Homeric Epical and Mythological

Legend The Odyssey

Describe the reunion of Odysseus and Penelope as a mature reunion of the

threshold of old age.

Odysseus first longs and yearns for weeping and moaning, but later on, only
suggests intercourse after informing Penelope’s about Teiresias’ prophecy Even
then, the couple postpones and follow their lovemaking about conversations
what they have experienced. The pleasure they derive from talking to each other
rival their sexual pleasure.

Eagle swoops down and killing of the geese visionary dream of Penelope bestirs
auspicious signification portending to the vendetta of Odysseus, her dearest
husband, who shall destroy the suitors. The bow and arrow contest, although
stages in a conflict and confusion, both Penelope’s and Odysseus’ verity and
intensity of emotions become a success to prevaricate the suitors’ from the
mystery of the plotting.

Penelope provokes Odysseus to anger and revelation of the clandestine nature of

the bed. For Odysseus’ active endurance in the Cyclops cave, the Laestrygones
and the Underworld reechoes Penelope’s passive and confined waiting in her
upstairs bed chamber, a siege in which she occasionally, precautions with two of
her attendants and the veil over her face descends to face her besiegers.
Odysseus traps the suitors inside the great hall of the palace, positions himself
on the threshold, offers death as a guest-gift and indiscriminately kills the
suitors, he satirizes Cyclops like features. Telemachus and the swineherd being
acquiesced to Odysseus’ command to wash, put on clean clothes, and dance so
that neighours and outsiders will think that a wedding is taking place In this
manner, Odysseus and Telemachus triumph in quellment of counter vengeance
of those unwanted guests as suitors. Furthermore Zeus causes the kinsfolk of the
dead suitors to forget the death of their sons and brothers. In conclusion,
Penelope’s chastity and naivety can be contrasted with Clytemnestra’s
promiscuity and treachery as these lines testify upon Odysseus’ disguised cloak
in beggary or pauperism “Sir”, said Penelope, “all the merit, grace or beauty that
I had, the Gods destroyed when the Argives had embarked for Ilium and my
husband Odysseus joined their fleet. If he could return and devote himself to
me, then my name might indeed be embellished and enhanced.
Elaborate the gerontomachia or heroization of Eumaues.

The light tone and the parodic flavour of the heroization of Eumaeus reflect a
willy and Odyssean approach to the new heroics espouse by his poem as
critiqued by Rick Newton. To Rick Newton, “humour may be the means to the
ultimate end of presenting novel ideas to an audience steeped in the
conservative values and diction of an epic tradition. Odysseus’ perils of daring
romantic adventures eventually takes him homecoming whereupon, he contends
to undertake a visitation to the trusty swineherd, Eumaeus’ dormitory. Thereby,
he comes to be aware of the palatial plots and royal conspiracies surrounding
the perpetrators and conspirators -the murderous villainy of the gang of suitors.
“Our hogs are being eaten up by the suitors who have no fear for the wrath to
come and no remorse in their hearts. These suitors have somehow discovered
that my master is dead, and so they sit in the palace, eating up his substance and
courting his wife.”
Faithful swineherd narrates the harrowing incidents of happenings that arouses
wrath and vengeance spirits in Odysseus. Eumaeus attitude is filled with
hospitability and humility for the sake of humaneness after hearing of
Odysseus’ heart wrenching adventuresome journey. Eumaeus exclaims, “Fall to,
my worthy guest and enjoy such fare as we can offer. For its the way of the
Gods to bestow or withdraw their favours according to their own sweet will-and
there’s nothing to prevent them.” “My poor friend, you have certainly touched
my heart with your long tale of hardships and wanderings.” Telemachus and
Eumaeus have fraternal bonding which can be enlightening in Eumaeus’
rapturous jollity upon seeing Telemachus, “So you are back, Telemachus, the
light of my eyes!” Fortuitous and audacious Eumaeus contents himself by
intuitive faith and indomitable conviction that Telemachus and Penelope will be
triumphing in evacuating these suitors away from the palace. “However, I care
little for that as long as Penelope my wise mistress and the noble prince
Telemachus are alive in the palace.”

Critically comment on the character of Circe with textual evidences.

Or

Write a brief note on the characterization of Circe.

Or

Circe is a divine deity and immortal goddess with a terrible voice and her
witchcraft and magical sorcery can be fatalistic no wonder, if she, transfigures
or transmogrify living beings such as humankind as animals and beats, Pigsty is
the harbourage of her hostages; wherein she flocks her swine and pigs to fulfill
her whims of desirability. Humanity is merely in outer form whenever we
parallel Calypso and Circe. Eurylochus, although becomes vanquished the
enchantment of Circe, Odysseus has been a heroic survivor of the magical spell
through the potion of Molly endowed by Hermes, the Giant Slayer and
Messenger of Gods. Apprehended by the disenchantment of magical spells,
Circe exclaims, “You might be Odysseus, the man whom nobody can defeat; the
man whom Hermes, the Giant Slayer always told me to expect here on his way
back from Troy. But now I beg you to sheathe your sword and come with me to
bed, so that in love and sleep we may learn to trust one another.”
With Circe’s instruction Odysseus offers sacrifice to the World of the Dead with
lambs she has gifted. Circe alike Calypso have feelings of humanity for the love
of Odysseus and here Odysseus’ silence and dumfoundedness instead of
delighting meat and cherishing wine, incites sympathetic Circe with ushering
Odysseus safe passage to native homeland. “O royal son of Laertes, Odysseys of
the nimble wits! I am not going to keep you in my house against your wishes.
But before I can send you home you have to make a journey of a very different
kind, and find your way to the Halls of the Hades and Persephone to consult the
soul of Teiresias the blind Theban prophet.” Furthermore Odysseus pledges a
solemn vow to the dead spirits and Teiresias in offering a barren cow along with
a black ram upon his homeward return.
corresponding symbolization of uncivility or parochialism have been triumphed
by the forces of Odyssean civilization’s of wish fulfillment. And dramatization
of conceptual polarity between nature and culture have been casted in the light
of such allegorical and metaphorical scenes. In a nutshell, Odysseus’ description
of the outcome of the episode-the sight of six men being devoured at the
entrance of Scylla’s cave embellishes the most pitiful spectacle of the
wanderings.

Scylla’s unfulfilled wishes and Cyclop’s fulfilled wishes can be paralleled

and contrasted in Homeric Odyssey. Explain the significance in brief.

Or

Sylla’s episode is a ‘sideshadowing’ : the evocation of a potential that will

not be actualised

Scylla’s hideous monstrosity and grotesquely grueling appearance haunts

readers and critics with Odyssey plight’s evoking fear and danger from the
imminent life threatening creatures. We have been informed of Cyclops to be
giant herdess of rams and ewes in a cavernous terrain with cannibalistic or
animalistic demeanor to devouring appetite upon victims of preys turning them
into cascades of flesh, bones and marrows. Scylla is somewhat a dreadful bark
with the yelp of new born puppy, but she is a horrible monster nevertheless, and
whom nobody could look at with delight, not even the gods if he passed that
way. She has twelve feet, all dangling in the air, six long necks, each ending in a
grizzly head with tripple rows of teeth, packed and dense, and darkly menacing
death. Upto her middle, she is sunk in the depths of the caves with dark clouds
enshrouding Scylla’s topmost cliffs; but her heads protrude from the fearful
abyss and she fishes dolphins or swordfishes or any of the large monsters which
find their living in the roaring seas from her own abode. “No crew can boast that
they ever sailed their ship past Scylla without loss, since from every passing
vessel she snatches a man with each of her heads and so bears off her prey.”
Both Cyclops and Scylla are closely associated with stones and use them as
aggressive or defensive weaponries; Cyclops throws stones at Odysseus’ ships
while Scylla, hides in her rocky cave, indistinguishable from her surrounding.
Both monsters devour six members of the crew; differing in their distribution;
he eats two crew members at a time on three separate occasions, while she
snatches six of them at once. Therefore the appearance, habitats, behavior and
actions of these two monsters strike similarity of resemblances.

Further Reading and References

Harold Bloom's Comprehensive Research and Study Guides To Homer's Odyssey Chelsea House
Publishers Edited With An Introduction By Harold Bloom
1. Jean Pierre Vernant On Heroic Refusal of Immortality
2. Pierre Vidal-Naquet On Odysseus' Return To Humanity

Modern Criticism Interpretations Harold Bloom

1. The Odyssey: The Exclusion of Surprise, H.D.F Ketto pages: 5-33 Internet Archive
2. The Homecomings of Odysseus Agathe Thornton pages: 35-47 Internet Archive