Telemachus has drastically changed towards the end of the novel, for in the beginning it is blatantly obvious that he us disengaged from everyone and everything. He is often unaware and unbothered by his surrounding environment. This is proven through the quote, “ Prince Telemachus/ sitting among the suitors, heart obsessed with grief,/he could almost see his magnificent father, here…” (I.132-134). Here Homer illustrates the suitors searching through Telemachus’s house, eating all of his food, and drinking all of his wine, and he remains silent and still. He is internally struggling for he cannot shake what is eating him from the inside. He doesn’t know anything about his other half, for he was left as an infant. This is proven when he says, “ I’ll try my friend, to give you a frank answer,/ Mother has always told me I’m his son, it’s true,/ but I am not so certain” (I.248-250). He misses his father and is constantly surrounded by men trying to marry his mother and taking advantage of his father’s absence. He internalizes his sorrow and so he cannot react to anything. He is numb to all. His numbness is a defense to his loss of hope for his father’s return. He has convinced himself that his father is dead and that this is the life he has. “ No Comfort left for us…not even if/ someone, somewhere, say’s he’s coming home,/ the day of his return will never dawn” (I.194-196). He longs for his father to come back, but remaining optimistic is far too painful and raises the possibility of complete devastation.
After Athena tells Telemachus that he has to take charge. “First, call an assembly tomorrow morning and tell these guys to get out. Then take a journey yourself. Go visit King Nestor and King Menelaus and see if they have news of Od...
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...trength, a huge change from his previous immature ways.
Another example of how Telemachus changed throught the novel is that he greatly matured. This is proven during his journey to speak to Menelaus to discover the truth about his father, he says, “ I came in the hope that you can tell me now/ some news about my father..., tell me the truth,” (IV.351). Here he shows great maturity in that he wants the truth, no matter how painful it can potentially be, he wants nothing but the truth. He shows self-assurance, as well as passion: two things he’s never before shown in the novel.
All in all Telemachus greatly matured through the novel. His standing up to the suitors, trip to Menelaus, and overall taking control of the situation prove how much he has changed. He started off as a quiet, detached, careless boy, and evolved into a confident, well adapted, passionate man.
In book II of the odyssey Telemachus is about to start his journey to find his father. In lines 49-85 Telemachus is beginning to give his speech during the assembly. In this speech he is trying to get some people to help him on his voyage to find his dad. For the simple fact that everything is falling apart because Telemachus mother has attracted suitors. Also Telemachus knows his family doesn’t know how to defend themselves. Although it may seem as if Telemachus words aren’t registering to the people, they are really taking his words into consideration.
Through Telemachus, Odyssues’ son, the reader sees Odysseus’ utter dependence upon the gods’ aid. During Telemachus’ journey, all those th...
...e gods and goddesses who changed his fate (ex. Poseidon, Calypso, Circle). He learned very many valuable lessons over the course of the epic all thanks to these unfortunate events. Telemachus was also affected by the suitors, who were the biggest reason for his change into a man. They were the main conflict in the story for him and they also played a small role in affecting the changes of his father. Without the suitors, abuse of xenia could not have been displayed, Telemachus would not have had much reason to mature and there would not have been as much interest in the book for readers.
Her description of him, so close to his father's, helps Athena make Telémakhos realize that he is indeed the son of the great Odysseus, and he can easily become a man like him, which seems to be the young man's dream. Even Mentês' reminiscence of dining with Odysseus in the old days being linked to eating with Telémakhos makes this assertion of his likeness to Odysseus more real for the young man. Before Athena talks to Telémakhos, as far as anyone can tell, Telémakhos is but a boy, meaning that he has not yet traveled the seas and has yet to stand up to the grown men wronging him.
Given these points, Athena (as Mentor) acts as a mentor and advisor for Telemachus. She is able to greatly increase his confidence, prepare him for his journey to find his father, and make him feel worthy of being his father’s son. In real life, many people have experience with a relationship similar to this, someone who gives them advice and is a positive, guiding influence in their life. This relationship is critical to Telemachus and his growth from an immature child to a man, and also proves to be an important relationship to have in one’s own
Of the many proofs of Telemachus' maturation three are sufficient to render an accurate account of what virtues he gained. The gained virtues shown are courage, wisdom, and prudence. Courage is shown when Telemachus decides to go around Nestor's house rather than passing through it, for Telemachus goes out to sea knowing that an ambush awaits him. This wisdom is manifested in his knowledge that if he stops Nestor's hospitality will delay him even more. And prudence is shown in Telemachus' ability to control his desires for comfort in Nestor's house and his decision to endure hardship at sea. Next Telemachus' confidence and hospitality are shown when he takes in Theochlamenos the seer. In the beginning of the poem Telemachus is not confident enough in his ability to provide hospitality to Athena disguised as Mentor, but now Telemachus is happy to provide the seer with refuge. Another proof of Telemachus' virtues is his confidence in ordering his mother and her maids to comply with his will; their obedience shows us that he is worthy of respect. Thus Telemachus possesses the virtues necessary to be a ruler: courage, wisdom, prudence, confidence, and hospitality.
...machus, through this journey, has become a man. When the story began Telemachus was a little boy with no figure in his life to really guide him stuck in a bad situation. Over the course of the journey Telemachus had to make due in many situations where respected elders surrounded him. In normal father to son relationships it is your father who teaches you and forces you to become a man. Somehow in this story, although Odysseus was not directly in Telemachus’ life, Odysseus did teach Telemachus how to be a man. It was Odysseus’ absence and hope of his return that was the driving force for Telemachus, and which made him eventually grow into manhood.
...te, the king and queen of the Phaecians, for two days. On the second day, Odysseus grew impatient of the kind hospitality he was given, and begged to continue on his journey home. This reveals the determination of Odysseus and Telemachus to complete their respective journeys.
The relationship of father and son between Odysseus and Telemachus allows their progress in maturity to be linked. It creates an intangible journey that, although separated by distance, could be shared. Therefore, when the journey they share becomes tangible, “a boy daydreaming,” (5), can become the “true son of King Odysseus (301).
Throughout The Odyssey Telemachus grows in character from an unprepared teen to a young man who could one day rule Ithaca. He has many experiences traveling to learn more about his father and many that occur on Ithaca once Odysseus returns. All of these events help to shape him into the assertive young man he becomes.
In the Odyssey, Telemachus, son of great hero Odysseus, who grows up in the world of greed and disrespect where the suitors take over his palace and court his mother, is one of the most significant character throughout the whole epic. His father, Odysseus, leaving the land Ithaca for 20 years, is the only warrior alive in Trojan war who hasn’t make his return home. During Telemachus’ expedition to search for the news of his father, he is under a process of maturation from the beginning in which he is mere a shadow of his father to the end in which he becomes more and more like him in terms of initiative, sensitivity and socialization.
...sniveling coward who would faint at the sight of blood, or worse yet, a traitor who would warn the suitors of Odysseus' plans. Apparently, Odysseus believes that since Telemachus was his son that was a good enough reason to trust him. (jackhdavid)” This quote shows how that even though Telemachus didn’t know his father, right when he found out who he was, he loved him automatically like if he knew him for years and stood by his side to do anything he needed to make Ithaca better for his family and his people. This father-son relationship is different than any other, they actually spend more time apart than they do together, and it is through distance that they develop respect and love for one another.
He is released from Ogygia and permitted to return to Ithaca only by the command of Zeus, as delivered by Hermes. Telemachus, rather than being trapped physically, was detained emotionally, feeling helpless to repel the suitors wooing Penelope. Only through the motivation of the goddess Athena did Telemachus find the will and courage to embark in search of Odysseus.
In the first four books of Homer’s The Odyssey, the character of Telemachus undergoes a dramatic evolution. When Homer first introduces him, he appears to be an unsophisticated youth, wallowing in self-pity. After the goddess Athena intervenes, he becomes, seemingly, a man of courage, strength, and resolve. On closer analysis, however, one remains to wonder if this transformation is genuine. The rapidity of his change in personality and the assistance he requires from the goddess at every stage in his journey suggests that he is not yet a hero in the mold of his father, the great Odysseus.
Homer's Odyssey depicts the life of a middle-aged, while Tennyson's "Ulysses" describes Ulysses as an old man. The character's role in his son's life shifts. With maturity, Telemachus does not require as much guidance from his father. However, time does not alter the caring fellowship the man has with his crew, nor the willpower that he possesses in achieving his goals.