The Irony In Homer's The Odyssey

The Odyssey is another example of Homer’s epic poem that was significant in the Greek society. The author presents storytelling in the Odyssey through the main character, Odysseus, who represents the frame of the story along with his heroic actions and his trip in which he encounters other characters like family members, gods, and strangers. Homer also plays with the setting by putting the story in a particular cultural context and describing the journey that Odysseus takes back home after the war in Troy finished. It is through the characters’ stories that Homer shapes the Odyssey by adding color and reminding the audience that it is part of a Greek mythological tradition.

Homer starts this epic poem in book 1 with the invocation to a Muse as in Iliad. The author shows two different parts in the story that will become one in later books. On the one hand, the author describes Odysseus being captive as a survivor after the

Alhough he has to deal with his emotions to confront seductive goddess, he remains strong to go back home. Homer also utilizes the topics of disguise, deception, and craftiness to continue framing the story. There are several examples. One of them is found in book 17 when Odysseus is at the end of his journey back home and he needed to please the suitors and look for the way to punish them for not treating his son and wife correctly so instead of appearing as a king, he shows himself as a beggar to check what he could do to start his revenge and to test the other’s loyalty. So, this is an example of how Odysseus’ identity is disguised to survive and to achieve a goal. In book 18, Penelope and Telemachus are not able to recognize the beggar, Odysseus, but the nurse who takes care of him recognizes the scar in the feet of Odysseus so the nurse could see through the disguise, but Penelope and Telemachus were not able to do