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Odyssey a hero or not
Odysseus and his selfish acts
Odysseus and his selfish acts
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Odysseus was justified in his actions. Although, some people received punishment that was not deserved. The punishment is too severe for present day, but not for Ancient Greece. The reasons why Odysseus' actions were justified was because the suitors dishonored Odysseus, justice was brutal back then, and finally people are entitled to seek revenge. When Odysseus finally gets his revenge he starts an all out war with the suitors, and only then it ends because of Athene and her divine power.
The first reason Odysseus' actions were justified was because the suitors dishonored him. They were all trying to get with Penelope, which is Odysseus' wife. The suitors also ate all his food and drank all his wine. Which is very disrespectful even in present
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There was no censorship back in ancient times even the tiniest crime committed people were executed. So the fact of the matter is when Homer wrote this piece his view on justice was killing all of the people responsible. That is why killing all of the suitors was a justified punishment and why Odysseus is not wrong for his actions.
The last reason why Odysseus did what he had to do was because he needed to seek his revenge. For example eye for an eye. Odysseus thought in his head that since the suitors did this to him, he shall do this to them. Which is not a bad reason for what he did because everybody should be entitled to seek their revenge. Although, there's a justified way to get revenge there is also an unjustified way to get revenge. Odysseus' way was on the border of justice and injustice.
In conclusion, this story all ends with a god stopping a huge fight. Odysseus' actions were justified because the suitors dishonored him and Odysseus is entitled to seek revenge. The punishment was not too severe in ancient times, but very severe in present day time. The suitors all deserved what they were getting and they should not have done that to
Odysseus returns home and seeks revenge on the suitors that plague his wife. In order for him to be successful with the revenge he must use his cunning, knowledge of battle and his desire to be with his wife Penelope.
In his part of the story Odysseus is trying to get him and his men free of the cyclops so they can go home. The cyclops is Poseidon's son and Odysseus offended Poseidon when he harms the cyclops, which is very disrespectful. These are two huge examples that show why Odysseus is a bad
This tale coincides with the times in Greece. This was a time that art and Philosophy were extremely important and respected by the people. Odysseus was a new type of hero that didn’t win by overpowering his opponents, but by using his mind to outwit them. Manners also seemed to play an important role to Odysseus, as he was learned to be polite and generous to strangers and in the end punished those who weren’t.
not have fought the suitors and proved himself . The act of returning was always the ultimate goal for Odysseus and the temptations of happiness, beauty, immortality, and eternal youth were much harder for him to pass up every time he had to put his life on the line and fight an army or evade a monster. He could have given in to any of the temptations at any time and never had to
Homer’s poem The Odyssey depicts the tendency of people to ignore the consequences of their actions. Odysseus punished Penelope’s suitors without thinking of consequences that he would have to endure. He did not acknowledge the consequences because that would prevent him from doing what he wants to do. Odysseus wanted to kill the suitors; they ate away at his fortune. Finding consequences for murdering the suitors would force Odysseus to realize what he is about to do is not a good idea. Odysseus chose to ignore the consequences and killed the suitors anyway. Odysseus had absolutely no reason to kill the suitors; they had the right to stay in his home because Penelope made them feel welcome, Penelope and Telemachus both told them that Odysseus was dead, and although Telemachus told them to leave, he did not have the right to do so.
Secondly, Odysseus has great self-control, which allows him to deeply contemplate his decisions. Moments before Odysseus falls asleep, he spots a “covey of women laughing as they [slip] out…to the suitors’ beds” (Homer 375). Seeing this, Odysseus is angered and wants to kill every one of the suitors right then and there. But Odysseus retains his self-control and does not strike yet. At that moment, if he did strike, he would have lost because he would not have been prepared. He retains all his anger for the final battle with the suitors. In that battle, Odysseus is fully prepared and ready to fight, resulting in all the suitors’ deaths. Next, when Antinoos throws a footstool at Odysseus, “Odysseus only [shakes] his head, containing thoughts of bloody work” (Homer 326).
But it’s not all happy endings. He finds his house full of men trying to marry his wife so they can have the throne. These men are called suitors and there's around one hundred. So Odysseus isn't too happy with this. Odysseus then gets all the suitors in one room and kill them all with his son. Then after all the suitors were killed he built gallows to hang the maids for sleeping with the suitors. This shows that it was very hard being a woman because the maids most likely were forced by the suitors to have sex with them. But Odysseus still killed them for being a disgrace to the house.
In conclusion, the revenge of Odysseus on the suitors and the people involved in their evil endeavors, was justified. Odysseus showed himself to be merciful to those who had not betrayed him and his family. Those such as the minstrel, who was a victim, Eumaeus, and Eurycleia were appreciated and rewarded
With the Odyssey, Odysseus learned a big lesson in humility. The greatest example of this is in the last five books or so within the story. He has to dress, act, and live like a beggar in order to regain everything he had lost. While he was a beggar, the suitors treated him horribly. Antinous, leader of the suitors, was the worst of them all. He was the first to mistreat Odysseus and planned to kill Telemachus. He was also the one that would abuse him physically and verbally for some time to come. Also, if that weren’t enough, he planned a boxing match for Odysseus to be in to watch him get beat up. All this was happening and the other suitors were most likely following their leader in whatever he was doing. Odysseus had to control himself the whole time this was happening. If he had lost his temper, the suitors would have killed him, his son, and most likely taken over the kingdom. That didn’t happen though. Odysseus learned self-control and humility. He may not be perfect at it, but going through all the humility made him a better man. Along the same topic, he was a king going through this humility. It would be one thing for a peasant to go through it, but a king? This made it even harder for Odysseus. He had rank above all the suitors and could rightly kick them out of his kingdom. Instead he waits for the right time and kills them all. The “pre-journey” Odysseus would of thought of himself invincible and probably would have died trying to get his kingdom back.
Since he had not exhausted other options, it wasn’t legally a valid point. In addition, as soon as Odysseus revealed himself, the suitors attempted to flee the home, which shows that they weren’t a threat, but Odysseus still chose to kill them.
So what was the drive that drove this man to brutally and trick fully slaughter of the suitors that disrespected his royalty. Once Odysseus got home to Ithaca he got some awful information about the way people been living since he been gone for example “ Athena advises telemachus to return to Ithaca his home- the palace of odysseus- has been overrun by his mother's suitors” (Homer, 690 ). This gives reasoning for why i believe that odysseus killing the suitors was justice because they are taking complete control of this kingdom and they have not yet become king or has marriage penelope.Also “ Athena warns Telemachus that the sitors plan to unborn him”, proves my point because they threaten his son because they feel he is in they way of them gaining power. Yet all this evidence odysseus himself tells
In the book, ¨The Odyssey¨ translated by Robert Fitzgerald, Odysseus’ actions are considered just and moral, but in today’s standards his actions are considered self defense. For example in Book 22 through 24, Odysseus is plotting and carrying out his revenge on the suitors. This action is one of the most conversion, but it was self defense, because they invaded his home and the suitors will kill Odysseus and his son Telemanchus if he does not act. Odyssus also acted in self defense in the Cyclopse cave in
For seven years, Odysseus is held captive by the goddess Calypso. The young goddess “desired me and detained me in her hall. But in my heart, I never gave consent” (Homer 372). This quote suggests that although Calypso may have believed she was loved by Odysseus, he never really cared for her. If Odysseus would have stayed faithful to his wife, Calypso would have killed him. Thus, he is able to protect himself by lying to her. Another point in the epic where Odysseus' dishonesty impacts his success is with the suitors. After arriving at his homeland, Odysseus disguises himself to protect himself from being harmed: “Odysseus enters his home as a beggar, and the suitors mock and abuse him” (Homer 402). When Odysseus appears to be a beggar, the suitors think nothing of him. They disrespect him, his family, and his home. Had they know Odysseus was back, they would have treated him much differently. Because of the way they acted towards him, it can be suggested that they would be willing to do anything to take control of his kingdom. He is then able to find out more about them and their motives without getting
The Honorable Odysseus & nbsp; When Odysseus returned home to his wife and son, he took a very brutal approach to rid his home of the suitors who had invaded his household. This revenge was also taken out upon the servants and maids who had been unfaithful to Penelope and had slept with the suitors. Some may say this punishment was too harsh, and made Odysseus less than an honorable man. However, Odysseus’s actions Indeed those who occupied the lord’s manor during his absence did so with no honor. But one may argue that Ody Penelope. This seems unjustifiable, and very inhumane. Odysseus was so overcome with his hate that he lost control, perhaps it was his years of denying the power of the gods that led him to brutality. Odysseus’s actions are indeed aggressive and morality at this point in his life seems to have faded. All these things considered, the validity of Odysseus’s actions remain fair. Because of his denial of the power of the gods, Poseidon forced Odysse And when Odysseus returned finally to his home only to hear of suitors and harlots about his home, he had to take revenge on them for his pain. This pain was brought about through lies and betrayal. His long journey led him through many tribulations, all of which had a direct effect on his mind. Odysseus’s defense system had to be at it’s highest at all times. For example; were in sight of it’s shores. Because of this betrayal Odysseus’s trust in his brothers was lost. His hope dwindled as his journey continued, and ate away at his consciousness. Odysseus was a man of honor, a man who had fought in a war and won. For such During this time period men were brought up on the teachings of battle. As they grew they were taught how to handle arms and were expected to hone these skills. Killing a man to took to arms picking up shields and weapons. All of these men were familiar with the ways of the time and the ways of battle. Odysseus should not be condemned for his actions. There are many justifiable reasons for the method in which he punished those who were disloyal and uncivil by the author of Poseidon.