One major difference between the land of the Cyclops and other lands like Ithaca and Sparta is the land and home layout. The environment depicted in the land of the Cyclops is best described as, “ Thick with woods where the wild goats breed…no flocks browse, no plowlands flow with wheat,; / unplowed, unsown forever-empty of human kind”(9.135-36). Furthermore, the area which Polyphemus considers his home is, “In a cave …then to close his door he hoisted overhead / a tremendous, massive slab” (9.266/272). The overall description of Polyphemus homeland is an uncultivated island. The land contains no farms, no dock, and empty of humankind. Similarly, the homes of Polyphemus reflects the atmosphere outside the cave; simple with very few altercations. …show more content…
The reaction by Polyphemus to discovering stowaways in his home surprised even the season veteran Odysseus. Instead of adhering to the normal hospitality customs, Polyphemus, “Snatching two at once, rapping them on the ground, their brains gushed all over, soaked the floor- / and ripping them limb from limb to fix his meal” (9.325-28). Although Odysseus did not expect the Cyclops to follow the rules of hospitality, the immediate action of murdering guests demonstrates the lack of hospitality of savages. Book nine within the poem, suggests that “civilized” men like Odysseus, viewed savages as violent monsters without the characteristic of sympathy. Civilized men like Nestor and Menelaus, on the other hand, treat their guests with respect, even providing them with many gifts. Nestor greets Telemachus with a friendly greeting, “to probe our guests and find out who they are / strangers-friends, who are you” (3.78-79). Furthermore, Menelaus provides Telemachus with, “a mixing-bowl, forged to perfection- / it’s solid silver finished off with a lip of gold” (15.126-27). Both Nestor and Menelaus excelled as excellent hosts providing Telemachus with a warm welcome and a bountiful farewell. The actions preformed by Polyphemus and the kings, demonstrate the different ideas between the “savage” and “civilized.” The “the savage fears and dislikes the idea of hosting guests, while the civilize enjoy and celebrate with their
This shows that Odysseus’ self-serving nature extends beyond material greed into the equally sinful realm of pride. In a classic display of hubris, Odysseus taunts the Cyclopes fulfilling the sole purpose of stroking Odysseus’s ego. At first it appears that our hero is lacking foresight, but Odysseus tells Polyphemus his name in hopes that tales of his cunning will spread throughout Greece: a very selfish goal, directly resulting in the endangerment of the lives of both him and his men throughout the remainder of their travels.
On Odysseus's journey he stopped at Cyclops’ Island for supplies and food. Instead of hunting and making supplies our protagonist and his crew steal from Polyphemus and stay in his living space thinking they can get more from him. After a while Polyphemus comes home and starts to get angry at his “visitors” so Odysseus tries to patch things up “here we stand, beholden for your help, or any gifts you give -as a custom is to honor strangers.” In the end they escape with Polyphemus's sheep.
Odysseus is the epitome of honor and virtue for his Ithacan subjects. Odysseus' kind and stalwart leadership is revealed by Eumaios, his faithful swineherd, and Philoitios, his loyal cowherd, who have both remained loyal to him for twenty years. Eumaios praises Odysseus as "A rare fine master." "Indeed I do not mourn so much for them as for him [Odysseus], though I long to see 'em again and my native land, but I do miss Odysseus since he went away. I don't like to speak his name, man, although he is absent, but I call him 'his honour,' even when he is far away." Odysseus is a befitting king because it is his ancestral right, for he is familiar with his male subjects and understands their desires. Odysseus' equity and mercy is displayed after his triumph over the suitors, whom he executed because of their lawless behavior. However, Odysseus shows compassion by allowing Phemius, the minstrel suitor, and Medon, a herald suitor to live. "Cheer up, my son has saved your life.
Like Jacob, Odysseus connived, manipulated, and deceived. On his journey home from the Trojan War, Odysseus uses his trickster ways to get himself out of trouble. One famous tail was his encounter with the one-eyed Cyclopes Polyphemous. Odysseus and his crew landed on the land of they Cyclopes. They made themselves at home, eating the cheese and goats of the Cyclopes, fully expecting him to be hospitable. Instead, Cyclops began eating then men as though they were animals themselves. Odysseus and his men were trapped in the cave and Polyphemous rolled a stone over the entrance so no one could exit. Odysseus connived a plan and gave the Cyclopes some wine. When he got drunk and passed out, Odysseus poked out the eye of Polyphemous and completely blinds him. Odysseus and his men escape the cave by clinging to the bellies of sheep (Odyssey, Ch. 9). He also disguised himself as a veteran of a Trojan war to Eumaios, a loyal servant, and as a beggar to his wife and son.
Odysseus and some of his men went to investigate to see what these Cyclops were like. Unfortunately, they stumbled upon a Cyclops that had no intention of being nice. His name was Polyphemus who was the son of Poseidon. He took Odysseus’s men and ate them every night and would keep Odysseus and his men hostage. Odysseus made a clever escape and blinded the Cyclops. When Odysseus finally made it back on the ship with the remaining men that went along with him, Odysseus got a little too angry and shouted from the ship to Polyphemus and insulted him. Polyphemus prayed to the god, Poseidon and cursed Odysseus. This was on page 77, lines 526-533, book
Then the hero arrives at the home of Polyphemos. Polyphemos is a huge cyclops and also a cannibal. Odysseus and twelve of his men are trapped inside Polyphemos’ cave and can’t get out. Polyphemos comes back and eats some of the hero’s men. The next night Odysseus gets the cyclops drunk on wine, and when it falls asleep, Odysseus and his remaining men blind it with a large pole. He and his men barely escape with their lives and continue on the voyage.
Throughout the story of The Odyssey, Odysseus is both punished for his pride and rewarded for his ingenuity. When he lingers in the cave of Polyphemus, Odysseus ends up losing six of his men to the cyclops even though he boastfully attests that “He (Polyphemus) thought to tempt me, but he could not cheat a knowing man like me” (85). As a result, when Odysseus reveals his identity as they are sailing away from the island, Polyphemus pleads with his father Poseidon to punish the crew and to “vouchsafe no coming home to this Odysseus, spoiler of cities,…let him come, in evil plight, with loss of all his crew, on vessel of a stranger, and may he at his home find trouble” (89). This curse comes true, as Odysseus is the lone survivor of Poseidon’s storm and meets trouble with the suitors as soon as he returns to Ithaca. However, while Odysseus is punished for his pride, he is able to learn from his mistakes, and is accordingly rewarded for his ingenuity and cunning. By stating that his name is “Noman” and by getting Polyphemus drunk, he and his men are able to escape the cave, and when he disguises himself in Ithaca, he is able to successfully defeat all of the suitors and take back his home and city as
Firstly, Lucian does little to civilize Polyphemus. The most obvious example is his method for dealing with Odysseus and his crew: ἐγὼ δὲ συλλαβών τινας αὐτῶν, ὥσπερ εἰκὸς ἦν, κατέφαγον λῃστάς γε ὄντας (Luc. Dialogues. 2. 2. 5-6). Lucian’s Greek is a stark, unornamented account of the event that shows how unconcerned Polyphemus is with eating Odysseus’ crew members. There in neither a concession to how extreme the action he took was nor even any anger that would help to explain the violence of his method; and he certainly does not show remorse for the fate of the men he consumed. In choosing to describe this scene in so few words, Lucian also invites comparison with its vivid and gory counterpart found in the Odyssey: σὺν δὲ δύω μάρψας ὥς τε σκύλακας ποτὶ γαίῃ κόπτ᾽: ἐκ δ᾽ ἐγκέφαλος χαμάδις ῥέε, δεῦε δὲ γαῖαν. τοὺς δὲ διὰ μελεϊστὶ ταμὼν ὡπλίσσατο δόρπον (Hom. Od. 9. 289-291). This creates a separation between how Polyphemus portrays himself as a victim defending his home and the utter savageness with which he carries out his actions, preventing the reader from seeing him in a wholly favorable manner. The less than heroic character of Polyphemus can also be seen in his somewhat dimwitted nature as well. This is best seen in his unfamiliarity with wine, which leads to his blinding. In the Odyssey the fact that he drank undiluted wine was a mark of his barbarism, but in Lucian’s work he simply looks dense because he believed that Odysseus δίδωσί μοι πιεῖν φάρμακόν τι ἐγχέας (Luc. Dialogues. 2. 7-8). This is only compounded when Poseidon, who should be a concerned father, speaks his next line; he is seemingly aware of the fact that it was alcohol that caused his son to fall into such a deep sleep so his shock at Polyphemus remaining asleep seems more mocking than puzzled
The one-eyed Cyclops present a monster with extremely barbaric qualities that the Greeks abhor. When Odysseus first reaches the island of the Cyclops, he is surprised by their uncivilized ways, which are foreign to the Greeks. He describes them as “lawless brutes, who trust so to the everlasting gods/they never plant with their own hands or plow the soil” and explains how the Cyclopes “have no meeting place for council, no laws either,/no, up on the mountain peaks they live in arching caves-/each a law to himself, ruling his wives and children,/ not a care in the world for any neighbor” (9.118-128). The Cyclops live alone in caves, never tending to their crops, and are cared for by the gods. They have no structured civilization or sense of community, and have no regard for one another: they live like wild animals. They have “not a care in the world for any neighbor”, they don’t “plant with their own hands or plow the soil”, and they have “no meeting place for council, no laws either.” The Cyclops seek no comfort of camaraderie. They live by themselves and for themselves, and do not ab...
4). The suitors, led by Antinous and Eurymachus, expect justice to be served when Telemachus sails to Pylos without telling them. '[The] Suitors had embarked and were sailing the high seas with murder for Telemachus in their hearts'; (pg. 69). They eventually found him, however they did not kill him like they sought out to. This is a case in which 'justice'; did not happen at all. The adventure of Odysseus and Polyphemus, the cycloptic son of Poseidon, showed good examples of justice. Polyphemus ate four men of Odysseus' crew and in return, Odysseus and his remaining crew administered justice: 'Seizing the olive pole, they drove its sharpened end into the Cyclops' eye'; (pg. 135). In doing this, they were able to escape and they set sail. Odysseus, carried away in his pride, announced his identity to Polyphemus. When he had heard Odysseus' name, Polyphemus called upon his father, Poseidon, to adminis...
Stressed greatly in ancient Greek culture, hospitality is evident throughout Homer’s writing, which reflects and expresses many different value systems within it. For example, when in the cave of the Cyclops, Polyphemus, Odysseus confronts him by saying, “we therefore humbly pray to show us some hospitality and otherwise make us such presents as visitors may reasonably expect” (92). To the Greeks, hospitality was very important, to the point that it was an expectation and not just a quality as it is in today’s culture. If you feared Zeus and the gods, you were to show hospitality. In opposition to this, Odysseus’ request for hospitality is followed by the Cyclops stating, “you are a fool…we Cyclopes do not care about Zeus or any of your blessed gods for we are ever so much stronger than they” (92/93). In accordance to this, the greatest reason for one to show hospitality was because they believe...
Next, Polyphemus demonstrates hubris by believing that because he is a giant, he is unbeatable by anyone, even a god. This is shown when Odysseus meets Polyphemus and greets him with gifts, as it is a custom to show courtesy to hosts and guests alike, (unexpected or not). Failure to give gifts can lead to revenge from the gods. Odysseus tells Polyphemus this, but Polyphemus “would not let you go for fear of Zeus” because the Cyclopes “have more force by far ”. (205; 200) Polyphemus then angers the gods further by kidnapping and eating Odysseus’ men, both of which are considered extremely uncivil in Greek society. Polyphemus is so confident in his invulnerability he lets the men roam free inside the cave, a mistake that leads to his downfall.
Odysseus’ recklessness and resourcefulness are predominant traits apparent in the Cyclops episode. When trapped in the Cyclops’ cave and after four men have already been devoured, Odysseus comes up with a cunning plan to escape. They cannot simply kill Polyphemus while he is sleeping and run away, due to the ‘huge boulder rolled across the mouth of the cave. Instead, he uses the resources available to him by getting Polyphemus drunk before sharpening the Cyclops’ staff, heating it in the fire, and stabbing it in his eye, blinding him. This is an extremely reckless undertaking, as it further enrages Polyphemus.
... hospitality should be given to a guest because of how they treat Telemachos. The Cyclops, Polyphemos, shows how xenia can be not given at all, by the way that he treats Odysseus and his men. How one disregards the rules of hospitality, and does it knowingly, is how the suitors behaved. Throughout the Odyssey, Homer writes about many different instances of good hospitality, like the people of Pylos. Homer also shows instances of bad hospitality, like how the suitors behave as guests and how Polyphemos treats his guests. No matter if it is a good or bad example of hospitality, the impression of how important xenia is to the Greeks is always present. All of the Greeks follow the rules of hospitality to the nines, for fear that they will be struck by Zeus’s lightning bolt.
After the Trojan War, Odysseus, the handsome, brave hero of The Odyssey makes the god of the sea, Poseidon, angry by claiming that he alone won the Trojan War. Poseidon vows he will make Odysseus' journey home tough. While on the island of the Cyclopes, they find an abandoned cave that is owned by the one-eyed Cyclops Polyphemus, the son of Poseidon. There they become trapped, Odysseus tells him his name is Nohbody, and offers Polyphemus some wine so that he can become intoxicated. Polyphemus becomes drunk, passes out, and Odysseus and his men devise a plan and attack him in his eye with a sharp, hot wooden pole. Polyphemus...