An Analysis Of Odysseus In Homer's Odyssey

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Have you ever landed on an island with man-eating Cyclops? Well, Odysseus’ ship crashed and landed on the Island of the Cyclops. Odysseus and his men went into the Cyclopes cave where they encountered Polyphemus, the son of Poseidon. Polyphemus didn’t like having Odysseus and his men in his cave, so he ate six of Odysseus’ men. Since Odysseus and his men trespassed Polyphemus’ cave we can see why Polyphemus is rude and unfriendly. Polyphemus, the son of Poseidon, was very unfriendly to Odysseus, King of Ithaca, in the Odyssey. For example, when Odysseus and his men were in Polyphemus’ cave, he did not offer them gifts nor did he help them. Polyphemus does not fear the God Zeus, therefore he does not care about offering Odysseus and his men …show more content…

For example, Polyphemus told Odysseus that he does not care about Zeus, god of the sky and thunder and that he isn’t scared of him. I know this because on pages 761 and 763, Polyphemus told Odysseus “We Cyclops care not a whistle for your thundering Zeus or all the gods in bliss; we have more force by fear. This direct quote from Polyphemus shows that he is fearful, and he does not care about the god Zeus nor Odysseus and his men. Polyphemus eating half of Odysseus’ men is another example that shows us how he is rude to Odysseus and his men. The quote “Neither reply of pity came from him, but in one stride he clutched at my companions and caught two in his hands like squirming puppies to beat their brains out, spattering on the floor.” This direct quote from Odysseus also shows his rude character trait, and how unfriendly he is. In conclusion, the two examples from the Odyssey shows how rude he was to Odysseus and his men. Polyphemus comes off as rude and unfriendly, but that may not be his actual personality. He seems rude and unfriendly only because Odysseus and his men weren’t invited to Polyphemus’ cave, they were intruding his home and Polyphemus may have felt threatened by Odysseus. If Odysseus was invited to Polyphemus’ cave, he would have treated Odysseus differently. We know he would've treated him differently because of the quote from Polyphemus in the Odyssey line 517 “Come back, Odysseus, and I’ll treat you

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