Lack Of Proper Guidance In The Odyssey

One of the phases in Athena’s plan involves getting Odysseus off of Calypso’s island. In order to do so, she argues in front of the Olympian court, convincing Zeus to send Hermes to Calypso. Following Zeus’s orders, Hermes delivers a message to Calypso that instructs, “… Zeus commands you to send him off with all good speed: it is not fate to die here, far from his loved ones, reach his high-roofed house, his native land at last” (Homer 156). With Athena’s help, Calypso grants Odysseus freedom from her tropical prison. Without Athena’s loyalty and determination, Odysseus would have never left Calypso’s and Polyphemus’ island to continue on his journey

The gods play an important part in Odysseus’ journey home, bringing him closer and farther from his homeland. They constantly intervene in the lives of the many characters in The Odyssey. Though Odysseus is a hero, the gods control his life. It is as if he were the main character in a video game and the gods are fighting over who controls his life. Personal responsibility is overshadowed by the gods’ eagerness to grab the controller.

In the Odyssey, the Gods play a big role as well as the figurative language in the story. Figurative language is one of the best way to solve one out of the many themes in any story. In the Odyssey, the theme that was picked out was in relation to the Gods, and was also do not put your faith in something you cannot see. In other words, Odysseus should have not put his faith in the Gods.

“In the Odyssey by homer it’s evident that the god and goddesses have an active role in the everyday life of the epic hero,Odysseus”. A person that has been helped by the gods in the odyssey is odysseus. Odysseus was helped by Aeolus,and Hermes, and the god that hindered him but helped him in the end was poseidon.

Finally, perhaps the most vital and well-known aspect of Greek culture is its religious beliefs and ideologies. Deeply pious in the gods, the Greeks believed the Zeus guarded the world with other Olympian gods, and these higher beings determined each individual’s future. Fate and destiny were believed in, and sacrifices were constantly committed in order to please the gods and gain their favor. Prayers to the gods for aid and help were common. Prophecies were numerous, although accurate ones were rare. And of course, the Greeks believed in the Underworld, a dreadful land with Hades as its ruler. “The Odyssey”, being in a Greek lifestyle, is naturally filled with references to these religious beliefs and thoughts. Odysseus and his companions often made sacrifices to the gods. He visits the Underworld to speak with the blind prophet Tiresias who accurately predicts Odysseus’s travels. Because of the prophet’s words, Odysseus is able to make his journey safely.

In the ancient Greek culture, religion was deeply intertwined with every aspect of life, thus meaning that the role of the divinities in human relationships was also integral. In the Homer’s epic, the gods’ authority is evident because when you make right choices and please the Gods, you and your family receives happiness, kindness, and protection but when you upset the Gods, they are willingly to punish you with no hesitation. The gods extremely impacted Odysseus’s trip back home both positively and negatively. His journey clearly demonstrates that the Ancient Greeks believed that the gods had control over everything.

The first role that the gods play in The Odyssey is the role of a puppeteer, controlling the actions of the mortals beneath them. Odysseus explicitly says “What of those year of rough adventure, weathered under Zeus?...” (Homer 9.27-28) when beginning to describe his journey to King Alcinous. Odysseus himself admits that his fate is not in his control. He knows that the journey is being altered by the gods, and he is merely a part of their show.

In the journey of the Odyssey, a Greek hero by the name of Odysseus, thinks that he can do anything and everything without the help of the Gods in his life. Odysseus, through his own person insight and challenges he was forced to face, learned very quickly he desperately needed the strong hands of the Gods! In his ten year journey to return home, he is helped by the Goddess Athena and befriended by Aeolus (keeper of the winds). On his journey, he had to deal with the angriest God of all, Poseidon, who would not allow him to reach the shore to his city. At the end of Odysseus’s journey, he finds humbleness and gets his life back!

Not anything like this event can be found in the Odyssey. The role of the Gods in the affairs of humanity is much greater in the Iliad then in the Odyssey. In the Iliad, the Olympians are continually interfering in the conflict between the Greeks and the Trojans. At best, they view mortals as hilarious pets to be cared for, played with, and loved. At worst, humans are just trade in to be dragging your feet around, sacrificed, and set against each other in order to resolve inter-Olympian ego-clashes.

Odysseus gains help from the goddess Athena through the epic, but she isn’t the only one that helped. Odysseus’s ship makes its way to Aeolus’s island, where he helps Odysseus by giving him a bag of winds. He is told by Aeolus not to open the bag of winds that he gives him, and he doesn’t. But his crew became envious and curious about what was inside the bag. So when Odysseus finally falls asleep, they manage to get the bag of winds and open it.

Homer’s gods are manifestations of the famous greek gods, and they all play a part in human affairs. The God’s base any decision they might have to make on personal feelings and preference. For instance, Athena’s interference with Odysseus’s plight. “But what about clever Odysseus? I am anxious about him, poor fellow, kept from his friends all this while, in trouble and sorrow, in that island covered with trees, and nothing but the waves all round it, in the very middle of the sea!” (page 12) Homer’s gods have human personalities and traits, and crave love, such as Calypso’s infatuation with Odysseus, and they feel anger, such as Poseidon’s anger toward Odysseus for blinding his cyclops son. They have preference of some mortals over others,

Though they may try to deny it, the gods in The Odyssey are solely responsible for the events that occur in the poem. It is shown multiple times throughout the poem that the gods guide the humans in their actions, even though the gods stress that humans are just as responsible for their fate. Though the gods try to claim that humans constantly make bad decisions, thus resulting in punishment from the gods, it’s fairly obvious that this is just an excuse- possibly to lessen the responsibility the gods feel towards the humans. Gods are shown as being omnipotent- they can transform into seemingly any living creature, give mortals disguises or limitless power, and even see into the future. The gods are able to see what will eventually happen to

Aside from Demodokos and Odysseus, the gods also help other characters reach greatness. In fact, the Muse does this to Homer, the author of the epic. At the beginning of the epic, Homer asks for the help of the Muse. He says, “ Sing in me, Muse, and through me tell the story” (Pg 1). This quote shows how Homer asks the Muse to give him a guiding hand when he says “ through me tell the story”.

The Odyssey by Homer is about the punishing journey Odysseus, king of Ithaca, goes through to get home after his displacement from the Trojan War. Odysseus is a man lost at sea trying to find his way home, yet at the same time, he is trying to prevent losing his kingdom to the treacherous suitors. Odysseus sails around Europe for years facing many physical and mental hardships along the way. With all the obstacles he faces from mortals and immortals, Odysseus manages to stay alive and regain his kingdom through his cunningness and self-control. Odysseus demonstrates honorary Greek characteristics throughout the play; therefore, he is the most deserving candidate to win “Honorary Greek God for a Day”

In “The Odyssey” by Homer the Greek gods and goddesses played significant roles to the reader to help them understand how the Greek’s beliefs through detailing scenes throughout the epic.  These gods played as an image of fear, direction, and support. These roles the gods and goddesses play all show the reader how the Greeks felt about their daily lives with the gods. The reader can tell the Greek people fear their gods because of how they treat strangers.