“Where we love is home – home that our feet may leave, but not our hearts”. Oliver Wendell Holmes perfectly captures the essence of Odysseus’ journey home. In his novel, The Odyssey, Homer describes home not as a geographical location, but moreover, an emotional state of being. In order for Odysseus to truly get home, he must achieve two particular emotional states. One, where he is in an environment where he those around him welcome, love, and cherish him, and, two, where he finds joy, peace, and fulfillment in his own heart. As far as a chronological setting is concerned, Odysseus is home after killing the suitors, revealing himself to his father, and reconciling with the townspeople. One may argue, however, that Odysseus is home simply …show more content…
One must be welcomed home by those around him if he is to be considered fully home. While this does not mean that the nature of home is solely dependent upon the emotional status of those around the one coming home, they do, in part, weigh heavily on where home is. The reader can see this welcoming home when Odysseus reveals himself to his father, the last of his immediate family. Homer writes, “The old man’s knees failed him, his heart grew faint, recalling all that Odysseus calmly told. He clutched his son.” The love of father and son is so strong here that Laërtês’ heart seems to fail him, for he cannot believe what he is seeing. Odysseus’ homecoming is almost too good to be true, but through the physical embrace of father and son, the reader can clearly see the immense outpouring of love and welcoming home that Odysseus receives. However, this love is not merely obtained by his family, but by those who barely knew him, and even those considered lower in the social hierarchy of Ithika. The fourteenth book of the Odyssey exemplifies this idea when the lowly swineherd is speaking to Odysseus, unaware that the wanderer is Odysseus himself, “Never again shall I have for my lot a master mild as he was anywhere – not even with my parents at home, where I was born and bred. I miss them less than I do him… Not it is …show more content…
The novel holds returning home in a higher position than going out and winning fame and glory, as the Iliad presents. Throughout the entirety of the novel, Odysseus simply wants to get home, but moreover, he is meant to get home, it is his destiny. Book five shows this when Zeus, the most powerful and fate-controlling of the gods, says, “His [Odysseus] is to see his friends again under his own roof, in his own country”. Once again this notion of Odysseus’s destiny is presented when another god, Hermes, speaking of Odysseus, says, “His destiny, his homecoming, is at hand” . Once more, in the eleventh book of the Odyssey, one can see that Odysseus is not meant to live a life in warfare, for that is a fleeting, earthly pleasure, but to return home and end his life in peace among the comfort and love of his own home around his loved ones. Here Telresias says to Odysseus, “Then a seaborne death soft at his hands of mist will come upon you when you are wearied out with rich old age, your country folk in blessed peace around you. And this shall be just as I foretell”. Here the reader can clearly see that it is a higher calling, especially in Odysseus’ case, to return home in peace. This notion takes the standard that glory and fame are the most important ideals in life, and replaces them will a peace and joy of heart, only found when one truly returns
...ce with his family. He continues to study and work towards reaching his dream, but he begins working hard to support his family. He understands why his dad tried to teach him all of the things he felt were pointless or unfair. Just like when Odysseus finally makes it home to his family, Kevin finds his way home to his. Although at first Kevin felt that home would be leaving Lost Lake and stepping away from his fathers lifestyle, he later found that he was wrong. This new home was unexpected, he would have never predicted this being the out come of his life. But never the less, he was home. Our Odysseus, in The Grace That Keeps This World, goes through struggles, but in the end finds his way home. Bailey ingeniously writes his novel as a modern-day odyssey, with our tragic hero Kevin pushing through all of the problems that come his way to return home in the end.
In the Odyssey the people of Ithaca are accustomed to hospitality. In Odysseus’s lengthy journey home he learns to maintain modesty. Odysseus’s family never give up on him throughout his entire 20 year journey, and they kept Ithaca for him when he came back. The Greek values of hospitality, humility, and loyalty are conveyed in The Odyssey.
Imagine leaving your wealth, home, family, and even country behind for twenty years. While away, people will inevitably attempt to steal your possessions, seduce your spouse, and act as though you will never return. Most likely, more people will try to harm your estate than those who will continue working and behaving in an honest manner. This notion holds true in Homer’s epic poem, The Odyssey. While Odysseus wages war and struggles to return to Ithaka , a multitude of suitors court his wife and live at the cost of his possessions. On the other hand, a few people like Eumaios remain steadfast to the truth and work to maintain Odysseus’ estate and possessions. Eumaios, Odysseus’ swineherd, embodies compassion, love, and loyalty.
Odysseus and Aeneas both have an extremely different view of what the meaning of “home” is. They also have a contrasting value of importance on home. This is a parallel that follows them throughout their lives.
Odysseus has been away from home for nearly two decades and is being held captive by the Nymph Calypso. Calypso is holding Odysseus on her island for her sensational desires. Odysseus yearns to get home, it deeply saddens him that he has been away for his kingdom, home, and family. Odysseus says “Yet, it is true, each day I long for home, long for the sight of home.” (X 228-229). By this he means that he never stops thinking about home and his wife, Penelope. Ithaka is constantly on his mind. He will do anything to see his home or to touch foot on its soil. An epithet showing Odysseus’ determination is “much-enduring” (VII 107) . By Homer calling Odysseus to much-enduring he is saying Odysseus can handle anything and everything, which goes to make him extremely determined. To endure is to continue through tough times, determination is the trait that posses endurance. This endurance and yearning for home makes Odysseus
As a wayfarer in life, The Odyssey focuses on life’s greater purpose through the fulfillment of destiny, perseverance, and loyalty. These three themes recur continuously throughout Odysseus’ journey, molding life’s greater vision. Odysseus comes to understand his purpose in life by remaining true to these major themes as he faces and conquers each obstacle in his journey.
Socrates, a Greek philosopher stated, "Look death in the face with joyful hope, and consider this a lasting truth: the righteous man has nothing to fear, neither in life, nor in death, and the Gods will not forsake him” (Socrates). This explains the basis for Greek beliefs that can be carried over to values and qualities of them. As in this, Homer, the author of The Odyssey, portrays many Greek values that make up a righteous man or as, Homer’s character Odysseus, an epic hero. The Odyssey is the story of King Odysseus' return from the Trojan War to his kingdom of Ithaca. Stories, like The Odyssey, are told with the intent of delivering a message that was important to their culture. Through characters and situations, The Odyssey promotes and emphasizes many important ancient Greek values such as hospitality, pride, and fate.
Odysseus was within arms reach of home but because of how naive he was he was forced to keep going on his journey. After all of Aeolus’ hospitality and such a powerful gift Odysseus is still mindless at what this meant and because of him not being cautious, he could not complete his adventure. It’s surprising knowing that after being on a powerful god’s bad side and being forced back to sea, that Odysseus can be even more of a fool.
The Hero’s Journey is never an easy one. This particular journey, as detailed in Homer’s The Odyssey, is one of struggle, loss, heartache, pain, growth and triumph. It is comprised of many steps that Odysseus has to overcome and battle through in order to achieve his final goal of reaching his home and his loved ones. From the Call to Adventure to the Freedom or Gift of living, Odysseus conquered them all. The story begins in the middle of the story, as many of the oral Greek traditions did, with the Journey of Telemachus to find his father. Although Telemachus has not yet met his father, it is almost as if they are journeying together, where the end of both of their journeys results in being reunited. Telemachus journeys from being a boy to becoming a man, while out in the sea Odysseus is battling Poseidon to return to the home that wife that he loves and the home he has left behind.
In Homer's epic poem, the Odyssey, the main theme is the reunification of the family, as Odysseus struggles to return home and rejoin his wife and son. Throughout the Odyssey, we are shown examples of families: good ones that prosper and bad ones that do not. As Telemakhos struggles to become a man and Odysseus struggles homeward, the concept of healthy family life is stressed. At the end, when all conflicts are resolved and Odysseus is reunited with wife and son, the lesson that a united family can overcome any obstacles is shown and is one that today's families should heed.
Returning to the quotation “… the great leveler, Death: not even the gods/ can defend a man, not even one they love, that day/ when fate takes hold and lays him out at last’” (Homer 3.269-271). Death is a power that surpasses the gods. In The Odyssey we are introduced to gods who control the water, the wind, and the decisions of men. They can bring peace and war, but the one thing they cannot do is prevent a mortal’s fated death. This alone shows how central death is to The Odyssey. The power that death holds rivals no others in this story, there is “… no escape from death” (Homer 12.483). Death is a constant threat for Odysseus throughout this story, and the future foretold for Odysseus by Tiresias is not one of his life being a good one but of “…your own death will steal upon you…/ a gentle, painless death, far from the sea it comes to take you down…” (Homer 11.153-154). His fortune ends not with his happy life, but with his eventual death. This scene is crucial because it draws the reader back not to the life that Odysseus will have once he has successfully returned home and killed the suitors but the death that he will experience. It draws it back to when and where Odysseus will die and take his place among the
Throughout the book every time and after he conquers the new challenges Odysseus answers the question, which is repeated throughout, with a different answer. Each time he conquers a challenge on his journey home he learns a new lesson towards humility and answers with a new perspective. “‘I am no god,’ said the patient, good Odysseus. ‘Why do you take me for an immortal? But I am your father, on whose account you have endured so much sorrow and trouble and suffered persecution at men’s hand.’”(P 214 L 186-189) Although he is viewed by many people as very god-like Odysseus realizes that he is an ordinary man and is not a god. Odysseus’ desire to return home is another example that makes him an everyman. In this epic tale the word home had a double meaning for the hero. Home was where his family was and where he wanted to be. The physical element of being home and with his family was a huge deal for him. The other meaning of home was being safe and secure. His aspiration to return home and to return to his safety in sometimes shows that he is also a rather weak man. It is a human instinct to want to go home and stay safe instead of always being brave and
There are many essential emotions that form the building blocks of our lives. These emotions help to shape the people that we are. These feelings are emotional necessities to ultimately keep us happy. No piece of literature these feelings more evident than the Odyssey by Homer. Throughout the course of this book there is one major emotional theme: love.
middle of paper ... ... In Homer’s Odyssey, both Odysseus and his son Telemachus embark on long, difficult journeys; Odysseus trying to return from Troy to his home in Ithaca, escaping Calypso and the island of Ogygia, and Telemachus from Ithaca to Pylos and Sparta in search of his lost father. While The Odyssey tells of the courage both men demonstrate during their respective travels, their quests are the results of the intentions and desires of gods. Odysseus is trapped in exile on Ogygia by the will of Poseidon, whose anger Odysseus attracts when he blinds the Cyclops Polyphemus, son of Poseidon, and by the love of Calypso, who wishes to make Odysseus her husband.
Achilles, a very valuable warrior and great fighter was a very significant part of the Trojan War. He wasn’t fighting for a family back home or anything of that nature, he was simply fighting because it was his destiny. He knew going into the battle that he was going to die, but he trusted that fighting was the best thing for him and something he had to do. He took his destiny seriously, even though he knew it meant he was going to die. Odysseus, on the other hand, was fighting a very different battle. He was fighting to get home. Throughout the entire poem, The Odyssey, Odysseus displays his longing to be back at home with his wife and son. He is constantly fighting with the gods, monsters, and beast to try and make it back to Ithaca. These two characters are fighting for two very different reasons. One fighting because it’s his destiny and what he’s meant to do, and the other because he longs to see his family once again. It’s plain to see that the motives behind the fighting is different for both of these