-
The Odyssey
The goddess Athena implores her husband Zeus, king of all the gods, to help Odysseus find his way home. Athena is the protector of Odysseus, and it pains her greatly to see her chosen hero so sad...
-
The Odyssey
That's a tall order. How about we just focus on the two central male and female characters, Penelope and Odysseus? Penelope is fiercly loyal to her long-absent husband. Despite the pressure from...
-
The Odyssey
Homer's Odyssey contains a number of stories that appear within the larger framework of this epic poem. Early in Odyssey 1, when Zeus and Athena are discussing Odysseus' situation, they also recall...
-
The Odyssey
In the encounter with the Cyclops who claimed to be the son of Poseidon, Odysseus shows his intelligence. First Odysseus takes the name 'Nobody' so, after he blinds, Cyclops, Cyclops drives his...
-
The Odyssey
Good question.The poet's presence does several things. It gives Homer a chance to remind listeners to his poem of the backstory--the history that had gone before, which was included in his Iliad....
-
The Odyssey
This is a good question. The key moments for this change, I would say, appear in Book 9, Books 5 and 6, and Book 13. In Book 9, Odysseus makes a crucial mistake that causes him to incur the wrath...
-
The Odyssey
After narrowly surviving the Laestrygonians, Odysseus and his men sail to the island of Aeaea, the land of Circe. Odysseus proceeds to kill a stag for a meal, and his crew draws slots to see who...
-
The Odyssey
After spending an entire year with Circe, Odysseus begs to go home, but Circe informs him that he must first travel to Hades's land of the dead and speak with the deceased blind seer Teiresias. In...
-
The Odyssey
In book 2 of The Odyssey, Telemachus sets sail on his own swift ship with a hearty crew, as he longs to find any information pertaining to the whereabouts of his long-absent father. Despite the...
-
The Odyssey
Generally speaking, Odysseus does not demonstrate heroic qualities of manliness, wisdom, or faithfulness. Although he leaves the Trojan War with a well-deserved reputation as a fine warrior, the...
-
The Odyssey
The only power that Penelope has is her wisdom. She is a bright woman. She was clever with the weaving of the shroud for her father-in-law and with testing Odysseus at the end with her trick of...
-
The Odyssey
Throughout Homer's Odyssey, Odysseus is very careful about guarding his identity. One reason Odysseus does not reveal his identity when he is in the land of Phaeacia is because the people of this...
-
The Odyssey
As the hero of Homer's famous poem, Odysseus is more or less constantly performing acts of heroism and bravery. However, there are a few exceptional examples of Odysseus' bravery that are worth...
-
The Odyssey
At the beginning of Book X of the Odyssey, Aeolus, keeper of the winds, gives Odysseus a bag of winds. Aeolus treats this bag very carefully, coming down to the ship himself and tying it up with a...
-
The Odyssey
In my opinion, Odysseus kills all the suitors because they are trying to take away what is rightfully his. This would be a great concern to a person today, but to a person from Odysseus's time and...
-
The Odyssey
In book 1, Telemachus is described as a "boy daydreaming" (line 145) while he sits among the suitors vying for his mother's hand. He is dreaming about his father's return as Athena first arrives....
-
The Odyssey
Odysseus is on Calypso’s island for seven years, and until the last day, the goddess is holding him prisoner. He is described as being sad the entire time, aching to return to Ithaca and...
-
The Odyssey
In both works, the Classical concept of Arete is fairly well demonstrated. For the Odyssey, pick a moment where Odysseus does not capitulate into fear and fights through adversity, showing his...
-
The Odyssey
Throughout the Odyssey, Odysseus sometimes lets his pride prevent him from listening to the advice of others. One example of this occurs in Book 9, while Odysseus recounts his past adventures to...
-
The Odyssey
This depends on which conversation with Achilles you mean. Achilles and Odysseus have two major encounters/conversations. In Book 9 of Homer's Iliad, Odysseus is part of the embassy sent by...
-
The Odyssey
Odysseus is very clever when dealing with the cyclops Polyphemus. First of all, he lies to him when he is asked about his ship. He claims that it was destroyed. He does this so Polyphemus...
-
The Odyssey
Athena's role in the epic The Odyssey is to be Odysseus's guide. She could be so closely connected to him because of his status as a hero in the Trojan War or because he is known for his cleverness...
-
The Odyssey
Antinous calls for a fast ship and twenty men as he's planning to have Odysseus' son Telemachus killed. Antinous is the leader of the large group of unwelcome suitors that has been paying court to...
-
The Odyssey
In the Odyssey, book 9 follows Odysseus's adventures to the island of the Ciconoans/Cicones, the Lotus Eaters, and the land of the Cyclops. Book 9 starts with Odysseus introducing himself to the...
-
The Odyssey
First, you'll need to answer the question, "What is parallel to what?" Is what happens to Telemachus parallel to what happens to Odysseus? Is what happens to Agamemnon when he returned from the...
-
The Odyssey
Odysseus, the protagonist in Homer’s epic poem The Odyssey, displays the traits of a hero—a Homeric hero—throughout the tale. Zeus speaks with Athena at the start of the epic and extols the...
-
The Odyssey
One of Odysseus's biggest weaknesses is his pride. This can clearly be observed getting him and his men into trouble when, after they escape the island of Cyclopes together, Odysseus begins to brag...
-
The Odyssey
A feature of the Homeric epic, and of classical Greek poetry in general, is its reliance on figurative language, in part because the use of metaphorical language is an important element of...
-
The Odyssey
The first time Odysseus showed his arrogance is when he won the battle at Troy. He yells out to the gods that he doesn't need them. Also, he does not give a sacrifice to the gods for helping the...
-
The Odyssey
In book 21, Penelope decides to set up an archery contest between the suitors to choose who she will marry. Penelope retrieves Odysseus's bow and sets up twelve ax heads in a row. Penelope promises...
-
The Odyssey
Please note: The post appears to contain a complete assignment and has numerous questions. The eNotes Homework Help policy allows for one question per post, to be used to help do an assignment....
-
The Odyssey
In the twelfth book of Homer's Odyssey, Odysseus tells the people of Phaeacia about his journey from Circe's island of Aeaea. Before he leaves, Circe gives him some advice about the journey ahead....
-
The Odyssey
Certainly, Penelope, Odysseus's wife, is presented as a model of proper female behavior. She is often identified by the epithet "heedful Penelope," which emphasizes her obedience and loyalty to her...
-
The Odyssey
Penelope is portrayed in Homer's Odyssey as an intelligent and resourceful woman, skilled in her household tasks and loyal to her husband. In many ways, she is an ideal of Greek womanhood,...
-
The Odyssey
Telemachus has to go see Nestor because he needs information on his father Odysseus's possible whereabouts. The Trojan War ended ten years ago, and though Nestor and Odysseus left Troy at the same...
-
The Odyssey
The question of why Odysseus slaughters the suitors is an engaging question and one usually taken for granted. Throughout the Odyssey, one big theme that modern readers have difficulty engaging...
-
The Odyssey
In book 21, Penelope goes to the upper chamber of the palace to retrieve Odysseus's famous bow, several arrows, and twelve ax heads. She then takes her husband's weapons to the main hall and...
-
The Odyssey
In book 12 of the Odyssey, the enchantress Circe warns Odysseus of a number of dangers he will encounter during his long trip home. Among them are the Sirens, the straits of Scylla and Charybdis,...
-
The Odyssey
In Book IX of the Odyssey, Odysseus sacks Ismara, the city of the Cicones, kills the men and enslaves the women. He then wants to move on immediately, but his men disobey him and remain in Ismara,...
-
The Odyssey
Although Odyssey is a clever, manipulative man, who is renowned for his wits and sharp intellect, he makes several rash decisions that jeopardize the well-being of his crew and make his journey...
-
The Odyssey
Penelope displays her own intelligence and cunning when she tricks the suitors, buying herself more time by waving a death shroud for Laertes, her father-in-law, during the daytime and then...
-
The Odyssey
In book 13, the Phaeaceans aid Odysseus on his return to Ithaca, which upsets Poseidon, who petitions Zeus to severely punish the Phaeaceans. Zeus responds by telling Poseidon that it is up to him...
-
The Odyssey
Extended similes are an important feature of the Homeric style, as are epithets applied to people and places. Odysseus has several epithets, but in book 4 of the Odyssey, Penelope twice refers to...
-
The Odyssey
Homer's epic poem The Odyssey is a piece of literature the relevance of which continues through today despite the fact that it was written centuries ago. In part, this text's longevity is due to...
-
The Odyssey
In book 9, Odysseus and his men sail to the mainland of the Cyclopes, where they discover a massive cave with exquisite cheeses, milk bowls, and young lambs inside. Odysseus realizes that the...
-
The Odyssey
At the beginning of the epic, Athena petitions Zeus to force Calypso to allow Odysseus to leave her island, where he has been held prisoner for seven years. Zeus agrees to tell Calypso to allow...
-
The Odyssey
Odysseus is a great leader, and a hero. You can find some excellent answers on these topics in the eNotes links below, which can help guide you in your studies. Following are some quotes from The...
-
The Odyssey
The Sirens, Scylla and Charybdis are all challenges which Odysseus must face after he departs from the island of Aeaea (where Circe resides). Each of these three represent potentially lethal...
-
The Odyssey
The reunion between Odysseus and Telemachus is very moving. Odysseus, still in disguise as a beggar, meets Telemachus in the swineherd's hut. Athena tells Odysseus it is time for him to remove his...
-
The Odyssey
The reason why Telemachus welcomes Athena, disguised as a strange man, into his home has to do with the traditions of ancient Greek hospitality. This event takes place in book I of the Odyssey....
