Odysseus Journey Home Essay

Female Obstacles Faced by Odysseus in his Journey Home Odysseus’ journey home from Troy was seen as a long and tiring expedition, with many obstacles to overcome. The character of Odysseus that readers have come to know is broadly based on how he handled these difficulties through his way back from the Trojan War. He encountered many women who acted as the obstacles, making the journey home even longer. Odysseus’ travels home were not going to be short and he knew that, but encountering Calypso, the Sirens and Circe did not make it any better. After a long fight in the Trojan War, it was time for Odysseus to go home. The Odyssey, which is the story of Odysseus’ return home, mentions Odysseus gathering up his crew and setting sail to reach

As Odysseus did not know what was to come of the rest of his journey home, he believed that being set off course was the largest obstacle that he was going to have to face, not knowing what was still to come.

Calypso was one of the first female figures that readers are introduced to on Odysseus’ journey home. Calypso was a sea nymph whose name in Greek meant “Concealer” and said to be the daughter of Atlas and a part of the Titans. In The Odyssey it is said the Calypso kept Odysseus hostage on her island. It was known that Calypso wanted to make Odysseus her husband and the only way for that to happen was to keep him trapped on her island against his will. Odysseus was married to a mortal woman named Penelope and Calypso could not understand why Odysseus would want to be with a mortal woman when he could be with one of “his kind.” Odysseus was help hostage in a cave by himself with only the comfort that Calypso could try to give him, for his crew had been killed earlier on. He had no crew to help him escape and no crew to help him on his voyage home if he were to ever escape. Odysseus’ fate was never to spend the rest of his life living on the island with Calypso, his fate

They would lure the nearby sailors to their death by using their captivating music and voices. “To succumb to the Sirens’ nostalgic song is to rot on their shores” (Course Manual, 40). Odysseus encounters the Sirens on his journey home, but luckily escapes their trap. Odysseus, who was very curious and wanted to hear what the Sirens had to say, commanded that his crew to put beeswax in their ears so that they would not be lured by their voices. His crew would also tie Odysseus to the mast on the ship, so that he would not fall into their trap. This was important for Odysseus because it would mean that if he were to survive Sirens’ voices and make it out alive, he could continue is journeying home. The Homeric-Hymns stated that the Sirens would die if they failed to capture their prey and because no one ever made it out alive, the Sirens kept living on, that is until they encountered Odysseus. The Sirens here have been just another obstacle that Odysseus had encountered in his truck home in which he had to overcome. Though it did not make his voyage home any longer, it did pose the question of whether of not they were going to make it out of there alive. Odysseus knew full well that being tied back to the mast may not work as well has he would want it to and knew that there had always been the possibility of escaping from the trap and facing his death, but there has always been a higher power