Pain and Suffering in The Odyssey and the Gospel of Matthew
In the "great works" of ancient Greece and of Christianity, suffering alone is portrayed as something to be feared. Both Homer's Odyssey and the Gospel of Matthew contend that suffering is virtually unbearable when the sufferer has not outside support. If, however, the tormented can find support from others, these teachings continue, suffering becomes more tolerable. Both agree that we wish to find supporters when we are tormented. Unfortunately, these sources diverge on how one finds such support. Homer teaches that one can find support by knowing that all of mankind suffers together, ultimately tormented by the gods. The Gospel of Matthew, however, teaches that by placing faith in God, the tormented can find support from God. More, it teaches that God hears the calls for help from humans and, if asked in true faith, will give support to all sufferers.
To illustrate the teachings of these two works, one short passage from each is sufficient to give the kernel of the respective teachings on this subject:
Rag of man that I am, is this the end of me?
I fear the goddess told it all to wellÄ
predicting great adversity at sea
and far from home. Now all things bear her out:
he whole rondure of heaven hooded so
by Zeus in woeful cloud, and the sea raging
under such winds. I am going down, that's sure.
How lucky those Danaans were who perished
on Troy's wide seaboard, serving the Atreidai!
Would God I, too, had died there—met my end
that time the Trojans made so many casts at me
when I stood by Akhilleus after death.
I should have had a soldier's burial
and praise from the Akhanians—not this choking
waiting for me at sea, unmarked and lonely. (Homer V.309-323)
"He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he wants to; for he said 'I am God's Son." The bandits who were crucified with him also taunted him in the same way.
From noon on, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. And about three o'clock Jesus cried with a loud voice "Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?" that is, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?" When some of the bystanders heard it, they said, "This man is calling for Elijah." At once one of them ran and got a sponge, filled it with sour wine, put it on a stick, and gave it to him to drink.
Throughout The Odyssey, Odysseus’ power was gained through the power of others resulting in three phases of understanding: self-determination, courage, and having a greater vision in life. In order to understand these three phases, one must be able to conquer predominance from those less useful than others. Although Odysseus was physically strong, he was not who he was mentally, without the help and guidance through the gods. Odysseus was like one who has no friends, but when he meets up with more people, he becomes popular. One who was alone and meets new people, has more friends and finds out more interesting subjects about daily life. They are the ones who have more predominance than others because they know more people and have much more interesting subjects. Odysseus was like this because he didn’t know much without the help and guidance from others.
between the two authors, they share similarities towards the message they try to send out.
this, for once the suitors are gone Odysseus is free to reclaim is post in
A time to remember those who died, those who served, and those who carry on.” ~Unknown. Servicemen make sacrifices daily. During 9/11, the Manhattan firefighters were responding to a gas leak when they heard the explosion from one of the twin towers. Policemen and firefighters from all around New York and surrounding areas came to help rescue the victims. They searched through rubbish and raced with time to check the buildings before and after the buildings collapsed. There were clouds of smoke, dust, and debris flying through the streets; blinding the bystanders. Hundreds of servicemen died that day, including military personnel in the Pentagon who were also hit by the hijackers. I had a cousin named Johnnie Doctor Jr who was in the Navy. He was killed in the Pentagon. I never got to know him, but from what I heard he was a great person to be
In the Odyssey, by Homer, Odysseus's main goal was to reach home. Even though all of his thoughts were turned towards his home and family, he learned many lessons along the way. Odysseus's greatest learning experiences were in his journey, not his destination.
Homer's The Odyssey can be truly considered as one of the best epic poems of all time. Odysseus' journey in returning home becomes a test to prove himself. Only on the testing grounds of life can one discover inegrity, loyalty and perseverance. Homer's craft is so profound that theme's found in the poem still pertains to man today. The Odyssey is truly remarable in that Odyseus' character, his morals, and his views are stil admired by people today.
Violence in literature may take any form, whether it be natural disaster like and earthquake or a human based disaster like war (Campbell). In Homer’s The Odyssey both types are found… whether it’s Odysseus’s hardships like making it home or dealing with the wrath of the god Poseidon. Every violent scene has its own reasons, some are more reasonable than others. For instance, the gods were angered by the disobedience of the mortals. This is more reasonable than the killing of the Cyclops. While we always relate violence to men and the gods, women also had their moments of rage, but their violence wasn’t necessarily due to anger. Moreover, violence in The Odyssey is based on jealousy, territorial rights, and last getting revenge. Overall, violence is what makes The Odyssey so intriguing.
The sum of all human traits is defined as human nature, meaning the excuse for our vices, and the flaws of mortal life. In Homer's The Odyssey, the main character Odysseus demonstrates these flaws throughout his journey, constantly struggling through the eternal fight for realization of life and death, and is weighed down by the never ending power struggle of nature versus mankind.
Justice is a theme that differs in many different texts, and this also true in the Odyssey and the Bible. Justice in Homeric texts was served to neutralize a situation and bring things back to the way they were, to a time of stability and respect for authority. The bible has usually been interpreted, however, as serving justice on a moral basis, as a way to punish those who did not respect each other or act in God likeness.
The epic poem called The Odyssey, which was written by the poet Homer, is one of the many classical stories from Ancient Greek culture. It tells the story of Odysseus, King of Ithaca, and his journey back home from the war with Troy, which had occurred in Homer’s other epic Greek poem, The Illiad. Odysseus faces many trials and quests in his journey home and to take back his kingdom from the suitors, such as meeting the witch Circe, blinding a Cyclops named Polyphemus, dealing with Poseidon, and staying with the goddess Calypso. The poem has many themes that are relevant to it. One such theme is the factor of redemption. Redemption is usually a typical subject in any kind of religion, like the Greek religion and Christian religion. The story of Odysseus has an underlying message of him receiving redemption from the Greek gods. The Odyssey is a tale of redemption because it deals with Odysseus being forgiven by the gods after having to go through many trials and wrongs to rightfully claim back his wife and the throne of Ithaca.
Coming over from Taiwan nearly six years ago, the freedom of the American society still dazzles me. The extensive freedom of the U.S. citizens is a result of those American soldiers who fought bravely during wars to “insure domestic tranquility and provide for the common defense” (Constitution 1) of the United States. I want to honor and thank the soldiers, especially those who unfortunately will never be identified by family members.
In part one this essay proposes that an arms embargo is simple to initiate, primarily because it meets the demands for action in circumstances of conflict and violent repressions, and requires minimum political consensus among the UN member states. Nonetheless, the failures of many arms sanctions during the past two decades could either maintain or alter this situation. Furthermore, the second part of this essay will argue, with specific references to the EU’s sanctions against China and Syria that embargoes are not difficult to lift per se, but their removal ofte...
Trip, D. (1999), “The Christian view of suffering” [Online], Exploring Christianity. Available from: http://www.christianity.co.nz/suffer4.htm [Accessed 18 April 2008].
Kimberly Ann Elliott, Institute for International Economics, "Evidence on the Costs and Benefits of Economic Sanctions," Statement before the Subcommittee on Trade of the House Ways and Means Committee, October 23, 1997. The text of her statement can be found at http://www.iie.com/sanctns.htm.
Nietzsche found Schopenhauer’s response to suffering unsatisfactory, so he turned to the Greeks. The Greeks were also aware of the inherent suffering of existence, yet they did not deny the will or acce...