Vengeance In The Odyssey Essay

Among the several epics written by the Greek poet Homer, The Odyssey can be seen as the most prominent of them. It portrays a vast variety of themes that are visualized by the conflicts between characters. Unlike other epics, the interactions are between Odysseus, the protagonist, and a multitude of other characters; in fact there is no clear antagonist in the epic. Amongst these interrelations, the concept of vengeance is prominent and presides behind much of the dialogue; in fact, we can say that one of the predominant themes of the story is that of vengeance. Poseidon’s plotting of Odysseus’ death and the murder of the suitors in The Odyssey provides for a clear depiction of the interactions that externally represent the internal conflict

between Odysseus and Poseidon invoked by their violent mindsets.
Before delving deeper into the details of this epic, it is vital to find where the idea of vengeance is first brought into the story.

This concept had begun to leave its imprint as soon as Odysseus had won the battle of Troy. In his elation of winning such a battle, Odysseus had allowed himself to relax by falsely claiming that he and his army had won without the help of any of the gods (The Odyssey). Due to Odysseus’ ego, Homer foreshadows the idea that someone would counter his ego with their own in order to avenge their pride; this character would be the God of the Sea, Poseidon. Since Odysseus viewed himself so highly, this had infuriated Poseidon resulting in him cursing Odysseus on the seas. Through this interaction between Odysseus and Poseidon, it is clear how the cursing of Odysseus-- as a result of this interaction-- metaphorically represents this ongoing theme of

vengeance.
Now in The Odyssey, Poseidon continues to bestow Odysseus with strifes that no mortal would ever wish to stumbleupon.

As Homer claimed “Yet all the gods had pitied Lord Odysseus,/ all but Poseidon, raging cold and rough/ against the brave king till he came ashore/ at last on his own land…” (1.29). This just goes on to illustrate how none of the other gods held anything against Odysseus, but Poseidon continuously prospected for ways to present Odysseus with some of the greatest struggles that man has faced. Then Zeus goes on to declare “... he [Poseidon] does not kill the man;/ he only buffets him away from home./ But come now, we are all at leisure here,/ let us take up this matter of his return,/ that he may sail. Poseidon must relent/ for being quarrelsome will get him nowhere,/ one god, flouting the will of all the gods.” (The Odyssey). In other words, Poseidon has ability to avenge Odysseus as much as his heart desires, but under any conditions Odysseus must be returned to his kingdom alive-- Poseidon can coerce Odysseus to endure such pain without time being a factor of his concern. In this way, Poseidon presenting Odysseus with such struggles illustrates the development of the key theme of

vengeance.
Advancing deeper into The Odyssey, the event of Kalypso (a nymph) releasing Odysseus from her charisma furthers the development of the theme of vengeance. Athena, the daughter of Zeus, persuaded Zeus to send Hermes, his favorite son, to order Kalypso to free Odysseus from her enchanting charm-- as Hermes enounced “Thus you shall send him, then. And show more grace/ in your obedience, or be chastised by Zeus.” (The Odyssey). Knowing the consequences of disobeying Zeus, Kalypso had no other option but to separate herself from her beloved Odysseus. At this point Poseidon had realized what had occurred in his absence, as he elucidated “Here is a pretty cruise! While I [Poseidon] was gone/ the gods have changed their minds about Odysseus./ Look at him now, just offshore of that island/ that frees him from the bondage of his exile!/ Still I can give him a rough ride in, and will.” This illustrates how Kalypso was put by Poseidon to serve as an obstacle in Odysseus’ journey home, but due to the gods it had only lasted temporarily. Hence, by eradicating Kalypso from Odysseus’ travel, it had added one more reason for Poseidon to continue avenging Odysseus.
Shifting from the interactions between Odysseus and Poseidon to those of with minor characters, will truly depict how all of these interactions are a metaphor for the theme of vengeance. Towards the end of this epic, Homer stated, “The servants armed themselves, and all three took their stand/ beside the master of battle [in the battle against all those disloyal to Odysseus].” (The Odyssey). As you can see, Odysseus with the help of his son, Telemachus, and those who are loyal to him proceeded on to avenge those monstrous suitors for all the wrong deeds which they have committed since the day Odysseus left for Troy-- including killing and eating all of his cattle, attempting to exert their rights as men upon Odysseus’ lone wife (Penelope), and plotting the murder of Telemachus. Now it is quite vivid that such vengeance was not only present between Odysseus and Poseidon, but was repeated several times throughout this epic.
As one reads The Odyssey, they are most likely to view these interactions between the characters as the key moments in this epic. Others, however, might just view these interactions as some violent scenes in any average book, but by doing so, they would be misinterpreting the way The Odyssey develops its themes. These interactions are not just violent scenes that are meant for one’s entertainment, they are metaphors that represent the development of the theme of vengeance. In The Odyssey, Poseidon’s plot to murder Odysseus as well as the bloodshed of the suitors assist the audience in comprehending this epic in an aspect that an epic without these interactions would probably never be able to exhibit. Overall through such interactions, this epic is trying to illustrate how repeating something several times in different ways only enhances its development as a whole-- similar to how repeating the same skills in life just strengthens them even further.