The main thing that interests me the most about the story of Odysseus is the incredible about of influence that the gods and goddess have upon the fate of Odysseus. Some play the role of guides that aid Odysseus throughout his journey while others are bent on his destruction. Athene was probably the most influential on Odysseus' fate. When Poseidon, who has a bitter grudge against Odysseus, attempted to kill him by wrecking his ship, Athene came to save him from the wreckage. Due to her favor towards him, she is also able to convince other gods to help him as well. At one point in the story, Odysseus becomes stranded on Calypso's island and Athene turns to Zeus for further aid. Zeus then sends Hermes to convince Calypso to free Odysseus. Hermes
Odysseus was an epic hero because he postponed getting home to help Elpenor get to a better place so he wouldn’t be in pain anymore. He didn’t break his promise even in his circumstance and after not seeing your family or wife for as many years as Odysseus did it was surprising that he was still loyal to her when he met Circe the witch.
All of these struggles that Odysseus goes through help him realize that the gods help him a lot and it teaches him to be thankful. The fact that Odysseus gets affected by grand events helps him become a better hero by teaching him that he can not do everything on his own and helps him be
He was the reason for almost all of his mistakes. With each threat they faced, more of his crew died. By the end, he was the only one to make it. Odysseus' weaknesses generated all of his misfortune, but his strengths saved him in the end.
For years, people have viewed Odysseus as a lousy hero with many faults and mistakes. His flaws include his arrogance, his treatment to his crew, and his lack of faith to the gods and his family. While initially reading the Odyssey, these reasons are obvious, but once reading the whole epic I was able to see through his flaws which actually led him home. Although Odysseus tripped on many occasions, he stood up and protected his men, escaped many monsters and immortals, and made wise and clever decisions. Odysseus went through a long, rough adventure and survived the entire voyage while managing to keep his family intact.
It was through Athena’s persuasion that convinced Zeus to have Calypso to let Odysseus leave her island. In response to Athena, Zeus said, “You conceived it yourself: Odysseus shall return and pay the traitors back” (Homer, Odyssey, V.26-27). The only reason Odysseus was free and performed the actions that he did after leaving Calypso’s island was all attributed to Athena. Whenever Odysseus appeared to be in a perilous situation, it was Athena who always aided him. “But Zeus’s daughter Athena countered him at once.
Odysseus has grown from the man he was before, as now he finds comfort and safety in obeying the gods when in the past he did not consider their wishes. Odysseus has only returned due to Athena and he has recognized that and his compliance is founded in his appreciation and respect for her. Odysseus is now a hero due to the obedience he now has to the gods, founded in a sense of humility. Through Odysseus’ experiences on his journey, he learns the value of obedience and dangers of arrogance and ultimately, become a hero through the lessons learned.
Athena is a major character throughout the book of The Odyssey and is known as the goddess of wisdom and battle. Throughout the course of the book, it is evident that Athena has a weak spot for the main character, Odysseus. Odysseus is trying to return home after the Trojan War, as the other Greek hero’s have already done, however he faces multiple challenges a long the way. Fortunately, for Odysseus, Athena was there to guide him through a few of these troubling situations.
The last key point that is important to realize is that Odysseus thinks through his choices and advice. We have already seen that Odysseus is a thought out planner and a social situation genius, yet he is also wise with the choices and advice he decides to take. When Odysseus returns to Circe for the funeral, Circe gives Odysseus some significant advice that can help him get home. She tells him about the Sirens and the monsters and gives him advice on what routes to take and what precautions to take. Odysseus could of easily ignored this information, seeing as he is a crafty man who thinks very highly of himself, but Odysseus realizes that the advice will benefit him and his crew, so he decides to put this advice to use.
Throughout the book Odysseus would undergo many challenges as well as life threatening situations in order to achieve his quest. He is a man who was both loved and hated by the god of Mt. Olympus. While others used their powers in his favor, some used them to hinder and if possible stop him from going home. For example due to his both his arrogance and conceitedness, the god Poseidon would cause for a rough voyage that would push him further from Ithaca and at one point cause a shipwreck that drowns his crew. One other notable trial of his journey was the encounter with the sirens.
Here, Odysseus tells Athena that she is all he has left and through her immortal powers, she is the only god still on his side who can help him in his time of need. Therefore, through Athena’s encouraging words, she is able to make Odysseus feel uplifted and more useful, especially as Odysseus is, at this point, very hopeless and miserably
1) Athena played a huge role in ensuring Odysseus’ safety and acceptance on Skheria. On page 99, it quotes “so on this night the goddess, grey-eyed Athena, entered the palace of Alkínoös to make sure of Odysseus’ voyage home.” When Nausikaa was sleeping, Athena disguised herself as Dymas’ daughter, a good friend of Nausikaa, and instructed her go to the washing pools in the morning to do the laundry. Athena intentionally sent Nausikaa to the area where Odysseus was sleeping. She knew Nausikaa, the daughter of Alkínoös, would be able to assist Odysseus in the asking of Alkínoös’ and Arêtê’s assistance in his voyage home.
Throughout the Odyssey Calypso is depicted as a selfish goddess who is keeping Odysseus in her Island by force. Odysseus was always painted as the victim, always weeping and said to be an "unwilling lover alongside lover all too willing...". She's painted in a darker light when Hermes comes and delivers Zeus's commands. When Zeus tells her to release Odysseus from her island and to let him sail back to Ithaca, she lashes out, claiming that the gods are "scandalized when goddesses sleep with mortals". When the gods ask her to release Odysseus she assumes that the gods are upset at her and are concerned about the nature of her relationship.
The fact that Athena deigned to intervene directly on Odysseus’ half is remarkable enough, but it seems that she takes every opportunity to sing his praises as well. Her faith in Odysseus is so complete that she believes that Telemachus will prevail merely because he is his son, and in her eyes possesses all of Odysseus’ good qualities in equal measure. This is significant because it helps to further characterize Odysseus as an almost superhuman character with few to no faults, which fits into the traditional epic convention of a larger than life
Athena is known as the goddess of war. Odysseus was aided by her ideas on how to regain power through her tactical skills. The fact that the goddess warrior was on his side through the journey home, reclaiming his land, and killing the suitors was a huge advantage. Athena is very intelligent in how she strategizes and won wars in the past. Some may argue that Odysseus is the real hero but there were many times throughout The Odyssey where he needed Athena’s protection and input of logical ideas.
In The Odyssey, Odysseus was a major hero of the novel. He had both heroic traits and human weaknesses. Odysseus defeated the Cyclops, defeated the suitors that were courting his wife, and overcome other challenges throughout the novel. A special trait that made Odysseus a hero was that he was a courageous