Compare And Contrast Rainsford And Odysseus

As seen in book ten, Odysseus is welcomed into the household of Circe and is distracted from the job to be done.

Which of Odysseus’s qualities is most distinguishable? Odysseus, a character from Homer’s Odyssey fought off a large cyclops on an island. He also travels to the underworld, to meet with Teiresias. Eventually, he combats all the suitors, with just his bow and arrow. Odysseus demonstrates an abnormal level of bravery, throughout Homer’s epic.

On the other hand, Odysseus is not the perfect hero he may seem to be. He can be extremely selfish, and has a sense of hubris that causes many problems for him and his crew. To start off, Odysseus' selfishness has been very easy to recognize these last few books. For example, when he informs his crew that they will be staying at Kirke's palace for some time, Eurylokhos objects. Odyseuss describes, "they turned back, as commanded, to this work; / only one lagged, and tried to hold the others" (10.475-76).

In literature, mankind is often seen as imperfect and flawed. From sacred texts like the Bible to classic books such as The Odyssey we can see the true flaws of humans. Specifically book twelve of The Odyssey shows the flawed nature of mankind and how it leads to mankind's downfall. Circe, the goddess that Odysseus encounters during his initially half hearted journey home, gives advice to Odysseus about the dangers ahead and what he should do in order to get past them. Despite the advice given to him by a goddess, Odysseus "cleared [his] mind of Circe's orders..." because they were "cramping [his] style..."

She tries to do the same to him, but he previously took an antidote that was handed to him by Hermes. Circe black mails Odysseus into not turning his men back unless he makes love to her. He with the witch for a ‘year’ on the island of Ogygia and finally decides that he needs to be with his true love so he leaves her. QUOTE!!(Book 11) On the return of the legendary Odysseus, Penelope really does not believe what she sees and claims the figure standing in front of her is actually not the man of her life. QUOTE!!(Book 23)

So horrible, that out of the many men that accompanied him, he was the only survivor. When he returned home, he found out that a hole bunch of men were parading around his home, trying to become the new King of Ithaca. He wanted to meet with his wife, but he disguised himself as an old beggar, to test Penelope. To test if she had been unfaithful. ( Even though he slept with two Goddess ) He found out that his wife had set up a challenge. No other man had been able to pass it. So he grabbed his bow, and stringed it. He shot the arrow through the twelve axes. Seconds later he turned back into his regular self. After that it was a slaughter. All of the men in that room were dead. He rushed up to go see his wife. She tested him to make sure it was really Odysseus. After she knew, she rushed to his arms. Returning home, was definitely a great obstacle for

Three of Odysseus men ate the lotus plant which made them lose their wish to go back to Ithaca. Odysseus “Drove them, all three wailing to the ships, tied them down under their rowing benches” (1112).Even though they were fighting to get free and resisting to be tied down Odysseus still does not leave his men behind.He forces them to return to the ship so they could travel home. Another example of Odysseus being loyal to his men is when they reach island of Aeaea and Circe has turned his men into swine. Odysseus start climbing the mountain to reach Circe and asks her to release his men.While climbing up Hermes reaches him and asks him to eat a herb called Moly. The herb would make Odysseus being not affected by her magic. When Circe insist Odysseus to eat and drink in order to see his men he replies to her that in order for him to eat and drink she has to free his men so he could see his trusty comrades again. After Odysseus sees his mens he eats the food and does not turn into animal. Circe upon realizing that she has no power over him, she offers to take him as her lover and make him immortal(book

In The Odyssey, Circe's character traits of intelligence and dominance over a situation change Odysseus’ way of thinking and the way he views his future adventures and endeavours. Interestingly, Circe, attempting to help Odysseus survive his future, advises him on how to proceed: “...there is a choice of two courses, and I will not lay down for you which to take; use your own judgement” (Homer 150). The reader sees Circe use her wisdom and begins to understand the overall instincts of Circe. This results in the changing of the way Odysseus acts in the future and alters the way the reader feels about the novel as Circe does not tell Odysseus which choice to make. In addition Circe,

After the encounters with the Sirens, Odysseus had to face a terrifying creature that he feared of. Circe warned Odysseus about the dangers of Scylla. He is informed that she will snag six of his men and tells him that it is much better than loosing everyone. “Nobody would feel good seeing her, not even a god who crossed her path. She has a dozen feet all deformed, six enormously long necks, with a horrible head on each of them and three rows of teeth packed closed together, full of murky death” (Steele and Alwa, 489). Odysseus knew that in order for his survival and to be able to get to the island, he had to sacrifice his men and escape this monster. “Monsters such as the Sphinx are often represented as female, as if to imply that women are on the borderline between human and “other” than human”(Steele and Alwa, 41). Odysseus also had to deal with his love affair with the witch goddess, Circe. She lived with nymphs on a mythical island. She changed all of Odysseus’s men into animals when he showed up to see her. Hermes helped Odysseus remove the men from the spell. “Many men appear to have felt that they could truly not love women who were not educated well enough to read, write, or engage in informed dialogue with their husbands”(Steele and Alwa, 43). The love between Odysseus and Circe failed due to her lack of ability to engage with men, by

He also chooses to follow her advice because he is a very curious and inquisitive man who wishes to know everything and anything he can. The Siren’s sing “and we know whatever happens on this fruitful earth” (XII, 192). Nugent says, “the encounter with the Sirens reflects….unfulfilled desire for more: more knowledge, more experience, complete and profound fulfillment” (45-54). After placing the wax in his men’s ears, tying himself down to the mast, and hearing the Siren’s sweet song Odysseus “ order[s] [his] men to set [him] free”( Homer XII, 195); this shows how curious Odysseus truly is and how he longs to have great knowledge. Nugent states this is “…surely a characteristic of Odysseus, who always seeks that which lies beyond his grasp” (45-54). By following Circe’s orders Odysseus is able to have his cake and eat it too. He is able to pass the Siren’s without harm so he can return on his journey home, and he is able to listen to their sweet, bewitching song.

At this point, a brief summary of the events leading to Odysseus' underworld experience is in order. The hero and his crew make landfall on an island ruled by the Sorceress, Circe. According to several traditions, she is daughter to Helios, the sun god. When encountered by an advance party commanded by Eurylokhos, Circe transforms all the men into pigs by means of a powerful drug insinuated into food and drink. Eurylokhos escapes this fate and is able to warn Odysseus. Hermes then descends to instruct Odysseus in how to overcome the witch. It is curious that, instead of displaying his power to nullify Circe's magic, Hermes arms Odysseus with a sprig of a plant called moly. Evidently, the aura of herbalism was such that only more herbalism could compete. Having rendered the sorceress helpless, Odysseus is persuaded by her to remain on the island for a full year. At year's end, Circe advises the hero to journey to Hades in order that he may learn from the shade of the blind prophet, Tiresias, how a

This action alone can show just what type of person Odysseus actually is which include traits of an inconsiderate, dishonest man.

In the movie and the book Odysseus does a lot of the same thing. Odysseus is known to be a hero and to either win or lose. He usually has a victory, he is a very smart man who thinks everything through before going through with it. Victory motivates Odysseus. He wants to return home and live well in Ithaca. In the movie and book one of the things he does the

After Odysseus came from the encounter he had with the beautiful witch goddess Circe,, his men are grateful to see him . His men gather around him like a master and a shepherd, his men surrounded him. Odysseus a well respected man who is admired by his men and treated as a mortal god due to his God like qualities . While his crew are stranded in the middle of a cross road without his leadership and guidance, pivoting towards all directions but incapable of moving forward with

Odysseus resist Calypso and is rescued by Hermes under Zeus orders. Calypso’s spunk and possessive obsession ultimately makes her more of a problem for Odysseus than Circe. The next two pairs of characters used for contrasting is Clytemnestra and Penelope both are mothers to sons as well as wives to husbands who have left their homes for war. The idea woman would be Penelope who is the essence of chastity, kindness, as well as intelligent.