The Journey Of Odysseus In Homer's Odyssey

Odysseus’s Journey The actor, Christopher Reeve once said, “I think a hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles.” This quote can be applied directly to Odysseus, the leading character in the epic Odyssey by Homer. Odysseus endures ten years of war, explained in The Iliad, encounters treacherous monsters, enchantresses, and beautiful goddesses. Odysseus is strengthened by his hankering to return home and to his wife and son. In the Odyssey, Homer uses Odysseus’ s character journey to show how one’s journey can change them as a person. One way Odysseus’s personality alters is that his faith grows in Penelope. As Odysseus states to Calypso, “ My lady goddess, here is no cause for anger. My quiet Penelope-how well I know- would seem a shade before your majesty, death and
Homer states, “When he awakens, he fails to recognize his homeland until Athena appears and tells him that he is indeed home. She disguises him as an old man, so that he can surprise the suitors, and then urges him to visit his faithful swineherd, Eumaeus” (Homer 1242). As one could see in this statement, Odysseus abides the goddess and realizes he cannot barge in to slaughter the suitors. Odysseus is now patient and knows he needs a plan to defeat over 100 suitors. As Homer also states, “Telemachus sends the swineherd to let his mother know he has returned safely. Athena appears and urges Odysseus to let Telemachus know who he really is” (Homer 1245). In this quote, one can see the imperturbability that has evolved in Odysseus. In the beginning of the story, Odysseus would have broken his disguise instantly to let his son know it was truly him. As the story shows, one can see that Odysseus was patient to let Telemachus know it was himself, and allowed the goddess of wisdom, Athena, to show his identity when the time was