Martin Luther once said,” We are nothing with all our gifts be they ever so great, except God assist us.” Throughout, the whole tale, Odysseus leans upon the Gods in times of trouble, and in return they assist him. Homer composes this Epic Poetry of The Odyssey, in which the God’s play a critical role in crafting Odysseus’ personality while also giving him the proper resources to aid him through the calamity. Firstly, the God’s give Odysseus the necessary resources to help him get through the troubles. For instance, when Odysseus is threatened, she steps in and tells,”Hold back, men of Ithaka”(Homer.24.531) as she wants the them to stop taking revenge on each other. As Odysseus went through a lot of troubles on his way home, the Goddess Athena
Another god that assisted Odysseus on his quest home was Athena, who helped Odysseus in many ways as well. She was with him through his whole story and never left him. Athena aids Odysseus in his fight against the suitors by making sure each arrow hits its target. She also aids him afterwards when the other gods are contemplating whether Odysseus is guilty or not. They decide he isn’t by saying, “There will be killing till the score is paid.”
Generally speaking people know that hero’s go on quest to learn about them self. Over the course of The Odyssey, by Homer, we see that Odysseus is lost for 20 years and also has to overcome obstacles to get back to Ithaca with his family. It is important to recognize hero’s journey present in the The Odyssey because he receive supernatural aid from Athena to get home, road of trail he has to overcome the lotus eaters,Abyss he can’t be himself at home. One important aspect of the Hero’s journey is supernatural aid. In Odyssey, Beers says, “The story of Odysseus begins with the goddess Athena appealing to zeus to help odysseus, who has been wandering for ten years…
Unfortunately, many of these obstacles proved to be too difficult for Odysseus’s men, and had taken the lives of them all and would have killed Odysseus if it had not been for the help of others. If the gods and others had not given these specific instructions and details for the obstacles along Odysseus’s journey, he might have never made it home, or even may have died along the way. Finally, Odysseus makes it home, but his troubles do not end here, because he has to fight the suitors whom have occupied his home since he’d been away at war. Throughout the odyssey, homer creates many scenes that depict the idea of “love,” defined by the coming together of two things to create life. Homer creates the idea of “love”, mainly through his use of Homeric similes and metaphors.
In the Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus possesses several character traits. He is portrayed as a great hero who excels in many different fields. Throughout the story, Homer emphasizes how admired Odysseus is. For example, King Nestor says to Odysseus’ son, Telemachus, “Your father, yes, if you are in fact his son… I look at you and a sense of wonder takes me” (3.137-138). There are a few different occurrences when Odysseus is in need of help and receives it.
In the book, The Odyssey, the main character Odysseus was a military leader, father and a husband. There are many different aspects of Odysseus’ life that can be viewed as a similarity to a biblical perspective. When looking at Odysseus as a leader and comparing his similarity to Moses in the bible we can see Odysseus role as a military leader. His patience, loyalty and perseverance are also areas that will be covered in this paper to uncover Odysseus’ character. When recalling Odysseys’ story it is easy to compare the leadership limits that Odysseus and Moses of the bible had to overcome.
Throughout the story of Odysseus’s journey told by Homer, there are many defining examples of interaction between humans and their gods. The gods primarily interact with humans by either siding with or against them. The gods would often side with humans since they wanted to help them such as Athena, Goddess of Wisdom, helping Telemachus, Odysseus’s son, whereas the gods seeking revenge such as Poseidon, who sought revenge on Odysseus for slaying his son Polyphemus, would turn against them. While actual interaction between gods and humans seems to be a rather risible idea, there was much guidance given to humans by the gods throughout the Odyssey.
Odysseus’ reverence to the gods is shown again after the suitors families and the town learns of Odysseus’ homicide, they come after the royal family. Athena and Zeus come to Ithaca, ordering a peace. Homer describes the event and Odysseus’ reaction, “So she commanded. He obeyed her, glad at heart." (Homer 24.598).
Homer, a poet from ancient Greece, wrote The Odyssey in which the values of the Greeks are revealed. As the hero, Odysseus, embarks on a journey home from Troy after ten years of war, one sees the traits that he is praised and rebuked for. Odysseus’ incredible strength and courage as well as his confidence both positively and negatively affect the outcomes of his decisions. Odysseus exemplifies exceptional strength and confidence. More often than not, these two characteristics are what keep him alive; however, he relies on them more than he needs to, which gets him in trouble.
In The Odyssey, by Homer, Athena influences the lives of Odysseus and his family. In Greek mythology, gods challenge and control mortals. Gods also provide support to mortals and thus, mortals depend and act on behalf of the gods and their decisions. Athena, daughter of Zeus, is the goddess of wisdom, and both Telemachus and Odysseus benefit from her power. Athena possesses the ability to disguise herself and others, and this skill allows her to give advice and guidance.
There are many lessons Odysseus and is men learn on their journey home in the Odyssey. Unfortunately, only Odysseus makes it home and the rest of men are dead because of their foolish actions. In the Thrinacia and The Cattle of the Sun episode of the Odyssey Odysseus’s men once again disobey him and cost them their lives. The men and Odysseus learn valuable lessons throughout their epic journey, but in the episode the most important lessons they learn are; temptation can lead to death, being obedient can save your life, and trust your instincts. If Odysseus’s men would have been more obedient to their leader Odysseus perhaps all of them would have made it back home alive.
From Odysseus’ time with Calypso in Ogygia up until the moment he takes back his home and wife from the suitors in Ithaca, the struggles he faces help answer what makes for a good life. Homer uses Odysseus’ journey throughout “The Odyssey” to identify four aspects of a good life: mortality, honor, hospitality, and experiences. Homer reveals that mortality is necessary for a good life when Odysseus denies the opportunity for immortality that Calypso offers, he shows the significance of honor in his description of Odysseus’ bravery in the Trojan war and the consequent respect that Odysseus’ crew has for him, Homer reinforces the importance of hospitality in each city Odysseus travels to, and he conveys that experiences, good or bad, define a good life. The Greeks held their gods in high esteem and therefore when Homer or other characters in the epic refer to Odysseus as being “godlike,” this is one of the highest compliments he could receive.
The Odyssey by Homer revolves around the character, Odysseus, and his ten-year struggle to return home after the Trojan War. As the epic’s idol, he displays the combination of a clever, handsome, and courageous man popular among the mortals as well as the gods. Essentially, he embodies the ideals of the ancient Greek culture, being adorned with many favored characteristics of the era. However, an intriguing aspect of Odysseus lies in his personality. As the protagonist, he does not manifest the entirety of a stereotypical hero because Odysseus has a fatal flaw—his arrogance.
Another time she helped Odysseus was when she protected him from the suitors' arrows. Without the providence of Athena Odysseus wouldn't have survived the events of The Odyssey. In book 1 of The Odyssey it says how "The story of Odysseus begins with the goddess Athena appealing to Zeus to help Odysseus, who has been wandering for ten years on the seas, to find his way home to
My own fame is for wisdom among the gods --deceptions too.” (The Odyssey 13.379-384.) She acts as his advisor and protector, aiding him constantly through his journey to return to Ithaca. She even addresses the other gods about Odysseus’s situation, and “if it... pleases the
Divine intervention, or the role of the gods, plays a predominant role in the development of the eventual fate of the main characters; Odysseus, his son, Telemachus and his wife, Penelope. Homer is able to effectively incorporate the employment of divine forces as facilitators in destiny, as well as efficiently engage the readers through his vivid description of the various predicaments faced by Odysseus. Divine intervention is a phenomenon widely used in mythological epics. The gods play protagonistic and antagonistic roles; they essentially toy with the character until his fate is evident. Homer utilizes this right from the very beginning; we see Athena coming to the aid of Odysseus when Zeus refuses to have sympathy for him due to the fact that most heroes blame the Gods for their doom;