Thus far the Odyssey is a much more pleasurable read then the Iliad. The similes are not as extravagant but they pack just as much force. They seem to get to the point a lot quicker. In a certain sense they are much more realistic.
There are two interesting points I would like to bring up. The first regards the temptations that Odysseus decides to resist. The temptation to live with Kalypso, a beautiful goddess, who promises immortality and the temptation to marry Nausikaa and live with the Phaiakians, who seem to be God like, seems a harder battle to fight then the ones involving monsters and Gods. Perhaps this is just another way of highlighting the honorable characteristics of Odysseus as a hero who understands familial obligations. Perhaps the "composer" of the Odyssey was trying to stress a different kind of value system; one rooted in living with the the choices and obligations of being a husband, wife, son, king, etc. Perhaps the "author" is trying to encourage the pursuit of a more realistic and worldly kind of kleos. After all it is man who carries on kleos from generation to generation and not the Gods.
Secondly it is interesting to see Athene deliberately manipulating the situation among the Phaiakians so that Odysseus will be forced to showoff his prowess even though it is doubtful whether Odysseus really cares to do so. I think that the Gods in a certain sense are "living through" the mortals. Perhaps they envy mortal life in a certain sense. This might explain why the Gods show up as mortals when due to their divinity they could easily manipulate situations without taking on a human persona. Or perhaps we wouldn't have much of a story otherwise. Perhaps both my points are attempts by the "author" to show that immortality in a godly sense is an illusion.
There are two interesting points I would like to bring up. The first regards the temptations that Odysseus decides to resist. The temptation to live with Kalypso, a beautiful goddess, who promises immortality and the temptation to marry Nausikaa and live with the Phaiakians, who seem to be God like, seems a harder battle to fight then the ones involving monsters and Gods. Perhaps this is just another way of highlighting the honorable characteristics of Odysseus as a hero who understands familial obligations. Perhaps the "composer" of the Odyssey was trying to stress a different kind of value system; one rooted in living with the the choices and obligations of being a husband, wife, son, king, etc. Perhaps the "author" is trying to encourage the pursuit of a more realistic and worldly kind of kleos. After all it is man who carries on kleos from generation to generation and not the Gods.
Secondly it is interesting to see Athene deliberately manipulating the situation among the Phaiakians so that Odysseus will be forced to showoff his prowess even though it is doubtful whether Odysseus really cares to do so. I think that the Gods in a certain sense are "living through" the mortals. Perhaps they envy mortal life in a certain sense. This might explain why the Gods show up as mortals when due to their divinity they could easily manipulate situations without taking on a human persona. Or perhaps we wouldn't have much of a story otherwise. Perhaps both my points are attempts by the "author" to show that immortality in a godly sense is an illusion.
2 good points. I would agree, the Odyssey is laying out a different concept of what constitutes heroism, and explores the concept of what makes society function (much as the Iliad explores how social relations fall apart). As you read, keep thinking about the role of the gods in the Odyssey. Several blog posts have noted how petty the gods seem compared to the human protagonists of the Iliad. Is there any difference in the way the gods are portrayed in the two poems? A related question-- Odysseus' rejection of Kalypso in favor of his own wife is a choice that parallels, but is also significantly different from, Achilles' decision to die on the battlefield. How are they similar/different in their relationship with the gods and to their own mortality?
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