The epic poem called The Odyssey by Homer is about Odysseus and is men's journey home from the Trojan War. Odysseus and his men experience many obstacles throughout the story, and we are able to see this. He and his men are faced with whirlpools, six headed monsters, and sirens throughout the story. Odysseus had a strong army with him but their disobedience gets them into trouble on their journey home to Ithaca. Odysseus and his men got the Greek gods angry on their trip home by hurting Poseidon's son the Cyclops, and by eating Helio's cattle. During The Odyssey Odysseus and his men jabbed the Cyclops's eye out with an olive branch because they need to escape from the cave the Cyclops, Polyphemus, locked them in. Once Odysseus and his men got out the cave Odysseus found out that Poseidon was Polyphemus's father, and to eventually be lead on a deadly journey by Poseidon as a punishment for what they have done. In the …show more content…
Helios told Odysseus and his men not to eat the cattle, but while they were there Eurlochos convinced all of Odysseus’s men to eat some of Helios’s cattle. Helios got angry at Odysseus and his men, so he prayed to Zeus for terrible thing to happen to them. Zeus returned Helios’s prayer, and threw a lightning bolt to destroy Odysseus’s ship. In the story Odysseus says “…then savory odors of burnt fat eddied around me; grief took hold of me...[Helios] ‘O father Zeus and gods in bliss forever, punish Odysseus’ men!...[Zeus] let me throw down a white-hot bolt, and make splinters of their ship in the winedark sea” (Homer, lines: 896-915). This shows that Odysseus and his men disobeyed a god so they would have to suffer the loss of their ship. If Odysseus’ men had not ate the cattle it would not of lead to the destruction of their ship, but because of their disobedience they had to suffer the
In The Odyssey- Part II, Odysseus with the help of his son and loyal servants. They slaughtered all the suitors and maids for the following: they tried to take advantage of his goods, they tried to marry his wife continuously, and destroyed his house. The slaughter of many of the suitors may have been brutal, but it was necessary.
Even though Odysseus listens and does not eat the cattle, his men do. This angers Helios and he punishes Odysseus for it. Helios is angry, and yells at Zeus to punish them. Odysseus tries to do the right thing this time, yet his men cannot obey his orders.
Having confidence and using your smarts can take you a long way. Having courage and wanting something so bad can almost guarantee a person success. In the Odyssey, Homer uses external conflicts to portray Odysseus a determined, fearless, and intelligent character.
In Homer’s notable epic, The Odyssey, Odysseus, gifted with incredible physical strength and power, is traveling back home to the island of Ithaca. Over the course of his decade long journey across boundless and precarious waters, he learns that though, physically strong, he must use his mind and not rely solely on his physical attributes. He opposes many obstacles that he must overcome, the most important obstacle being temptation. His journey back to Ithaca is riddled with temptation that will test his physical, emotional, and mental capabilities. Through this journey he learns to overcome these weaknesses and temptations to make it home.
With all their food gone, the cows in the distance are beginning to look really tasty. When Odysseus left his men to pray, honestly, not the best idea, his men kill and eat a cow. This angers Helios and Odysseus’ ship ends up being struck by lightning, killing all of his men except for himself. Odysseus possibly should have thought a little bit more about what the gods would think before
Veterans from war fight long and hard to protect and serve our country. When they return home, some soldiers have a difficult time adjusting back to a civilian life. In The Odyssey by Homer, a young man named Odysseus and his men leave for the Trojan war and face many obstacles on their journey back to Ithaca. The journey lasts twenty years and results in the deaths of many of Odysseus’ men. However, when they return home from their journey, Odysseus struggles to return to the life he had twenty years ago.
We know that Odysseus has had problems with the god of the sea Poseidon, as with his son the Cyclops. When Polyphemus eats two of Odysseus’s men, “He knocked them dead like pups.” (Page 220, Homer) the crew knows that he is trouble. Odysseus gets the giant drunk, and when the cyclops asks Odysseus what his name is, he says that he is “Nobody”. The men shove a sharpened stick into the Cyclops’s lone eye and escape. This Cyclops, being Poseidon’s son, was not someone that Odysseus should have crossed. We also see Athena, daughter of Zeus, take pity on Odysseus, and helps him and Telemachus many times, though disguising herself as mentor when talking to
After being stranded and half-starved on the island for a month, Odysseus and his men refrain from eating the cattle. However, Eurylochus, convinces the crew, “‘all deaths are hateful to miserable mortals, but the most pitiable death of all is to starve. Come along, let us drive off the best of these cattle’” (157). Since Eurylochus and the rest of the crew killed and ate the cattle, “Zeus at the same time thundered and struck [the] ship with his bolt,” killing them all, except Odysseus (159).
Helios is the sun god and has an island full of cattle that he is extremely protective of and does not want his cattle harmed. Odysseus’ men eat his cattle after they had been warned not to and Helios becomes enraged. He forces Zeus to destroy Odysseus’ ship and kill all his men along with it, leaving Odysseus stranded at sea. The anger Helios has can be observed in this quote when he yells ¨And the Lord Helios burst into angry speech amid the immortals: O Father Zeus and gods in bliss, forever punish Odysseus’ men!”(Homer, 1013) Odysseus also speaks of Helios and his intense love for his cattle when he says ¨Fierce the god is who cherishes these heifers and these sheep: Helios;¨ (Homer, 1011)
“Cyclops- if any man on the face of the Earth should ask you who blinded you, shamed you so- say Odysseus, raider of cities, he gouged out your eye, Laertes’ son who makes his home in Ithaca!” (Homer, 227). This act puts him and his crew in danger because the Cyclops is the son of the god Poseidon. Polyphemus then offers a prayer to his father to take revenge on Odysseus. “Hear me, Poseidon who circle the earth, dark-haired. If truly I am your son, and you acknowledge
The epic poem The Odyssey, written by Homer, centers around the main protagonist Odysseus and his long journey back home. Odysseus, the king of Ithaca, returns home after defeating the Trojans in a ten year war. On his way back, he angers Poseidon, god of the sea, by blinding his son, Polyphemus the Cyclops. Due to Odysseus’ actions, Poseidon refuses to let Odysseus reach home, and Odysseus and his crew are forced to go through a series of obstacles throughout the epic. Through this adversity, Odysseus must show his heroic attributions in order to survive. Homer portrays Odysseus as a hero by giving him characteristics such as: craftiness, loyalty, and bravery.
Again, the gods’ warned of revenge if Odysseus’ men did not obey them in not eating the cattle. Yet, while Odysseus was sleeping, Eurylochus convinced Odysseus’ men to eat the cattle (Homer 408). When the Sun god Helios found that Odysseus’ men had slaughtered his cattle, he rallied to the gods to strike revenge on them. Helios sought out revenge by asking Zeus, “’Father Zeus! The rest of you blissful gods who never die-punish them all, that crew of Laertes’ son Odysseus…’”(Homer 409). Zeus responded with vengeance by striking Odysseus’ boat with a lightening bolt and killing his men (Homer 410). By Zeus striking Odysseus’ boat with a lightening bolt and killing his men, the reader is definitely aware of the severity of revenge associated with disobeying a god; especially the most powerful of all gods. This severity greatly shows the important role that revenge plays in the poem and the affect revenge has on Odysseus.
In The Odyssey, the Greek hero Odysseus must make it back to his home in Ithaca after the battle of Troy. Along his journey, he encounters obstacles that require the upmost perseverance and willpower to survive. Some of these obstacles include a giant cyclops who wants to eat him, lotus-eating peoples that drug his crew, violent storms that
So when the Cicones gather an army from inland to ward off the Greek invaders, Odysseus loses many men and rather than acknowledge his error in judgment, he shifts the blame of the defeat to his crew. Convincing himself that he is not at fault for having been defeated, but rather his selfish crew who refused to leave, he justifies his actions, “Then I urged them to cut and run, set sail, but would they listen? Not those mutinous; there was too much wine to swill, too many sheep to slaughter”(9.50-52). Odysseus knows that if he stays on the island, the Cicones will rally an army and come to kill Odysseus and his men. Despite this, he stays and reassures himself that the major defeat was by Zeus’ hand, “Zeus presented us with disaster us, me and my comrades doomed to suffer”(9.61-62). Homer teaches us that no matter how many great accolades one holds, they are destined to fail if they cannot own up to their mistakes and actions.
Poseidon, god of the sea, believes Odysseus should suffer throughout his journey because of his hubris, also known as, excessive pride. In the beginning of The Odyssey, Odysseus claims he conquers Troy by himself and he does not need the gods anymore. This makes Poseidon furious, knowing he is the one who answers Odysseus’ request for help during the Trojan War. He curses Odysseus, letting him know he is nothing without the gods. In “The Cyclops” episode, Polyphemus cries to Poseidon, “ ‘O hear me, lord … grant that Odysseus, raider of cities,