Importance of Names in The Odyssey and The Bible
Two of the most widely studied ancient works are Homer’s Odyssey and the book of Genesis from the Bible. Each of these texts provides a unique viewpoint of an early civilization. In both of the texts, one can learn not only stories about great heroes, but also about the way that these peoples lived and what they believed. Many interesting parallels can be drawn between the two developing societies shown in the Odyssey and the book of Genesis. One parallel is the importance placed on names by each culture. Although viewed as important in different ways, the value placed on a name shows a striking similarity between the evolving cultures of both the Greeks and the Hebrews.
In the Odyssey, Homer’s characters frequently allude to the importance of names. For these ancient Greeks, a name symbolizes one’s identity, ancestry, and honor. It is the one thing a man always owns, even if he possesses nothing else. This is clearly shown through the hero, Odysseus. While traveling home from the Trojan War, Odysseus, in effect, loses his title, land, and power for twenty years. He remains with nothing but his name to speak for his character and person. As he himself says at the beginning of Book IX when beginning to tell his story to the Phaiacians, “First of all I will tell you my name, and then you may count me one of your friends if I live to reach my home, although that is far away. I am Odysseus Laertiades, a name well known in the world as one who is ready for any event.” Although away from his home and all things that could speak well of him, Odysseus is still in possession of his name, which clearly shows his good character. This speech of Odysseus also show...
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... to be carefully guarded, for if everything else is lost, it remains forever. Thus, there is nothing more precious to a man than to have a name that carries intrinsic honor and meaning throughout his whole life. A man is defined by who he is, and that is shown best through his name. As clearly shown in the texts, to have a good name and to be remembered by it ought to be the main goal for any and every man.
Works Cited and Consulted
Bloom, Harold , Homer's Odyssey: Edited and with an Introduction, NY, Chelsea House 1988
Heubeck, Alfred, J.B. Hainsworth, et al. A commentary on Homer's Odyssey. 3 Vols. Oxford PA4167 .H4813 1988
Homer. The Odyssey. Trans. Robert Fitzgerald. New York: Vintage Books, 1989.
Tracy, Stephen V. ,The Story of the Odyssey Princeton UP 1990
The Holy Bible. New Revised Standard Version. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1989.
Heubeck, Alfred, J.B. Hainsworth, et al. A commentary on Homer's Odyssey. 3 Vols. Oxford PA4167 .H4813 1988
Homer, The Odyssey, The Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces, ed. Maynard Mack, Expanded Edition, (New York: W. W. Norton, 1995), pp. 219-503.
Hexter, Ralph. A Guide to The Odyssey: A Commentary on the English Translation of Robert Fitzgerald. New York: Random House, 1993.
In Homer’s epic poem titled The Odyssey Odysseus’s weakness contributes to the trouble, he gets into during the first stages of his journey because of his pride. Throughout the poem, we see that Odysseus pride gets him into a lot of trouble. In book 9, Odysseus and his men began to escape the island without Polyphemus being aware they had left his cave. Odysseus pride overcame him and Odysseus began to taunt Polyphemus even after his crew admonishes him for it. Odysseus said what his real name was instead of the made up name, “Nobody”which was the name that Odysseus had made up to trick Polyphemus when he first asked for his name. Polyphemus, once learning his real name, prayed to his father Poseidon, the sea-god, ranting that Odysseus should
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The Odyssey, an epic poem written by Homer and translated by Robert Fitzgerald, is about the war hero Odysseus' ten year adventure to return home after the Trojan War. At one point in the epic poem, Odysseus is retelling his adventure at the land of the Kyklopês, in which he and his crew go to an island filled with these creatures. Through Odysseus, Homer uses contrasting connotation when speaking of the crew and the Kyklopês to convey that mankind is better than the Kyklopês using two different domains domains of society.
Throughout the Odyssey, there are many relationships that represent love between two people. These relationships show loyalty, compassion, and the wanting to be near one another. Two of these kinds of relationships are between Odysseus and Telemakhos, and Odysseus and Penelope.
Homer. ?The Odyssey,? World Masterpieces: Expanded Edition. Maynard Mack ed. Ed. Coptic St.: Prentice, 1995.
Homer. The Odyssey: Fitzgerald Translation. Trans. Robert Fitzgerald. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1998. Print.
Within the epic poem "The Odyssey", Homer presents the story of Odysseus's quest to find his home and his identity. According to Homer's account, with its origin in oral tradition, the two quests are interchangeable, as a mortal defines himself with his home, his geographic origin, his ancestors, his offspring, etc. But in addition to this Homer illustrates the other aspect of human identity, shaped by the individual and his actions so that he may be recognized in the outside world. Through this Homer presents Odysseus in two ways: the first his internally given identity as ruler and native of Ithaca, son of Laertes, father of Telemachos; the second the definition of the external world which sees the "god-like" mortal famous for his clever actions and the god's almost unanimous favor.
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“The Odyssey” is an epic poem that tells the story of Odysseus and the story of his many travels and adventures. The Odyssey tells the main character’s tale of his journey home to the island of Ithaca after spending ten years fighting in the Trojan War, and his adventures when he returns home and he is reunited with his family and close friends. This literary analysis will examine the story and its characters, relationships, major events, symbols and motifs, and literary devices.
Lawall, Sarah N. “The Odyssey.” The Norton Anthology of Western Literature. 8th ed. Vol. 1. New York: W.W. Norton, 2006. 206-495. Print.
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