Perseverance In The Odyssey

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Recommended: The Odyssey annotated bibliography

Josh Marszalek
Larr
English Block 2
51/9/17

Theme In stories about epic heroes, there are many components that go into telling the story. One of the most important components however is theme. With theme, the author of the story can manipulate events around that theme to tell the story. The themes of Perseverance and loyalty show up quite a bit in epic poems. In The Odyssey, our hero Odysseus shows the themes of perseverance and loyalty as well as any epic hero. The journey of Odysseus return home shows extreme perseverance. Despite encountering a cyclops, the sirens and even dealing with Poseidon himself, his resolve to get back home to his wife Penelope is quite impressive (Books 9-12). Odysseus shows how much he wants to get home and stay …show more content…

Then do as I say, let us all be won over."' (Shmoop, Odysseus quotes). Odysseus knew that there would most likely be far too many suitors at his home when he returns, and he may worry slightly about his wife. However, his inability to question his wife Penelope's resolve is very wise because she is just as loyal to him as he is to her. Penelope waits the duration of the story for Odysseus to return, which shows just truly how loyal she really is. The themes of perseverance and loyalty show up not only in The Odyssey, but in Gilgamesh as well. With Gilgamesh, he never takes no for an answer. He always is looking for the way to win, and nothing will ever get in his way (Beers, page 30). Gilgamesh’s relentless attack on Humbaba proves that he is truly a persistent warrior (Beers, page 30). Gilgamesh’s relentlessness is superior to Enkidu’s, which is evidenced by when the writer says, "May he not live the longer of the two, may Enkidu not have any 'shore'(?) more than his friend Gilgamesh!" (Shmoop, The epic of Gilgamesh’). This shows Gilgamesh’s superiority, but also his loyalty to Enkidu. Gilgamesh’s trust and loyalty is also admirable, which is evidenced when the elders of Uruk say "Let Enkidu go ahead of you; he knows the road to the

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