My Critical Analysis On Homer's "The Odyssey"

Introduction

 

"Odysseus and the Sirens" by Herbert James Draper

          The Odyssey is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is, in part, a sequel to the Iliad, the poem mainly focuses on the Greek hero Odysseus and his journey home after the fall of Troy. It takes Odysseus ten years to reach Ithaca after the ten-year Trojan War. In his absence, it is assumed that he has died, and his wife Penelope and son Telemachus must deal with a group of unruly suitors.  

The story uses in medias res or “into the middle things”. It opens in the midst of action. The story opens with Odysseus being held captive on Calypso’s Island. We then slowly find out about his journey and what happened before he was captured in the form of flashbacks.

The poem is well-written and excellent, just like Homer’s other work, The Iliad. I liked a lot of things in the story. I love the message of the story, the ending where Odysseus finally gets reunited with his wife and son, and Homer perfectly establishing the story’s time period. You can feel how difficult it was back then, not only in terms of technology, but also travelling, and the lack of communication with your loved ones when you are far away from home. Like Odysseus. He was assumed dead by his family when he was missing for 10 years. But aside from the difficulties the Greek faced back then; readers are also introduced to familiar things like gods and goddesses, thrones, castles, creatures, and exciting adventures that I think they will get fond of, especially readers who love the medieval period.

The only thing I do not like was the casual shift in the setting. The story starts out on Calypso’s island, and then Odysseus tells his captors about what happened before he ended up on the island. The setting then jumps from one place to another, and we get introduced to characters we are not familiar with. We get to learn more and bond with the character until something happens and Odysseus and his men are forced to leave. Some parts of the story might not be suitable for younger audiences. There is a lot of implied violence in the story. Sheep are slain and their blood is collected and placed in a cup. Odysseus and his men pierce the pointy end of a sharpened log through a Cyclops’ eye.  Odysseus’ men are turned into beasts. But if your child loves a good adventure story and does not mind the violence in it, then they will surely love this book. And remember that despite the hardships in life, you will be successful in the end. This is the message disclosed in the story “The Odyssey.”

Summary

This book is about Odysseus’ 10-year struggle to return home after the Trojan War. After the battle, an arrogant Odysseus angered the gods especially Poseidon as he thought of himself being unstoppable and not even the gods can stop him. They departed from Troy with their head and hearts painted with the images of their home, Ithaca.

Odysseus and his men first set foot on a bountiful island. The Land of the Cicoians. Odysseus instructed his men to take only what they need. The Cicoians, on the other hand, were not so happy with all the looting going on. So, they attacked the Greeks in their sleep. Those who survived including Odysseus hurried back to their ships.

After the scuffle at the Island of Ismarus, the Greeks saw another land. They were welcomed by hospitable women, even offering them lotus to eat. When the men tasted it however, they became high. They forgot everything they were thinking of, especially their mind set of going home. Odysseus and his band of misfits had to drag the men who ate the food offered, back to their ships.

From the land of the Lotus Eaters, Odysseus’ fleet found land again. They found a cave, and decided to stay there for the night. However, the cave was inhabited by a giant. A cyclops by the name of Polyphemus, son of Poseidon. This made the men cower, they thought of going out of the cave but Polyphemus blocked the cave with a boulder that only he can carry.

Odysseus, introducing himself to the giant as “no man”, courageously offered the cyclops wine. Polyphemus liked the taste of it and asked even more until he got drunk and fell asleep. While he was asleep, Odysseus ordered his men to help him sharpen a log. Once it was sharp enough, they pierced the pointy end through the cyclops’ eye. This made the giant cry in pain and push the boulder that was blocking the cave away so that he could seek help from his brothers. He called to his brothers and said, “No Man has harmed me”. They heard this and thought he was out of his mind. And Odysseus and his men successfully escape.

 

Odysseus and his men sailing away from Polyphemus(photo taken from Google Images)

As the ships sailed away, Odysseus shouted his real name to Polyphemus. Polyphemus then, called on to his father, Poseidon, and asked for help. Poseidon heard what Odysseus did to his son, so he throws a large boulder at Odysseus’ fleet which nearly sank his ship. He also sent huge waves just to make Odysseus’ journey more difficult and to express his wrath for what they did to Polyphemus.

From the island of the cyclops, they reached Aeolia, the land of King Aeolus. King Aeolus is the keeper of the winds. When Odysseus came to ask for his help, he gladly summoned all the troublesome winds into a leather bag. He instructed Odysseus to never open it unless they’ve reached Ithaca. While sailing for Ithaca, Odysseus’ men thought the leather bag was full of treasures. When Odysseus fell asleep, they opened the bag releasing all the winds which caused a tumultuous weather and they were drifted far away from Ithaca. They came back to King Aeolus to ask the same favor but the king refused.

They reached the country of the Laestrygonians, ruled by Antiphates. The Laestrygons were giants and cannibals. Odysseus’ men were devoured as soon as they’ve docked. Odysseus ordered his men to turn his ship away from the island. Only Odysseus’ ship was saved as his fleet was lost.

When Odysseus and his crew reached Aeaea, he asked his men to scout the area. Moments later, Eurylochus came back in a hurry as he thought he’d seen a ghost. He said his comrades were turned into swine by an enchantress. Little did they know that it was the land of Circe, a witch who turns men into beasts, Odysseus was determined to rescue his men, so he set on to trek the steep mountains. On his way, up he met Hermes. He warned him about Circe’s enchantment. He told Odysseus to eat molly, a poisonous herb, to counter the enchantment. Odysseus did as he was told. He drank wine from the cup Circe prepared for him. When he didn’t turn into an animal, Circe fell on her knees and begged him to stay if he wants to see his men again. He agreed. Circe did her end of the bargain turning Odysseus’ men back to their true form. They feasted, drank, danced and forgot how long they’ve stayed. When Odysseus realized they’ve been doing nothing but be drunk, he bade Circe goodbye and readied his men to leave but she insisted they should stay. Odysseus was persistent, so with a heavy heart, she gave them instructions to go to the underworld to search for Prophet Teiresias.

Odysseus followed Circe’s instructions as to how to get to the underworld. When they reached the portal, Odysseus slew a sheep and put its blood in a cup. As he walked into the fiery and dark place of Hades he met souls of the fallen warriors of the Trojan War. He also met his mother, Anticleia, who told him that his wife, Penelope, had remained faithful to him but suitors came flocking his palace. Odysseus was disheartened with the truth that her mother died in grief for the long wait of his homecoming. Odysseus went on and saw Teiresias, who drank the sheep’s blood he brought. The prophet foretold that he shall come home in due time and that he shall never harm the oxen of the sun.

They passed through the island of the Sirens, whom Circe warned them about. She told them to cover their ears with beeswax in order not to hear the sirens’ melodious voice, which was believed to be fatal. They lived in a meadow surrounded with bones and decaying human bodies. However, Odysseus wanted to hear what the Sirens’ songs are about. He told his men to tie him tightly into the ships’ mast. When he heard the song, he had the urge to jump off the ship and be with the sirens but he was tightly tied.

They have passed the isle of the Sirens safely but they must be cautious when they get to the passage between Scylla and Charybdis. Scylla, the twelve-footed monster, devoured six of Odysseus’ men. They were so focused on watching out for Scylla that they forgot Charybdis, the whirlpool, which tends to suck ships into the depths of the seas. However they were lucky to have escaped the pangs of Charybdis and went on journey the vastness of uncertainty.

They reached the island of the Sun. Odysseus very well recalled the warning of Teiresias not to harm the oxen. He ordered his men never to touch any of the oxen while he was away to pray. At first, the men were determined to follow their master’s order but the longer they stayed the hungrier they became. So they slaughtered an ox to satiate their hunger. Helios, the Sun god, was angered at this blasphemy, so he asked Zeus to punish Odysseus. Zeus sent a lightning bolt which hit Odysseus’ ship which hurriedly left the island. Only Odysseus survived in the unforeseen circumstance.

Odysseus, dehydrated and unconscious, drifted in the land of the nymph, Calypso. Only women dwelt in the island and Odysseus is the first man they’ve ever seen in over a hundred years. Calypso took care of Odysseus for seven years but Odysseus never really loved her back. His thoughts were of his wife, Penelope. Odysseus spends most of his time by the shore wondering how he could and when he could ever get to see his home, his wife and son. The gods took pity on him. Zeus called a gathering of the gods; all came except Poseidon. Zeus ordered that Odysseus must be sent back home and he asked Hermes to deliver the message to Calypso. Calypso then commanded her maidens to build Odysseus a raft and gave him provisions. When the raft was ready, Odysseus sets sail.

Odysseus’ voyage away from Ogygia started with a fine weather not until Poseidon decided to send him waves which destroyed his raft and everything in it. Odysseus again, shipwrecked, was washed out to the land of the Phaeacians, ruled by King Alcinous and Queen Acrete. There he met Nausicaa, the princess, who gave him instructions as to how to get to the palace and that he should find the queen, her mother, first.    It was in Phaeacia that Odysseus retold his adventures. The king, with the queen’s advice, agreed to help Odysseus to get home. He ordered his subordinates to prepare a ship to send him to Ithaca.

Odysseus, at long last, came home to Ithaca. He went straight to Eumaeus’ house as he was warned by Athena about his wife’s suitors. Eumaeus, Odysseus’ ever loyal swineherd, introduced him Telemachus, Odysseus’ son. Odysseus devised a plan on how to enter the palace without being noticed. So he disguised as a beggar.

          Meanwhile in the Palace, Penelope hosted a contest; to string the bow of Odysseus and successfully shoot through 12 axe handles. Whoever wins will be her husband but Penelope knows no one is up to the task because only Odysseus and Odysseus alone can string the bow and shoot through 12 rings of axe handles.

Odysseus killing the suitors(photo taken from Google Images)

          All the suitors tried in vain. So the beggar (Odysseus) tried to string the bow. At first, they laughed at him, but when successfully did the task, they were all terrified. The tension heightened when the beggar transformed into Odysseus himself. After shooting the arrow through 12 axe handles, he shot at the suitors and killed them all.

          So ends Odysseus’ 10-year long journey home. Odysseus, Penelope and Telemachus finally lived as a family again.

Summary Source: www.jeanillec.blogspot.com

Map of Odysseus' journey throughout "The Odyssey"(photo taken from Google Images)

          Like what I said on my introduction. The setting shifts from one place to another. In chronological order, they first start out on the city of Troy. Just after the end of the Trojan War. Then they set sail for Ithaca. Then they arrive on:

·         Island of Ismarus

          The land of the Cicoians. Who were a Homeric Thracian tribe. They were not happy with all the looting going on by Odysseus and his men, so they attacked the Greeks in their sleep.

·         Land of the Lotus-Eaters

The Lotus-eaters, were a race of people living on an island dominated by lotus plants. They offered Odysseus and his men lotus. Only to find out that the food on the island were narcotic, causing the people to sleep in peaceful apathy.

·         Land of the Cyclops

The land of the Cyclops. Odysseus and his men decided to stay in a cave for a night. They then meet Polyphemus, a cyclop, and Poseidon’s son. Odysseus stabs Polyphemus’ eye with a sharpened log to escape the giant.

·         Aeolia

An island floating above the sea with a steep cliff of bronze with a palace on top of it. This is the home of Aeolus, god of wind. Odysseus tells Aeolus and his children his stories of Troy and his travels homeward. After a month, Odysseus decided it was time to continue his journey. Aeolus thanked him and gifted him with a bag. In the bag, he had bound up all the winds but the kind and gentle west wind, in order to help Odysseus in his travels. Thinking it was treasure inside, Odysseus’ men open the bag, letting the harsh winds loose and carries them to unknown seas.

·         Laestrygons

The Laestrygonians were a tribe of man-eating giants encountered by Odysseus on his travels. Odysseus’ men were devoured as soon as they arrived.  Odysseus lost his fleet and only his ship was saved.

·         Aeaea

Aeaea was a mythological island said to be home of the sorceress Circe. Circe turned Odysseus’ men into horrific beasts. He asked Odysseus to stay on the island if he wants to see his men again.

·         Underworld

In order to complete his quest home, Odysseus explains that he must enter the underworld at the advice of Circe to speak to the wise man Teiresias. Here he meets the spirits of the dead, notably his mother, Agamemnon, Achilles, and Ajax. Odysseus kills a sheep and put its blood in a cup. Teiresias then drank the sheep’s blood. The prophet foretold that he shall come home in due time and he shall never harm the oxen of the sun.

·         Island of the Sirens

Odysseus was curious as to what the Sirens sang to him, and so, on the advice of Circe, he had all of his sailors plug their ears with beeswax and tie him to the mast. He ordered his men to leave him tied tightly to the mast, no matter how much he would beg.

·         Passage between Scylla and Charybdis

Scylla and Charybdis were mythical sea monsters noted by Homer; Greek mythology sited them on opposite sides of the Strait of Messina. Scylla, the twelve-footed monster, and Charybdis, the whirlpool, caused damaged to Odysseus’ troops and his ship. However, they were lucky to have escaped the pangs of Charybdis.

·         Thrinacia the Island of the Sun

Thrinacia, is the island home of Helios’ cattle. Odysseus and his crew arrive at Thrinacia after passing Scylla and Charybdis. Odysseus has been warned by both Circe and Tereisias to avoid Thrinacia and not to touch the cattle on the island. When Odysseus goes to pray for a safe return to Ithaca, his crew, fearing starvation, slaughter and eat some of Helios’ cattle. In punishment, when they finally set sail away from the island, Helios successfully pleads to Zeus to send a thunderbolt at their ship.

·         Ogygia

The home of the nymph Calypso. Calypso detained Odysseus on Ogygia for 7 years and kept him from returning to his home of Ithaca. Zeus sent Hermes to Ogygia to order Calypso to release Odysseus. Calypso was hesitant. She commanded her maidens to build Odysseus a raft and give him provisions. When the raft was ready, Odysseus set sail.

·         Phaeacia

Phaeacia was a region in Greek mythology. The home of the Phaeacians and the last destination of Odysseus in his 10-year long journey before returning home to Ithaca. Ruled by King Alcinous and Queen Acrete. There he met Nausicaa, the princess, who gave him instructions as to how to get to the palace and that he should find the queen. It was in Phaeacia that Odysseus retold his adventures. The king, with the queen’s advice, agreed to help Odysseus to get home. He ordered his subordinates to prepare a ship to send him to Ithaca.

          How about the Themes?

·         “Homecoming unites the past and the present.”

An important factor to consider about Odysseus’ homecoming is the hint at the potential endings to the epic by using other characters as parallels for his journey. For instance, one example is that of Agamemnon’s homecoming versus Odysseus' homecoming. Upon Agamemnon’s return, his wife, Clytemnestra, and her lover, Aegisthus, killed Agamemnon. Agamemnon’s son, Orestes, out of vengeance for his father’s death, kills Aegisthus. This parallel compares the death of the suitors to the death of Aegisthus and sets Orestes up as an example for Telemachus. Also, because Odysseus knows about Clytemnestra’s betrayal, Odysseus returns home in disguise in order to test the loyalty of his own wife, Penelope. Later, Agamemnon praises Penelope for not killing Odysseus. It is because of Penelope that Odysseus has fame and a successful homecoming. This successful homecoming is unlike Achilles, who has fame but is dead, and Agamemnon, who had an unsuccessful homecoming resulting in his death

·         “Not all those who wander are lost”

Only two of Odysseus’ adventures are described by the poet. The rest of Odysseus’ adventures are recounted by Odysseus himself. The two scenes that the poet describes are Odysseus on Calypso’s island and Odysseus’ encounter with the Phaeacians. These scenes are told by the poet to represent an important transition in Odysseus’ journey: being concealed to returning home. Calypso’s name means “concealer” or “one who conceals,” and that is exactly what she does with Odysseus. Calypso keeps Odysseus concealed from the world and unable to return home. After leaving Calypso’s island, the poet describes Odysseus’ encounters with the Phaeacians—those who “convoy without hurt to all men”---which represents his transition from not returning home to returning home. Also, during Odysseus’ journey, he encounters many god-like or beings that are close to the gods. These encounters are useful in understanding that Odysseus is in a world beyond man and that influences the fact he cannot return home. These beings that are close to the gods include the Phaeacians who lived near Cyclopes, whose king, Alcinous, is the great-grandson of the king of the giants, Eurymedon, and the grandson of Poseidon. Some of the other characters that Odysseus encounters are Polyphemus who is the cyclops son of Poseidon, Circe who is the sorceress daughter of the Sun that turns men into animals, Calypso who is a goddess, and the Laestrygonians who are cannibalistic giants.

·         “Hospitality is making your guests feel at home”

Throughout the course of the epic, Odysseus encounters several examples of guest-friendship which provide examples of how hosts should and should not act. One example of good guest-friendship is that of the Phaeacians. The Phaeacians feed Odysseus, give him a place to sleep, and give him a safe voyage home, which are all things a good host should do. He also encounters some bad hosts. For instance, the cyclops’ “gift” to Odysseus was that he would eat him last. He was not a very good host. Another host that was not well versed in guest-friendship was Calypso, who did not allow Odysseus to leave her island. Another important factor to guest-friendship is that kingship implies generosity. It is assumed that a king has the means to be a generous host and is more generous with his own property. This is best seen when Odysseus, disguised as a beggar, begs Antinous, one of the suitors, for food and Antinous denies his request. Odysseus essentially says that while Antinous may look like a king, he is far from a king since he is not generous.

·         “Testing shows the presence, not the absence of bugs.”

Another theme throughout the Odyssey is testing. This occurs in two distinct ways. Odysseus tests the loyalty of others and others test Odysseus’ identity. An example of Odysseus testing the loyalties of others is when he returns home. Instead of immediately revealing his identity, he arrives disguised as a beggar and then proceeds to determine who in his house has remained loyal to him and who has helped the suitors. After Odysseus reveals his true identity,, the characters test Odysseus’ identity to see if he really is who he says he is. For instance, Penelope tests Odysseus’ identity by saying that she will move the bed into the other room for him. this is a difficult task since it is made out of a living tree that would require being cut down, a fact that only the real Odysseus would know, thus proving his identity.

·         “Omens are everywhere in this world, you just have to find the one that fits”

Omens occur frequently throughout the Odyssey, as well as many other epics. Within the Odyssey, omens frequently involve birds. It is important to note who receives the omens and what these omens mean to the characters to the epic as a whole. For instance, bird omens are shown to Telemachus, Penelope, Odysseus, and the suitors. Telemachus and Penelope receive their omens as well in the form of words, sneezes, and dreams. However, Odysseus is the only character that receives thunder or lightning as an omen. This is important to note because the thunder came from Zeus, the king of the gods. This direct relationship between Zeus and Odysseus represents the kingship of Odysseus.

Analysis

The Odyssey is another well-written, breathtaking epic attributed to Homer. It follows Odysseus and his 10-year long journey back to his home, Ithaca, after the Trojan War.

          Odysseus, also known by the Latin name Ulysses. Was a legendary Greek king of Ithaca and the hero of the epic poem. Odysseus also played a key in Homer’s Iliad as he was the one who thought of building the iconic Trojan Horse.  He was also one of the men who hid in the belly of the horse and infiltrated the city of Troy. He was the husband of Penelope, father of Telemachus, and son of Laertes and Anticlea. Odysseus is renowned for his brilliance, guile, and versatility and is hence known by the title: Odysseus the Cunning. And that is why Odysseus is my favorite character in both of Homer’s work.

          I love the medieval period. I love the idea of kings and queens, castles, thrones, knights, squires, and an epic adventure story to top it off. So you are probably guessing that I also loved this epic poem. Yes I did! I love the world Homer created in his poem. Like J.R.R Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” and George R.R Martin’s “A Song of Ice and Fire” it establishes a fictional world with iconic locations. Lord of the Rings has “Mordor” and “The Shire”. A Song of Ice and Fire has “Winterfell” and “King’s Landing” as examples of iconic locations in books. Homer’s The Odyssey has the floating island of Aeolia, and Phaeacia. Though some of the locations in the poem are actually real like Odysseus’ hometown Ithaca which is located in the Ionian Sea, off the northeast coast of Kefalonia and to the west of continental Greece.

          I also loved the creatures and characters Homer mentioned, like the cyclops, sirens, Scylla and Charybdis. And I also love how we get to bond with the characters on every island Odysseus and his men set foot on. The Odyssey blurs the line between good and evil. You really don’t know if you’re rooting for the good guys or the bad guys. And that is a good thing, since stories with typical good guys and bad guys are getting too old in my opinion. The part when they were on the Island of the Sun God, Teiresias warned Odysseus and his men not to harm the cattle living on the island. But Odysseus’ men slaughtered some and ate them anyway as they were starving.

The plot reminds me of Christopher Nolan’s “Interstellar” (2014). Cooper, an experienced pilot, leaves his daughter to embark on a journey to enter a wormhole in space to find a new planet for the people to live in as Earth is already dying. The time in space is slower than on Earth. So for each hour they spend on one planet, it’s already seven years on Earth. They face a lot of difficulties and get stuck in space and Cooper’s family assumed that he is dead. And it takes him a couple of years to get back to Earth. Once he gets back, his daughter has already aged while Cooper is still young due to the black hole he entered. Just like Odysseus and his crew, they faced a lot of difficulties going back to Ithaca and it took them 10 years to reach their destination, with their families assuming that they were dead. When Odysseus reached Ithaca, Telemachus, his son, is already 20 years old.

I really like the message of the story. It is very simple and Homer states it well. “If you feel like giving up, just look back on how far you are already”. Just like Odysseus and all the hardships he’s been through trying to go back to his home, he never gave up. He kept on trying to get back to his family. Each struggle made him closer to his goal. He wanted to see his family again, and he wanted to be out of the seas and back to his comfortable bed in Ithaca. 

Overall, the pacing of the story is excellent, the plot does not move too fast or slow. Though it might be confusing to some because the narrative is told out of chronological order. Like what I noted on my introduction. The story starts out in the middle of things. And what happened before all that slowly gets explained through flashbacks and stories. The characters are great, locations are great. If you love a good adventure story, an exciting buildup, and an emotional ending. Then you will surely love Homer’s The Odyssey.

Conclusion

The Odyssey isn’t just an important book for students of literature and students of Greek History and culture. It’s also a book for kids to enjoy, as they are fascinated by Greek tales of gods, monsters, and heroes. The tone of the story is heroic yet very dark, and the violence is just mild and tolerable for kids, so parents don’t need to worry in picking this book up if your child really wants to read it.

Homer’s choice of opening the story in the middle of things was excellent, as it was just like a puzzle that people had to solve. And it’s amazing to see how the story shapes up afterwards. You’ll really get this expression on your face that says “Oh, so that’s what happened.”

I highly recommend this book to those who love the medieval period and to those who just wants to read an epic adventure story. It is a great book, and like I said, it’s not only for the high school students studying Greek History, but it’s for everyone else who loves a great story.

In the end, The Odyssey is an intense, exciting, breathtaking adventure story by Homer, which ends up as one of my favorite poems of all time. The characters are well-written, the world that Homer creates in the poem is outstanding, and the message is clear and simple. And that’s what makes this classic poem one of the best. And Homer shows the people that even in an age where technology has not improved yet; you can still create a wonderful story with just your mind and imagination.