In Ancient Greece, the role of rhapsodes was the delivery of epic poems - long, narrative poems concerning heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation - to the population in oral tradition. The rhapsode’s recitation went beyond storytelling. Principally, they were performers whose delivery and accuracy were key components of their profession. One aid in the accuracy of a performance was the format of the poetry itself. Homer’s epic work, The Odyssey, is written in dactylic hexameter - a metrical pattern in which a line is broken into six feet (Struck). Using this format, rhapsodes often used epithets - words or phrases attributed to a person or thing to describe an actual or attributed quality - as convenient devices in meeting the metric pattern. Simultaneously, the syllabic format of epithets in dactylic hexameter - one long syllable followed by two short syllables - allowed rhapsodes to easily improvise when exact recollection failed (Struck). When used in repetition, epithets emphasized especially relevant qualities in characters or things. Epithets were an integral part of the Odyssey in relation to the oral …show more content…
This imagery also creates a tangible picture in the minds of the audience: the land inhabited by the Cyclopes is untouched by mankind and, since its inhabitants do not plow the land or build houses, left to nature’s will. Additionally, this poses the question of what the Cyclops’ diet consists of. Besides herding sheep, lambs, and goats for milk and cheese, Odysseus eventually learns rather gruesomely that Polyphemus has a taste for human flesh. When he and his party are discovered, he begs the Cyclops’ hospitality, but after denying the safety of the men Polyphemus poses a
Rengakos, Antonios. Homertext und die Hellenistichen Dichter. Hermes. Einzelschriften, Heft 64. Stuttgart, F. Steiner, 1993.
On Odysseus's journey he stopped at Cyclops’ Island for supplies and food. Instead of hunting and making supplies our protagonist and his crew steal from Polyphemus and stay in his living space thinking they can get more from him. After a while Polyphemus comes home and starts to get angry at his “visitors” so Odysseus tries to patch things up “here we stand, beholden for your help, or any gifts you give -as a custom is to honor strangers.” In the end they escape with Polyphemus's sheep.
This shows that Odysseus’ self-serving nature extends beyond material greed into the equally sinful realm of pride. In a classic display of hubris, Odysseus taunts the Cyclopes fulfilling the sole purpose of stroking Odysseus’s ego. At first it appears that our hero is lacking foresight, but Odysseus tells Polyphemus his name in hopes that tales of his cunning will spread throughout Greece: a very selfish goal, directly resulting in the endangerment of the lives of both him and his men throughout the remainder of their travels.
Odysseus’ recklessness and resourcefulness are predominant traits apparent in the Cyclops episode. When trapped in the Cyclops’ cave and after four men have already been devoured, Odysseus comes up with a cunning plan to escape. They cannot simply kill Polyphemus while he is sleeping and run away, due to the ‘huge boulder rolled across the mouth of the cave. Instead, he uses the resources available to him by getting Polyphemus drunk before sharpening the Cyclops’ staff, heating it in the fire, and stabbing it in his eye, blinding him. This is an extremely reckless undertaking, as it further enrages Polyphemus.
Odysseus’ attempt to make himself feel at home in Polyphemos’ cave turns out to be disastrous. Homer emphasizes from this situation Odysseus’ lack of caution and judgment as Odysseus’ crew had already advised him to leave the cave. In consuming Polyphemos’ livestock and cheese, Odysseus demonstrates a high level of comfort with Polyphemos which is in reality not evident for the two individuals who meet for the first time. As a result, Odysseus and his crew portray themselves as intruders rather than visitors.
Like Jacob, Odysseus connived, manipulated, and deceived. On his journey home from the Trojan War, Odysseus uses his trickster ways to get himself out of trouble. One famous tail was his encounter with the one-eyed Cyclopes Polyphemous. Odysseus and his crew landed on the land of they Cyclopes. They made themselves at home, eating the cheese and goats of the Cyclopes, fully expecting him to be hospitable. Instead, Cyclops began eating then men as though they were animals themselves. Odysseus and his men were trapped in the cave and Polyphemous rolled a stone over the entrance so no one could exit. Odysseus connived a plan and gave the Cyclopes some wine. When he got drunk and passed out, Odysseus poked out the eye of Polyphemous and completely blinds him. Odysseus and his men escape the cave by clinging to the bellies of sheep (Odyssey, Ch. 9). He also disguised himself as a veteran of a Trojan war to Eumaios, a loyal servant, and as a beggar to his wife and son.
Odysseus displays his desire for glory through his careless actions during his encounter with the Cyclops Polyphemus. The desire for glory Odysseus displays is shown through the words he speaks to Polyphemus. He is a clever character but makes rash decisions that affect the outcome of his original goals and intentions. While Odysseus is trapped inside of the cave of the Cyclops, he begins to taunt Polyphemus. “I called back to the Cyclops, stinging taunts: So, Cyclops, no weak coward it was whose crew you bent to devour three in your vaulted cave—with your brute voice! Filthy crimes came down on your own head, you shameless cannibal” (Fagles, 226). Odysseus was insulting the Cyclops, and those insults caused the rage of the monster to boil over. The Cyclops was already angry with Odysseus blinding him, and was even more demoralized and angry when Odysseus began to taunt him. As Odysseus goes on with his insults and as his anger rises, he says, “Cyclops—if any man on the face of the earth should ask you who blinded you, shamed—say Odysseus, raider of cities, he gouged out your eye, La...
After ignoring the Greek value respect for the body, Cyclops is tricked and blinded by Odysseus. Odysseus describes the monster when trapped in his cave: "in one stride he clutched at
Odysseus and some of his men went to investigate to see what these Cyclops were like. Unfortunately, they stumbled upon a Cyclops that had no intention of being nice. His name was Polyphemus who was the son of Poseidon. He took Odysseus’s men and ate them every night and would keep Odysseus and his men hostage. Odysseus made a clever escape and blinded the Cyclops. When Odysseus finally made it back on the ship with the remaining men that went along with him, Odysseus got a little too angry and shouted from the ship to Polyphemus and insulted him. Polyphemus prayed to the god, Poseidon and cursed Odysseus. This was on page 77, lines 526-533, book
Next, Polyphemus demonstrates hubris by believing that because he is a giant, he is unbeatable by anyone, even a god. This is shown when Odysseus meets Polyphemus and greets him with gifts, as it is a custom to show courtesy to hosts and guests alike, (unexpected or not). Failure to give gifts can lead to revenge from the gods. Odysseus tells Polyphemus this, but Polyphemus “would not let you go for fear of Zeus” because the Cyclopes “have more force by far ”. (205; 200) Polyphemus then angers the gods further by kidnapping and eating Odysseus’ men, both of which are considered extremely uncivil in Greek society. Polyphemus is so confident in his invulnerability he lets the men roam free inside the cave, a mistake that leads to his downfall.
Similar to an elaborate dish, a literary genre consists of multiple necessary “ingredients,” called epic conventions, which classify a text into a particular category. Homer follows an impeccable recipe in his magnificent work. Labeled as an epic, The Odyssey by Homer portrays the Greek hero Odysseus years after his victory in the Trojan War and his awaited journey back to Ithaca. As the plot develops it is evident it is no effortless feat for our hero to return home. The godly Odysseus encounters adversities in the forms of Cyclops, sea monsters, alluring flowers and formidable Greek gods with varying conceptions of him. These characteristics distinguish the Odyssey and its episodes as an epic and bestow Odysseus with the title of an epic
When a Cyclops attacks two of Odysseus’s men, the “ruthless brute” snatches them up and “[knocks] them dead like pups-/their brains [gushing] out all over, [soaking] the floor-/and ripping them from limb to limb to fix his meal/ he [bolts] them down like a mountain lion, [leaving] no scrap,/[devouring] entrails, flesh and bones, marrow and all”, while Odysseus can only watch the Cyclops’s “grisly work-/paralyzed, appalled” (9.323-332). The Cyclops wastes no time in gruesomely devouring two of Odysseus’s men.
To begin, one feature that makes Odysseus and epic hero is his intelligence. In order for him to have survived through his journey, he has to have a massive amount of intellect. To have survived a Cyclops is an accomplishment of its own. His ability to think on his feet and to plan situations and ability to make a right decision in horrid environments has helped him survive throughout his disastrous journey. When he is trapped by the Cyclops, Polyphemus, he has to carve, smooth, and sharpen a gigantic spear-shaped-pole out of a large tree that he and his strongest men would then use it on the Cyclops to blind it. In order to follow through with his plan, Odysseus has to sedate him. He gives Polyphemus an extremely strong wine, in which Polyphemus asks him his name. Odysseus replies: “My name is Nohbdy; mother, father, friends, everyone call me Nohbdy”(9.274-9.275) When the Cyclops passes out, Odysseus and four of his strongest men stab Polyphemus in his eye with the sharpened pole that he and his men ...
Something written over twenty-five hundred years ago shows many similarities to stories written today. These similarities are called archetypes and the y can be found in stories dating back to the earliest forms of literature. I will be talking about some of these archetypes found in The Odyssey.As you read, you will notice that these archetypes can be found in other stories and even in real life. The Odyssey is the story of Odysseus and his journey home from the Trojan War. It tells of many challenges and difficulties Odysseus faced on his way home. The topic of this essay is about three main archetypes found in the Odyssey. These archetypes are those of the Hero, the Monster, and the idea that your authority
Socrates thought is that a rhapsode speaks not from knowledge but from inspiration, his thoughts being ‘breathed into’ him without the use of his own understanding at all. Using the analogy of a magnet, with the power to draw one rhapsode ring to itself, and through that another, and another, Socrates says that Homer himself had no knowledge of his own writing his poetry, but was divinely possessed. Every rhapsodes are also divinely possessed both when they recite poetry and when they speak. Their work, is the product of the gods working throught them, not of any human intelligence and skill.