Theme Of Loyalty In The Odyssey

From the time of Homer to modern times, The Odyssey has remained entertaining to all generations. Whether it be for the romance and loyalty between Odysseus and Penelope, or the gory scenes depicted by Homer, the story stands out amongst all other stories for it’s enjoyability. While Odysseus was away, Penelope stayed true to him, and did not remarry or have sexual relations with anyone else, showing the loyalty in her true love for Odysseus. During the Trojan War and during the fight between Odysseus’s men and Polyphemus, gory scenes are depicted, audiences enjoy blood and gore. Odysseus’s determination to get back to Ithaca, and his ways of doing so showed his persistence, a moral would be that hard work eventually pays off. Obviously,there

are many things that make Homer’s The Odyssey entertaining, but there are three things that make the story both enjoyable and important throughout history, these being romance, gore, and determination.
During the twenty long years that Odysseus was away from Ithaca, Penelope stayed loyal to him and loved no other man, thus making romance a major attribute as to why The Odyssey has been enjoyed throughout so many years.

While Odysseus “slept around” on his trip back to Ithaca, he was always thinking of and wanting to be with Penelope. Instead of having sex with other men, Penelope stayed loyal to her husband. In Homer’s The Odyssey, it’s described by Penelope that her bed has not been touched by another man. “No other man has laid eyes on it-only my own slave, Actoris, that my father sent with me as a gift-she kept our door.”(Page 1105, Line 1610) Odysseus was determined to get to his wife and home, and would do anything to get back. This shows Odysseus’ undying love for Penelope. Even when suitors are tempting Penelope. she stays loyal. Clearly, romance is one of the themes in The Odyssey that makes it entertaining throughout the

ages.
Between the Trojan War, the battle against Scylla, and Odysseus and his men escaping Polyphemus, blood and gore makes appearances in Homer’s The Odyssey, and generally audiences are attracted to violence of the like.

During the escape from Polyphemus, a gory scene played out and is described in The Odyssey. “...that great eye socket while blood ran out around the red-hot bar. Eyelid and lash were seared.”(Page 1056, Line 335) This goes into descriptive detail on the effect of the burning rod on Polyphemus’s eyeball. The fighting in Troy resulted in the gruesome deaths of many men, both Trojan and Greek. King Priam, for example, was killed whilst he was praying. Another part of The Odyssey that described was the attack of Scylla. While going through the narrow canyon, many of Odysseus’s men were attacked and eaten by the incredibly fast Scylla. Definitely, The blood and gore in Homer’s The Odyssey made it appealing to people for many

years.
Even though some of the tasks Odysseus had to complete seemed impossible, like speaking with a dead prophet, he pushes through and makes it to Ithaca, and his persistence has made The Odyssey enjoyable since it was first written. A few examples of these tasks were escaping a cave guarded by a giant cyclops, and transforming his crew from animals back into humans. Throughout his journey to Ithaca, Odysseus uses his wit, for one instance when he had to get Circe to transform his crew into humans is described in The Odyssey. “The enchantress desired me, and detained me in her hall.”(Page 1047, Line 35) This describes how Odysseus had to make love to Circe in order to have his men freed from their spell. To escape Polyphemus, Odysseus and his men blinded the cyclops. To see the blind prophet, Odysseus had to enter the land of the dead. Truthfully, Odysseus determination to get home, made Homer’s The Odyssey entertaining for centuries.
In conclusion, the romance, gore, and determination in Homer’s The Odyssey made it both enjoyable and important throughout the duration of history. Penelope stayed loyal to Odysseus out of true love. Polyphemus was stabbed through the eye while he was sleeping in a gory manner. Odysseus was determined to get home to Ithaca, and would do anything to do so. Obviously, The Odyssey has remained entertaining throughout time and will continue to do so for quite some time.