a place to sleep for the night and a large feast for him and his crew. This is an example of not only where the basic elements of hospitality are given, but also honor to is given to Telemakhos by offering even the choice cuts of meat and the finest clothes. He also provided transportation and company (his son) to King Menelaos' palace. When Telemakhos arrived at his palace, a wedding feast was already in progress. They were given seats of honor and the king's portion, "a chine of beef" (310) before even knowing their names. These two examples of hospitality where shown out of a sincere desi... ... middle of paper ... ...ers of the house they chose to visit would treat him. This belief made men who are not kind in nature to be kind for fear of punishment for mistreating a god among them. Hospitality could also be a form of worship for the god Zeus. Being the god of hospitality, a good way of worship would be to treat strangers and travelers with kindness. It could be said that showing hospitality to a stranger was the same as showing it to a god. Ultimately, the gods in The Odyssey either rewarded or punished for how they treated people that they encountered in life's journeys. We can draw the same parallels in our own lives. Jesus tells us to love our neighbors as ourselves. A bigger picture can be seen in The Odyssey that shows examples of how we should also live our lives. We should be hospitable to people that we come in contact with.

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