For your last journal response, please choose ONE of the following two prompts. Remember to include at least one concrete detail in your 200-300 word response.
A. It's clear that Odysseus is responsible for his own actions and their results. It's also clear that certain events are fated to happen from the start. How are both of these possible in The Odyssey?
B. What is the difference between "fate" and "luck" in The Odyssey? When do the characters rely on or blame events on fate, and when do they rely on or blame events on luck? Why?
The last journal is due by Tuesday, August 11, 2009.
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A) Fate is something that is already determined for a person, Its what must happen. There are some events in, The Odyssey by Homer, that are fated to happen from the start. For example when Poseidon Earth Shaker struck down a thunderbolt and made the seas rough and hard to travel on. When Poseidon did this it almost tipped Odysseus and his crew out. This event was meant to happen and was determined by Poseidon. It’s also clear in the story that Odysseus is responsible for his own actions and their results, for example at the end of the book, “ The invaders were led now by six men, Agelaos, Eurynomos, Amphimendon, Demontolemos, Peisandros, and Polybos. They were the best of those who still lived and they were fighting for their lives, the rest had been brought down or cowed by the arrows flying thick and fast (book 21 Pg. 247).” This is a good example how Odysseus is responsible for his own actions and there consequences because Odysseus and his son Telemachos were fighting many men. It was two against many. His plan to take action against all of Penelope’s Wooers could have ended in a bad result. Through out the story there has been many events that were fated and also events chosen to happen by Odysseus’s actions. Poseidon trying to kill Odysseus and his crew and Odysseus and his son fighting all those men who took over his land at the end of the story stood out to me because they were both major events in the book along with many others.
ReplyDeleteJackie Cullen
In The Odyssey, by Homer, Odysseus makes some fascinating decisions that outcome in not-so-pleasant results. One of these decisions would be the point of the whole story, Odysseus’s journey. Odysseus chose to take part in the Trojan War and then later got in a mess with the gods on his way home to Ithaca. During his journey to Ithaca, Odysseus stopped at many islands, which then resulted in a 20-year journey away from home. At these islands he ran into many gods. For example, Odysseus stopped at the island Ogygia, Calypso’s island. Calypso held Odysseus on her island for many years and then she tells him “soft deceitful words to forget Ithaca” (book 1 page 12) so that Odysseus would want to stay on her island and not want to go home to see Penelope. Just because of Odysseus’s needed to fight in the Trojan War, he was separated from Penelope, Telemachus, and his city for about 20 years.
ReplyDeleteFate also has part in the story.
Fate is something that is set for the person to do in which must happen. Some events in The Odyssey are fated to happen just because of what the person is know to do. For example, Hermes is the messenger of the gods. He is known to send messages out to the gods if Zeus or anyone else decided on something that they think should be told. Athena uses Hermes to tell Calypso that Odysseus had to return home, “…then let us dispatch our messenger Hermês Argeiphontês to the island of Ogygia; and let him announce forthwith to the nymph our unchangeable will, that Odysseus…shall return home” (book 1 page 13). When Athena says this, the reader will automatically know that Hermes, will be flying somewhere to send another god a message. In The Odyssey, by Homer, fate and the decisions made by Odysseus will plan out the whole story.
Matt Hindrichs
ReplyDeleteOdysseus is very responsible for his actions in the story of The Odyssey by the great epic poet Homer, but some certain events were fated to happen from the start. Sometimes, Odysseus tried to do things his way, but the Gods fated him to perish, in the case of Poseidon, or to have him return home, by Athena. Both are possible because the Gods and Odysseus have their motives, and sometimes they deviated and there was conflict. Odysseus chose to go to his home, but Poseidon “bears him unrelenting hatred” (book 1, page 5) because Odysseus gouged his son, Polyphemus the Cyclops’ eye out. Both fates are possible, because in the story, the Gods play a very important role in humans’ affairs, so they actively influence people to do things. But as with any free-will vs. determinism story, there are exceptions. The determinism in the story isn’t always the gods, but the other people. A prime example of this is when Odysseus’ shipmates disobey him by killing and eating the Cattle of The Sun God Hyperion. The Sun God then forbids the men who killed and ate his cattle to go home and then kills them, with the exception of Odysseus, who warned against them. In conclusion, there is a way to have both fate and free will intertwined, by there being independent choices and having things decided by the gods.
Nina Gallo
ReplyDeleteOdysseus in The Odyssey is responsible for his actions and their results in the story. However, some of theres events are caused by fate and others by just plain lucky. This is possible in The Odyssey because the Gods can cause events as well as Odysseus. Fate is something that is inevitably predetermined. For example, in The Odyssey, it is Odysseus' fat to return home to his family and friends in Ithaca. He does not got give up on his journey home, and when he gets into danger, he always seems to get out of it because he must return home. Another example of fate is Odysseus fighting off the suitors at his home with his son because it is his fate that he will remain with his wife. Some events in The Odyssey are cause by just plain luck of Odysseus. An example of this is when he went to war at Troy he stayed there for several years and when they won, he wanted to return home but it ended up into a 20 year journey. Another example is that Odysseus lands on Calypso's island to ask for help but is kept prisoner because she falls in love with him and wants to be his wife. Fate and luck are both possible in The Odyssey.
Nina Gallo
Fate and luck in The Odyssey are two very different things. Odysseus’s fate is determined before he even begins his journey, and luck just happens along the way. There are many examples of luck in The Odyssey. In one instance, Odysseus and his crew are faced with the Cyclops in his cave. Odysseus sees a large wooden pole that the Cyclops used. It was lucky that it was there, because Odysseus saw it as a potential weapon. “They made it smooth, and sharpened the end and charred it in the hot fire, and hit it carefully under the dung which lay in a great mass all over the floor.” Odysseus uses this sharpened pole to drive into the Cyclops’ eye. This is blamed on luck because the Cyclops just happened to have a stick, which Odysseus just happened to see as a weapon, which just happened to be big enough to blind a Cyclops. So naturally, it would be blamed on luck. There are also some examples of fate in The Odyssey. Throughout the book, Odysseus is set on returning to his wife and home, and defeating the men occupying it. This is his destiny and fate. He says to Calypso on her island, “My wife is nothing compared to you for beauty, I can see that for myself. She is mortal, and you are immortal and never grow old. But even so, I long for the day of my homecoming. And if some god wrecks me again on the deep, I will endure it, for I have a patient mind.” Odysseus stops at nothing to return home, and in the end, his fate is fulfilled and he returns home and defeats the loitering men. The Odyssey’s many examples of fate and luck lead to the conclusion that both fate and luck are important to any journey, and both can be distinguished from the other.
ReplyDeleteJennifer Rector
ReplyDeleteA) While some events are a result of Odysseus’ own actions, a number of occurrences in The Odyssey are fated to happen. For example, Odysseus stopped at numerous islands, and on the island Ogygia, Calypso held him in hopes of making him her husband. Years later, Hermes is sent to “announce forthwith to the nymph our unchangeable will, that Odysseus, after all he has patiently endured, shall return home” (book 1 page 13). However, Poseidon sought revenge on Odysseus from the start of the book and repeatedly caused him harm on his way home. One instance where Odysseus’ destiny is decided for him happens on his journey towards his home of Ithaca. He and his crew come to the island of the Cyclopians where a number of his fellow crew members are killed by Polyphemos. The men are responsible for their quick and clever consideration when coming up with a plan to escape the treacherous giant as their lives are put in danger. Odysseus is responsible for the consequences of his actions, but some events are inevitable. Whether it be fate or his own doing, Odysseus manages to escape the dangers he is faced with.
The Odyssey's story is set into motion by the events of fate. All of the individual events are shaped by the luck that happens along the way. The start and end would always be the same but Odysseus path could vary based on how luck favored him. The gods declared that Odysseus would make it back to his home but they did not specify the journey. This leaves room for luck to take over and change the story in cases such as when Odysseus' nurse recognized him and no one else did, "The old nurse covered her face with her hands, and burst into tears as she cried in lamentable tones: (220)." Even if the others had found out what had gone on Odysseus would have most likely succeeded but luck helped him make the journey easier. This applies at all times when most stories would have Luck or Fate be the major deciding factor this contains equal parts of both while fate playing a positive role and luck have often lesser and negative effects. In the end Odysseus would have made it back regardless of luck because fate had determined it to be his destiny and so it would be.
ReplyDeleteThe reason that both the idea of fate and freedom and responsibility of the characters choices are possible in “The Odyssey”, by Homer, is because it is due to the choices that the characters make that in the end things happen the way that they do. For example the story would never have even begun if it weren’t for Odysseus involvement in the war of Troy. It was because of this involvement that led Odysseus to meeting and befriending many powerful gods, however in many ways these connections helped Odysseus as much as they hurt him. Considering it was Calypso who held Odysseus captive on the island of Ogygia. This event eventually led to Athena, who is one of the goddesses that Odysseus befriended throughout his journey and was upset with the fact that he was being kept from his family unfairly by a hypnotic god, “He was kept prisoner by a witch, calypso, a radiant creature, and herself one of the great family of gods, who wanted him to stay in her cave and be her husband” (Book 1, Page 11), to seek out Odysseus’ son Telemachos. She then gave Telemacho’s the confidence needed to journey to discover the reason for his father’s twenty year absence. These are two examples why I believe that it is because of each characters choices that eventually led to their fates.
ReplyDeleteKendall Siems
In Homer’s epic poem, The Odyssey, everything that happens to Odysseus is left up to fate or happens because of Odysseus’ conscious decisions. It was Odysseus’ decision to join the Trojan War that first led him away from Ithaca, Telemachos, and Penelope. It was fate, though, that Poseiden made the sea hard to travel on for Odysseus and his men and that Calypso captured Odysseus while he was on his way home to Ithaca, and kept him on her island as her prisoner. It was because of his decisions, though, that he was put in a situation where the Gods could decide that his fate was to get captured by Calypso. It was also fate that Telemachos went on a journey that resulted in Odysseus leaving Calypso’s island and continuing his journey back to Ithaca, because Athena, a Goddess, willed it happen by saying to Zeus, “If all the gods now agree that Odysseus shall return to his own home, then let us dispatch our messenger Hermes Argeiphontes…” (Athena, 13). Although it was fate that kept Odysseus on Calypso’s island, it was he who decided what he did while he was there. Calypso attempted to seduce him and make Odysseus her husband while she held him captive, but Odysseus’ love for Penelope is what influenced him to make his own decision to remain faithful to her no matter what Calypso said or did. It was also Penelope’s willpower and decision to remain faithful to Odysseus while she was pursued by her many suitors even though everybody in Ithaca believed he was dead. These are just a few examples of how fate and the ability to make your own decisions play a large role in The Odyssey.
ReplyDelete-Nicole Eversman
In Homer’s The Odyssey, the main character Odysseus makes decisions that affect him and others, but also some of the events that occur are meant to happen by fate and cannot be changed. For example, Odysseus makes the decision to kill all the men who are trying to win his wife’s hand in marriage. With this decision came consequences. The family members of the men who Odysseus killed become angry and turned against Odysseus to kill him. For example, Antinoos’ father says, “‘Come now, before he can escape to Pylos or Elis and the Epeians, let us move, or we shall be disgraced for ever! It will be a blot upon us in generations to come if we do not punish the murderers of our sons and brothers!” (book 24 page 301). Although Odysseus is responsible for decisions like this one and their results, some of the events in The Odyssey are fated to happen by the gods. For example, it was not Odysseus’ fate to die abroad away from his family and friends. So, although he was away from his native land of Ithaca for twenty years, he has made his way back home to take back over his house and live with his son and wife. You know that it was meant by fate for him to return home because there were multiple times on his journey that he could of died but the gods saved him and led him on his was home to Ithaca. This is how Odysseus is responsible for his decisions and their consequences and how certain things are fated to happen and cannot be changed.
ReplyDeleteKatie Haberberger
In Homer's, The Odyssey, Odysseus makes his own decisions, in which influence his fate and how his decisions will consequence or benefit him. It was Odyesseus' choice to go to into the Trojan War. Because of this, it was fate that he would not return home for many years, and encounter many perils. It was fate that Poseiden would prevent Odysseus from returning home at every chance he had. This is because Odysseus chose to antagonzie the blinded cyclops, Polyphemos. This angered Polyphemos and he prayed to his father Posieden that he prevent Odysseus from ever reaching his home. Also when Odysseus chose to go to Hades to seek out Theban, it was fate that he would encounter Scylla and Charbydis, no matter how hard he tried to avoid them. And when he had to land on the island of Helios it was fate that he would arrive on Ogygia. After being trapped on the island for months, avoiding the golden sheep, Odysseus went to to pray to the Gods and they put him in a deep sleep. During this, Eurylochos convinced the men, that whatever the consequences eating the sheep would be worth it. Because of eating Helios' sheep, the god became angered and forced Zeus to punish them, so Zeus strcuk their ship with a lightning bolt, This happened because Odysseus had listened to Eurylochos and land on the island of Helios. Thus he ended up on the island Ogygia. Fate made Odysseus land in the Land of the Phaiacians, becaus ehe chose to listen to the Sea Goddess Leucothea, who gave him and use her veil to get to safe land. Then he was able to get a ship in Phaiacia, and return home. Though are many, many more examples of Odyesseus' fate influenced by his decisions in the Odyssey, it gives the reader a clear sense that Odysseus' fate is determined by what he does. Showing that Decision and Fate are critical to The Odyssey.
ReplyDelete-Tyler Smith
Nic Duggan-
ReplyDeleteIn the book, The Odyssey, by Homer it is clear that both, fate and ones own actions helped influence Odysseus' tale. Throughout the story Odysseus received help and distress from the gods. Things that the gods decided in advance were fated upon him to happen. Zeus calls for Hermes, to send a message to Calypso." he shall build a raft, and a hard voyage he shall have, until 20 days he shall come to land on Scheria" (Homer 62). This is just the beginning of what the gods had planned for Odysseus. In many cases like this one the gods stepped in and took care of him. The gods chose his fate, but he had to take responsibility to fulfill their plans. Such as, when he finally reveals himself to the suitors who were trying to marry off his wife. He took the action of killing the men himself, like the gods told him to do. Odysseus had made his own decisions but Athena told both him and Telemachos his son what to do. If she did not tell them, they acted all on their own. In this story Odysseus' fate was determined before hand by the gods. All though he had to act on his own free will to accomplish tasks he had to do himself with no godly intervention.
Fate is defined as something that unavoidably befalls a person, while luck is defined as the force that seems to operate for good or ill in a persons life, as in shaping cirsumstances, events, or oppurtunities. In The Odyssey, fate and luck coexist but the difference is that odysseys fate is to return home to his family, which eventually he does because the old woman says "Wake up, dear love; wake up, Penelopeia! Come and see with thi own eyes what tha's prayed for many a long day! The master has come; he's in the house, better late than never (Homer, 282)!" Throughout his journey home, Odysseus encounters all kinds of luck, both good and bad. For example, Homer writes about Nausicaa's dream saying "... let us go out and wash the linen as soon as day dawns. I will give you a hand myself, that you may get it done quickly, for you will not reain a maiden long; you have plenty of admirers, the finest young men in all the nation (Homer, 75)." With this dream, she decides to go wash the linen, which is lucky for Odysseus because she meets him and she takes him back to the palace, cloths him, feeds him, and gives him a place to sleep.
ReplyDelete- Jason Schmitz
Fate and luck are two very important, yet diverse, contributors to the story of Homer’s The Odyssey. Many events throughout Odysseus’ journey can be blamed for sheer unintended luck along the way, whereas other proceedings in the story rely on fate. Luck, for example, is responsible when Odysseus survives the rage of the Sun God. Disobeying Circe’s instructions, Odysseus’ men feasted for six days on the sacred, forbidden cattle that had belonged to the God of the Sun. By punishment via Zeus, Odysseus’ ship was struck by lightning and destroyed. As luck would have it, Odysseus comes upon the broken mast and keel of his destroyed ship, creating a raft on which he floats upon for nine days. In comparison, fate brings upon a significant portion of the story. For example, it is fated that Odysseus would eventually return home to Ithaca. Even after enduring all hardships that were thrown at him along the way, Odysseus keeps the same drive and motivation to revisit his beloved wife and son. For example, Odysseus is confronted with obstructions from Circe’s sorcery, to the man-eating Scylla, to his eight-year imprisonment with Calypso. Although he is faced with predicaments along the way, Odysseus’ general fate is to return to his homeland, defeat bothersome suitors, and live in peace again. The miscellany of both luck and fate are crucial to the story telling of Odysseus’ journey home in Homer’s The Odyssey.
ReplyDeleteNikki Hacking
ReplyDelete08/08/09
Honors 10 L.A
Whether fate or unexpected obstacles the main character Odysseus encounters both and finds a way to overcome them in “The Odyssey”. From the very start one could say that Odysseus journey was destined to happen. For example, in the opening page Odysseus’s character is explained and later says “Well then, the seasons went rolling by, and when the year came, in which by the thread that spins fate for every man he was to return home to Ithaca, he had not yet got free of his troubles and come back to his own people” (Homer11). Based on this quote the reader can predict that Odysseus whole journey could have been fate because it explains that he would eventually return home. In addition, further reading proves that Odysseus does return to his family in Ithaca. On the other hand Odysseus is responsible for those choices that he makes and their resulting consequences. For example, Odysseus and his crew is sailing past Scylla and Charybdis and Odysseus recalls “At that moment I quite forgot what Circe’s injunction, when she told me not to arm myself; I put on my armor, and caught up a couple of spears, and took my stand on the foredeck”(Homer142). Odysseus shows that he made the choice of arming himself when Circe tells him not to and the direct consequence was 6 members of his crew got eaten by Scylla. In conclusion, Odysseus displays the choices he makes have resulting consequences, though some instances are inevitable from the very beginning.
Paul Marler
ReplyDeleteIn The Odyssey by the greatest poet of our time, Homer, Odysseus is very much in control of his actions, but some events were supposed to happen from the start. When Odysseus was playing the role of the beggar he took out his bow, knotched an arrow, and struck Antinoos in the throat, killing him, but had compassion on Medon the Marshall and Phemos Terpiades the Minstrel after he killed all those men since they were afraid to speak out against the actions of the suitors. Both death and mercy are possible fates to have, since the majority of the men knew that death was to come to them soon, and those men that were scared of speaking out against the suitors had no death upon them because Odysseus is known to be the god of mortal men, showing vengeance on all the men that deserve it and mercy on those that deserve it. After, Odysseus slays Antinoos there was a great commotion of men saying that the vultures will eat Odysseus here though they did not know it yet, and once everyone knows who Odysseus is he says "Now the choice lies before you, flight or fight, is you wish to save your lives; but I do not think any one of you will escape sudden death (Homer, 244)." They decide to take fight and twelve of these suitors are hewn down quickly in a heep by the arrows of Odysseus. Both the fates of death and mercy are possible, because some men are ring leaders and some men are followers that deserve mercy. With any story, though, there are always the followers that deserve death since they are being the diviner of men through prayer. This means that physical action but action of mouth can put someone in disaster. The prime example of this being Leiodes who prayed Odysseus would never return home. Odysseus eventually gets around to killing him with the sword of Agelaos and thrusts it through his neck in that while he was still talking his face went into the dirt. In summation, some men are ring leaders that deserve what is coming but one oddball deserves death out all followers but some do not since they are timid to speak up.
Cole Greenwald
ReplyDeleteThe book the Odyssey is mainly about fate, specifically the fate of Odysseus, but there are times when Odysseus is responsible for his own actions not destined by fate. For example while traveling home from Troy Odysseus and his men come across many islands which they explore. On one of these islands, home of a violent race Cyclops, Odysseus decides to land and find out who inhabits the land. While searching the home of one of the natives its owner returns, a Cyclops named Polyphemos, the son of Poseidon. The Cyclops traps them inside and eats Odysseus’ men and after awhile Odysseus comes up with a plan to escape. He puts out the monster’s eye with a stake and escapes by riding out on his sheep but Poseidon is angered by the blinding of his son and vows revenge. If Odysseus had not been curious and searched the island he would have never lost any of his men and angered the god. Fate plays a large role in the book as well. It was always destined for Odysseus to have to wait before returning home. Before embarking for Troy a man named Halitherses prophesized that Odysseus would not return home without hardship. He recalls, “I declare that all has been fulfilled as I told him, when our people embarked for Ilios and with them went Odysseus… I said he would have many troubles, and lose all companions, and after 20 long years, unknown, he would come home again: and see now all is being fulfilled” (20). It was determined by fate that Odysseus would have to wait 20 years before returning home. In the Odyssey both fate and Odysseus’s actions are seen and each has dire results for him and his men.
In the Odyssey, Homer hints on and shows free will versus determinism. This especially becomes evident in Odysseus's actions and as well as in what is told to the reader through out the novel. When Odysseus returns to his homeland to find all of his wife's suitors devouring all his wealth, he decided to slay them all. "Odysseus looked carefully in every part of the hall, in case any one were still alive and hiding himself from death. But he saw them all lying in heaps amid blood and dust"(279). Needless to say this is going to bring about consequences for his violent actions. Due to the fact that he had just killed the finest young men of Ithaca, their parents were outraged. Although fate had a hand in the young men's demise since Athena had fought along side Odysseus and Telemachos's sides which had been the deciding factor in the battle. Which Odysseus was fated to win from early on in the book. For example the two eagles that swooped down and began "tearing at their cheeks and necks with their talons" when Telemachos was speaking to the council. This battle exemplifies both fate and the ramifications of the decisions made by Odysseus.
ReplyDeleteIn The Odyssey by Homer, there are certain events that happen because of fate while other happenings are due to decisions that characters have made. Fate and decisions are able to co-exist in The Odyssey because while the fates are determined, the details are not. For example, it is fate that Odysseus will return home to Ithaca and kill his wife’s suitors who have long been harassing his family. But it is not determined how he will kill them all by himself. It is fate that Athena will help him, but it is not determined, again, how he can terminate a fairly large amount of men on his own. “So Odysseus was left in the hall, brooding over his vengeance with Athena in his thoughts” (book xix, 213). Odysseus is responsible for gathering a small group of supporters to help him. Odysseus made a plan. It was pre-determined that Odysseus would win, however it was not determined how. Odysseus’s clever and well-planned decisions helped him easily succeed. Therefore, responsibility for one’s own actions and their results and fate are able to both exist in The Odyssey because the big picture, the outline, is already predetermined by fate; however, the finer details, the details that lead to the outcome, are the characters’ responsibility.
ReplyDelete~Meagan Tucker
Dustin Myers
ReplyDeleteOption A
Both fate and control of one's actions are shown in the novel titled the Odyssey. This is possible for a variety of reasons. One of the reasons that fate is shown is that the gods are very powerful. For example, the gods are the ones who decided that Odysseus must return home in order to kick all of the intruders out of his home. Another example of this is that Athena is always with Odysseus throughout his travels to ensure his survival. For example, Athena was there when Odysseus' ship was struck with a lightning bolt straight from Poseidon and he was the only one to survive. Control of one's actions is also shown in the Odyssey. Odysseus is incredibly intelligent and has the ability to think on the spot which allows him to control his survival to a certain extent. For example, it was Odysseus' quick thinking that brought him to the solution of stabbing the Cyclops in the eye so that he was blind. Another example of control would be Odysseus' kindness. If it was not for Odysseus' kindness and thoughtfulness he would not have been taken in and welcomed by so many strangers. An example of this would be when Odysseus willingly goes out and speaks to the women even though he has no clothes. The only reason the women take him in is because of his kind words and sensitivity. Fate and control of one's actions are shown in many ways in the Odyssey.
A:In The Odyssey, Odysseus is responsible for his actions and their results. First, when Odysseus is kicked by Melanthios at the water, rather than “kill(ing) the man with a blow of his staff… he controlled himself and bore it” (Homer 195). Odysseus is a man of discipline. Even at the temptation of impulse, Odysseus refrains from lashing and takes abuse to hide his identity. Also, as Odysseus is avenging the suitors, he spares Phemios, the singer, and Medon, the marshal. Odysseus is not a killing machine; rather, he is a man to hurt only those that damage him. Odysseus takes responsibility for his actions in the book.
ReplyDeleteThough Odysseus makes his own decisions, events are predestined from the start. For example, Odysseus is destined to return home. Gods favor him because of his wisdom and readiness to sacrifice, and desire the best outcome for him. This guarantees that Odysseus will come home regardless of dangers he experiences. In addition, the day that Odysseus is to kill the suitors is inevitable. When men try to steal another man’s woman and possessions, they volunteer for punishment. As the suitors do this, their trip to Hades is doomed. Some outcomes are destined, regardless of Odysseus’ actions.
In The Odyssey, events are fated to happen, but how Odysseus reaches his outcome relies on his actions. This is shown by Odysseus’ journey home. Though he is destined to return, Odysseus’ decisions carve his pathway to the foreseeable conclusion. Also, the suitors’ deaths are fated from the start, but Odysseus’ decision to save Phemios and Medon help create the trail to the predestined outcome. In The Odyssey, some events are fated to happen from the start, and some events are determined by Odysseus’ actions. They are both possible by the working together of decision and fate.
--Sarah Crudden
A) Although Odysseus’s journey in The Odyssey is guided by fate and the gods, his destiny is also determined by his own decisions and actions. Throughout his adventure, Odysseus’s fate is hinted through prophecies and prayers. However, the lesser details of the journey are determined by how Odysseus reacts to situations caused by the several prophecies that are forced upon him. For example, both fate and luck are apparent during Odysseus’s time on the island of the Cyclops. Odysseus certainly makes his own decisions while deciding how to save his crew and defeat the Goggle-eye; luck is the factor that protects Odysseus when he eventually blinds and then taunts the Cyclops. In spite of his believed luck during his time on the island, the Cyclops’s rage at being blinded causes him to pray to Poseidon that “Odysseus the conqueror of Troy-the son of Laërtês-whose address in Ithaca, may never reach his home! But if it is his due portion to see his friends and come again to his tall house and his native land, may he come there late and in misery, in another man’s ship, may he lose all his companions, and may he find tribulation at home” (Homer 111)! As a result, Odysseus is fated to go through a series of troubles before he return home. Even though Odysseus often makes his own decisions while on his journey, they are directed where fate decides he should go.
ReplyDeleteNikki Meuser
The characters in the Odyssey have a strong faith in the afterlife and in the belief of the existence of gods. They also believe in the fact that gods have predetermined steps of their journey. These predestined steps are what the characters of the Odyssey by Homer call fate. The characters seem to have a feeling when gods intervene in their lives, however, instead of letting the gods determine every step of their lifetime the characters rely on their own actions to help them along the way. When the actions turn out well for the character, intentional or not, it has come to be named luck. Although very similar to luck, fate is known by someone, whether, this someone is a god or a being of some form isn't a concern, just the fact that they know and will somehow be involved. For example, when Odysseus is telling the story of his battle with the Cyclops, the Cyclops says, "There was a soothsayer here once, a fine tall fellow, Telemos Eurymedes, a famous soothsayer who lived to old age prophesying amongst our people. He told me what would happen, that I should lose my sight at the hands of Odysseus."(Book IX, page 110). This is an example of fate, someone was told what would happen and it came true, in this case the fact the Odysseus would stop the Cyclops. Most of the journey in the Odyssey is based on fate, however luck does play a key role to help Odysseus fulfill his journey.
ReplyDeleteRachel Dutton
A) Throughout Homer’s story, the Odyssey, there are many decisions made by the characters that result in a good or bad way. An example of a character making there own decision is when Odysseus told Telemachos to put all of the weapons in the hall away in a storage closet. This made sure that when the father and son got in a fight with all of the men trying to win over Penelope, Odysseus and Telemachos would be the only ones with access to any weapons. Odysseus telling his son to do this resulted in them winning the fight and taking revenge. At other times in the story, some of the decisions made by characters are decided according to what that person is fated to do later in the story. After Odysseus made his long journey to Troy for the war, he went through many troubles and problems that set him completely off path on his way back to Ithaca. During all of these troublesome times, Odysseus was easily close to dying at least twenty times on his journey. What kept him from dying is that he was fated to finally reach back to his home land of Ithaca. Since this was his fate, the gods kept him from dying away from home. That is how fate and a person’s own responsibility for their actions can change what happens in the tale, The Odysseus.
ReplyDelete–Daniel Hanks
A)In the whole story of the Odyssey there is one thing for sure: Odysseus is in total control on what he does and no one can (usually) get in his way. The majority of events were fated to happen and Odysseus knew this. He was determined to get home to his wife, but he always had a plan up his sleeves. Athena obviously had a huge role of helping him fulfill his actions toward his fate. For example when Athena disguised Odysseus as a beggar, “Athena passed her rod over Odysseus, and she withered the sound flesh of his muscular body…she gave him a stick and a coarse bag full of holes with twisted cord to carry it” (Book 13, pg. 157). It was Odysseus’s and Athena’s idea to have a sneak attack for the wooers of his wife, but he was the one that took control. Odysseus is a strong man who will do anything to protect himself or his people, but he isn’t a horrible killer. He was tempted by many things but restrained himself. He did ask for help from the gods, but only at the time when he was in desperate need. Odysseus is man who can take care of himself and his people (with a little help from Athena).
ReplyDelete--Daniel Vogel
In The Odyssey, by Homer, events are fated to happen by the Greek gods as well as forced upon the characters throughout their own decisions. After the battle against the suitors in the hall, Odysseus responds to Eurycleia’s joy by saying, “It is not descent to boast over slain men. These have been brought low by God’s decree and their own wicked deeds (251).” This shows that both fate and their own decisions played a vital role in the suitor’s death. The gods send signs to the mortals about what is going to happen, and they are then interpreted. He tells her that the suitor’s death was fated to happen due to the eagle that was seen flying with a dove in its claws by Amphinomos. In the case of the suitor’s death, fate was responsible. The suitor’s individual actions were also responsible to their death by their wicked attitudes and how they treated the home of Odysseus. Odysseus, alone, was responsible for the fact that Phemios and Medon were still alive. Odysseus’s entire journey was based on fate. As he traveled through foreign lands, he met multiple mortals and immortals that helped him return to Ithica. When he met Circe, she predicted his entire travel and told him exactly what he would need to due in order to survive. However, certain obstacles got in the way that affected what Circe had predicted.
ReplyDeleteNicole Keeve
Jacob Manier
ReplyDeletePrompt #3
Option (A.
In Homer’s “The Odyssey”, Odysseus, the strong man that he is, is responsible for his own actions and their outcome. Also, in many circumstances, fate is the reason certain events and their outcomes. Unlike some novels, in this particular one, there are two types of fate. The first type of fate is the type of fate that most stories have, things just happens at random. For example, when Odysseus gets washed up on the island of Scheria, he just happens to find, the perfect place to sleep, and just happens to find Nausicaa when he wakes up. The second type of fate is the fate that other books don’t usually have. In this type of fate, the gods play a role in the outcome. This fate is shown more often throughout Odysseus’ journey because the god, Athena, is constantly changing forms to help Odysseus on his way, while Poseidon makes Odysseus’ journey as difficult as possible. Although Odysseus got many places due to fate, his own actions helped him along his journey. If not for Odysseus’ intelligence and quick thinking, he and his crew would have never escaped the Cyclopes. Odysseus’ said “Three drinks I gave him; three times the fool drank” (107). This was one of Odysseus’ ideas to escape the Cyclopes. He let the Cyclopes drink until it got to its head and then was able to impair the beast by stabbing its one eye with a hot pole, letting Odysseus and his crew escape the Cyclopes. Whether it was fate or Odysseus’ strong actions, he was finally able to reach Ithaca and save his wife, Penelope, and his son, Telemachos, from the awful suitors.
In The Odyssey, both luck and fate play a big role. Luck is when something will happen due to chance or an action taken and is not predetermined . Fate is when someone is destined to do something or an event or action is bound to occur. Odysseus made the decision to go and fight in the Trojan war. He decided to stop on many islands on the way home, extending his journey 20 years, and brought it upon himself to be captured by Calypso and to be separated from Ithaca and his family. This is luck because Odysseus made the decision to prolong his journey. Fate is also relied on in The Odyssey. In the beginning of the novel, Athena comes to Telemachos, disguised as Mentes, to convince him to find out what happened to Odysseus. Athena tells Telemachos; "get the best ship you can find...go and find out about your father and why he is so long away"(Book 1, page 17). This is fate that Athena came to Telemachos and helped him throughout the journey to find Odysseus because without her Odysseus and Telemachos would not have arrived back to Ithaca alive. If Telemachos had not received the guidance of Athena he would have never had the courage to go and find his father. It is fate that all the Gods all help Odysseus. When Odysseus returns back to Ithaca and is faced with an ambush of men, all wanting to marry Penelope. He prays to Zeus for guidance and hears "...the words of omen and the clap of thunder. Now he felt sure he should punish the guilty men" (Book 20, page 228). He is also told by Athena that she will always protect him in all of his dangers. The gods help him for a reason, because it was fate for Odysseus to arrive to Ithaca and reclaim his home. Luck and fate are equally important in all of the events that occur in The Odyssey.
ReplyDeleteIn the Odyssey the difference between fate and luck is that characters believe fate is controlled by the Gods, while their own skills bring them luck. One instance, when Odysseus relies on luck, is when he’s trapped in the Cyclops’s cave. Odysseus doesn’t pray to the Gods to magically set him free from the cave, instead he comes up with a clever plan to escape; consisting of blinding the Cyclops, telling the beast his name in Noman, and tying his men to the bellies of sheep so they can fool the Cyclops into moving the boulder that’s blocking the door. He relied on the lucky chance that the Cyclops wouldn’t see through his scheme and it paid off, his plan succeeds and Odysseus and his men were able to safely depart the cave. However, Odysseus relies greatly on fate to return home. The God’s control his fate by assisting him, mostly Athena does this. Athena convinces Zeus to command Calypso that she has to let Odysseus return home after all his troubles, Athena also took the form of Mentês to restore confidence and provide wisdom to Telemachos so that he would search the world for stories of his father’s travels and demise, and Athena also turned into King Nausithoös’s herald to arrange for the convoy of Odysseus (meaning she got people interested in helping this visitor return to his homeland); Athena did all of these things while Odysseus didn’t lift a finger. Now obviously, Odysseus does pray and give sacrifices to the God’s, but this is to thank them for their aid in keeping his fate bright. The blaming comes into the Odyssey through Telemachos and Penelope who seem to blame Odysseus’s absence on fate. Although Telemachos blames his fate for his father’s ‘death’, he believes part of his fate is to learn the truth behind his father’s sudden demise. In the end Telemachos can only blame fate for keeping his father away for so much of his life.
ReplyDelete- Emma Walser
A) One’s fate is an uncontrollable part of life, while a person is also responsible for their actions. Both of these aspects are present during Odysseus’ journey. Some events in the Odyssey were meant to happen, such as Odysseus’ crew all turning into pigs due to Circe. Another example of fate is Odysseus returning home to Ithaca after being absent for 20 years, because he could’ve died several times during his journey, but he ended up coming home to see Telemachos and Penelope. Both of these happenings are examples of fate because Odysseus cannot control them. On the other hand, there are things that Odysseus can control. For example, it was Odysseus’ decision to slay all of Penelope’s wooers. “You shall pay for shooting a man! No more games for you: now your death is a safe thing! You have killed the best fellow in Ithaca, and so the vultures shall eat you here” (243). It was Odysseus’ decision, not fate, to kill this man, and all of the others that wooed Penelope. The fate of Odysseus in his voyage was in the hands of the Gods, such as Zeus, Athena, and Poseidon. Therefore, both fate and responsibility are present in the book because the first pages give the story in a nutshell, while all of the occurrences in between are decided by the characters.
ReplyDelete-Zach Elmore
Many events in The Odyssey are guided by fate and the result of free will. Fate is events that occur in life and happen for an unknown reason. In The Odyssey though, fate is created by the gods. Since the gods control everything, fate is created by the gods who interfere in human affairs. It was “fate” that Odysseus would return to his home and kill the suitors in his house trying to claim his wife. The fate of Odysseus returning was really Athena interfering to make sure that Odysseus was safe and made it home. Another example of fate is the wrath that was brought from Poseidon onto Odysseus. Polyphemos heard from a prophecy that Odysseus would blind him. In rage Polyphemos ask his father Poseidon to make sure that Odysseus never returns home. Poseidon’s wrath made Odysseus journey longer and more dangerous.
ReplyDeleteFree will means a person have authority over their own actions. Examples of free will are shown throughout the book in the form of temptation. On Calypso’s island, Calypso tempts Odysseus to stay with her by offering him immortally. Odysseus refuses the offer and decides to return home return home anyway. Odysseus chooses to return even though he could stay and live forever with Calypso. Another example of Odysseus’ free will versus temptations is on Polyphemos Island. It was fate that Odysseus would blind Polyphemos, but Odysseus was overcome with temptation to brag to Polyphemos and tell him his name. This brought the wrath of Poseidon onto him.
Though many of Odysseus’ actions influence the story, some of the results are decided by fate, while others are results of his own actions. For example, his own actions have a negative result when all of the family members of Odysseus’ victims become angry, and in search of revenge. Antonio’s father speaks to the others “let us move, or we shall be disgraced forever! It will be a blot upon us….if we do not punish the murderer of our sons and brothers!” (Book 24 page 301). Also results blamed on fate are shown in many cases. For example, before the reader learns that Odysseus stops Cyclops, Cyclops tells the story of when “a famous soothsayer who lived to old age prophesying amongst our people. He told me what would happen, that I should lose my sight at the hands of Odysseus.” (Book IX, page 110). This shows that fate decides who will win the battle between Odysseus and Cyclops. Throughout the whole story fate and personal responsibility contradict each other. In the overall picture the gods decide the fate of Odysseus by saving his life until the appropriate time. Because of the use of gods and mythological figures with their power and control over what happens in The Odyssey both fate and personal responsibility are possible.
ReplyDelete-Brian Quasebarth
a.) It is possible for fate to interfere with ones own actions. Fate is uncontrollable, no matter what choices we make. For Odysseus the gods control his fate. Odysseus chose to go to war. Then on his journey home the gods are what kept him from returning so long, and the gods helped him get home after so long. Odysseus was simply coming home when he got trapped on an island with Calypso. This happened because the god of the sea, Poseidon, was infuriated with the men and wrecked their boat which was a strike of fate. It was not Odysseus’s choice to stay but the god Calypso’s, another uncontrollable factor for Odysseus. Fate is also apparent any other time the gods intervene The gods where also the ones who lead Odysseus home, starting with Athena saying, “let us dispatch our messenger Hermes Argeiphontes to the island of Ogygia; and let him announce forthwith to the nymph our unchangeable will, that Odysseus, after all he has patiently endured, shall return home” (Book 1, 13). So no matter what choices Odysseus makes no matter how responsible the gods can control what happens. So whatever the gods do in the book is fate because they affect choice.
ReplyDeleteA)Many different events happen during Odysseus’s journey in The Odyssey and some are due to his own responsibilities and others are fate. Fate is when something is bound to happen to a person and they can’t avoid it, fate shows up in many different events. For example, Odysseus endures many hardships and obstacles that he is brought to by fate on his long journey home, “First you will come to the Sirens, who bewitch every one who comes near them. If any man draws near in his innocence and listens to their voice, he never sees home again…” (Book 12 page 150). This shows that fate brings Odysseus through different tasks that he cannot avoid if he wishes to make his journey home. Odysseus also goes through different tasks and actions that are from his own doing and his own responsibility. For example, Odysseus puts his own crew in danger when he sends them right into the territory of Scylla and he also forgot what Circe told him, “But I took care not to mention Scylla and the peril we could not avoid…At that moment I quite forgot Circe’s injunction, when she told me not to arm myself. I put on my amour…” (Book 12 page 154). This demonstrates that Odysseus has been held responsible for his actions because he did not avoid the horrible Scylla and warn his crewmates and he also did not follow his commands which put him in danger as well. Odysseus was then responsible for the outcome of the situation, not fate, because he was the one who did not do things properly.
ReplyDeleteGabrielle Wibbenmeyer
A) Results are possible by fate and by which the choices Odysseus makes. For starters when Odysseus was born it was fate on where he grows up, who his parents are, and what they do for a living. But Odysseus can control many things with his actions. He can control who he marries, what his profession is, if he wants to have children, and what he does at war. "Gracious goddess, don’t be cross with me! I know all that as well as you do. My wife is nothing compared to you for beauty, I can see that for myself. She is mortal, you are immortal and never grow old. But even so, I long for the day of my home-coming. And if some god wrecks me again on the deep, I will endure it, for I have a patient mind, I have suffered already many troubles and hardships in battle and tempest; this will be only one more." (Book 5,pg. 66) As you can see these are both possible in The Odyssey. Things that that Odysseus can’t control himself are fate and those he can, he can act and make a decision on himself. More times than not things are played out with decisions than with fate. But both are able to go along together in the book.
ReplyDelete-Scott Nettesheim
Rachel Meyer
ReplyDeletePrompt 3
option A)
In Homer's The Odyssey, both fate and ones decisions determine the outcome of the novel. Though there are many characters who had decisions to make during the story, Odysseus had the most of them. While on his journey back to Ithaca odysseus' actions determined the survival of him and his crew. For example, as a result of Odysseus letting himself fall asleep and also not continuing to enforce the rule about not harming the cattle, his men kill a cow for the meat. This affected Odysseus' journey because the punishment of harming any of the cattle on the island was that his crew would be killed in a pernicious storm created by one of the gods (book 12, 159).This punishment follweed through and Odysseus was left to fend for himself and had to be able to make quick decisions on building a raft to finish the seabound part of his travels. Once in Ithaca Odysseus continues to demonstrate how his actoins affect the story such as during the contest at his home, the palace, he tells telmachos to back off on the bow stringing and purposely fail inorder to give the suitors all a chance wich would waste time allowing Odysseus and his loyal servants to set up/ prepare for the battle. Along with the decisions and actions of the chracters in the story there is also something out of their control that plays a part in the result of the novel, this is fate. Throughout the entire story, Penelope stays faithful to her husband and away from the suitors that fill her house. This decision taht she made which was in her control brings fate into play by her husband returning to the home eventually. His return is fate because if it was to be anyother way the story would consist of Penelope gaining interest in one of the other men and then end with her and him together not her and Odysseus. This element of fate helps the reader predict that he will once return to Ithaca and save his mistress frmo all of therelentless suitors. Fate can be influenced by the decisions that characters such as Odysseus make; these two things together,fate and actions, determine the outcome of Homer's The Odyssey.
Option A-
ReplyDeleteIn Homer’s, The Odyssey, Odysseus is responsible for the actions and results that he decided to make. The actions that Odysseus took sometimes backfired on him such as when Odysseus killed Aninoös. This action Odysseus took, upset and angered many family members and others because Odysseus had, “killed the best fellow in Ithaca, and so the vultures shall eat you here!” (Book XXII, 243). Although Odysseus had control of the actions he took, some events were fated to happen from the beginning of his journey which Odysseus did not have control of. Events such as Circe turning Odysseus’ crew in to swine but then reversing the spell and giving essential advice or Athena helping aid Odysseus on his journey home were fated to happen from the start. Also, it was fate that helped lead Odysseus back home to Ithaca to return to his wife and son because the other gods helped make his journey home as safe as possible. Both Odysseus’ actions and fated events are possible in The Odyssey because fate is already predetermined and can not be changed. In The Odyssey, Odysseus did not have control of the fated events that occurred to him but held all the responsibility for the actions he made.
Brad Gardner
Lalitha Kesetty
ReplyDeleteThe difference between “fate” and “luck” in general is that fate is something that unavoidably befalls a person while luck is the force that seems to operate for good or ill in a person’s life, as in shaping circumstances. In The Odyssey, an example of fate is that it’s Odysseus’s fate to go back to his native land of Ithaca; “‘As that bird has come from his native mountains and caught up this goose from the house where it was bred, so Odysseus after much tribulation and many wanderings shall come to his house and take his vengeance’ ” (Homer 172). Also, an example of luck from The Odyssey is when Circe told Odysseus how to get through many of the monsters of The Sea of Monsters; “ ‘First you will come to the Sirens, who bewitch every one who comes near them … You will come next to the island of Thrinacia, where the herds of Helios feed’ ” (Homer 138-140). The characters rely on or blame events on fate when they need confidence or courage. For example, Odysseus and his men have to keep reminding themselves that their quest is to get back to Ithaca in order to not get side-tracked or to get more confidence; after Odysseus and his men had stayed at Circe’s for a year, “ ‘Good heavens, have you forgotten home altogether? Do remember it, if it is really fated that you shall have a safe return…’ ”(Homer 121). The characters rely on or blame events on luck whenever they get through certain obstacles or they befall ill-luck. For example, Odysseus loses his crew and ship and lands on Calypso’s island. He blames these events as a cause of his ill-luck. Also, another example is that Odysseus is lucky to have Goddess Athena guide him through his quest to reach his native land of Ithaca. In conclusion, “fate” and “luck” are very different in The Odyssey and the characters experience both fate and luck in their odyssey.
In the Odyssey by Homer, some events occurring concerning Odysseus are fated to happen from the start, but in other cases, certain occurrences are in motion due to Odysseus himself. Characters are, at times, responsible for events because of their own actions. Fate, on the other hand, is something uncontrollable and destined from the beginning. For example, it is fate that leads Odysseus to Calypso’s island, after Zeus strikes Odysseus’s ship, killing his crew. Athena then approaches her father Zeus to inquire about Odysseus’s life and what his real destiny should be. Zeus then sends Hermês to force Calypso to release Odysseus so that he may return to Ithaca, his home, once again. It is fate that brings all of this to pass, because Odysseus has little control over these events. However, it is Odysseus’s actions and the results of those actions that he is responsible for. Odysseus is responsible for spending so much time away from his home, wife, and son. He is away from home for many years, visiting many places on his way. Odysseus and his men even stay at Circê’s house, “…for a whole year, with plenty to eat and good wine to drink”. (Book 10, Pg 130) Circê is a goddess of radiant beauty who becomes Odysseus’s lover for the year he and his men stay with her. These actions of Odysseus’s are his responsibility, because when he finally does come home, things are worse than they were while he was away. He could have returned sooner, having a better chance against the obnoxious men in his hall. The Odyssey consists of events due to fate but also to the actions of the characters.
ReplyDelete~Anna Otto~
In the Odyssey, fate and self-doing could both potentially explain the outcome of Odysseus's life and the events that unfold throughout the novel. It is clear that some events have been destined to happen for Odysseus, such as the relationships he suffers, and gains, with the Gods. It was Odysseus's choice to enter the Trojan War, but also fate that he interacted with the Gods while in it. For example, nobody forced Odysseus to hurt Polyphemus, thus resulting in the hatred of Poisedon but it seems that Athena and Calypso's attitudes towards Odysseus were in his fortune, Athena acting the role as an alliance and Calypso aruguably the main reason that Odysseus has been trapped from his family for twenty years. When Zeus says, "Upon my word, just see how mortal men always put the blame on us gods! We are the source of evil, so they say- when they have only their own madness to thank if their miseries are worse than they ought to be" (book 1, page 12), he points out the conflict between fate and ones own actions However, it is mainly Odysseus and Telemachos fighting against all odds, fate or mistake, to win his life back that make the story's ending seem like a tumultuous battle won rather than a man's fortune.
ReplyDeleteIn the Odyssey, by Homer many events happen by fate and many by chance. Both are possible in this story because they are two completely different phenomenons. Fate is an event that is destined to happen from the beginning and cannot be changed. An example of fate is that Odysseus is fated to return to his home at the end of the book. Chance is an event that happens along the way, this event adds more to the story but doesn’t stop it in its tracks. For example, when Poseidon sees Odysseus leaving Calypso’s island he says, “I will yet give him a good run of bad luck” (62). It was by chance Poseidon saw Odysseus and mad the storm to knock him off of is raft. Since the storm was by chance it sidetracks Odysseus, but he still makes it ashore and back home. In the Odyssey chance can slow down fate, but it cannot stop it altogether.
ReplyDeleteB) Throughout the book of The Odyssey, both fate and luck were displayed. Although some can't see a difference between the two, in the book they are very dissimilar. Fate is showed as what the god's choose for you, what has always been meant to be. In the book, the characters blame Odysseus disappearing for those several of years of fate. They think it's the gods fault for him never returning back to his town of Ithaca.
ReplyDeleteLuck in this book is described as an unexpected good event. An example of luck displayed in The Odyssey would be when Athena shows up and tells Telemachus to go out and look for his father. "My advice to you is this, if you will let me advise you. Get the best ship you can find, put twenty oarsmen aboard, go and find out about your father and why he is so long away. Perhaps some one may tell you or you may hear some rumor that God will send, which is often the best way for people to get news." (Book 1 17)
As you can see, fate and luck are displayed very differently in the book, and the reasons why the characters blame the gods for the two are different as well.
-Jaime Castile
B) Fate and luck are two important contributors to Homer’s The Odyssey. From the beginning some things are fated to happen. For example, “All the gods now agree that Odysseus shall return to his own home” (Book I, 13). From the very beginning Odysseus’ safe return home was guaranteed, or fated. Also in Book IX, page 110 Cyclops says, "There was a soothsayer here once, a fine tall fellow, Telemos Eurymedes, a famous soothsayer who lived to old age prophesying amongst our people. He told me what would happen, that I should lose my sight at the hands of Odysseus." This can be considered fate because the Cyclops had a predetermined destiny to lose his eyesight. Although his return was fated, his journey home was left entirely up to luck. It was his own luck responsible for surviving Helios’ wrath. Odysseus’ crewman refused the warning of Circe not to eat the Sun God’s cattle for whomever Circe foretold, “Destruction for ship and men” (Book XII, 140). When the crewmen ate the cattle Zeus stirred the winds and destroyed themselves and the ship with a lightening bolt. Odysseus, who did not eat the cattle, used a broken mast and keel from his ship as a raft on which he floats for nine days.
ReplyDeleteMeagan Banta-Lewis
In Homer’s The Odyssey some events are predetermined by fate, however, other events are determined by luck. Fate is an outcome determined by the gods. Luck is an outcome or event in which the gods played little or no part in the outcome. Fate is inescapable. Once a character has been fated to do something, they will do it. When Calypso was ordered to release Odysseus, it was fated that Odysseus would return home. It was also fated that when he returned home he would destroy those who wasted his fortune and courted his wife. When Odysseus says, “We meant to sail straight home, but we have lost our way altogether: such was the will of Zeus, I suppose.”(Homer 105), he acknowledges that it was fate and that he could not have changed it. Because the gods affected Odysseus in these specific instances it was fate. Odysseus faced luck whenever he made his own decisions and created the outcome without divine interference. One such instance was when he was trapped in the cave of the Cyclops. Odysseus fought the Cyclops and escaped without the gods help. While the line between fate and luck is very thin the main determining factor is the role that the gods play in the situation.
ReplyDeleteKyle Krueger
Prompt B
Throughout the story of Homers', The Odyssey, both fate and luck play a major role when dealing with Odysseus' twenty year long journey from the great Trojan War up until he wins his wife back from the evil suitors. Fate is described as a power, principle, or force which predetermines events. However, in the story of The Odyssey, the fate of Odysseus lies in the hands of the Gods. For example, when Polyphemos asked his father to keep Odysseus, it was fate from the Gods that made the journey home a long life threatening voyage. "But Poseidon Earthholder bears him unrelenting hatred" (5). Odysseus blames fate on the Gods because they were the ones that stretched his voyage two decades long.
ReplyDeleteLuck is described as a combination of circumstances and events which leaves a person with great luck or a terrible downfall. Luck plays into effect when Circê turns Odysseus' crew to swine. Although it was the crews fate that they would get lured into Circês' trap, it was lucky that Odysseus knew what to say to Circê and when to say it for her to turn the crew into humans and let them on their ways. "Circê threw them a lot of beechnuts and acorns and cornel-beans to eat, such as the earth-bedded swine are used to. But Eurylochos came back to the ship, to tell the tale of his companions and their unkind fate" (125). Whether it be fate or luck, these two unpreventable circumstances play major roles in the story of The Odyssey and result in a twenty year voyage for Odysseus returning home to his wife and son.
A) In the Odyssey written by Homer, Odysseus is mostly responsible for his actions, but fate does determine some of Odysseus' actions. Both fate and Odysseus' actions are easily shown as the novel progresses. During Odysseus journey, Odysseus must make several decisions in which could cause harm either to him or his soldiers. Yet fate does effect Odysseus on his journey to return home. Also, fate punishes Odysseus for making the wrong decision which causes harm. For example, Odysseus fights Scylla although he was told not to, "At that moment I quite forgot Circe's injunction, when she told me not to arm myself" (154). Odysseus is responsible for fighting Scylla, knowing that he was told not to. With Odysseus disobeying Circe's warnings, some of his soldiers must pay the price with their lives. There are some in which fate controls, not Odysseus. For instance, Poseidon keeps Odysseus trapped on an island with Calypso, "Evern since then, Poseidon has kept the man wandering about, although he does not kill him outright" (5). Fate traps Odysseus on the island for causing harm to Poseidon. Odysseus is punished, and fate has punished him by trapping him on Calypso's island. Odysseus is mainly responsible for his actions on his voyage back to Ithaca, yet fate alters Odysseus' voyage.
ReplyDeleteSean Simpson
In the Odyssey, there is a fine line between luck and fate. Odysseus can also control his fate in a way. The Gods play a major part in his luck and especially in his fate. Odysseus's fate is always changing because of the Gods' decisions. If Poseidon, God of the sea, had his way, Odysseus would be dead for blinding Poseidon's son. While he may not kill Odysseus because of the other Gods, he still places many obstacles in Odysseus's path to slow his progress. Odysseus's fate can also be altered by characters such as Circe on the island of Aiaia. Odysseus and his crew stay with Circe for a year before his crew persuades him to continue their journey home. When they are ready to leave the island, Circe tells them how to get where they want to go. This affects Odysseus's fate because he can get home safely when he talks with the spirit of a prophet. I believe there is little luck in the Odyssey because with the God's on Odysseus's side (excluding Poseidon), everything happens for a reason. The Gods favor Odysseus and appear to him in human form to offer him advice and to help him in his journey. Hermes appears in the form of a young boy and Odysseus an herb to protect him from Circe's magic (Homer 118). The Gods control everything about Odysseus's journey because they control everyone and everything he will ever come across, therefore there is little luck in Odysseus's journey.
ReplyDelete-Will Adams
In life everyone is responsible for their own actions and the consequences that follow such actions as well. The same goes for Odysseus in Homer’s The Odyssey. For example, in the story Odysseus has to deal with consequences of letting Scylla eat his six strongest men he is on Circe’s special journey she told him to take. After she ate the men, Odysseus’ crew becomes weaker making the remainder of their journey together even more difficult. There are other instances also where Odysseus decides to do things such as listening to Athena when she gives him advice on what to do which are predetermined by fate. When something is fated to happen that means that it is almost guaranteed to happen, for some reason it will most likely have beneficial consequences in the long run. In the story, both fate and Odysseus are responsible for the decisions made. Some decisions are made solely by Odysseus and what he thinks is the right thing to do while fate determines other actions. Typically decisions that are decided by fate have a greater impact on the character because they are destined to happen. Odysseus has to deal with the many consequences of the decisions made in the Odyssey.
ReplyDeleteA.)As stated in Newton’s third law of motion, for every action there is an opposite or equal reaction. This is the same in Homer’s novel the Odyssey. It is clear that Odysseus is responsible for his own actions and their results. For example, Odysseus makes the decision to be unfaithful to Penelope so he can convince Calypso and Circe to set him free. This decision was risky for Odysseus because he could have potentially hurt his relationship with Penelope in the long run. While trying to save the relationship he could have caused more harm to it. In addition it is clear that certain events are fated to happen from the start. Fate is defined as the power to determine the outcome of events before they occur; destiny depends on a superior cause and is uncontrollable. It is said that every event is determined by fate. An example of fate from the start is, Penelope’s love for Odysseus. Penelope stayed faithful to Odysseus even while being tempted by the suitors. It seems that all along Penelope must have known somewhere deep inside of her that Odysseus would return home. In conclusion both fate and Odysseus play a role in how the decisions are made.
ReplyDeleteJoe DuBois
ReplyDeleteResponse A
In the Odyssey, the contrasting ideas of fate and freewill are very involved in the story. But how could you have free will if you ultimately reach the same destination? But then again, how could there be fate if human actions play such a large role in life?
Fate is something that was very real to the Greek Culture. The oracle and prophecies dominate Greek Mythology. Many of the most famous myths involve the idea of fate, such as the Fall of Cronus. The Odyssey is no different. For example, while Odysseus is disguised as a beggar, the suitors are harassing Theoclymenos, the prophet Telemachos brought home with him. As Theoclymenos is leaving, he says “… I can see woe coming upon you” (pg 233). What he is referring to is their death at Odysseus’s hands. This is fate.
Freewill is the exact opposite of fate. Freewill puts your life in your own hands, you actions determine you r future. This is also seen in the Odyssey. Poseidon hated Odysseus because of Odysseus’s actions, not because of fate. Odysseus blinded Polyphemos, king of the Cyclops, the son Poseidon. He could have escaped without incident, but he choose to tell the Cyclops his name, which allowed for Cyclops to call the wrath of Poseidon on Odysseus.
Fate and freewill can coexist in the Odyssey because both are watered down. Freewill causes fate, fate is not ridged. This is seen when Circes advises Odysseus on his journey home. She tells him that there are two possibilities, one he returns home safely, and the other his crew slaughters the livestock of Helios (pg 140).
B) In The Odyssey, there is a big difference between the concept of fate and of luck. Fate is determined by the gods and destined from the beginning; Odysseus didn’t perish on the island of Ogygia because he was destined or fated to return to his own land of Ithaka. The gods decided that Odysseus would travel back to Ithaka by sea for twenty days and then land on Scheria where the Phaeacians live. “Go and declare to Calypso our unchangeable will, that Odysseus shall return after all his troubles. But no god shall go with him, and no mortal man. He shall build a raft, and a hard voyage he shall have, until after twenty days he shall come to land on Scheria, the rich domain of our own kinsmen the Phaeacians. They shall honour him like a god in the kindness of their hearts, and they shall escort him in one of their ships to his native land.” (Homer 62). Inspite of all the bad luck he encountered, Odysseus still made it to Ithaka, seemingly destined by the gods. Luck in the Odyssey is circumstances that keep fate at bay for a period of time. For instance, Poseidon was enraged because the gods, against his will, set Odysseus free. Luck also changes how fate should come to be. Odysseus had a smooth trip across the sea or if Poseidon had mixed the waters, Odysseus would have still made it to Ithaka, for that is the fate the gods decided for him. “And there he is close to Phaiacia, where he is fated to find the end of the tribulations which afflict him. But I promise that I will yet give him a good run of bad luck.” (Homer 67). It was also luck that brought Odysseus to princess Nausicaa first, so she could teach him how to approach her father the king, so he wouldn’t have to come in contact with anyone else as well as get himself up all the way to the palace, naked at the time. Nausicaa gave him clothes, a bath with oils, food, and directions and guidance. This good luck made the journey simpler for Odysseus. Luck either made the voyage easy or hard, but the end result was fated to occur. How fated events come to be fulfilled are never clear but whether in good luck or bad luck the fate of a person will unquestionably occur.
ReplyDelete~Erika Scholle~
B)Throughout the Odyssey by Homer, there are many examples of fate and luck. Fate is defined as an event (or course of events) that will inevitably happen in the future. Where as luck is defined as the chance happining of fortunate or adverse events; fortune. The characters in the Odyssey tend to blame unfortunate events such as death on fate. An example of this is when Telemachos and his men are in Lacedaimon and attempting to find out his father's story, and King Menelaos tells them "I often sit brooding in my mansion-sometimes I weep outright to ease my heart of those men's cruel fates" (Book 4, Page 43) However, when ever one of these men have something good happen to them, then they always claim it is luck. So truly luck and fate aren't that far off in the book, the main difference is how the people in the story view it.
ReplyDelete-Jake Tinkham
There is a drastic difference between the definition of fate and luck, especially in The Odyssey. Fate is something that is predetermined and meant to be whereas luck is an act of randomness that befalls an individual in ways that are out of their control. There are multiple events in Odysseus’ journey where fate and luck would fall into play. Odysseus was meant to make it home to Ithaca after being absent for twenty years. This would be considered fate because throughout his journey he had multiple near death experiences such as escaping from the Cyclops or sailing through the land of Sirens. If Odysseus’ wasn’t meant to see this loved ones and island again it would not have happened like it did. When battling with the many obstacles he was faced with, Odysseus’ was presented with luck. Circe’s good direction for his upcoming voyage was an act of luck. If the enchanting goddess hadn’t provided Odysseus’ with the useful information, he would have had more difficulty making it back to his homestead. The overall plot of The Odyssey would lean more towards fate in my opinion because this expedition wouldn’t have been possible if every character relied on luck to survive.
ReplyDeleteGene Sendin E-mail: Aznnerd94@yahoo.com
ReplyDeleteResponse to prompt A:
Any person, in real life or in a story, must take responsibility for his or her actions. Things do happen, though that is out of their control. I define fate as the inevitable, uncontrollable events that happen in life. Both direct action and fate are present and play major roles in the story of the Odyssey. The direct actions of Telemachus, Penelope, and Odysseus affect their lives and the outcome of the story. Telemachus did not have to go out and find his father. He could have stayed home and handed his mother off to a suitor. Instead Telemachus went out to find his long lost father. Penelope could have very well accepted Odysseus’ death and remarried. She instead delayed her betrothal, hoping her husband would return. And Odysseus may not have made it back to Ithaca if he did not use his clever wits to maneuver his way back home. However these events would not have taken place if fate had not played its part. Fate caused the Trojan War which forced Odysseus and his men to go and fight. Then Calypso holds Odysseus captive as her lover which begins the rest of the story. This and other events in the story can be labeled as fate. But these events happened because of the actions of other people. This brings to mind a puzzling predicament. Is fate already chosen for us? Who controls our fate? Or is life just a big coincidence?
A) In all stories, characters make decisions that lead to consequences. However, in Homer’s, The Odyssey, many events that occur are also caused by fate. Fate is something that cannot be changed… something that is supposed to happen. For example, it is Odysseus’s decision to take the journey in the first place, but it is fate and help from the gods who decided what would happen to him from there and leaded him to where he needed to go. It was obviously not his choice to have a rough travel at sea or be captured by the evil witch, Calypso on the island of Ogygia. Many of the problems in the story, such as the men fighting over Penelope, had to occur in order for Telemachos to set out to find his father and bring him home safely. Odysseus’s original intentions were to take the journey and return home safely to his family. But because of fate, he endured several obstacles. However, even after twenty years being held captive, he did not die. He was meant all along to return home with his son, kill the men persuing his wife, and be a part of his family once again in Ithaca.
ReplyDelete-Katie McDonough
A) Throughout "The Odyssey", many events are based on characters decisions while others are based on fate. The events that are based on the characters decisions are possible because their actions have consequences which go along with the bad choices. For isntance, when Odysseus and his crew stopped at the island of Thrinacia, Odysseus was warned by Athena that they must "leave these [the cattle and sheep] unharmed" (140), and if not, then Athena fortold "destruction for your ship and men" (140). Here, Oddyseus and his men were given a choice to leave the livestock alone and their decision was the sole factor in what happened to them thereafter. However, if they ate the livestock there, fate would take over and "all of [Odysseus'] companions will be lost" (140).
ReplyDeleteThe people have a role in the decision of the future by the decisions they make, but sometimes fate takes over and none can stop it.
-Scott Saunders
B.) In the Odysessy by Homer, most things that happen are either caused by fate or luck. Usually if something is considered fate, it is because of the Gods. For example, anything that Athena tells Telemachos to do, such as being confident when talking to Nestor Neleiades concerning the whereabouts of his father, is considered to be fate. The outcome has already been determined. When Telemachos talks to Nestor, he already knows Nestor will give him an answer, because it was Athena who guided him there. However, some events in the story occur because of luck. This is when the Gods are not involved. There is no pre-determined outcome. For instance, Odysesseus being held captive by Calypso is his own luck. The Gods were not involved in keeping him held captive there, it was him who stumbled across Calypso and her wrath. Telemachos traveling there is his own decision, but because he has Athena with him, he already knows that he will be safe. He already knows his fate before he leaves on the journey. Odysseus is not sure as to what his future is, or where it will take place because currently the Gods are not involved, although they were involved previously on his journey. The easiest way to tell if something is fate or luck in the book is to see if the Gods are involved in the situation. If they are, it is fate. If not, its luck.
ReplyDelete-Cassie Wilton
A) It is obvious that in The Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus is responsible for his action and his results, and that some events are fated to happen from the start. An example of Odysseus being accountable for his actions is when he stayed at Circe's "and there we [Odysseus and his crew] remained for a whole year" (130). Nobody kept him there, he wasn't doing anything to help him get home, and nothing prevented him from leaving. This led to him not seeing his family again for another year. If Odysseus had just stayed for a short time at Circe's Island, like a week, Telemachos wouldn't have gone on his own journey and it wouldn't have caused as much stress for Penelope. It is also luck when Telemachos comes home safely from his journey, especcially after the suitors plan to kill him and because of his inexperience at sea. An instance of fate, something that would have happened regardless of what Odysseus did, was that Odysseus came back home to Ithaca where his family lives. Beause of his intelligence and willingness to sacrficice to the Gods, almost all of them are wiilling to help Odysseus on his journey home. The Odyssey consists of many events due to fate but also to the actions of the characters.
ReplyDelete~Kristen Gavenda
Nathan Wulfmeyer
ReplyDeletePrompt 3: Choice A
In The Odyssey, by Homer, fate and personal choice are a prevalent and driving force in the story in that much of the story’s events are shaped due to these two factors. One really good example of someone who endures both the consequences of fate and choice is none other than the story’s main hero Odysseus. It is worth stating that there is an extreme difference between choice and fate and in the Odyssey fate is what the gods decide for you. Where as choice is self explanatory. One example of choice for Odysseus is when he further endangers his crew after his encounter with the Cyclops. Odysseus was yelling insults at the Cyclops after leaving the island, which in retaliation the Cyclops opted to throw large stones at their ship, causing the crew to become upset and lose some trust for Odysseus. Odysseus also has some episodes in which fate befalls upon him. For example, when Odysseus was stranded on Calypso’s island, that was not a choice of his but rather a decision by the gods that he would have to endure such an event. These events are sometimes unfortunate and can be a major hindrance to the hero. However, regardless of what events fate entails they become somewhat of a foundation on which events in a story can be built upon. Which raises the question, of how can choice and fate be intermingled in one story. In the Odyssey fate is, as stated above, a foundation onto which the story is built. It set’s some what of a path for Odysseus to follow on his adventures. Choice can then be used to connect a story to human nature, and free will. In the Odyssey choice is used to bring life to the story and make it able to be related to, for much of ones life is centered on making various choices, each with unique outcomes. One can see that fate and choice are intermingled in the Odyssey to create the story and give it life, while also making it easier to understand, and relate to.
In Homer’s The Odyssey, the main character Odysseus experiences both amazing strokes of luck and acts of fate that are borderline impossible. But how can luck and fate coexist? One is absolute, and the other is set in stone. How is this possible? In this story it is possible for many reasons. One, the presence and interference of gods and god-like creatures (nymphs, Cyclopes, etc.). These gods and creatures possess supernatural powers that allow them to twist fate and luck. For example, in the very beginning of the book, the goddess Athena states that Odysseus will return home no matter what. This solidifies Odysseus’ fate to return home. However, when Odysseus and his companions are trapped by the Cyclops in his cave, they escape by a mere stroke ok luck when they put on sheep skins to escape and are actually touched by the Cyclops in an attempt to find them after his eye had been injured. Second, what Odysseus does affects whether it is fate or luck. When his plans go awry, he is often left in near hopeless situations. For example, when he is forced to sail through a channel housing the monster Scylla and the undersea whirlpool creator Charybdis, it is by mere luck that he is not caught by Scylla (the monster could’ve eaten him at any time if one of it’s heads was free) or swallowed by Charybdis. However, it can also be argued that it was fate that he was not eaten or drowned, and either could be right, but it was most likely luck as there isn’t any activity amongst the gods (as far as the reader is aware) to suggest this. Wherever Odysseus goes in this story, he is constantly experiencing works of fate thanks to the gods and good strokes of luck thanks to his quick actions.
ReplyDeleteA) In Homer’s The Odyssey, Odysseus had to make decisions that resulted in a good or bad way. For example, his decision to go to his hometown Ithaca, and not show himself in full form and acts like a beggar. With this smart decision he can get close to all the men and women in the house of Odysseus without getting hurt. The only ones who knew who he was are three servants and Telemachos. With this action he took he could create a plan with his son and two servants to lock the suitors in and finish of every last one. Also there are events that are fated to happen. For example, when Odysseus returns home he knows there will be trouble when he shows with the suitors to win her wife and house back. “Now Odysseus stript off his rags and leapt upon the great doorstone, holding the bow and the quiver full of arrows. He spread the arrows before his feet, and called aloud to the company” (Chapter 22, Page 243). He knew he would have to fight and had no fear against his enemies and no re-thinking about his decision to fight. In the Odyssey Odysseus’s actions and decision’s created fate and became responsible for good and bad decisions he had made.
ReplyDelete-Chris Lepsky
A) In The Odyssey, both fate and Odysseus' actions affect Odysseus in many ways. Fate is a pre-determined action or event that will happen. On the other hand, Odysseus's personal actions in each individual situation affected how hard he really had to work towards his end fate. This book had plenty of destinies for Odysseus, one was him leaving Calypso to sail to Skheria and find more men. Another fate was returning to Ithaca to fight the suitors with Telemachus. To expand on the idea of Odysseus leaving Calypso, Hermes was sent to speak with Calypso to allow him to build a raft and sail to Skheria. She told him that the people would honor him like a god and he could continue with other resources. This was nothing he could control, only Athena, Calypso, Poseidon, and the other gods controlled this. Then Odysseus affected the story many times in the fact that he explored the island of Lotus eaters and fought with Cyclops. One more example of how his own actions affected the story was him telling Telemachus to hide the weapons near the battle on Ithaca. Since Odysseus told Telemachus to hide the weapons when battle time approached the suitors have no weapons to turn to. This helped out his cause in the story while exploring around to find Cyclops made his trip more tiresome so he had to work more. So, even though Odysseus had changed the way things happened the fate always came out to happen. Only his actions could affect himself and of course the many people he caused death to.
ReplyDeleteBrandon Ponder
(Option A)
ReplyDeleteFate is a main theme in The Odyssey, but Odysseus also makes his own decisions. It is possible for both of these things to be in The Odyssey because even though Odysseus has a fate he still has to make choices that determine his fate which becomes reality. The gods know what Odysseus’s fate is when he leaves his home and goes off to war. Athena makes the comment in book thirteen, “But I never doubted, I knew quite well that you would return at last after losing all your men” (155). Because the gods know his fate they sometimes help him or give him instructions to make it happen. On page 154 Athena tells Odysseus to not tell anyone who he is and to suffer in silence. Then she changed his appearance so no one would recognize him. She knew that this was the only way he would be able to defeat the suitors at his house. His fate was to suffer many years and then come home and kill the suitors that were destroying his palace. By page 250 Odysseus has killed all of the suitors and both him and Telemachos lived. Because Odysseus did not go around telling everyone who he was he was able to fulfill the prophecy. Never did he fight against one of the men that were mocking him for being poor and old. Even when he had a chair thrown at him he controlled his temper and waited for the right moment. If he had made the decision to fight back then it would have postponed or changed his fate. Instead he did what Athena told him and completed his fate. Both of these things are possible because even though he has a fate he makes decisions that get him to his fate.
Mandy DeWitt
In “The Odyssey” by Homer, both fate and Odysseus’ conscious decisions play major parts of the epic. Fate is when there is a set plan for someone’s life, but their conscious decisions determine how they get there. Both are possible because Odysseus makes his own decisions but where he would end up was fated from the beginning. For example, it is fated that Odysseus would eventually return to his land of Ithaca for the Gods proclaimed it so with Athena saying “…then let us dispatch our messenger Hermes Argeiphontes to the island of Ogygia; and let him announce forthwith to the nymph our unchangeable will, that Odysseus…shall return home” (book 1 page 13). Therefore, it is fated, that no matter what, Odysseus will return home. It does not say whether it will be either a smooth trip home or an easy one. It does not tell of how he will arrive home; those are solely based upon Odysseus’ decisions and how the consequences will affect him. Such as, when Odysseus decides to murder the suitors interested in Penelope, the families of those men become vengeful and seek out to destroy him. Antinoos’ father speaks to the crowd and says, “‘Come now, before he can escape to Pylos or Elis and the Epeians, let us move, or we shall be disgraced for ever! It will be a blot upon us in generations to come if we do not punish the murderers of our sons and brothers!” (book 24 page 301). The consequence of Odysseus’ action is that he creates more trouble for himself in the end. Both can be present because of the use of mythological deities. With the use of deities, destinies can be created from their will but they do not possess full control over humans’ ultimate judgments.
ReplyDelete-Caitlyn Washington
Both fate and luck play crucial roles in Homer's tale The Odyssey. Both are beyond a human's control but luck is a random chance event while fate is a plan that a higher order (i.e. the gods) puts to action. An example of fate is when Zeus tells Hermes to, "Go and declare to Caylpso our unchangeable will , that Odysseus shall return after all his troubles" (Book 5, Page 63). This is considered fate because it is a plan that Zeus, the higher order, came up with. He also goes on to say how Odysseus is to leave the island, determining how the beginning of Odysseus's journey will go. An example of luck is when Odysseus went on a detour after the Trojan War to several islands and ended up getting captured by Caylpso. No higher order planned it, he just had the bad luck of being at the wrong place at the wrong time. Throughout the story, Homer uses both of these very different phenomonons to show how Odysseus and the rest of the humans have no control over their future and they are forced to roll with the punches.
ReplyDeleteJessi Berger
A). In the Odyssey, by Homer, it is clear when certain events are fated to happen, and when Odysseus carries his own fate. When events are fated to happen, they are usually caused by the god’s, and would happen no matter what Odysseus did, such as when Odysseus was traveling over the seas after being held captive by Calypso. Poseidon saw Odysseus traveling home and “…gathered the clouds, and stirred up the deep with his trident: he roused all the tempestuous winds and covered in clouds both land and sea; night rushed down from the heavens.” (Homer Book V pg 68) No matter if Odysseus took a different route, Poseidon would have seen Odysseus and brought misfortune upon him. It was fated to happen. But, there are also instances when Odysseus is responsible for his own actions and their results. For example, when Odysseus was captured by the Cyclops, Odysseus created a plan to escape. Odysseus “…drove the pole deep under the ashes to grow hot…as soon as the wood was on the point of catching fire, and glowed white hot, green as it was, I drew it quickly out of the fire while my men stood round me…The men took hold of the stake, and thrust the sharp point into his [Cyclops] eye.” (Book IX page 107). As a result, Odysseus managed to escape from the Cyclops. If Odysseus would not have created a plan and put it into action, he would have surely been eaten by the Cyclops.
ReplyDelete-Christina Phillips
Mark Fraser
ReplyDeleteOption A
Throughout The Odyssey, written by Homer, as much as it may seem that Odysseus is in control of his journey, fate determines much of his life. At the beginning of The Odyssey, Halitherses prophesized “he would have many troubles, and lose all his companions, and after 20 long years, unknown, he would come home again… (Homer 20).” This prophesy was an example of fate determining Odysseus’ life because Odysseus did encounter many hardships and was eventually meant to return home. However Odysseus made many choices that enabled him to come home. For example Odysseus was able to win over many kings from many lands so that they would help him to continue on his journey. It was also Odysseus that came up with the plot to blind the Cyclops and ride the sheep out of the Cyclops’ cave so that he could continue on his journey. However, by blinding the Cyclops, Poseidon was furious with Odysseus and caused him many troubles but because of fate Poseidon let Odysseus live “I did not bar his return altogether, because you [Zeus] had solemnly promised him that he should return [home] (Homer 163).” In addition when Odysseus was trapped on the island of the Witch-Goddess Calypso it was fate and not Odysseus’ actions that decided that Odysseus should be released from Calypso and to start his journey home. Throughout the Odyssey, fate will determine the overall outcome of each event, however each person is responsible for the situations that they find themselves in and to not give up after what seems like bad luck.
B) In Homer's novel, The Odyssey there are many differences between fate and luck. Fate is an event that is set in stone, and cannot be changed by anyone or any event. Luck, or chance, is an event that can hinder Odysseus, but not halt it all together. Many of the characters, such as Odyssues' family blamed the God's for his dissaperance and that it was his fate and their will that he didn't return yet. Luck, on the other hand, would be after Poseidon caused Odyssues' raft to be destroyed, and he lands on the island many miles away. He then runs into a young maiden who helps him to get going on his journey again. Altough meeting the maiden might seem like fate to some, it really is luck because Poseidon wanted to stop Odyssues, and rather the roadblock that Poseidon had caused help Odyssues to get back home. Fate and luck are two very different ideas in the story, The Odyssey.
ReplyDelete--Caitlyn Warren
Prompt 2: All through The Odyssey, fate and luck were shown right from the beginning, when Athena starts to interfere with Telemachus’ plans to find his father. Athena inspires Telemachus by stating, “I will tell you he is not dead yet, that grand man Odysseus, but he is still alive- a prisoner somewhere in the broad sea, in an island amid the waters; and dangerous men hold him fast, savages, who are keeping him no doubt against his will”(Book one, page 15). In The Odyssey, fate is often seen as what the gods choose for you, and luck is when events go as planed or better. There are many events blamed on fate in The Odyssey, for example, the main event was Odysseus’ disappearance from Ithaca. Luck, which is very similar to fate, is a completely different subject, other than fate. Luck can be seen all through out the book, one of the many examples being Odysseus showing up as a beggar, so he is not harmed. Luck is just the small events that just happen to work out in the heroes’ favor. Fate and luck tend to mingle frequently in The Odyssey, for example, Odysseus arrival at Ithaca and when Penelope’s due date for choosing a suitor. Little intervening like that makes The Odyssey more intense.
ReplyDelete-Lauren Jamison
It’s possible for Odysseus to be responsible for his actions and fate to takes its part because of the way The Odyssey was written. Odysseus is responsible for his actions because Circes told him not to attack Scylla and Charybdis but he did anyway which caused the death of his men. He forgets the consequences which leads to much pain and death, “…they had time to remember their lost comrades, whom Scylla had caught and eaten out of the ship; and they lamented their dead until welcome sleep overcame them” (144). With Odysseus ignoring Circes’ advice, he was responsible for the death of many of his men because he didn’t listen to their warning, which was a big mistake. Fate happens in this story because Odysseus being captured by the evil witch was punishment for his actions. Fate delivered punishment to Odysseus because of his foolish actions against others, “But Poseidon Earthholder bears him unrelenting hatred, because of the Cyclops whose eye he put out…” (12). By Odysseus not thinking before acting, he got himself into trouble which lead to punishment which is considered fate here because he only brought it on to himself. Odysseus’s actions in The Odyssey were punished under fate because he knew there would be consequences but he followed through anyway.
ReplyDeleteElaine Niemeyer
A] Throughout Homer's, "The Odyssey", it is clear that most of the events that happen being for either the benefit, or the downside to Odysseus, occurr because of his decisions. For example, had Odysseus not decided to join the army, and go off and fight in the Trojan war, then the men that had invaded his house, stole all of his food, and tried to get Penelope to marry them, would not have been there. Which if they were not there, then Odysseus' decision to kill them would not have been made either. Although most of the events happening in The Odyssey are happening because of the decisions that Odysseus makes, other things happen because of fate.
ReplyDeleteFate also is a major factor in how things play out for Odysseus in his journey to get back to Ithica. For example, fate is the reason that Calypso trapped Odysseus on her island for almost a decade. Secondly, fate is also the reason that Odysseus was freed from Calypso. This is because when the gods were having a meeting, Athena spoke up and said that it was unfair that he had to be stuck on the island, and that he should be able to come home to his island of Ithica, on which he had his son, Telemachos, and his wife Penelope. Also, it is fate that Athena gives Telemachos the courage to go and venture out to try and find his father.
Even though there are many examples of Odysseus' journey home being influenced by his decisions, I feel that fate plays a bigger role in getting him home.
Jacob Palazzolo
b. The difference between fate and luck in the Odyssey is luck was approached and happened as the story and ones decisions were made and adventures move on and fate was already set and brought upon Odysseus and his men. The fate of Odysseus’s men can be blamed on Helios. By killing and eating Helios sacred cattle, Helios was unforgiving and killed Odysseus’s men. Since Odysseus’s men killed Helios cattle, their deaths were blamed on fate and practically arranged for themselves. It was easy to blame the fate of their deaths on Helios because his cattle were off limits but were killed. Luck is the force that seems to operate for good or ill in a person's life, as in shaping circumstances, events, or opportunities. It was by luck and opportunity that Athena was able to help Odysseus escape from being trapped for many years by Calypso. It was also by luck that Athena was also able to disguise as a family friend of Odysseus wife Penelope and son, Telemachos to tell and guide him to go in search for his father because he could still be alive. By relying on luck Odysseus was able to be freed from Calypso. By also relying on luck, Telemachos was able to seek for his father Odysseus. The characters in the Odyssey blame fate for their deaths and rely on luck in order to search for Odysseus.
ReplyDeleteB) In The Odyssey there are multiple times in which both fate and luck are metioned. However though they are similar concepts there is a distinction that Homer makes. Fate is something that the gods have planned in advance and is inevitable, where as luck is just a conidence, either good or bad, that occurs with no help from the gods. For example, after Odyseus and his men had escaped the cyclops and had been cursed his men decided to open the bag given to Odysseus causing them to not make it home was fate. This is because Posidein made it happen because his son asked him to. Fate is also mentioned when Athena sends Odysseus to see Nausicaa because he is helped out by an imortal and there was no way to avoid their meeting since Athena arranged it. In contrast instead of fate it is just bad luck that one of the men in Odysseus' crew would fall off of the roof and break his neck. Since the gods had nothing to do with his death it would not be considered fate but a coincidence or in other words bad luck. In addition while Odysseus is in Hades and speaking to his mother she says, " 'Alas, alas, my child, most luckless creature on the face of the earth!" (Homer 128). She is saying that the Gods arn't delibratly sending bad things his way it just so happens that luck never seems to be on his side. In conclusion there is a difference between fate and luck in Homer's The Odyssey, fate is unavoidable but luck just happens.
ReplyDeleteBridgette Fletcher
In Homer’s “The Odyssey”, fate and luck play huge roles for Odysseus Laertes and characters throughout the story. In Ancient Greece, people were very respectful to their gods, such as Zeus, Aphrodite, Athena, and many others. How much and when somebody pays their respect to the gods, which is done by giving them offerings, would determine a person’s “fate” in “The Odyssey”, fate is chosen by the gods. A person’s fate can be good or bad. An example of bad would be when Odysseus was sailing away from Polyphemos the Cyclops and Polyphemos asked his father Poseidon to make sure Odysseus’s crew didn’t make it home. Luck on the other hand, is what takes place according to a characters choice in the story. When Odysseus’s crew “opened the bag, the winds leaped out; at once a gale caught them, and carried them off to sea tearing their native land behind”(Homer, 113). It was bad luck that the men decided to open the bag from Cronian, and the gods had no influence over the choice that the men made. The punishment for this was a long trip back while rowing the whole way. The rest was up to fate, as Zeus would end up striking the boat with lightning leaving Odysseus the only survivor.
ReplyDeleteAbby Davis
In, “The Odyssey,” by Homer, all of the events and obstacles that occur are either caused by fate or the decisions Odysseus made for himself. One of Odysseus’s decisions was when he ordered his crew to go into the Scylla territory. This choice put all of them in a harmful situation. Odysseus was held responsible because his own bad judgment put the crew in danger. Other circumstances in the novel, however, were not determined by Odysseus’s choices, rather by fate itself. Fate is described as being inevitably predetermined, a prophetic declaration of what must be, or can also be referred to as destiny. An example of fate is when Odysseus’s returned home after being away for such an extended period of time. The reader knows it was his destiny to survive because he could have died many times along the path of his journey. Instead, he lived through numerous poor circumstances and made it all the way back to his family and friends in Ithaca. Odysseus encountered many hardships during his long expedition. Although he had to make difficult decisions, and fate was not always on his side, Odysseus managed to make it home safe and sound. Some may call it decisions, some may call it fate, but most say it is a combination of each.
ReplyDelete--Megan Bedenikovic
B.) In Homers novel, The Odyssey, “fate” and “luck” are two completely different things. Fate is an event (or a course of events) that will inevitably happen in the future, and luck is an unknown and unpredictable phenomenon that causes an event to result one way rather than another. In this book, fate is known for what the gods decide, and there is nothing you can do to stop it. The characters in the book usually blame it on the gods when something bad happens. For example, the town of Ithaca thinks that Odysseus’ disappearance from his home town was caused by the gods. On the other hand, the characters of the book will blame surprisingly good events on luck. For example, whenever Odysseus and his crew have to face the Cyclopes, Odysseus happens to spot a rather big wooden pole which he uses as a weapon to force into the Cyclops’ eye. This would be blamed on luck because if Odysseus hadn’t of spotted that pole, then he might not have had a chance to escape with his very own life. In the end, it is obvious that whenever something bad happens the people of Ithaca blame it on the god’s because they don’t want to blame themselves or anyone else for what happened, and if a good event takes place, they attribute it to luck because they didn’t want everything in life to be predestined.
ReplyDelete-Alex Whitaker
B) In the story The Odyssey by Homer, there are many situations that are decided by luck or fate. Fate is considered to be what has already been chosen in your life by the gods, it was dealt to you in your hand of cards when you were born, what has to happen. Fate is usually tied to something dreadful like how you are supposed to die, or how your life turns for the worst. Luck usually has the opposite effect on people it is what some people would call a good stroke of fate. In the story Odysseus faces many situations, one in particular is when he meets the cyclops. When Odysseus was fleeing from the capture of the cyclops the cyclops shouted to Odysseus, “Upon my word, this is the old prophecy come true! There was a soothsayer here once, a fine tall fellow, Telemos Eurymedes, a famous soothsayer who lived to old age prophesying amongst our people. He told me what was to happen, that I should lose my sight at the hands of Odysseus”(Book IX, 110). For the cyclops his fate was already laid out before him, a man named Odysseus was to come to him and make him lose his eyesight, which actually does come true. This a prime example of fate because the cyclops had been prior warned about the coming of Odysseus and what would happen once he arrived. An example of luck in this story is when Odysseus washes onto the shore of the Phaiacian lands, and meets Nausicaa, daughter of Prince Alcinoos, the king and ruler. Alcinoos welcomes Odysseus in to his palace and makes sure he is cared for. He offers to take Odysseus to wherever he wants to go, which is Ithaca, Odysseus’ native land. While Odysseus is staying with Prince Alcinoos he is treated kindly and with respect, he is fed, clothed, bathed, and all his other needs or wants are taken care of as well. Odysseus was lucky to wash upon Prince Alcinoos land, if it was not for Alcinoos Odysseus probably would have had to endure through many more great hardships than he already did to get back to Ithaca.
ReplyDeleteIn Homer’s “The Odyssey”, even though Odysseus is responsible for his own actions, he relies on fate and luck to get him back home to Ithaca and be reunited with Penelope. Fate and luck are two different things in “The Odyssey”. Fate is when something is destined to happen, whereas luck happens by chance. For example, the God’s interaction helps Odysseus from the beginning of his journey to the end. “All the gods agree that Odysseus shall return to his own home” (Book 1 page 5). It is this predetermined fate that enables Odysseus to return safely to Ithaca. “May I return to my home and find my faithful wife and my dear ones safe and sound” (Book 13 page 161)! Little does Odysseus know, suitors are trying to marry Penelope and are attempting to kill his only son, Telemachos. Odysseus relies both on luck and faith because it gives him closure. In short, if he believes that the gods are watching over him, and Penelope and Telemachos are safe, it puts his mind at ease. It is this that drives Odysseus home. The fate of Odysseus lies within the hands of the gods, and luck is merely circumstantial factor that tests Odysseus willpower and strength of both mind and body.
ReplyDelete-Jonathan Mueller
Odysseus's initial decisions and their results helped to set in motion his fate and his fate then decided his acttions that followed suit. For example, when Odysseus tells his story of his escape from the Cyclops, Odysseus shouted, "I say, Cyclops! if ever any one asks you who put out your ugly eye, tell him your blinder was Odysseus, the conqueror of Troy, the son of laertes, whose address is in Ithaca" and in response the Cyclops yelled back "Upon my word. this id the old prophecy come true! There was a soothsayer here once, a fine tall fellow, Telemos Eurymedes, a famous soothsayer who lived to old age prophesying amongst our people. He told me what was to happen, that i should lose my sight at thee hands of Odysseus. But I always expected that some tall handsom fellow would come this way,clothed in mighty power. Now a nobody, a weakling, a whippersnapper, has blinded my eye after fuddling me with wine! Come to me, dear Odysseus, and let me give you the starnger's gift, ler me beseech the worship Earthshaker to grant you a haapy voyage! For I have the honorto be his son, and he declares he is my father. He will cure me, if he chooses, all by himself, without the help of blessed gods or mortal man"(Homer 110). Within Odysseus's fate he was able to make certain decsions, such as yelling once more at the Cyclops, that still led him to his predestined fate. For instance, when the Cyclops stated, "Poseidon Earthholder Seabluehair! If I am truly thy son,thou art indeed my father, grant that Odysseus the conqueror of Troy - the son of Laertes - whose address is in Ithaca, may never reach his home!"(Homer 111). Odysseus was then given his planned fate, but still Odysseus still tried his hardest to change his fatel.
ReplyDeleteSavannah Lynch
Fate and luck are both very dissimilar. Despite many misconceptions, fate is something pre-determined—something that is nearly guaranteed to happen no matter what. For example, Odysseus’s journey could be considered fate because without the will of the gods, then Odysseus would still be stuck on the island with Calypso, “wearing out his soul with lamentation and tears”. “Go and declare to Calypso our unchangeable will, that Odysseus shall return after all his troubles” (Book 5, page 62). Luck, on the other hand, can be described as something that happens in the spur of the moment—a coincidence that happens to just fall into good favor. The incident with the Cyclops, and Odysseus surviving, was luck. One reason is because of the presence of the ‘spar’ and it’s use as a spear-like weapon; another reason is because of Odysseus’s wits—what if he had not thought up its use, along with the plan to put the Cyclops to sleep, as well as how they would escape? Certain death, for sure. Oftentimes, fate and luck are blamed because there aren’t any other explanations for certain occurrences. In the end, though, the lines between fate and luck are often blurred, playing an important part in Odysseus’s trip home.
ReplyDeleteIt is clear that Odysseus is responsible for his own actions and their results. It is also true that one’s fate can play a role in the outcome on a situation. In the story, Odysseus leaves his hometown to approach the battles in Troy, where he leaves his beloved wife and son behind for years. But as the war begins to settle, many begin questioning where Odysseus is. This leaves the lonely men in Ithaca to believe that he is gone forever and that Penelopeia is to be left without a man by her side. “And when this lovely creature came amongst the men who would have her for a wife, she stood by the doorpost of the great hall,” (Homer 18). Penelopia began to give up on her husband’s return. It was because Odysseus left his family to fight and never return home that she would be marrying an unlikely man.
ReplyDeleteFate can be defined as something that unavoidably befalls a person. In the Odyssey, it was only fate that brought Odysseus to Calypso’s island. For Odysseus, “Now he lies wretched and miserable, Calypso’s prisoner in her island, and he cannot return to his native land; for he has no men and no galleys to carry him over the broad back of the sea,” (Homer 62). It was destiny that brought him to this point after the Trojan War, where he battled for many years and ended up being captured by the evil goddess of Ogygia. In conclusion, when Odysseus left his family and never returned, it would leave his wife in hand of marriage, but it was only fate that had him captured at Calypso’s island.
In the Odyssey fate and luck are both portrayed. Both luck and fate are both possible because the way they influence the story. Odysseus had many things happen to him that were fated or just pure luck. Fate is something that is going to happen to you and you can not control the outcome and luck is outcome of taking a chance. An example of luck is that Zeus sent the messenger of the Gods, Hermes, to tell Calypso to let Odysseus go or he will blow her island of Ogygia will be blown up. She even helps him build the raft to get back home to Ithaca. An example of in Odysseus’s journey was that Poseidon destroyed his ship while on the way back from war. Poseidon was angry and decided to make the seas very dangerous and Odysseus ended up on Calypso’s island of Ogygia. Poseidon made Odysseus overcome many obstacles on his way back to Ithaca. Another example of fate is Telemachos defending Odysseus home and helping find Odysseus. He was fated to do this but also with the help of the most powerful goddess Athena. If it was not for her things would not have gone the way they did. Fate and luck are both responsible for what happens.
ReplyDeleteAli Knight
ReplyDeleteIn “The Odyssey”, Odysseus responsible for his own actions and their outcome. The characters in the odyssey along with Odysseus have a strong belief in of the existence of gods, in which these gods have decided their steps of the journey ahead of time. This is what the characters see as fate. Not only do the gods help predetermine the steps along their journey they don’t rely on that 247 they make there own decisions. When these decisions turn out good done on purpose or not they call it luck. When someone is told what’s going to happen and the outcome of that event it would be determined as fate. For example “First you will come to the Sirens, who bewitch every one who comes near them. If any man draws near in his innocence and listens to their voice, he never sees home again…” (Book 12 page 150). Luck and fate seems to be the same thing but the only main difference is that fate it told by someone which could be a god or a being of some form. However fate is the major role in the odyssey but luck does come into play to help Odysseus finish his journey.
Option B:
ReplyDeleteIn the Odyssey by Homer, characters like Odysseus depend on their fate and their luck throughout the tale. The definition of fate is destiny or something that unavoidably befalls on one, for example death. However luck is mainly one’s good fortune at the time. The fate of a character in The Odyssey is mostly what the immortal gods decide it to be whether the person likes it or not. For example, Odysseus got word from Calypso that he is free to journey back home although he might face some rough times. Zeus makes the waters uneasy to travel on putting Odysseus’s fate in jeopardy. Odysseus was relying on his luck to take him back home to Ithica, but soon he becomes “…unlucky...” (68) due to winds “…blowing hard and … rolling up great billows” (68). Odysseus does not blame his fate but rather his luck because he has waited “…patiently…”(69) long enough to know that his luck will turn. Athena also stated that “…for it is not his fate to perish in this place far from his friends” (64) meaning that under no circumstances will Odysseus stay with Calypso forever. Therefore, men who are patient like Odysseus blame their luck because they have been waiting long enough to know that their luck will soon change. And impatient men blame their fate because the gods feel as if they should suffer more than they really need to.
-Emily Quinlivan
A. In Homer’s The Odyssey, both fate and decision are causes of the events that occur. Whenever Odysseus makes decisions such as attacking the Cyclops in his sleep and deciding which way to go around the caves containing Scylla and Charybdis as warned by Circe, the tale os not continued by fate, but by choice. But also, a number of events happen because of fate, or how the Gods wish the situation should lay out. On Odysseus’s journey, he stopped at various islands, including one where Calypso held him captive for seven years. But Athena, being so kind-hearted, wished for Odysseus to once again see his home. She asked Zeus to set him free, and Zeus sent his messenger, Hermes, down to the island of Ogygia, where Odysseus is grounded. Hermes is sent to deliver the clear message to Calypso that, “forthwith to the nymph our unchangeable will, that Odysseus, after all he has patiently endured, shall return home” (Homer, 13) Though the gods and goddesses all agree that Odysseus shall arrive home, they determine that it will be a long, tedious, and difficult journey. One god in particular, Poseidon, dislikes Odysseus for many reasons, including blinding his son, so he tries to throw him off course as much as possible to delay his journey. Fate plays a major part in the telling of this story, but Odysseus’s own doing has just as big of a role as to the major events in the novel. Odysseus is responsible for his actions, but sometimes the gods decide the consequences based on fate. So using both fate and his own actions and quick thinking, Odysseus managed to escape all the near-death situations put before him.
ReplyDeleteJauwan Thomas
ReplyDeleteIn the story it is true that Odysseus is responsible for his action in the results.Also it is true that certain events are stated to happen from the start also they are both possible because they both have something to do with one another for example,When Odysseus put the eye of that Cyclops out it was his fault and the result was he was victim to the hatred of poisiden and this was stated to happen because the Cyclops was his son and the gods could not let this go unpunished.also such as when Odysseus and his son Telemachos killed the men in his house and the result was he got his house back.And on the events part the death of the men was fated to he happen from the start because some of the gods didn't fazor action of the men in Odysseus house and it was made certain from the start they would be punish.Plus these faded events and Odysseus action are both possible in tale because they both ended up in direction in what is suppose to happen.In conclusion, Odysseus responibility for his action and results plus events faded to happen from the start are both possible because they both have something to do with one another.
A) Fate is a thing that cannot be changed and is destined to occur. Odysseus is fated many things but also is responible for other happenings that he must take responsiblity for. Odysseus returns home to his wife through fate after his perilous journey because of the things he goes through and overcomes. Odysseus brings things upon himself through his actions. Though the gods know he will do this to himself it was not the gods intention for him to do so; so it is not fate. For example when Odysseus returns home he learns of his wife's wooers and intends to kill them.He follows through with his intentions and his killers family want him to suffer for what he has done. "It will be a blot upon us in generations to come if we do not punish the murderers of our sons and brothers" (301). This shows that his action of murdering his wife's wooers he would be punished as a consequence. Fate and descions to do something are very different descions have consequences.
ReplyDelete-Trevor Brewer
In The Odyssey, by Homer, Odysseus has a good deal of luck and fate in his journey home. For example, it was lucky that he saw the wooden pole in Polyphemus’s cave to use as a weapon against him when he had none. When talking about fate, the gods had ordained the fate of Odysseus on his journey home. They determined the end of this journey would result in Odysseus returning home and being reunited with his family. The journey home would not come without its dangers and toils this is displayed through a series of interventions from the gods. They play a large role in the fate of Odysseus and his journey. Luck could be interpreted as the reason why his fate is resolute. A lot of the time characters will blame events on the gods, either praising or cursing them for events that occur. For example, Circe, a witch-goddess, transforms Odysseus’s crew into pigs when he lands on her island but with Hermes’ help, Odysseus resists Circe’s powers. Odysseus was grateful for the help of Hermes in this particular situation. This also displays the help and the interference of gods on Odysseus’ way home. The Odyssey portrays many accounts dealing with fate and luck.
ReplyDeleteThroughout Homer's epic novel, The Odyssey, potential events that take place develop upon conscious decisions made by Odysseus and pure fate that is decided upon by the Greek Gods. For example, Odysseus made the decision to join the Trojan War knowing there were endless amounts of probable tagedies that could arise. It was this decision that endangered his ability to see his wife, Penelope and son, Telemachos again. Fate, however, took control while Poseidon used every chance he had to prevent Odysseus' return home to Ithaca. Therefore, it was also fate Odysseus was eventually caught by Calypso and then held hostage for several years. It was also fate that Odysseus would ultimately run into Scylla and Charbydis when he went to Hades to seek out Theban. Later on, fate and decisions made by Odysseus co-exist in the plot to kill Odysseus wife's suitors. While he was destined to kill the men, he was left to make the decision as to how he will do so. It was fate that Odysseus and Telemachos would win the battle against the suitors, but again, it was decisions made by Odysseus that helped them to win. Therefore, in the end, it was because of fate and Odysseus' decisions co-existing that he was finally able to return home to his family.
ReplyDelete-shelby hughs
Although some may argue that bad choices are necessary in order to obtain bad consequences, that’s not always the case. In The Odyssey, a combination of fate from the Gods and luck make the ups and downs in the great Odysseus’ journey to his home, Ithaca. Living in a world of controlling Gods can’t always be easy for the people. The Gods control everyone’s fate, good or bad, there’s no escaping it. Therefore, Odysseus can’t always be dominant in the outcome of his life. Obviously, he makes a few bad decisions in which, cause bad outcomes, such as falling into the hands of the land of the Sirens, but luck was able to play in because Odysseus was able to skillfully escape them. Because the gods decided to have his final destination Ithaca, “announce forthwith to the nymph our unchangeable will, that Odysseus, after all he has patiently endured, shall return home” (13) he was bound to get there some way or another. The events that happened in between were just a combination of getting into bad situations and having luck save him.
ReplyDeleteKatie Stapleton