Odysseus Home example essay topic

The Women of The Odyssey In Homer's The Odyssey, the hero Odysseus has several different relationships with female figures who aid, blackmail, love, kidnap, seduce, or tempt him. Odysseus basically either loves these women, or he has mixed emotions about them. Among his loves are Penelope and Athena. He likes the Princess Nausicaa, but has mixed love / hate emotions for the goddesses Kalypso, Kirke, and the Sirens.

Even though it has been about twenty years since Odysseus has seen his wife, Penelope, he still loves her very much. He is thinking of her constantly while a prisoner on Kalypso's island as "he sat on the rocky shore and broke his own heart groaning" and crying for the wife he left at home. (page 85, lines 164-165) Likewise, Penelope loves and misses Odysseus every day and night. She is the faithful wife, waiting at home, mourning his absence, and feeling very lonely. Book I A Goddess Intervenes Homer (the author of The Odyssey) begins the story by asking the Muse to help him tell it well.

He describes a man who is very strong and brave, but who is away from his home too long. Homer tells us that this man is held captive by the sea witch Kalypso. Homer tells us that even when this man (Odysseus) returns home, he will still have troubles. Poseidon is the one god who has made Odysseus' journey home very difficult. While Poseidon is off observing a sacrificial ceremony in his honor, Zeus, Athena, and the other gods of Olympus, discuss the situation. Zeus says that he thinks mortals should listen to the advice of the gods more carefully.

He uses as an example the advice Hermes gave to Aigisthos. Aigisthos had an affair with the queen of Agamemnon while Agamemnon was away fighting the Trojan War. When Agamemnon returned and found his wife with Aigisthos, Aigisthos killed Agamemnon. Then, Agamemnon's son (named Orestes) killed Aigisthos.

Hermes had warned Aigisthos that he should leave the queen alone and not kill anyone, but he did not listen, and now he is dead. Athena replies to Zeus that the story of Agamemnon is interesting, but she is interested more in the story of another mortal, Odysseus. She asks Zeus' permission to go to Earth and help Odysseus get back to his home. Zeus agrees, and Athena flies down, over the sea to Odysseus' home, Ithaka. When she arrives, she finds Odysseus's on, Telemakhos, daydreaming while the suitors take advantage of his home. She disguises herself as an older gentleman named Mentes and goes to speak with Telemakhos.

She finds out that the suitors are there in hopes that Telemakhos' mother, Penelope, will marry one of them. Penelope, however, has no intentions of marrying. She still loves her missing husband, Odysseus, very much. Athena, disguised as Mentes, gives Telemakhos some advice.

She tells him to hold a meeting of all the people of Ithaka in the morning. She tells him to get a ship and go look for information about his father, Odysseus. After Athena leaves, Telemakhos feels that he has been visited by a god. A minstrel begins to sing a song about warriors returning home after a war, and Penelope hears the song. She is reminded of Odysseus, becomes very sad, and comes downstairs to ask the minstrel to stop singing. Telemakhos tells her that she needs to try to be brave.

She goes upstairs, and the suitors begin talking about her. Telemakhos is angered and tells them to stop shouting and to get out of his house. Antinoos, one of the suitors, mocks Telemakhos. Another suitor asks Telemakhos who his guest was, and Telemakhos tells them about Mentes. The suitors party until nightfall, then go home to bed. Likewise, Telemakhos goes up to bed.

His nurse, Eurykleia, still "tucks him in". Telemakhos does not sleep well because he is thinking about the meeting and his journey planned for the next day. Book II A Hero's Son Awakens Telemakhos wakes at sunrise, gets dressed, tells the criers to announce his meeting, and goes to the meeting place. Many people are gathered, and an old man who has four sons begins the meeting.

He says that whoever called the meeting is very brave and must have something important to discuss. Telemakhos gets up to speak, feeling very strong and proud. He asks the people of Ithaka to support him in telling the suitors to leave his home. As he speaks, he gets angry. He throws down a staff with angry tears in his eyes. Everyone is quiet except for Antinoos, who mocks Telemakhos once again.

He says that it is not the fault of the suitors that they are staying in Odysseus' home, but that it is Penelope's fault. Antinoos says that she is leading them on, being a flirt, and tricking them. Penelope did, in fact, trick the suitors, but only because she wanted some peace from them. She was weaving a burial shroud for her father-in-law, Laertes, since he was getting very old and sick. She told the suitors that she would choose one of them as a husband when she was done weaving the shroud. So, at night, she would un-weave what she had woven during the day.

The suitors took this as "playing hard to get" when really she just didn't know what else to do. Antinoos gives Telemakhos two choices. He says, "Either kick your mother out of the house or force her to marry one of us". Telemakhos says that he cannot do either. Both are wrong and evil, but he adds that he wished Zeus would punish the suitors for what they are doing to his family.

At that moment, Zeus hears Telemakhos and sends two eagles flying down into the crowd. They attack and tear the skin of people at the meeting. An old man says that it is a sign that Odysseus is returning soon. One of the suitors says that the old man doesn't know what he is talking about, Odysseus is dead, and Telemakhos should arrange a wedding for his mother.

Telemakhos says that he is tired of arguing, and he is going to go look for news of his father. A good friend of Odysseus', Mentor, then stands up to speak. He reminds the suitors that Odysseus was a very good king to them and that they are being very disrespectful in their actions. Mentor says that it sickens him to see the whole community sitting by and watching this evil bunch of men. Another man says that even if Odysseus did return, he could not fight all the suitors alone.

Then, the meeting breaks up and everyone goes home. Telemakhos goes to the beach and prays out to the sea, asking Athena for advice. Athena appears to him, disguised as Mentor. She tells Telemakhos that he doesn't need to worry.

He is a good young man with good parents and good intentions. She tells him that she will find a ship and crew for him. Athena, disguised as Mentor, also tells Telemakhos that the suitors will get what they deserve in the end. She tells him to go home and prepare for his journey.

Telemakhos goes home, and Antinoos is there with the other suitors, having a feast. Antinoos mockingly invites Telemakhos to join them, but Telemakhos refuses. As he walks through the house, the suitors shout at him, but he goes to get supplies ready. He tells his nurse, Eurykleia, that he is going to Pylos, but he warns her not to tell Penelope.

He does not want his mother to worry any more than she already does. Meanwhile, Athena disguises herself as Telemakhos and gets a ship and crew ready to sail. A man named Noe mon lends her a ship. She then goes to Odysseus' house and puts a spell on the suitors so that they are too tired to stay and go home. Then, disguised again as Mentor, Athena goes to Telemakhos and tells him all is ready. He and Athena / Mentor board the ship, and they all sail off to Pylos.

Book The Lord of the Western Approaches The ship arrives at Pylos at dawn, just as the people of Pylos are sacrificing bulls to Poseidon in hopes of stopping the earthquakes they have been experiencing. Telemakhos is nervous about asking the king of Pylos, Nestor, about Odysseus, but Athena / Mentor tells him not to worry. The king and his sons welcome Telemakhos and his friend. The prince Peisistratos asks Athena / Mentor to help them pray, and she does. Telemakhos then introduces himself and tells Nestor why he is there. Nestor says that he remembers the war well.

He lost a son in the war and many others died, but he misses Odysseus also. He says that Odysseus was very skilled at the strategies of war. Nestor tells Telemakhos about the last time he saw Odysseus. He says that at the end of the war, the commanders were arguing and the troops got split up. He sailed home right away, but Odysseus did not. Nestor then asks about the suitors he has heard rumors about and tells Telemakhos that he can avenge his father just as Orestes avenged his father, Agamemnon.

Telemakhos is curious about what happened to Agamemnon and Nestor tells him the whole story. He then tells Telemakhos to go to Lake daimon to talk to King Menelaus. Athena stops him and says it is getting late, they should eat and get to bed. They eat and Nestor invites the visitors to stay the night, but Athena says she must go back to the ship. She is the oldest and has to keep the spirits of the crew up. When she leaves, she disappears, and they all realize that Mentor was a god in disguise.

In the morning, they pray and sacrifice a cow. Nestor and his family are very helpful in preparing Telemakhos for.