The Cause of Suffering
Michael Badzey
There are many causes of suffering in The Odyssey by Homer, and each cause has a different role in the bigger picture of Odysseus’s voyage. The most influential cause of suffering is the war. The Trojan War is the event that caused the whole adventure to Troy and, consequently, the challenging journey back home. Without this war, there would have been no story of Odysseus’s suffering on his adventure to get home because he would have never left home in the first place. After the war, Odysseus’s first mistake that causes suffering happens at Ismarus, the city of the Cicones. There, after he and his men sacked the town, Odysseus’s men did not want to leave before more trouble came along. Odysseus listened to his men. Then, the party was attacked by the inland Cicons. Because Odysseus listened to his men and let them order him around, he and his party endured more suffering. This mistake of Odysseus brings up a theme of The Odyssey. That theme is that men make their suffering worse through their actions. This theme is also seen when Odysseus and his men reach the island of the sun god Helios. There, they see the golden cattle of Helios and immediately want to partake in a feast with them. His men feast on the cattle. Then, continuing on their journey, Odysseus’s ship is blasted by one of Zeus’s lightning bolts. Each of these events in Homer’s Odyssey sparks a different event that ends up causing all of Odysseus’s suffering and pain.
Image Credit:
SuperStock/ Universal Images Group Rights Managed / For Education Use Only
Image Credit:
SuperStock/ Universal Images Group Rights Managed / For Education Use Only
Transformative Suffering
Matthew Ellern
In Homer's epic poem, the Odyssey, he writes about many different types of suffering. Perhaps the most overarching of them is transformative suffering. Transformative suffering is a type of suffering where a person is physically, mentally, or emotionally altered by it. During Odysseus's ten year voyage to Ithaca, he encounters many forms of suffering. In the first few years Odysseus looses much of his crew. He looses men while plundering a small island, he looses some to the lotus esters, and a few to Polyphemus. After the loss of six men in Polyphemus' cave, Odysseus learns that he should listen to the advice of others. Much like the birth of Athena out of the head of Zeus, Odysseus learns that wisdom comes from long thought and suffering. Through the loss of his men Odysseus learns how to use the advise of others as well as his own intellect to make the best decisions. Back on Ithaca Telemachus, Odysseus' son, has risen to become the man of the house. As the man of the house, Telemachus is doing his best to keep the suitors from destroying his family. Just barely 20 years old, Telemachus learns quickly how to efficiently operate under an amazing amount of stress. It is because of the constant threat of the suitors that Telemachus matures the way he did. He transitions from boyhood to manhood through the aid of suffering. Both Odysseus and his son, Telemachus are transformed into better men by suffering.
Image Credit:
Galante, Nicholas. Odysseus and the cyclops. June 2002. Theoi. Photo Collection. Web. 2 February 2015.
Image Credit:
Galante, Nicholas. Odysseus and the cyclops. June 2002. Theoi. Photo Collection. Web. 2 February 2015.
The Role of Death in Suffering
Evan Kelly
In many ways, the Odyssey is the story of the death of all of Odysseus's friends and fellow warriors during the return home from Troy. These deaths are especially painful to Odysseus because normally, one would expect that the dying would cease with the end of the war. In this case, joyful anticipation of the return to families at home becomes a series of horrors; this tragic sequence marks Odysseus's character and changes his view toward his surviving family and friends. At the beginning of the Odyssey, Odysseus is trapped on Calypso's island and is thought to be dead back home in Ithaca. Once the spell is broken, he sets out on a series of adventures and misadventures that lead to the gradual elimination of his crew -- the Cyclops, Scylla and Charybdis, Aeolus, sacred cattle of the sun, and so on. Odysseus is horrified by these deaths, and feels guilty that his journey has caused them. For instance, Odysseus taunted Polyphemus and incited the Polyphemus and Poseidon. That was foolish and not worthy of leader who is supposed to protect his men. However, Odysseus is much more respectful of the rules laid down by Aeolus, which shows that he has grown through the experience of the earlier deaths. By the time Odysseus returns home, he not only wants to avenge his wronged family, he also has achieved a greater sympathy for the suffering of others. He is touched by the response of his dog Argos, who dies after satisfying himself that Odysseus is alive. And even after Odysseus has satisfied his desire for revenge by killing the suitors, he refuses to gloat, and chastises Euryclea for celebrating death. In the end, Odysseus is sobered by the experience of death and will be a better leader because of it.
Image Credit:
Image Credit:
The Role of Zeus in Suffering
Joseph Wyper
Throughout all great Greek epics lies the work o f the gods. In the Odyssey, Zeus can be linked to the suffering of Odysseus. The gods, Zeus, in particular, toyed with Odysseus’ life as they saw fitly. Zeus caused the pain of Odysseus directly as well as indirectly. In the Odyssey, Zeus creates one of the greatest sufferings of all. Zeus kills the remaining crew of Odysseus. The crew ate the forbidden cattle in Book Twelve of the Odyssey, as punishment, Zeus summoned a storm to kill them all but Odysseus. At this moment, Zeus had personally and directly made Odysseus suffer. Another time was in book five when Zeus had gathered the Olympians and declared that Odysseus would make it home but, he would face great pain and suffering getting there. Zeus directly ordered for the suffering of Odysseus. In the Greek mythology, Zeus was the most important primary god. He was in control of most things and allowed or denied a mortal interference. It is that by these Greek traditions that Zeus is indirectly responsible for the suffering caused by gods other than himself. The main godly causes of Odysseus’ pain come from other gods then Zeus. These other gods such as Poseidon actively brought pain and suffering to Odysseus throughout the Odyssey. Odysseus offended Poseidon by stabbing and tricking his Cyclops son. Poseidon in a vengeful rage makes Odysseus wander for many years without reaching home. Zeus is still responsible because as king of the gods he could have put an end to Poseidon’s feud. While Zeus was an instigator of much suffering in the Odyssey, he didn't always one hundred percent make Odysseus life a living hell. Zeus frees Odysseus from Calypso in book five, allowing him to make the final stretch of his journey home. Whether or not Zeus was directly or indirectly involved in the suffering of Odysseus, the sky god’s actions or lack thereof played a monumental role in the suffering of Odysseus in Homer’s Odyssey.
Image Credit:
SHEILA TERRY / SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Universal Images Group
Rights Managed / For Education Use Only
Image Credit:
SHEILA TERRY / SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Universal Images Group
Rights Managed / For Education Use Only
Suffering as Separation
Spencer Hollister
The plot of Homer’s Odyssey relies heavily on the idea of suffering as a result of separation between characters. The separation and suffering throughout the story holds crucial to the development of the characters and advancement of the storyline. Between Calypso and Odysseus, and Odysseus and Penelope, the stress of each character’s situation tests their mental strength and fortitude while bearing the sorrow of being separated from one another.
After Odysseus had finished the war, he wound up on an island with the goddess Calypso. With her he stayed for seven years in what appeared to be a perfect paradise. Odysseus felt he was needed elsewhere; however, and longed to return home. Although he knew he was leaving a flawless utopia, he departed to settle the business that was at home. Calypso was sorrowed at the knowledge of the situation and had wished for Odysseus to stay, but he knew he had a world of responsibility to return to. Neither desired to separate, but Odysseus' passion for being with his wife called him home. Odysseys then left to bring peace to his loving and faithful, Penelope.
When Odysseus left for the Trojan War, Penelope remained at home with her son, Telemachus. After many years had passed, her beloved husband was assumed dead and a new suffering in her life began. By the dozens suitors came wishing to have her hand in marriage. They disrespectfully ravaged her house and food, and having over stood their welcome, caused her great pain for many years. Penelope’s wish for Odysseus to return home seemed like a fairytale at this point, and was shared by her Telemachus. Odysseus was a revered man of Ithaca and protected Penelope. With him lost, the town was slowly crumbling.
Little did she know, her dead husband was making his way back to settle the suitors. It is an aspect of being human that drives one to yearn for companionship; to not be separated. This underlying force seemed to draw Odysseus and Penelope together in spite of their struggle and hardship.
Image Credit:
Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group
Rights Managed / For Educational Use Only
After Odysseus had finished the war, he wound up on an island with the goddess Calypso. With her he stayed for seven years in what appeared to be a perfect paradise. Odysseus felt he was needed elsewhere; however, and longed to return home. Although he knew he was leaving a flawless utopia, he departed to settle the business that was at home. Calypso was sorrowed at the knowledge of the situation and had wished for Odysseus to stay, but he knew he had a world of responsibility to return to. Neither desired to separate, but Odysseus' passion for being with his wife called him home. Odysseys then left to bring peace to his loving and faithful, Penelope.
When Odysseus left for the Trojan War, Penelope remained at home with her son, Telemachus. After many years had passed, her beloved husband was assumed dead and a new suffering in her life began. By the dozens suitors came wishing to have her hand in marriage. They disrespectfully ravaged her house and food, and having over stood their welcome, caused her great pain for many years. Penelope’s wish for Odysseus to return home seemed like a fairytale at this point, and was shared by her Telemachus. Odysseus was a revered man of Ithaca and protected Penelope. With him lost, the town was slowly crumbling.
Little did she know, her dead husband was making his way back to settle the suitors. It is an aspect of being human that drives one to yearn for companionship; to not be separated. This underlying force seemed to draw Odysseus and Penelope together in spite of their struggle and hardship.
Image Credit:
Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group
Rights Managed / For Educational Use Only
Conclusion
In the odyssey, an epic poem by Homer, tells an intricate story of a mans journey home. Over the course of Odysseus' ten year journey, he encounters many forms of suffering. In the first three years he looses all of his crewmen, and is stranded on an island where he is held captive by a sea nymph. Through Odysseus' suffering he transitions from a young man into a wise man, the role of Zeus in the suffering is revealed. Over the course of 10 years many forms of suffering are encountered, and shape the overall tone of the story.
Source:
"Homer - The Odyssey, Translated by Samuel Butler 1900." Ancient / Classical History - Ancient Greece & Rome & Classics Research Guide. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Jan. 2015.
"Homer - The Odyssey, Translated by Samuel Butler 1900." Ancient / Classical History - Ancient Greece & Rome & Classics Research Guide. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Jan. 2015.