Poetry: the Epic Simile (Books 9-12, The Odyssey) - Essay Example

Paper due The similes, ‘man will bury his glowing brand in black ashes, off on a lonely farmyard, no neighbors near, to keep a spark alive’-no need to rekindle fire from somewhere else, depicts Odysseus arrival in Phaeacia while in a very sorry state. He was completely exhausted, crusted with sea brine, was naked and his hands were totally scraped by corals. The image being portrayed here is that of wild and in a lonely environment. Here Odysseus is compared with the world of hopelessness and desperation where there is only mere survival in the island of Scheria and this was after he was swept by “pissed of possession’’ from the seas.

Odysseuas found himself out of the great chaos that was in Poseidon, he made a big decision that it was better for him to die in Troy than bear the pain that he was going through. Phaeacians, had moved in to this place purposely to flee from the problems he was facing while in Cyclops. The Simile by Odyssey is addressed to Odysseus who is in problems and it indirectly refers to Athena who came for his rescue (Homer). This simile teaches us that, it reaches a point where one needs to strip boyhood and start living like a man.

For one to live like a man, he has to learn to survive alone without relying entirely on other people. It is a period when one experiences the biggest trials and tests in life as he tries to be independent. It means that if one decides to live as a man then he should do it in all the aspects. After this point, things began going well for him, he began the journey of going home to his home and meet and interact with the human society. Burying glowing brand in black ashes is compared to a situation where one does away with some things and begins a new life.

Lonely farmstead is compared to living up to oneself as a man.This is a great simile that is so relevant in the contemporary society. It teaches that in the journey of life, there are so many challenges that one is likely to face. There are challenges of shelter, food, employment and even relationships. However, the challenges are not permanent, they are just there to make us stronger and prepare for us the way forward for good things. The events in this simile flow sequentially and logically from the time he found himself in a bad situation till he is helped and succeeds in life .

In my case, it makes me take the challenges that I face in life as the preparation for making me strong and prepare for life ahead. As for the case of Phaeacia, he was helped by Athena and brought to a good environment where he even managed to complete his education.This is a simile that works as a wakeup call for the people who are undergoing challenges that resilience, commitment and stoicism are key pillars to come out of the problem and there cannot miss somebody who will come for ones aid and rescue him/her from that problem.

This simile as it was relevant to the agrarian, Bronze Age world; it is equally relevant in the contemporary society. The setting and the events might be different because the society has greatly advanced, but the message got from it is still accurate in the modern society. The above simile portrays the same message as saying that goes, ‘every cloud has a silver lining.’ This means that a good thing usually comes out of the bad situation. Things may seem bad at the beginning but something good will come out of it eventually.

Work CitedHomer. The Odyssey. Trans. by Robert Fagles. Introduction by Bernard Knox. United States of America: Penguin Books, 1996.