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Symbolism as a literary tool essay
Importance of Symbolism in literature
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A journey is the act of traveling from one place to another. There are many types of journeys in life. There are physical journeys and spiritual journeys. Journeys are important because they can create a new meaning your life, make you a better person at the end, make new friends or explore places you have never been to. Sometimes the journey matters more than the destination when you live life to the fullest. The journey matters more than the destination when you live life to the fullest, this claim is shown in the poem "Courage". "Courage" by Anne Sexton is a poem about the voyage of life and what you might encounter in it. "Later, when you face old age and its natural conclusion your courage will still be shown in the little ways, each spring will be a sword you’ll sharpen, …show more content…
This quote from the poem explains that life is short, you need to experience it in the best way possible. The text is connected to the claim because the poem tells about life's story and what you will encounter. It also explains you will die so do everything you can do to make your life happy. Another way this claim is shown in "The Odyssey". "The Odyssey" by Homer is an epic poem about a legendary warrior on a 10 year voyage home lost at sea and encounters monster witches and gods. "From every side they came and sought the pit with rustling cries; and i grew sick with fear."(Homer line 569-570). This quote means Odysseus had to overcome his fear of death in order for his life to live on. This text connects with the claim because during the voyage home learns more about himself and makes him a better
Anne Frank a young girl who died believing that people are good at heart. ‘’You could not do this you could not do that.’’ A quote from Anne Frank. Found in the collection book page number 283. In this essay, I will be showing you why Anne might feel certain ways during this hardship. Also what it reveals about her character. Anne is a brave young girl who always does what she feels is right and her way of taking on life and its challenges is taught for a person to do in that time and she managed to take on so much. In advance to Anne hard life, she keeps a diary to share her thoughts and option on life in hiding during the dreadful event called World War Two. This dairy was a miracle to the world. They now know the hardship and struggles that the Jews had two indoor. Anne dairy opened so many doors for journalists and many others. They have a diary of a real end of the Holocaust in their hands.
Throughout all texts discussed, there is a pervasive and unmistakable sense of journey in its unmeasurable and intangible form. The journeys undertaken, are not physically transformative ones but are journeys which usher in an emotional and spiritual alteration. They are all life changing anomaly’s that alter the course and outlook each individual has on their life. Indeed, through the exploitation of knowledge in both a positive and negative context, the canvassed texts accommodate the notion that journeys bear the greatest magnitude when they change your life in some fashion.
“Our life’s journey of self-discovery is not a straight-line rise from one level of consciousness to another. Instead, it is a series of steep climbs, and flat plateaus, then further climbs. Even though we all approach the journey from different directions, certain of the journey’s characteristics are common for all of us.” Author Stuart Wilde’s impression of journeys and their shared commonalities supports the claim that all journeys have a motive and an outcome. In the epic poem, The Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus sets off to defeat Troy, leaving his wife and child behind. After accomplishing his goal, Odysseus faces many problems while trying to return him and his crew back home to Ithaca. Similar to Odysseus’s physical journey, the goal in
Historically journeys were seen as the physical movement of a group of people migrating from one place to another. Additionally, journeys were usually only found throughout the history of civilization and religion. Despite this, journeys come in all aspects and are found in a variety of mediums. Specifically, two journeys that are found in the literary works of The Epic of Gilgamesh and Monkey: A Journey to the West are physical and intellectual. These two stories exemplify what a journey consists of by construction the plots around each protagonist participating in both journeys.
In the intricate and complex epic poem, “The Odyssey”, Odysseus’s main goal was to reach his home, Ithaca. Even though all of his thoughts were turned towards his family and home, he learns many lessons along the way. Odysseus's greatest learning experiences were in his journey, not his destination. The quote “the experiences of the voyage itself were more meaningful for Odysseus than his arrival home,” truly depicts that Odysseus’s experiences and confrontations with others throughout the journey contributes to his moral values and life lessons.
The epic poem The Odyssey, written by Homer, centers around the main protagonist Odysseus and his long journey back home. Odysseus, the king of Ithaca, returns home after defeating the Trojans in a ten year war. On his way back, he angers Poseidon, god of the sea, by blinding his son, Polyphemus the Cyclops. Due to Odysseus’ actions, Poseidon refuses to let Odysseus reach home, and Odysseus and his crew are forced to go through a series of obstacles throughout the epic. Through this adversity, Odysseus must show his heroic attributions in order to survive. Homer portrays Odysseus as a hero by giving him characteristics such as: craftiness, loyalty, and bravery.
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
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 is important to their culture.
In Homer's epic The Odyssey, the hero Odysseus attempts to complete his journey home from Troy. On his way home, however, he angers the sea god, Posiedon, who curses him to travel for ten years on the sea, to loose all his men, and to return on a stranger's ship. During the ten years, Odysseus overcomes many hardships, and visits unique destinations in the world along the way. Each place has several symbolic meanings and themes that are found even in today's society. During his journey, Odysseus will attempt to find his place in the world and make a name for himself, make difficult leadership decisions pertaining to his men, and tries to overcome the natural curiosity and greed that is in man's mental makeup.
The Odyssey is Homer 's epic of Odysseus ' 10-year struggle to return home after the Trojan War. While Odysseus battles mystical creatures and faces the wrath of the gods, his wife Penelope and his son Telemachus stave off suitors vying for Penelope 's hand and Ithaca 's throne long enough for Odysseus to return. Throughout the return home Odysseus and his followers are tested countless times by mystical creatures,
No man ever survived to tell the tale of his adventure through the monster plagued Mediterranean Sea, the exception to this was Odysseus. In Homer’s The Odyssey, Odysseus a Trojan War hero is sent on a perilous journey throughout ancient Greece. Odysseus is the king of the kingdom of Ithaca who had to embark on a 20 year ocean voyage back to his home. “He seems very powerfully built; his thighs, calves, hands, and neck are of prodigious strength....” (Homer 98). Odysseus’ journey starts on an island that he has been trapped by Calypso for 10 years after the war. He is finally released when the goddess that adores him, Athena, sparks interest in his son Telemachus. “Calypso is unhappy, but obeys the order” (Weigel 1-4). Upon order of the Gods Calypso helps Odysseus build a boat to leave
Have you ever been away from home for a long period of time? The main character Odysseus from Homer’s The Odyssey has been away from his kingdom fighting in Troy and sailing from island to island for twenty years. While at sea, Odysseus deals with both alienating and enriching experiences as he is surrounded by monsters who want to eat him and his men, and women who want him to love them. Odysseus survives the troubling situations and finally realizes how much he misses the love of his wife who is caring loving, and patient. She gave birth to his son who he has not yet met, which makes him anxious to return to his kingdom. Sometimes being away from what you think are the little things can give you a better perspective of what is around you.
The sea causes Odysseus to learn different lessons at a cost. This point the sea challenges him on his will to live as Thanatos is about to greet the tragic hero, Odysseus overcomes the wild sea with his will to survive and hold on. After beating this mystical force from the sea Odysseus is worn down to a man and not a hero. Homer acknowledges that Odysseus isn’t the same as he was before his epic adventure, “Compassion— princess, please! You, after all that I have suffered, you are the first I’ve come to.
Throughout this epic, there are countless examples where characters are undergoing suffering, and measures are taken to avoid or deny it, out of fear of unknown or pain that suffering can bring. One example of this is when Odysseus’ men open the bag of Aiolos’ winds out of curiosity and jealousy that blows them back to Aiolia, after being so close to Ithaca. In this spur of the moment anguish, Odysseus says “Roused up, despairing in my gloom, I thought:/ ‘Should I go overside for a quick finish/ or clench my teeth and stay among the living?’” (5. 56-58). Here in this quote, Odysseus’ is utterly crushed about this recent development to the point where he contemplates suicide out of fear of of having to face more pain and disappointment. Thus this exhibits how its human nature to flee rather than fight when facing suffering, because Odysseus’ initial reaction here was to jump ship rather than to continue to bear his burden. However, the reader later learns that Odysseus overcomes this suffering through sheer determination of wanting to go home, the hope he has of an opportunity to see his beloved Penelope again, and the understanding that he has too much to lose, which suggests the power of willpower. Because Odysseus is able to overcome the odds and fight for what he believes in, shows how Homer presents a
Experiencing a journey can cause you to come back a completely different person than you were going into it. No matter how long the journey, a few days or just a couple hours, that person you were yesterday is gone. Depending on the type of journey you experience, you can become more thankful and appreciative, or you may come out with more confidence, or maybe it can give you a better insight on the world, or possibly all three. Not only can the journey change the person, but the person can change the route along their way.