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Archetypes In The Odyssey

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A trip to hell is not unique to Homer’s The Odyssey, but rather this journey is found as an archetype in multiple cultures. If you look at any story from any culture, there is always a low point or valley in the story where a hero must dive into the unknown to prove themselves as a hero. This also serves as a stage to show the hero their own mortality and enhance their bravery. What results is that they emerge from the hardships as a brave and justified hero. There is no place that maintains these circumstances of death and decay better than the underworld. Additionally, what makes the hero a hero is the fact that he or she has gone to the place of no return for most people, and has come back after conquering some form of evil. This gives the …show more content…

As stated by Elpenor in the underworld, “...O my lord, remember me, I pray, do not abandon me unwept, unburied, to tempt the gods’ wrath, while you sail for home; but fire my corpse…” (187). Even after death, Elpenor is still pleading with Odysseys to give him the proper burial procedures. This shows that the planes of existence for the underworld and the overworld are so connected that your actions in one place will follow you to the other. Due to his lack of burial procedures, Elpenor will constantly roam the halls of hades as a disturbed spirit, unable to fix his own problems because death is an eternal disease. As a result, Elpenor must rely on Odysseus and his crew, his only lifeline, to help resolve his sins for him. Additional evidence comes from when Tiresias claims that “But anguish lies ahead; the god who thunders on land prepares it, not to be shaken from your track…” (188). Odysseus is not safe from death either, as it follows his crew closely. Thusly, because of the prophecy given to him by Tiresias, Odysseus knows how to avoid this death, but lack of informing his crew will result in this issue following him back to the overworld where Poseidon wreaks havoc on his ship. What this shows Odysseys is that death is constantly looming over every man’s head, not just his own. In the end, the meaning of …show more content…

Achilles asserts to Odysseus to inform his son that “Better, I say, to break sod as a farm hand for some poor country man, on iron rations, than lord it over all the exhausted dead” (201). While we have been shown what the meaning of death is, the meaning of life is naturally the opposite; to live as long as possible. This is exactly what Achilles wants to instill in his children, and inadvertently, in Odysseus. Achilles was a great warrior who experienced both glory and cunning as a soldier so in death, he would have expected great honor. Instead, he regrets his life and wishes that he had spent more of it rather than dying an untimely death in war. Achilles also reiterates to Odysseys that he must spend his time with his family because while living is crucial, it is only worth something if spent in the company of loved ones. Similarly, Tiresias also stated that “But if you raid the beeves, I see destruction for ship and crew. Though you survive alone, bereft of all companions, lost for years” (188). Life is something worth preserving because it has the potential to be lived with other people. Tiresias is simply explaining Achilles point that Odysseus must return to his family by explaining that losing all his crew is a fate equal to death. Having no one to interact with, neither living or dead would make Odysseus insane, and would cause more detriment than would the benefit of life provide. In

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