1. Odysseus lies to the Cyclops to protect his boat and possessions, which causes the Cyclops to retaliate and thrash two men into pieces. Odysseus and his crew find themselves trapped in a cave with a stone blocking the entrance that was too heavy to move by themselves. Odysseus hatches a plan to lure the Cyclops in and intoxicate him. He drinks willingly after devouring two more men and demands more wine in which he is actually feeding into Odysseus’s plan. After declaring his name as Noman, Odysseus seizes the opportunity of the drunken state of the Cyclops and together with his crew, drives “the fiery-pointed stake in the Cyclops eye”(393) reveals Norton Anthology. The Cyclops removes the stone to protect his flock, but in turn, releases …show more content…
Athena describes Odysseus according to Norton Anthology as “Odysseus’ people remember him, a godly king as kind as a father”(344). Although it can be inferred that Athena had ulterior motives for the release of Odysseus, he is still defined as a patient man who should be given the chance to return home, along with his crew. The poem further explains that once he reaches Scheria, he shall be laden with riches and treated like a god. 3. Odysseus commands Eurylochus to accompany him to Circe’s house to rescue his men, but this time, he listens to pleas from his crew member to leave him behind. Odysseus, bravely heads out to the house and is approached by Hermes who blesses him with an herb to protect him from falling under the spell. Odysseus returned to his ship with his rescued crew and was welcomed greatly by his men. “With you back, Zeus-born”(407) reveals Norton …show more content…
After leaving Aeolia with the means to be directed home by way of the contents of the ox-hide bag, Odysseus’ crew thought that he was hiding treasures of gold and silver and was unwilling to share. They saw him as greedy and one that would be taking all the glory for himself even though the crew had worked as one on their long journey. With the comfort of land in sight, Odysseus lowers his guard slightly and falls victim to sleep deprivation. The crew seize this opportunity to investigate the bag which in turn causes them to be blown off course and back to Aeolia. The crew and Odysseus are mortified and are left with doubts “to go over the side and end it all at sea or endure in silence and remain among the living”(398) says Norton
In the Greek epic, “The Odyssey”, Odysseus encounters many monsters and other obstacles on his trip home to Ithaca. “O Brother, Where Art Thou” is a modern day twist on Odysseus’ trip home. Ulysses Everett McGill, or Everett, escapes prison to return home to his “treasure”. Both Everett and Odysseus encounter the same obstacles, like the cyclops, Lotus eaters, and Sirens.
For twenty years Odysseus was away from his home of Ithaca, and in this time he faced several events that would change the way he would see the world. Witnessing such events as the breaking open of six of his innocent soldiers' skulls by a Cyclops (Homer 132) and the feeding of another six of his men to a six-headed beast (Homer 186) played a large part of the changed man that returned. Though a changed Odysseus awoke on the beach of Ithaca, he would have to force all the lessons of two decades out of his personality and into the efforts to regain his life; he would need to use the strength he gained from his experiences to conceal his identity behind a mask of weakness.
First, Odysseus and Thor both suffer from their pride. This results in both Odysseus and Thor to suffering hardships that aids their charters to develop in positive ways. For instance, Odysseus encounter with the Cyclops. Odysseus’ crewmen suggest to their leader to take the cheese and livestock back to the ships and set sail. However, because of Odysseus’ pride they stay to see what their host would look like and to receive a guest gift. This cost Odysseus the life of six crewmen. Furthermore, Odysseus reveals his name to the Cyclops; after blinding him. Resulting in angering
Odysseus finds himself in many strange and difficult situations. One of the strange and difficult situations Odysseus finds himself at is the land of the Cyclops. Odysseus had taken twelve of his men to explore the island. They found a cave and decide to stay there until the Cyclops who lived there returned. The Cyclops returned and "Picked up a huge great stone and placed it in the doorway," so the men couldn?t escape (104). "The cruel monster? reached out toward my men, grabbed two like a pair of puppies and dashed them on the ground?. Then h...
To enact his revenge upon the suitors, Odysseus had to kill them all. This changed Odysseus’s fate, as he was forced to sneak home and kill one hundred men by himself; however, before that was able to happen, Odysseus had to sail a ship home with the help of a crew. On their venture home, Odysseus’s crew revisits the theme of greed and folly as their actions impede Odysseus’s journey. As they were sailing home, they happened to find Aiolia Island and decided to head to shore. There they met King Aiolos, a wind god who took pity on them and decided to let them stay for a month to hear Odysseus’s story.
After his near decade captivity and escape from Calypso, Odysseus faces many challenges in his attempt to return to Ithaca. Arguably, being held captive so long may have been a shameful period, although being a sex slave for a beautiful goddess wasn’t the worst thing imaginable. With the lack of help from and trust in the gods, Odysseus had heavy weight on his shoulders that would decide whether his fate would be shameful or honorable. A quote from Zeus emphasized this, “Odysseus shall come back by the convoy neither of the gods nor of mortal people, but he shall sail on a jointed raft and, suffering hardships, on the twentieth day make his landfall on fertile Scheria at the country of the Phaiakians who are near the gods in origin, and they will honor him in their hearts as a god, and send him back, by ship, to the beloved land of his fathers, bestowing bronze and hold in abundance upon him, and clothing, more than Odysseus could ever have taken away from Troy, even if he had escaped unharmed with his fair share of the plunder” (Odyssey 5, 30-40). The gods here place trust in the abilities of Odysseus, even though he would very much appreciate some help. Although Odysseus is mortal, he is comparable to immortal heroes due to his strength and leadership. A quality of his that is notable for a great leader was that he wouldn’t ask of his men something he wouldn’t do himself. At times though, he
Humbly, he is “on the ground, in the ashes by the fire”(VII,190). He does not intrude into to their home and forcibly take gifts as he did on the Cyclops island. He accepts the care given to him from the Phaeacians and does not ask for more than he is given. Odysseus takes accountability of his actions when King Alcinous blames his daughter for bringing stranger into their home, Odysseus tells King Alcinous to not take “fault with a flawless daughter now, not for my sake, please”(VII,342-343). He is grateful for her help in giving him hospitality. After King Alcinous assures Odysseus he will get home, Odysseus prays,“May the king fulfill his promise one and all! Then his fame would ring through the fertile earth and never die”(VII,380-382). He is appreciative of the help so Odysseus calls to Zeus for good things for Alcinous. Not thinking of himself and wishing positive impacts on others is a sign of maturity.
In there travels, Odysseus and his men land on the island of Aeolia. Here Odysseus is given a gift from the wind god Aeolus. Aeolus gathers all the stormy and evil winds and places them into a bag for Odysseus voyage. Odysseus heads back to the boat and gives specific instructions to his men not to open the bag, but he doesn't tell them what is in it. His men are curious go against their kings order. "But during the voyage, the suspicious and curious sailor's open the bag, thinking it contains treasure, and the evil winds roar up into hurricanes that threaten the luckless Odysseus again."(Page 911). If his men used self discipline they would not have been delayed even more and arrive at Ithaca earlier.
Odysseus was within arms reach of home but because of how naive he was he was forced to keep going on his journey. After all of Aeolus’ hospitality and such a powerful gift Odysseus is still mindless at what this meant and because of him not being cautious, he could not complete his adventure. It’s surprising knowing that after being on a powerful god’s bad side and being forced back to sea, that Odysseus can be even more of a fool.
...o all guests saved Odysseus and helped him return home to his wife, son, and kingdom. Even though people from many different kingdoms and islands took Odysseus in their home and showed him great kindness on his return home, the individual who helped him most was the goddess Athena. In many occasions Athena assisted Odysseus. One such example is when Odysseus was fighting of the suitors and they threw spears at him. "Re-forming, the suitors threw again with all their strength, but Athena turned their shots, or all but two (p 566)." Another instance which Athena aided Odysseus was when she disguised him as a beggar on his arrival to his homeland. "Would even you have guessed that I am Pallas Athena, daughter of Zeus, I that am always with you in times of trial, a shield to you in battle (p 444)." "Your goddess-guardian to the end in all your trials (p 539)."
Odysseus exemplifies aspects of true heroism, namely his cunning, witty, and shrewd mind. He also portrays a brilliant leader. Of the many adventures Odysseus endures, his encounter with the cyclopes embodies his heroism best. Odysseus landed on the island and lead his men into the cyclops’s cave. When Polyphemus the giant returned, Odysseus took the lead and spoke to the cyclops. When the cyclops asked where Odysseus's boat was, he wittily answered, “My Ship? Poseidon god of the earthquake smashed my ship, he drove it against the rocks at your island's far cape, he dashed it against a cliff as the winds rode us in”(Homer 220). This brilliant response later saved the men on the boat from being captured and eaten by the cyclops....
When Odysseus and his men realized they were trapped inside the cave, Odysseus was smart enough to realize that they would be trapped forever by the Cyclops boulder if they killed him. Not only is Odysseus smart enough to create a plan of escape by getting the Cyclops drunk but also stays calm and collected to trick the Cyclops into drinking the wine without arousing suspicion. As a result, they stab the Cyclops, blinding him. To hide his identity as king of Ithaca and to trick the neighboring Cyclops he gives a false name by saying, “My name is Nohbody: mother, father, and friends, / everyone calls...
The presence of God in our belief system is something that many cultures have taken for granted. In Odyssey book, this presence of God or Goddess is even tangible because in this epic, mortals have the abilities to talk them, to see them and to feel their presences around them. Since the beginning of the epic, Odysseus has always been helped by Athena (goddess) who is Zeus’ daughter and Zeus who admired the man’s faith, courage, strategy and intellect.
Though he is usually a smart, decisive leader, Odysseus is prone to errors, and his deepest flaw is falling prey to temptation. His biggest mistakes come in the episode with Polyphemos as he first foolishly investigates the Kyklops' lair (and ends up getting trapped there), and then cannot resist shouting his name to Polyphemos after escaping (thus incurring Poseidon's wrath). If Odysseus' character changes over the course of The Odyssey, though, it pivots around temptation. After his errors with Polyphemos, Odysseus has his crew tie him up so he can hear‹but not follow‹the dangerously seductive song of the Seirenes. Disguised as a beggar in Ithaka, he is even more active in resisting temptation, allowing the suitors to abuse him as he bides his time. Temptation hurts his crew, as well, in their encounters with Kirke, the bag of winds from Aiolos, and the oxen of Helios.
...a, 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. He is released from Ogygia and permitted to return to Ithaca only by the command of Zeus, as delivered by Hermes. Telemachus, rather than being trapped physically, was detained emotionally, feeling helpless to repel the suitors wooing Penelope. Only through the motivation of the goddess Athena did Telemachus find the will and courage to embark in search of Odysseus.