The Role Of Natural Phenomenon In Homer's Odyssey

Homer uses the Gods and Goddesses impact on Odysseus to show how redemption can be earned which is illustrated through Foster's quest theory. Circe, Zeus, Poseidon, Athena, and Helios are gods that symbolize mythological ideas, whereas in the Odyssey they symbolize lessons Odysseus needs to learn. Odysseus is a man that is judged by the gods all the time, he is on a journey to get home to his family from war. Odysseus does not always make the best decisions and it gets himself in big trouble. Circe, the goddess of sorcery, “informs him that in order to reach home he must journey to the land of the dead, Hades, and consult the blind prophet Tiresias” (Homer 699). Circe tells Odysseus the future and lets him make the decisions. When he goes to the land of the dead he must make the right choices that will help him reach his stated reason for his quest, which is to go home. Circe symbolizes the idea of Odysseus having to learn to be a better leader and make smarter decisions. He needs to show the gods he is worthy of redemption since he has angered them. Later, Odysseus must go through challenges and trials in each place Circe foretells him to go in order to learn self knowledge, gain his

In book five of the Oddessy , the reader can distinguish a great stage in the hero 's journey. In book five the most prevailing stage that we see a test, allies, and enemies. For example Odysseus foremost ally and mentor Athena is pleading and negotiation his fortune with the other gods. After triumphantly doing so Odysseus constructs a ship with the help of Calypso another ally and lover in order to abandon the island and recommence his journey. After setting sail we see a case of Odysseus 's enemy the god of the sea Poseidon return and disrupt the journey by producing a storm that nearly kills him. However, we see two allies come to aid one being goddess Ino who gives Odysseus a veil that will keep him safe as well Athena who rescues him from the jagged rocks. In conclusion this book five of the Oddessy we see a prime example of a hero who in the special world, encounters tests, allies, and enemies.

The Odyssey, a story based on a great warrior who not just shows his mind but his faults. One fault being his pride. As of the day he went to fight the Trojan War, he was lost at sea for 20 years. Odysseus fought with smart and the hope of being able to defeat everyone in his path. One example of this is Odysseus built the trojan horse which helped him win the Trojan war. Odysseus is a man of pride and commitment, even though that commitment he has sometimes gets him in trouble. When Ceres the Greek Goddess who wants Odysseus to sleep with her, he then refused which led to her changing his men into animals. Odysseus has to break his commitment to Penelope and sleep with her.

“The Odyssey” is an Epic Poem which discusses the life story of Odysseus. The main focus of the poem is the journey of Odysseus and his way back home. Certain events distract him, most importantly; his encounter with the Gods, Goddesses. It takes Odysseus all of what it takes to head back home, including his bravery and intelligence. These qualities in Odysseus not only help himself but his men survive through the chaos of the journey called “The Odyssey”.

Science today is way more advanced than back in 650 B.C.E. and we have tools and scientists that explain the natural phenomena that we still deal with today. The Greeks however had a very different way of explaining these natural phenomena. The Greeks used Homer’s epic poem, The Odyssey, and their gods to explain these phenomena for them. Yan covers these phenomena like Earthquakes which were previously thought to had been caused by the sea god, Poseidon, or that storms were caused by Zeus and that the Sun came up everyday thanks to Helios. Which today are now proved through orbit of the Earth and low and high air pressure. Even though we both had our own way of explaining these phenomena, they varied drastically.

To save themselves, Odysseus and his men had to use their brains over their brawn. The depiction of mortality of humans and their vulnerability was used with figurative language, and another example of this can be found in the scene of Scylla. The scene is set, and Scylla is stirring up the water to threaten Odysseus and his men. “All the sea was like a cauldron,” (II. 110-112) This is used to show the audience that the ocean was so dangerous, and how if the men fell in, they would die right away. We have all seen a boiling pot of water, and just hovering your hand over the water feels like a threat. We are still faced with the statistics of death by water to this day, so this is relatable to the audience even now. The use of Homer’s figurative language shows how dangerous the products of the gods are to the humans. The final example of this is found in part 4 of the story. “Think if a catch that fishermen haul in to a halfmoon bay in a fine-meshed net from the whitecaps of the sea: how all are poured out on to the sand, in throes for the salt sea, twitching their cold lives away in Helios’ fiery air: so lay the suitors heaped on one another.” (IV.

To manipulate is to control or influence a person or situation cleverly or unfairly. Greek literature demonstrates the captivating theme of manipulation at best through the manipulation of mortals by gods and goddesses. Specifically, The Odyssey by Homer illustrates the various ways this theme is portrayed through the main character Odysseus by gods and goddesses who detest him on his journey home to his home, Ithaca. Further, these influences in his life change his fate, mainly as determinants. Evidently, one can see an instance where Odysseus’s fate is influenced for the worse where Poseidon, god of the sea, swears to make Odysseus’s trip home a living nightmare. At a separate juncture, Zeus strikes a lightning bolt on Odysseus’s ship, killing

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.

In Homer's “The Odyssey”, the protagonist, Odysseus is fighting in the 10 year war against Troy. They win the war and now he and his men are trying to get back to their home, Ithaca. He angers the god of the sea, Poseidon, and now he has a god as an enemy. Poseidon sends waves after waves blowing him and his crew to islands, each having a conflict like monsters and goddesses.

Odysseus often acts intelligently to fulfill intentions of self-provided survival. Using his gift of persuasion, he manipulates others to get help when he is in difficult situations. One such instance occurs when he arrives at Crete, an unfamiliar island where he knows nothing of the people and their customs, and needs to get home. Upon being washed up into the store, he comes across the princess Nausicaa, and immediately concocts a strategy to persuade her to give him help. In his speech to nausicaa he uses many clever tactics to get her to help him (79-80). Because he is naked, before he begins his speech, he “covers his manhood” with a branch as to not scare her. Then, he begins his speech with flattery, saying “it is of Artemis… that your

Since the inception of literature, heroes have been created to embody the most important traits of a culture. In The Odyssey, an epic poem composed by Homer in Ancient Greece, Odysseus is an epic hero, representing the classic values of Greek rulers and warriors through his long journey back from the Trojan War. Including his time in Troy, Odysseus was absent from his estate in Ithica for twenty years, during which his son Telemachus grows up in a home where arrogant suitors abuse his hospitality, consume all of his resources, and attempt to court Penelope, believing that she will lose hope that her husband Odysseus will ever come home. Odysseus' nostos, or return trip, has been prolonged by Poseidon, the Greek sea god who begrudges him for

Another natural phenomena that occurs in The Odyssey is when lightning rains down from the sky and kills every man, except Odysseus. Greeks would say that Odysseus’ men had angered Zeus, causing him, god of lightning, to kill all the shipmates with lightning. “Oh for shame, how the mortals put the blame on us gods, for they say evils come from us, but it is they, rather, who by their own recklessness win sorrow beyond what is given …” (Homer 12). A Greek would say this to be true. He would say this because, again, they did not have the technology that we have today. They would say this because at the time the crewmates that had died had done something inexplicable. They had eaten a sacred thing of the gods. They had eaten the sacred cows of

The Influence of Divine Intervention on the Portrayal of Fate and Free Will in The Odyssey by Homer

The relationships between the Greek gods and mortals have always been complicated. The gods can be generous and supportive, but also harsh and destructive towards the humans. They claim to be all powerful beings with unlimited power and influence, but in truth, they are far more human than they are perceived. They meddle with human lives, not because they are wise, but because of their own selfish reasons. In Homer’s The Odyssey, gods like Athena and Poseidon interfere with humans to satisfy their own desires, showing that they are just as imperfect and flawed as the mortals that they rule over.

Poseidon, Apollo, Athena, Zeus, and Hermes are all Greek Gods that appear in the epic poem The Odyssey by Homer. These gods all play a significant role in The Odyssey by both helping and hindering Odysseus on his 10-year journey home. Homer illustrates the theme of divine intervention in The Odyssey using Poseidon’s wrath, Athena’s providence, and Hermes’ guidance.