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The Oddyssey Books 5 and 6

Odyssey Paragraphs

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Here I am at your mercy, princess —

     are you a goddess or a mortal? If one of the gods

     who rule the skies up there, you’re Artemis to the life”

-Odysseus

Determination is the driving force of action. In the story, The Odyssey, by Homer, Odysseus has been separated from his family for over twenty years, and has been hard at work trying to get back home for ten of those years, and the fruits of his determination start to show as he finally makes progress on his journey home. By book 6, It has been ten years since Odysseus has had some level of control over his life. Ten years since he has felt the glory of his greatness. Odysseus hasn’t seen home in twenty years, and yet he keeps on going. His will to live, his grit and determination, even when facing the wrath of the god of the sea, is what has allowed him to keep going. Even when most men would have sank to their knees and given up. The old rinky dink raft turned to a single log as Odysseus tried to swim through the the salty rough ocean. The once gleaming sun now covered by black stormy clouds that were filled with the hatred and anger of Poseidon:

I can bear that too, with a spirit tempered to endure.

244  Much have I suffered, labored long and hard by now

     in the waves and wars. Add this to the total —

     bring the trial on!”(The Odyssey Book V lines. 243-246)

It has been ten years since Odysseus has had some level of control over his life. Ten years since he has felt the glory of his greatness. Odysseus hasn’t seen home in twenty years, and yet he keeps on going. His will to live, his grit and determination, even when facing the wrath of the god of the sea. His strong determination is what has allowed him to keep going, even when most men would have sank to their knees and given up. Determination is what makes this story possible, as otherwise Odysseus would be dead or trapped, the gods not noticing him as he would not be worth their time. Throughout the whole story so far Odysseus’s determination is tested, and we will see the results of his hard work soon enough. Determination has gotten Odysseus this far, and will not fail him yet.

 

 

There is no power that is greater than a god’s. In Book V of The Odyssey, Odysseus tries to head back to shore after being held captive by the nymph Calypso. In Book V of The Odyssey, the god of the sea, Poseidon, almost kills Odysseus, as Odysseus tries to get through the raging waves of the ocean and back to shore. The Hatred and Vengeance Poseidon had for Odysseus was unleashed in all of its fury as Poseidon struck down Odysseus, almost sealing Odysseus’s fate. 

“I throw myself on your mercy, on your current now —

    I have suffered greatly. Pity me, lord,

     your suppliant cries for help!”  So the man prayed,  and the god stemmed his current, held his surge at once, and smoothing out the swells before Odysseus now,drew him safe to shore at the river’s mouth.”(The Odyssey Book V lines 493-500)

When Odysseus thought he had control of his life again and challenged the gods, Poseidon struck him down which told Odysseus that his fate is and always will be in the hands of the gods. The only reason Odysseus survived that fatal trip to Phoenicia was because Poseidon took pity on him, as Poseidon had full control of Odysseus’s life in his hands. Mortals are powerless against the hands of a god, and their fate is controlled easily by whichever god wants to take it. In almost every Greek story the gods control all for mortals, their life, death, and their legacy; if a god decides they really want to kill you, they will. Fate is controlled by those with power, and the gods have it all. 

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