In book 17 of The Odyssey by Homer that i read for my world literature class there was lots that happened that i wanted to write about. In the beginning Telemachus leaves Odysseus with Eumaeus and he goes to his palace. He reunites with his mother Penelope and the nurse Eurycleia. When he sits down to eat with Penelope he tells his story of what happened and what he heard about Oddyseus in Pylos and Sparta but does not tell her that Odysseus is home. Theoclymenus then swears that Odysseus is in Ithaca at the time being . While all this is going on Eumaeus and Odysseus headed out to meet up with Telemachus in the palace. On the way to the palace they run into Melanthius who says mean things like "one scum nosing another scum along, dirt finds dirt by the will of God- it never fails!" (236-237). He also kicks Odysseus and knocks him off his path. I think that Melanthius is a cruel person for doing this Odysseus in no way deserved to get kicked he did nothing wrong. Could someone like Melanthius change? I think its possible but it would take a whole lot for him to change and a very long time. When Odysseus gets to the palace he gets the same welcome there. The suitors give him food but aren't happy about it and Antinous insults him and tells everyone not to give him food. "What spirit brought this pest to plague our feast? Back off! Into the open, clear of my table, or you, you'll soon land in an Egypt, Cyprus, to break your heart! (492-495). Odysseus cant hold back any longer and insults him as well but when he insults him Antinous hits him with a stool. I think this takes a lot of self control for Odysseus to not fight back when he is abused twice. I think that the biblical idea of "turning the other cheek" is something that he had to do. Even the suitors thought that it was too much. Penelope hears about the rudeness and asks to speak to the beggar herself. Penelope wants information about Odysseus and wants to question the beggar. Odysseus doesn't want the suitors to see him talking to the Queen though so Eumaeus tells Penelope that " he talks to the point, he thinks as the next man would who wants to dodge their blows, that brutal crew. He tells you to wait here till the sun goes down. It's better for you, my queen. Then you can talk with the man in private, hear the stranger's news" (648-652). In the end of the book Eumaeus leaves Odysseus with Telemachus and the suitors.
GQ 1. Why doesn't Odysseus fight back when Antinious hits him?
2. Did the suitors change from book 16 or are they the same?
One reason why Odysseus does not fight back when Antinious hits him is because he has to be respectful or he might get kicked out of the house for good. Odysseus needs to observe each suitor in the house and to do this properly everyone has to act like their usually self. If Odysseus hit Antinious back then he could one harm Odysseus and two get all the other suitors to treat him worse. Odysseus is just a beggar and for him to stay in this house he can not be disruptive. I bet this was hard for Odysseus because he is not the type of person who just stands back and takes what is being thrown at him. He wanted to hit Antinious but it is a good thing he held back. Later in the book he fights another beggar which proves that he would rather fight to prove himself. So Odysseus holding back took a lot of strength and courage, in a way.
ReplyDeleteYeah that's a really good point you bring up Haley. But I think he didn't fight back so that his disguise as a beggar wouldn't be ruined. As of now, Athena transformed him into a poor, helpless man who looks pretty weak at a first glance. If Odysseus comes out all at once and lets his strength do the talking, then the suitors will eventually feel suspicious about his character and sooner or later they will find out it is Odysseus and kill him. An as for the second question, idk I feel as if the suitors have stayed the same. They are still the same rude, careless, hate filled people they were before and they are still after the same thing: Penelope.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the points that both Haley and Inga have made. I think that Odysseus didn't fight back because he realized that he didn't need to. He probably realized that in the long run, fighting back wasn't worth it. Like Inga said as well, Odysseus didn't see any reason to fight because he didn't want to ruin his disguise in any way. Also, I think that the intentions of the suitors are still the same. They are still plotting the downfall of Telemachus and eventually Odysseus. They are still the awful people that they have been in the other books, so I don't think they have significantly changed.
ReplyDeleteOdysseus does not fight back because he has to maintain his cover. Not fighting back must have been hard for Odysseus he usually springs to action when he is insulted, as he did when the Phaecians athletes insulted him. The thought of his objective allowed Odysseus to control his rage. Odysseus wants to kill all the suitors and the best way to do this is to surprise them, so he must maintain his disguise. People like Melanthius could change but he is not the type of person you want to surround yourself with because he loyal to only those who are important. I am sure that if Odysseus showed Melanthius forgiveness that he would be loyal to Odysseus but the second Odysseus leaves he becomes a different person. The abuse Odysseus takes in this book and his decision to refrain from fighting back only fuels his rage and will lead to bloody downfall of nearly every suitor.
ReplyDeleteOdysseus maintains his disguise as a beggar well during this chapter due to his cunning efforts. It must have been very difficult to be the king of Ithaca and endure all the insults these suitors throw against him. However, as the master of crafts, Odysseus knows all too well that he must keep his cover. What I found interesting was that the gods inspired the suitors to be increasingly insulting and bashful as well. It shows the doom planted in the suitors by the gods when they continue to insult Odysseus. These words fueled Odysseus' anger to kill them to the last men. The suitors themselves don't seem to have changed a great deal because they had always been insulting but a greater focus is on them now, showing their impending doom.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what Will said. It is important for Odysseus to maintain his disguise as a beggar. If he blows his cover, his plan with Telemachus to bring the suitors down will be all for nothing. I am sure that it was hard for him to turn the other cheek because Odysseus is a person that always springs into action and solves all of the problems. He is the type of person that solves problems of injustice, not turns away from it. I think he knew, though, that there was no other option but to swallow his anger and play the role of a helpless beggar. Even though it is not in keeping with the time, I thought that Odysseus came off as the stronger, better man than the suitors because he did not physically fight back. I think it takes a bigger person to control one's anger than to explode and let it go all over the place.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, the suitors are the same as they have been throughout the poem. I think I will always see them as lousy thieves that will never amount to half the person Odysseus is. Even if Odysseus makes then see how terrible they are, I still do no think they will change their character.
I also think that the reason why Odysseus didn't fight back was because he had to preserve his disguise. If he had chosen to fight back, his plan of sneaking in would be over and there would just be a big fight between him and the suitors and Odysseus almost never gets into fights because he is a master at outwitting his opponents to defeat them. As for the suitors, they were worse than ever in this chapter. The gods had made them even meaner and disgusting, in my opinion so they could test Odysseus' temper and emotion and to see if he had the self-control to not fight back.
ReplyDeleteI think that Odysseus wants to savor his revenge by not fighting back right away. He wants to have a grand Revealing of who he truly is to all the suitors at the same time, or personally see them dead individually. If he fought back now, the suitors would see him as a strong man, instead of some beggar. I think that if Odysseus were to show his true strength, the suitors might feel intimidated, and attack him right then and there as a group.
ReplyDeleteI believe that they are the same, or even worse. They clearly don’t care anymore for the houses upkeep, and are devouring all the food that Penelope may have in stock. Their parties are getting wilder and no one is there to control them.
I think that Odysseus didn't fight back because in the back of his mind he knew that he couldn't It would attract a lot of attention to himself if he did. Also I think he is just waiting for the day when he is in his normal form to take his action on them. He is trying to get them to think "this guy is weak", but really he is just getting his anger built up. He is plotting what to do later.
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