Odysseus and Telemachus Comparison Essay

Three traits that Odysseus and Telemakhos share are clear-headedness, eloquence, and showing strong emotion. They are portrayed with these traits in the Odyssey, composed by Homer. Odysseus is a renowned military strategist, warrior, and the King of Ithaca. He was forced to go to war against Troy twenty years ago, and since then has traveled all over the Aegean trying to find a way back home. Meanwhile, his son, Telemakhos, has developed into a full-grown man from the mere infant he was when his father left for war. He has searched far and wide for news of his father, still hoping, along with his mother, Penelope, that Odysseus is still alive somewhere and somehow, even though most have assumed he is dead. Through his ventures, Telemakhos develops into a man almost identical to his father in every way, learning to step up and act like the prince he is.
Odysseus and Telemakhos are both portrayed as very clear-headed in The Odyssey. This can be defined as the ability to keeps one’s temper level and mind unclouded in battle or to be able to think clearly in times of confusion when other men would have become confused. Telemakhos portrays this trait several times throughout the story. “Clear-headed Telemakhos replied…” (Homer 23). Instead of losing his resolve when he is faced with adversity, he merely draws his thoughts together and calmly responds. Odysseus shows this trait in several situations also. For example, when he and his men are trapped in Polyphemus the Cyclops’ cave, Odysseus reflects, “But I kept thinking how to win the game: death sat there huge; how could we slip away? I drew on all my wits, and ran through tactics, reasoning as a man will for dear life, until a trick came—and it pleased me well” (Homer 157). Odysseus stays calm and figures out a plan so he and his men can escape alive. He does not let the fact that there is a huge Cyclops ready to eat him and his men dissuade him from achieving the near impossible.
Odysseus and Telemakhos are also