Challenges in The Odyssey Essay - 742 Words

Challenges in The Odyssey There are many challenges throughout the Odyssey the most significant being his arrogance that Odysseus must overcome in order to reach home. In book 9, beginning with line 113 Odysseus and his men begin a journey in the land of the Kyklops. This set of challenges for Odysseus shows the reader the battle between arrogance and wisdom within Odysseus. The choices that Odysseus makes during this portion of his journey home will help him to realize his arrogance and the downfalls of yielding to it, which he must overcome to regain his kingdom and property from the suitors. When Odysseus first decides to explore the nearby island he makes a wise decision to take only his own ship and company. The reason he†¦show more content†¦Furthermore, Odysseus show his arrogance when he ignores the advice of his men to take the plunder and leave but instead opts to stay and wait for the caveman to return home to test the owners hospitality. Odysseus makes a costly mistake in his decision, a ll of the evidence he sees in the cave points to a savage and uncivil being, but Odysseus, in his arrogance, elects to wait for the cavemans return anyway. A reader could use these instances to support a theory that it is better to quit while youre ahead. Starting in line 273 when the Kyklops sees Odysseus and his men. The one eyed giant is curios at first as to who they are. He begins in line 274 by asking strangers who are you? And where from? Odysseus responds to the questions of the one eyed giant by describing in great detail where they are from and who they are but becomes arrogant in the end of his description by instructing the Kyklops on what is acceptable behavior according to Zeus. Polyphemus, the one-eyed giant, responds by insulting Odysseus by calling him a ninny. This is a sign of arrogance and disrespect because of the brave and heroic things Odysseus did in the Trojan War. By insulting Odysseus and disregarding without thought of the statement made by Odysseus conc erning the care of the Gods courtesy. Polyphemus portrays two characteristics of his personality; bruteShow MoreRelatedThe Characters Of Challenges In The Odyssey By Homer739 Words   |  3 PagesLife has many challenges and obstacles for everyone, heroes or not. The Odyssey by Homer is about a man named Odysseus who goes on a journey to many lands over the course of 20 years. He experiences a variety of challenges but manages to get through them all and reach his overall goal. Odysseus has the same emotions as any other human does, he gets sad, angry, happy, etc. He has a family,and with almost every family, there is drama, but they will always come back togeth and reunite. He has to dealRead MoreOdysseus Hero Essay1043 Words   |  5 Pagesorder to achieve. The book The Odyssey written by Homer reveals a story of a true hero. 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In â€Å"The Odyssey† by Homer, Odysseus experiences significant events on his journey home to Ithaca which includes Entering the Unknown;Read MoreLiterary Criticism Of The Odyssey1604 Words   |  7 PagesAssessment Task 1: Essay on The Odyssey The Odyssey by Homer was written during around 700 B.C and it is the second-oldest extant work of Western literature. The Odyssey is an epic poem and can be understood through the lens of archetypal criticism which explores themes that are based on heroism and the protagonist Odysseus is an epic hero who undergoes a ten-year journey to return to Ithaca. Northrop Frye explains the value of archetypal literary criticism in helping modern readers appreciate theRead MoreAnalysis Of Homer s The Odyssey1533 Words   |  7 Pagestoo† (I, 1, 12). From the very beginning, Homer shows his intention for themes of The Odyssey to be applicable in the modern age and essentially â€Å"sing for our time† (I, 12). Homer’s epic provides the ideal reflection upon the very definition of heroism because it details the strenuous journey of Odysseus, a crafty hero whose key priority is to return home to his family. As one of the most prominent themes, The Odyssey carries forth the idea of heroism through the portrayal of Odysseus, and establishesRead More herody The Imperfect Hero of Homers Odyssey Essay1434 Words   |  6 PagesThe Imperfect Hero of The Odyssey   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In literature, a bold character or hero is often the principle character. In the epic poem The Odyssey there are many immortals, but only one hero, Odysseus. The differences between the immortals and the hero are few. The god-like Odysseus is plagued with the human weaknesses of pettiness, self-doubt, and dependence on the pity of others. Odysseus reveals his pettiness when he amuses himself with humorous guile. Odysseus not only uses his cunning atRead MoreAncient Greece : Book Review1583 Words   |  7 PagesAncient Greece Paired Book Review By Rohan Ahluwalia Core 2 What were the most memorable moments in the books for you? Why? The Odyssey and the Hatchet were both great books. The most memorable moment in the books were hard to choose as there were many interesting parts. In the book, The Odyssey, the most memorable moment for me was when the wife of Odysseus, Penelopeia, organizes an archery contest.The contest was to string the bow that belonged to Odysseus and fire it through the opening ofRead MoreOdyssey Essay : Heros Journey And Odyssey726 Words   |  3 PagesHero’s Journey and Odyssey Essay The â€Å"Odyssey,† written by Homer, is a long epic that describes King Odysseus’ journey back to his home from Troy. In the â€Å"Hero’s Journey† by Joseph Campbell, the steps a person takes to travel through his or her journey to reach a goal is referred to as a monomyth. In the â€Å"Odyssey,† Homer writes an epic that reflects many stages from Joseph Campbell’s monomyth. The author includes many key points involving a true â€Å"Hero’s Journey,† but the main ones that are illustratedRead MoreEssay about Life in Homers Odyssey1222 Words   |  5 Pages The Odyssey:nbsp; Lifenbsp; nbsp; Odyssey a long series of wanderings filled with notable experience and hardships, or in other words the journey of life. Homers The Odyssey is an epic poem telling of one mans journey. Odysseus, the chosen traveler of this Odyssey, represents the will and perseverance of all humanity. Odysseus journey symbolizes the true toils of mankinds development through, agility, doubt, and faith. In life, agility is needed time and time again, to get out ofRead MoreAs I Lay Dying and The Odyssey: Books of Epic Quests with Incredible Odds805 Words   |  4 Pages As I lay Dying and the Odyssey As I lay dying and the Odyssey can both be considered books of epic quests with incredible odds. Faulkner takes the title of As I Lay Dying from a line spoken in the Odyssey by the Greek warrior Agamemnon. Agamemnon tells Odysseus when he travels to the Underworld, â€Å"As I lay dying, that woman with the dog’s eye would not close my eyes as I descended into Hades.† Both books give off extraordinary characters, with what some may call outlandish behavior, to possibly

Giovanni Pico della Mirandola was an Italian humanist,...

Giovanni Pico della Mirandola was an Italian humanist, philosopher, scholar, Neo-Platonist and writer whose main passion was the reconciliation of philosophy and religion. Giovanni Pico della Mirandola was born on the 24th of February 1463 to a wealthy and illustrious family and died on the 17th of November 1494. Being the youngest son of three boys, Giovanni Pico della Mirandola was mostly outlived by his elder brothers who took on presumably significant roles; his brother Antonio became an imperial army general while Galeotto 1 continued their father’s dynasty. Leaving behind his share of ancestral wealth and principality, he went on to become one of the world’s respected writers after fully devoting himself to studying theology and†¦show more content†¦He then changed course and went to the University of Ferrara to study philosophy. He then continued his studies from 1480 to 1482 at the University of Padua that was well known for Aristotelianism where he stu died Arabic and Hebrew. He spent the next few years visiting other humanist centers and the University of Paris which was Europe’s most significant center for scholastic theology and philosophy (Craven, 1981). Giovanni’s movement to Florence marked a big change in his life especially regarding his philosophical career. In Florence, around 1484 he met Ficino Marsilio and Lorenzo de’ Medici. Ficino, a renaissance philosopher who was about to publish translations of Plato’s works from Greek to Latin under the supervision of Lorenzo. (Edelheit, 2008). Later on he briefly moved to Perugia where he was introduced to Hebrew Kabbalah. It is this Kabbalistic doctrine he used to support Christian theology becoming the first Christian to do so. After travelling to Rome, Giovanni invited scholars from all over Europe to Rome to debate and defend his 900 theses drawn from Latin, Greek, Hebrew and Arabic writers. 13 of these were however denounced as heretical by a papal commission and prohibited assembly. Giovanni Pico della Mirandola decided to flee to France despite his apologia for the 13 theses where he was arrested. After his release he went back to settle in Florence. He settled in a villa prepared for him by Lorenzo near

Virtue Ethics Advantage Free Essays

These character traits are classified as the backbone of virtue ethics. When we look at action utilitarianism, we think of rules and our call to duty. Nothing is greater than our call to duty, and we are sentenced to perform the most pivotal option. We will write a custom essay sample on Virtue Ethics Advantage or any similar topic only for you Order Now With virtue ethics we are almost provided more eel-way if you will. Morals are taken into much more depth and consideration than with action-utilitarianism. If we look at Kantian demonology, we notice the perfect and imperfect duties. These set of rules are essentially a guideline of how us people should act and live our lives. Once again, virtue ethics allows more freedom to decide for ourselves and make exceptions to these rules. An issue that surrounds Kantian demonology is that there must be exceptions to these perfect duties. The way I look at it, we can with a virtue mindset. We are allowed to take our moral code and apply it to the situation. Overall, I believe that virtue ethics allows people to make their win decisions, and with what people should do. This again conflicts with act- utilitarianism because it believes that the decision should be based on the best result for man-kind, not just one individual. Virtue ethics, along with our morals intact, allow for persons to take into consideration for others and select an option that results in better outcome for that person. These are a few advantages believe virtue ethics offers instead of utilitarianism and demonology. How to cite Virtue Ethics Advantage, Papers

Critical Analysis of Plato’s Apology free essay sample

The ‘Apology’ is the defence speech of Socrates before the court at a trial for his life. He has been accused of deliberately corrupting the young and of non-belief in the Athenians’ gods. It is widely accepted that this is a true event, Socrates was tried, found guilty and put to death. What is not known for certain is the accuracy of Plato’s account of his defence. David Leibowitz tells us that the Greek title is ambiguous and could mean a defence speech either for or by Socrates. From this it is hard to discern if the Apology as we know it was written by Plato or Socrates, or if indeed it is Plato’s carefully edited version of Socrates actual speech. To understand and take the most from the speech we must forget the issue of authenticity. This is at least the defence speech of Plato’s Socrates and there is much to be gained from close reading of the entire text. To understand and take the most from the speech we must forget the issue of authenticity. This is at least the defence speech of Plato’s Socrates and there is much to be gained from close reading of the entire text. The ‘Apology’ covers a number of important themes and issues that are dear to Socrates and relevant to his defence. From the outset he attempts to show that he is not guilty of these crimes or at the very least if he is, it is not deliberate as the charge states and that he should not be punished but enlightened as to his mistakes (25e-26a). He discusses issues of harm done to oneself through doing harm to others, belief in gods and his own divine charge (21a-21b) amongst others but he is, perhaps inevitably, pronounced guilty. This pronouncement sparks the issue of death that becomes a dominant theme for the rest of the speech and the end of the speech in particular when he has been denied any alternative punishment. In the passage for analysis here the main points of discussion are death as a good or an evil, death as annihilation or death as a transmigration of the soul and briefly, some issues of justice and harm. The passage we will be focussing on is 40c-42a, his final words to the jury. As mentioned it is dominated by the theme of death but also touches on issues of harm and justice. This section opens with a confident assertion that we are â€Å"quite mistaken in supposing death to be an evil† (40c). At first glance one could be inclined to think this merely a romantic sentiment and that he moves perhaps to reassure himself that death is not the worst thing to be facing. It seems however to be much more than this. He qualifies the statement in such a way as to leave the listeners in better understanding of the deep-seated beliefs from which it comes. For once, his proof of the matter is not hard evidence as he would usually have it. Socrates, who places so much emphasis on knowing, merely believes that death cannot be a bad thing. He believes that were it bad his â€Å"sign† would have turned him away from this path (40c). Before now his sign has opposed him at moments when he would have supposedly misstepped. It protected him from mistakes that would have caused him, others, or his soul harm. More than this it opposed him if what he was doing would not have some positive effect (40c). By sharing this with us he tells us that death is not alone not a bad thing or even simply a neutral one, it is a good thing that will bring good effects. It should be noted here however that despite his valiant efforts to appear sure of himself in this regard he contradicts himself later on and shows his human doubts. Though he says that the juror’s should, like him, look forward to their own deaths and that the time had come when it was better for him personally to die(41c- 41d), at the close of his speech, as a word of farewell, he says â€Å"Well now, it is time to be off, I to die and you to live; which of us has the happier prospect is unknown to any but God. (42a)† These last words undermine the confident assertions of the first paragraph. It would appear that he is neither certain if death is generally good or if it is truly the best thing for him at this time. He tells us that death is one of two things, the first of which is annihilation or dreamless sleep (40c- 40d). Socrates supposes that anyone, private person or Great King, would have fewer days or nights more pleasant than a night of dreamless sleep. The reference to the Persian King lends emphasis to his theory in that the Persian kings were often seen as a paradigm of worldly happiness . If even a man such as this would prefer a night of dreamless sleep to most of his other days then it must surely be a very pleasant thing. Socrates ignores here the issue that this sleep would be endless, so leaving the sleeper unable to ever appreciate it in the only way humanly possible, by contrast to other nights and days. Another interesting interpretation of the king as example is raised by T. G. West. He suggests that the Persian King might prefer to be asleep than awake due to a faulty way of life. Tarrant tells us the King is a paradigm of worldly happiness but West calls him a â€Å"paradigm of someone who cares for money and his body instead of how his soul will become the best and most prudent possible† . If we accept this interpretation it would seem that Socrates is making a subtly ironic comment on the good of death, that it is merely good for someone whose life is unsatisfactory. If this is truly Socrates’ view, has he inadvertently told us that his life is unsatisfactory? If so it surely cannot be for the same reasons as a political man such as the king who has neglected the care of his soul. Throughout the speech he does present himself as a somewhat sorry figure. Though he does not care for worldly possessions it is unlikely that his poverty is an easy state of being for him, his choice of lifestyle and mission to understand the oracle also leads to the neglect of his family for which perhaps there is some guilt. Socrates is accused of religious impiety which from his defence truly does not seem to be the case. It is possible then that what has truly offended his accusers and lessens the worth of his life is Socrates’ neglect of more earthly issues. Perhaps sleep is better for this man who is so persecuted and has neglected those in his charge despite what assiduous care he has taken toward the welfare of his soul. Whether he truly meant to depict this death as a good thing or not he does present it as an end. Any life that is better cut off in this manner than continued seems a desolate one in either case. The second idea of death that Socrates presents is of movement of the soul from the body to some other place where those that have died before will also be. This idea of death is more easily believable as a positive alternative to life and Socrates himself seems a little more enthused by it. Instead of an end to life it is a continuation of life in another place without the physical body. He tells the jury he is willing to die ten times over if this account of death is the true one (41a-41b). It seems like this death would almost be a victory for him over the men of the court who have accused and convicted him. He refers to the men before him as â€Å"so-called jurors† in contrast with the â€Å"true jurors† like Minos and Triptolemus who live in the afterlife. He mentions heroes who have undergone death by unfair trial as he feels he is doing now and says it would be amusing to compare his fortunes with theirs. These sly digs at the jurors before him tell us something of Socrates thoughts on justice and harm. If he goes now to the company of these great men the greatest harm has been done by the jurors to themselves not to him. To his mind they will have corrupted their souls with the injustice of his conviction and execution. The death will not harm him as his soul and conscience are clean but there is a sense that the â€Å"so-called jurors† will not be welcomed by the dead heroes as he will be, heroes who would not punish his philosophical enquiry as they have done. There is however further self-contradiction to this idea, earlier in the text Socrates professed to have no knowledge of what comes in Hades after death, West tells us that Socrates does not believe the soul can exist outside of the body, and Socrates weakens the sense of conviction buy three times stating â€Å"as we are told† in relation to his account of life after death . So not alone does it appear that Socrates does not really know if this will all be the case, it would seem his belief in it is shaky at best. As already mentioned Socrates suggests that the jurors do themselves more harm by their malice and injustice than they do him. He believes that no harm can befall a good man in life or death and that the gods care about the fortunes of such a man (41c-41d). Socrates shows no resentment of the men who have brought him to his death because he believes it is time for him to die and be released from his distractions. He does however say that they are culpable of ill intentions as it is not for these reasons or his benefit that they want him dead. Perhaps because of the lack of justice he feels he has been shown he offers the jury another way to do justice to him and his family. The favour is unorthodox as he asks the men to do to his children exactly what he is being punished for doing to them. It is one last way of showing the court the strength of his conviction in the virtue of his own actions and beliefs. Despite the end it has brought him it is the legacy he wishes to leave to his children and the only justice he can now have at the hands of the court, which would, essentially, require them to see the error of their current judgement. These last words of Socrates’ defence are perhaps the most poignant of the ‘Apology’. Through the presentation of his convictions and, accidentally perhaps, his doubts we are given a picture of Socrates that seems more human than the gadfly who pesters reason out of people who he believes haven’t thought enough to realise they know less than they think they do. It is only human for this section of the speech to dwell so much on the issue of death, he refuses to plead for his life and instead uses death as a theme that shows the court has not defeated or hurt him. It is interesting and sad to note that death, even one that is a simple lack of consciousness is to him better than his own life, as it would be to a man who has partaken in injustice and lead a life of little virtue. As mentioned above it is perhaps a lack of care towards the traditional values of Athens and its people rather than the traditions of its faith that has brought Socrates to this point. In the world of today were we are advised to seek balance in everything we do it seems obvious that Socrates cared for his soul to the neglect of his physical life. Perhaps in this way it was his time to die. In death he no longer has to choose, his philosophy if not his soul has endured for centuries without his physical body because of the choice he made in his ‘Apology’ to die with his philosophical enquiries intact.