Odysseus Journey Home example essay topic

In Homer's The Odyssey, many happenings interfere with Odysseus' journey to return home to his wife, Penelope, and son, Telemachus. Self-determination is a strong characteristic that Odysseus portrays in The Odyssey. The three traits that Odysseus portrays as evidence of his self-determination are: endurance, perseverance, and courage. Odysseus, like most humans, has his doubts of confidence, but seems to overcome them. Out of this great tragedy, he has become a greater man to regain his kingdom and live a long life. He learns that without his determination he would have never returned to his home.

Nature played a key role in how the story played out. Nature can interfere and impede human progress but that nature cannot conquer mankind so long as men are willing to face hardship and accept the consequences of their struggle. After the Trojan War, Odysseus, the handsome, brave hero of The Odyssey makes the god of the sea, Poseidon, angry by claiming that he alone won the Trojan War. Poseidon vows he will make Odysseus' journey home tough. While on the island of the Cyclopes, they find an abandoned cave that is owned by the one-eyed Cyclops Polyphemus, the son of Poseidon. There they become trapped, Odysseus tells him his name is Nohbdy, and offers Polyphemus some wine so that he can become intoxicated.

Polyphemus becomes drunk, passes out, and Odysseus and his men devise a plan and attack him in his eye with a sharp, hot wooden pole. Polyphemus screams in pain and calls to his brothers telling them that, 'Nohbdy, Nohbdy tricked me, Nohbdy ruined me!" (312) As Odysseus and his men escape, Odysseus reveals his identity to Polyphemus. Polyphemus prays to Poseidon and tells him that Odysseus has blinded him. Infuriated by what he had heard, Poseidon uses his powers to make nature go against Odysseus and his men.

He creates treacherous waves, blinding fog, and opposing currents to keep Odysseus from reaching Ithaca. After leaving the Cyclopes' island, Odysseus and his men sail to Aeolia. This is the place where Aeolus, the god of the wind lives. He gives Odysseus a gift of stormy winds in a bag so they will be able to sail back to Ithaca. As they come upon Ithaca, the men become mutinous and open the bag. As the stormy winds were released, the men were blown astray and they ended up on the island of Aerea.

There they encounter Circe, who turns some of the men into pigs. She persuades Odysseus to stay with her for many seasons, and then sends him to the Land of the Dead to seek the wisdom of the blind prophet Tiresias. Tiresias tells Odysseus what his future beholds. He learns that in the underworld he must fend off the Sirens, Scylla a six-headed monster, and the maelstrom, Charybdis. Charybdis swallows the sea in a whirlpool, and then spits it all up again. Avoiding this Odysseus and crew skirted the cliff where Scylla exacts her toll.

Each of her six slivering maws grabbed a sailor and wolfed him down. Finally they were becalmed on the island of the Sun. Odysseus' men disregarded all warnings and sacrificed his cattle, so back at sea Zeus sent a thunderbolt that smashed the ship. Odysseus alone survived, washing up on the island of Calypso. Throughout the Odyssey, there a several examples of acts that arose from nature that Odysseus and his crew had to overcome. Some men did not survive, but Odysseus survived through all the tasks that were in his way.

He dealt with struggles that developed from nature and with his determination in tact he came up with ways to prevail over the obstacles. Without the determination of him, he would have never returned to Ithaca. He also never gave hope, even when ten years had passed. He just wanted to be reunited with his family so that he could start his life right where he had left it.