It is also worth noting that the "story" is something of a fictional account, unlike some of the tales we encounter in The Odyssey. Storytelling was a form of entertainment, just as songs and poetry. In this culture, one is actually no greater than the other, each possessing positive qualities and benefits. The songs worked on Odysseus in a way that words did not and they allowed him to remember. Here we see the important of storytelling in that it can help people discover things about themselves. Storytelling becomes an important aspect of The Odyssey because it represents the humanity Homer captured so many years ago. This tale is not one, but many, woven together through history to read much like life, in that it is not chronological or neat by any means. Instead, it is a conglomeration of events that happen simultaneously over time. The fact that we do not begin reading about our hero until Book Five is an indication of the importance...
Odysseus is like most men because he loves to relish in his own tales. His storytelling represents a human aspect to the poem. Helen and Menelaos help fill in the missing pieces of Odysseus' character. Without Helen's contribution, we would not know of Odysseus' willingness to dress as a beggar and with out Menelaos' account of the Trojan horse, we would miss one of the greatest tactical moves in history. These stories help readers see the importance of storytelling as a whole. Each of these characters contributes to Odysseus' development. Each character tells readers something different and adds to the complexity of the character. Without thee tales, some component of Odysseus, the man, would be missed and readers would not have a complete image of him. Additionally, we see the importance of stories from one life to the next. Stories have the power to inspire, educate, compel and rejuvenate. Without them, man would not feel a connection to his fellow man. With this in mind, Homer is demonstrating the importance of storytelling.
Odyssey Throughout the text of the Odyssey, Odysseus finds recourse to rely on his inner resource to surmount incredible odds in order to finish his journey home. Indeed, often we think of epic heroes using their enormous physical strength to solve a problem, and certainly, Odysseus does have recourse to physical means on more than one occasion. Nonetheless, it is more often that he uses his cleverness and mental agility to
Nestor seems saddened by the fact that some of the best Greek warriors were killed in Troy, including Ajax, Achilles, and Patroclus as well as Nestor's own son. The fact that Nestor's own son died may make him particularly sympathetic, of course, to Telemachus' need to hear news of what happened to his father, and how the Greeks became separated at the end of the Trojan War. Nestor explains to
The two lovers are trapped by Hephaestus' chains and the gods are debating their fates. They contemplate the issue of whether being trapped in the chains is sufficient punishment, to which Hermes quips "...although I might be held by chains that are three times more numerous, more tight, than these then - even if the gods should watch the sight and all the goddesses - I'd find delight in
O Brother, Where Art Thou? Homer in Hollywood: The Coen Brothers' O Brother, Where Art Thou? Could a Hollywood filmmaker adapt Homer's Odyssey for the screen in the same way that James Joyce did for the Modernist novel? The idea of a high-art film adaptation of the Odyssey is actually at the center of the plot of Jean-Luc Godard's 1963 film Contempt, and the Alberto Moravia novel on which Godard's film is
Stanley Kubrick’s 1968 film 2001: A Space Odyssey is a masterpiece in the science fiction genre. Based on a story by Arthur C. Clarke, the film epitomizes the features of science fiction, including an overarching theme questioning the role of humanity in the universe. The film could just as well be classified as an epic, given its length and breath, as it begins with the origin of human beings through
" (I.16.23) Despite his guilty attitude towards loving the excitement of Latin pagan literature, Augustine is a man who is converted through reading. He struggles with the intellectual side of pagan life that attracts him, as opposed to what he regards as the simplicity of Christianity. He reminds himself it was "was even "the least of the apostles" by whose tongue thou didst sound forth these words." (VIII.6.245) Words from the
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