The Survival Of Odysseus In Homer's Odyssey

Throughout Odysseus’ ten year journey, him and his men went through many trials of pain and loss. By the end of chapter twelve, Odysseus’ entire crew is dead, and he is the lone survivor. However, it does not seem to upset him as much as it should. Although it is clear that Odysseus cares dearly for his crew and mourns them, he still values his survival and pride over his comrades’ lives.

During his retelling of events to the Phaeacians, Odysseus tells the tales of how he lost all of his crew. He begins with the first tragedy. It began in the city of Ismaros where Odysseus and his men pillaged the town and killed all of the men. When the kin of the Cicones take revenge on Odysseus and his crew, they kill six men per ship. Odysseus shows his passion for his fallen men by ordering the survivors to call out “three times for each mate who had fallen on the battlefield” (9.67-68). While the crew realized this would be treacherous journey, their captain chose not to take precautions and extra measures to ensure their safety, especially when it would compromise his safety. A

They find the cave of Polyphemus and pillage his resources, but when the men advise Odysseus to leave, he does not listen. Odysseus’ pride causes the death of many of his men to the cyclops, because if they had just left when the men suggested, none of them would have died. Odysseus realizes his mistake in the retelling and says “I wouldn’t listen. It would have been far better if I had” which showed some regret for the death of his crew (9.218-9.219). Odysseus continues to make unwise decisions when he tells Polyphemus his name after blinding him. This causes Polyphemus to pray to his father, Poseidon, which incites a godly vengeance. Once again, Odysseus puts his pride before the safety of his crew. This shows Odysseus’ hubris, or strong sense of pride, and how he wanted everyone to know how he blinded a