Homer's Odyssey. Telemachos' heroic journey - Essay Example

Task "Telemachos' heroic journey is exactly the opposite of his father Odysseus'. Odysseus makes mistakes, though being a hero,on his return home, while Telemachos makes no mistakes on his journey abroad." Odysseus was the king of Ithaca. He had fought in the Trojan War for ten years. He went into exile for close to ten years after the collapse of Troy. He had left his newborn son, Telemachos and a committed wife, Penelope. Although his wife had longed for his return, she entertained strangers and arrogant suitors. Athena and Zeus motivated Telemachos to pursue his adulthood journey by unravelling the mystery behind his father’s disappearance. Telemachos heroic journey was exactly the opposite of his fathers. During Telemachos time, there was no war to be fought unlike in his father’s time where heroes were determining by their war exploits. However, as a young man and a son of a hero, his journey was different but worthy because in the end, both men emerged heroes (Cooper 24). Telemachos is a unique character in the epic of Homer. Telemachos journey begun when he was requested by Athena to pursue his father Odysseus who had been trapped in Ogygia Island by goddess Calypso for close to ten years. Athena had seen that Telemachos had become of age and ready to take charge of his family’s welfare. However, she realized that he lacked the motivation and confidence to take up his manly position in his father’s house. He had lacked an appropriate male model through his life. His father and grandfather were unavailable to guide him through life. Following this gap, his mother and the suitors had attempted to suppress his assertion of leadership for varied reasons. His mother was afraid that growing too fast would risk his life to the suitors. The suitors assumed that the continued suppression would ensure that he does not stand in their way between the woman and the property (Cooper 33). The Homeric society expected sons of nobles to posses’ eloquent speaking skills and confidence. However, his mother suitors overran the palace, wasted the family property. They seemed to have more authority than Telemacho. He appeared like a child and was frequently insulted in between conversations. At some point, Eurymachos confirmed to the men of Ithaka that Telemachos would never be able to subdue his father’s position at any time (Cooper 41) Athena maintained loyalty to Odysseus through his son. She took a ‘father figure’ stand with an aim of steering the young man into the world of leadership and adulthood. Ithaca had lacked sober leadership for a long time. No one had summoned for an assembly or community meeting. Before encountering Athena, Telemancho was a passive daydreamer who knew that things were taking a wrong direction but did not know which step to take. He hoped that his father would return and put things in order. His weakness was that he seemed to rely on other people’s opinions to solve his own problems (Cooper 56) He trusted the disguised Athena, fed him and trusted him to guide him into the ideal life strategy. Athena had longed for the return of Odysseus. Telemachos lacked self-confidence and asks Athena stupid questions that express doubts. He questions if he is indeed a legitimate son of Odysseus. He commits a deeper mistake that shows hopelessness and self-pity when he asserts that he wished a different man had fathered him. He even wishes that his father were a wealthy old man. Hearing all this, Athena reassures him and motivates him to seek after his father (Cooper 94) Unknown to the suitors and Telemancho was the fact that Odysseus was still alive. The beautiful nymph Calypso obsessed by love for him held him captive on her island, Ogygia. He wished to rejoin to his wife and son but he did not have a ship or crew to flee. On mount Olympus, Zeussends Hermes attempts to rescue Odysscus from Calypso, Hermes persuades Odysscus to build a ship and return home. The homesick hero sets to sail but when Poscidon, god of the sea sees him, he sends a storm to wreak the ship. Poscidon held a great grudge against Odysscus because he had blinded his son, the Cyclops Polyphemus earlier in his travels. Of his encounters are that he had made a trip to the land of the Lotus eaters, battled with Polyphemus the Cyclops, fallen in love with a witch goddess, withstood the temptation with the deadly Sirens, journeyed to the hades to consult prophet Tiresias and a fight with monster Seylla (Cooper 37). Telemachos journey was inspired by a deep desire for self-confidence and reputation that would qualify him as a man in homer society. Following a long talk with Athena, Telemachos was inspired to undertake the journey to acquire news concerning his father’s fate. Before he had left, he summoned a meeting to all the suitors living in his father’s palace. He reminded them of their imminent banishment from his house. In one instance, Telemachos finds her mother in a sombre mood listening to a war song by the court bard. The song reflects on the sufferings and experiences of the Greek soldiers on their arrival from Troy. He reminded her that Odysseus was not the only Greek that failed to return from the war and that she was not compelled to listen to the song. He then took a rare authoritative stance by ordering his mother to vacate to her room. This sent a shiver among all the suitors but no action was taken; instead they plotted to destroy him (Cooper 90) Following Athena’s advice, Telemacho sailed for King Nestors palace in Pylo with a crew of twenty other men. King Nestor was an ally of Odysseous and together they had fought the Trojan War. On reaching Pyros, King Nestor welcomes them but remains mum on the any information concerning Odysseus. He sends Telemachus to King Menelaus of Spatra. In this journey, he takes with him king Nestors son and Pisistratus. King Menelaus was a friend of Odysseus; he had fought the Trojan War. He knew nothing concerning Odysseus only that he heard that he was stuck on the Calypso Island. Meanwhile, Penelope’s suitors learn that Telemachos is pursuing his father; they set up a barricade of ships hoping to catch and kill him when he returns to Ithaca (Cooper 95). Telemachos proved his aptitude by successfully addressing the suitors and having the ability to face two kings. From a relative perspective, Telemachos did not make any subtle mistakes in his journey. Through his efforts, he foresaw his family reinstated into power in Ithaka (Cooper 95). Odysseus thrived in a time of war that saw him fall into involuntary exile in the island of Ogygio. He had left his wife, Penelope in charge of the palace and Telemachos was to assume ownership on attaining adulthood. He spent close to ten years with a mistress in Ogygio. His decision meant that he lost valuable family time and the opportunity to mould his son into adulthood. Moreover, he suffered a less significant heroism by surviving the war and failing to return home. These tragic mistakes saw strangers intrude his home in the hopes of wooing his wife or acquiring portions of his wealth. Following his departure, Telemachos had lost his father and the family was close to losing their home to strangers. There was a swarm of Penelope’s suitors and sons of Ithaca elders dwelling in the palace (Cooper 112) The author would not invert the two journeys because of varied reasons. Telemachos journey was a self-discovery journey aimed at redefining his position in the family and the society. Through his journey, he had evolved into a mature man able to speak in a public assembly, travel to foreign courts and wade away his mothers’ suitors. Through his challenges and responsibilities, he had grown into a worthy successor of his father. Odysseus journey was a coincidence of fate and war. His mistakes were not mistakes per se but fateful occurrences that resulted in serious miscalculations. Works Cited Cooper, Gwen. Homer's Odyssey. London: Bantam, 2011. Print. Read More