Who is Telemachos, and why is he in the story? What is so extraordinary about him that Homer would begin the Odyssey with a frivolous tale of his travels across the Aegean? As unexpectedly Telemachos decides to go on a voyage, Homer abruptly refocuses the story on the book’s titular character. Telemachos does not reappear until the final five books. Such unusual deployment and withdrawal of Telemachos serves two functions: one, Telemachos sets the stakes of a family fallen from grace, and two, Telemachos invites the contemporary reader to identify with his difficulties. Telemachos is a young man of contradictions, yet those contradictions allow us to sympathize with his seeming incompetence. On one hand, Telemachos feels responsible for living up to the glorious name of Odysseus. On the other hand, Telemachos knows that it is not realistic to physically confront the suitors. However, Telemachos never loses sight of his eventual goal of restoring the “honor and lordship in his own domains.” It is Telemachos’s “mini-Odyssey” that enables us to understand Odysseus’s “great Odyssey.” Unlike the Christian God, Greek …show more content…
Homer writes “…the prince Telemachos/now caught sight of Athena – for he, too,/was sitting there unhappy among the suitors,/a boy, daydreaming” (5). But a desire to avenge his family’s honor, however nascent, is essential for Telemachos’s growth. Telemachos is tact and pragmatic. Seeing Mentor, he does not hesitate to welcome an old friend and place his spear in a place of honor “against a pillar where tough spear on spear/of the old soldier, his father, stood in order” (5). In addition, Telemachos is unsatisfied by revelry of the suitors, who pester him endlessly to feast with them. His observation of how pleasure corrupts men is prescient for a boy of seventeen. Though Telemachos doubts his heritage, “My mother says I am [Odysseus’s] son; I know not” (8), he never ceases to be fascinated with
Through Telemachus, Odyssues’ son, the reader sees Odysseus’ utter dependence upon the gods’ aid. During Telemachus’ journey, all those th...
In Odyssey, Homer creates a parallel between Odysseus and Telemachos, father and son. The two are compared in the poem from every aspect. One parallel was the quest of Telemachos, in correlation with the journey of his father. In this, Odysseus is developed from a childish, passive, and untested boy, to a young man preparing to stand by his father's side. This is directly connected to the voyage of Odysseus, in that they both lead to the same finale, and are both stepping-stones towards wisdom, manhood, and scholarship.
At some point in their life, many people experience feelings of inadequacy or uncertainty. In “The Odyssey” by Homer, one of the main characters Telemachus experiences both of these feelings. He feels that he is not good enough, especially compared to his father, Odysseus, who many people refer to as a great leader. In the beginning of “The Odyssey”, Telemachus’ home has been taken over by suitors, each with the goal of winning over his mother, in hopes to marry her and become king. Telemachus is not fond of these men in his home, but does not have the confidence to get rid of them. Lastly, at this point in the story, Odysseus, Telemachus’ father, has been gone for approximately twenty years, most of Telemachus’ life. Telemachus has been
Homer’s Odyssey has been a well-known story that has been passed down for generations. The story that Homer is telling conveys some valuable historical information representative of the ancient Greeks of his time. One such thread that can be traced throughout the ancient Greek world is on the subject of human conduct. The best way to examine the human conduct portrayed in the Odyssey, one must examine the characteristics of the individual. As such, two examples of the good and bad role models of human conduct can be seen in Odysseus and Telemachus.
The Odyssey is a tale that has changed literature and storytelling. In this tale Odysseus is a Soldier from the battle of Troy trying to get home to his island of Ithaca, where he is king. His wife and son must wait ten years while he is trying to make his way home. In Odysseus’s absence wooer’s, or better known as suitors, learn of his absence and travel to Ithaca to win his wife’s hand in marriage. These men come every day feasting on Odysseus’s food and wine, and give his servant’s orders. His son Telemachus, does his best to keep the suitors from ruining his fathers house but he is only a boy, and doesn’t receive the respect of an adult. Telemachus then has a visit from the god Athena, whom Odysseus is friends with, who advises him to travel to find out about his father. In his travels he hears that Odysseus may still be alive. Meanwhile Odysseus goes through a series of adventures and hardships that prove his wisdom. It is interesting in contrast of the Iliad, even though Achilles was much stronger and a better warrior, Odysseus was portrayed as a greater hero due to his wisdom. He uses this wisdom to escape from the Cyclops.
Odysseus returns to Ithaca in the form of a beggar. He first comes to Eumaeus the swineherd. Telemachus shows up, and when introduced to the beggar he wants to make him as comfortable as possible while on Ithaca or allow him to return to his destination of choice. Since the palace is full of suitors Telemachus is trying to figure out the best plan for their new guest when he says he will give him food, and clothing, and “send him off wherever his heart desires. Or if you’d rather keep him here at the farmstead” (341). Telemachus is showing an example of xenia after experiencing this guest-host relationship during his travels, and instead of being the guest he has mastered the role of the host. Once Odysseus reveals his true identity to Telemachus they make a plan to be rid of the suitors for good. While in the midst of their scheme Telemachus steps up with a proposition. Athena had inspired Penelope to require a task of the suitors in order for her to choose one of them to marry. The task was to string Odysseus bow, and while they are attempting to do so Telemachus says “ I’d even take a crack at the bow myself” (418). He then proceeds to tell them what will occur if he succeeds. Telemachus is being very assertive, and is about to take part in the challenge however Odysseus motions
Thus, it is fitting that Homer depicts it as the final step of his endeavors. Certainly, Nestor was a great and wise aid to Telemachus, but his character is not exactly whom he needs imitate at this stage of his life. Rather, it is ultimately Menelaos who will be his prime examples of leadership, aided by the words of Peisistratos. Upon his arrival to Menelaos’ home, the scene is filled with the joys of marriage and wealth. Homer makes a particular effort to portray Menelaos as one Telemachus should look up too. In fact, Menelaos is so intimidating that Telemachus is too shy to speak. Peisistratos, in consequence, initiates the conversation for him, and all three men, Menelaos, Telemachus, and Peisistratos, begin to cry. For the first time, people are truly able to sympathize with Telemachus’ emotions toward his father. This is one of the unique ways Menelaos develops Telemachus’ leadership skills. The consolation from a prime father figure is key to his becoming a man. This emotional setting leads to Menelaos’ memories of Odysseus, lavishing his old friend with compliments and praise when speaking about him to Telemachus. This is something the son of Odysseus is desperate to hear. For he longs to know from a trusted figure the accomplishment and character of his father. Menelaos relays the tales of his wanderings, finally telling Telemachus about his father, who is alive but trapped on
Up to this point in The Odyssey, Homer has introduced several characters, including the gods, Telemachus, Odysseus, and several more. The Gods first appear when they discuss what they should do about Odysseus’s turmoil as he attempts to get home to his wife and, now grown, son. Afterward, Athena appears to Telemachus as Mentor, an old companion of his father, Odysseus. She convinces Telemachus that he should set sail in order to find out if his father is dead or alive and also to take back control of his father’s kingdom from his mother, Penelope’s, suitors. Upon confrontation by Telemachus, Antinous, one of Penelope’s suitors, informs Telemachus of Penelope’s deception toward them. After hearing this, Telemachus continued to stand up for
In The Odyssey, Homer highlights the character development of Telemahkos, the son of Odysseus. In the beginning of the book, Telemahkos is described as, “...for he, too, /was sitting there unhappy among the suitors,/ a boy, daydreaming.” (1, 144-146) He doesn’t know much about his identity, and doubts that he is the son of the great Odysseus. With some help from Athena, by the end of the book Telemahkos is sure of who he is, and takes pride in knowing that he is the son of Odysseus. When given a challenge, Telemahkos is able to thrive and prove he is strong, brave, and a leader.
The Hero’s Journey is never an easy one. This particular journey, as detailed in Homer’s The Odyssey, is one of struggle, loss, heartache, pain, growth and triumph. It is comprised of many steps that Odysseus has to overcome and battle through in order to achieve his final goal of reaching his home and his loved ones. From the Call to Adventure to the Freedom or Gift of living, Odysseus conquered them all. The story begins in the middle of the story, as many of the oral Greek traditions did, with the Journey of Telemachus to find his father. Although Telemachus has not yet met his father, it is almost as if they are journeying together, where the end of both of their journeys results in being reunited. Telemachus journeys from being a boy to becoming a man, while out in the sea Odysseus is battling Poseidon to return to the home that wife that he loves and the home he has left behind.
In the first four books of Homer’s The Odyssey, the character of Telemachus undergoes a dramatic evolution. When Homer first introduces him, he appears to be an unsophisticated youth, wallowing in self-pity. After the goddess Athena intervenes, he becomes, seemingly, a man of courage, strength, and resolve. On closer analysis, however, one remains to wonder if this transformation is genuine. The rapidity of his change in personality and the assistance he requires from the goddess at every stage in his journey suggests that he is not yet a hero in the mold of his father, the great Odysseus.
Throughout the last books of The Odyssey Homer tells us how Odysseus restores his relationships with his friends and relatives at Ithaca. Perhaps one of the most revealing of these restoration episodes is Odysseus' re-encounter with his son, Telemachus. This re-encounter serves three main purposes. First, it serves to portray Telemachus' likeness to his father in the virtues of prudence, humility, patience, and planning. Secondly, it is Odysseus' chance to teach his son to be as great a ruler as Odysseus himself is. Lastly, Homer uses this re-encounter to emphasize the importance of a family structure to a society. To be able to understand the impact that this meeting had on Odysseus it is necessary to see that Telemachus has grown since his first appearances in the poem and obviously since his last contact with his father; Odysseus left Telemachus as an infant now their relationship is a man to man relationship rather than a man to child relationship.
The Odyssey tells the story of Odysseus and his both literal and figurative journey home to Ithaka. When the great king, Odysseus travels to Troy on the account of war, many obstructions hinder him from returning home. During his absence, his deprivation of being a father to his son, Telemachus, causes great disappointment. Without a father, his son strives to grow and mature yet he has not the slightest idea of where to. However, as Telemachus struggles to reach manhood and his father struggles to return to Ithaka, their seemingly separate journeys are connected. They both learn values that turn a boy into a man and a great man even greater. In the epic poem the Odyssey, Homer uses parallel rites of passage with Odysseus and Telemachus to develop the importance of the father son-bond.
In the Odyssey, Telemachus, son of great hero Odysseus, who grows up in the world of greed and disrespect where the suitors take over his palace and court his mother, is one of the most significant character throughout the whole epic. His father, Odysseus, leaving the land Ithaca for 20 years, is the only warrior alive in Trojan war who hasn’t make his return home. During Telemachus’ expedition to search for the news of his father, he is under a process of maturation from the beginning in which he is mere a shadow of his father to the end in which he becomes more and more like him in terms of initiative, sensitivity and socialization.
middle of paper ... ... In Homer’s Odyssey, both Odysseus and his son Telemachus embark on long, difficult journeys; Odysseus trying to return from Troy to his home in Ithaca, escaping Calypso and the island of Ogygia, and Telemachus from Ithaca to Pylos and Sparta in search of his lost father. While The Odyssey tells of the courage both men demonstrate during their respective travels, their quests are the results of the intentions and desires of gods. Odysseus is trapped in exile on Ogygia by the will of Poseidon, whose anger Odysseus attracts when he blinds the Cyclops Polyphemus, son of Poseidon, and by the love of Calypso, who wishes to make Odysseus her husband.