The Odyssey as Mythology
In the Mid-eighth century B.C.E., Homer wrote an extremely complex piece of literature called The Odyssey. The Odyssey is an epic story of the challenges, tests, and choices of a Greek man named Odysseus. This work of mythology reflects the atmosphere of ancient Greece. It does this by focusing on the morality and lessons which apply to a culture that is deeply rooted in both art and war. Myths range from short tales with obvious lessons, to giant works of art with many hidden layers like The Odyssey. Strong characters are very important in the lessons of The Odyssey. Odysseus is the main character of the story. He is a Greek man on a journey home from fighting in the Trojan War when he encounters many tests of his character. The other main human characters include Odysseus’ loyal and faithful wife Penelope who waits twenty long years for the return of her husband. Their son Telemachus exemplifies how a good son will fight for his families honor by defending his father, a man who hasn’t been there for him. In Odysseus, the people of Greece found a hero that they could identify with and look up to. Gods and monsters, such as Zeus, Calypso, and the evil Cyclops are also crucial to this work of Greek mythology.
Second is the “Quest of Telemachus.” This is the point in Homer’s Odyssey; Telemachus goes in search of his father, whom he has never known. The last theme of the story is based on what happens after Telemachus finally finds his father, “Odysseus’ return and vengeance.” Here in the story Odysseus and his son finally return home. Once in Ithaca, Odysseus and his son promptly dispatch the suitors who have been trying to woo Penelope, bringing the long hard journey to a close During the time The Odyssey was written Greece was not centralized under one empire. Instead, it was separated into city-states called polis’. The un-unified characteristics of the polis’ are reflected in the difficulty of cooperation Odysseus encounters through out the Greek empire. Greece had seen the Trogon war in the twelfth century, and was about to develop some of the most war oriented civilizations the world had seen, such as the Spartans. This is reflected in the fundamental lessons of The Odyssey, being about courage, whit and, loyalty. It was not yet the time for the great philosophers such as Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. Yet the people of Greece had already shown their insightful and developed ways in the literature and art of this
Some topics in this essay:
Zeus Calypso,
Cyclopes Polyphemos,
Ithaca Odysseus,
Trojan War,
Odyssey Odyssey,
Plato Aristotle,
Poseidon Poseidon,
Penelope Odysseus,
Odyssey Telemachus,
Odyssey Odysseus,
odysseus son,
six headed monster,
headed monster,
six headed,
odysseus encounters,
ancient greeks,
people greece,
waits twenty,
perfect greek,
example perfect,
lessons odyssey,
example perfect greek,
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Approximate Word count = 841
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
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