To begin with in The Odyssey by Homer great king of Ithaca Odysseus was on his way home from Troy Along the way his arrogance and pride has lead him into many traps and has killed many of his men He also angered Poseidon god of the sea which is why he never made it home until 20 years later He has escaped being captured and killed many times but his men weren t so lucky After seeing what he has done and realizes that he needs the gods he finally makes it home to his wife and son after 20 years While some might argue that the goal is more important to the development of Odysseus s character I maintain that the journey is more important because throughout The Odyssey it is clear through Odysseus s actions that his obstacles have taught him to be less arrogant and prideful In the beginning of the epic Odysseus is an arrogant but clever warrior motivated by pride and greed In book 9 of the epic it states So they begged but they could not bring my fighting spirit round I called back with another burst of anger Cyclops if any man on the face of the earth should ask you who blinded you shamed you so say Odysseus raider of cities he gouged out your eye Laertes s son who makes his home in Ithaca Odysseus and his men had blinded the cyclops and managed to escape from his clutches Instead of leaving Odysseus decided to taunt the cyclops putting his crew in grave danger
But because of his arrogance he has lead his crew to their deaths His journey, however, has taught him to be less arrogant and more humble Odysseus at one point in the epic was not focused on getting home An example of this occurs when the main character says There we sat till a year feasting on sides of meat and drafts of heady wine my loyal comrades took me aside and prodded high time you thought of your own home at last if it really is your fate to make it back alive and reach your native land Book 10 Odysseus was complacent with living with Circe His crew had to help him come to his senses in order for them to leave finally after a year had passed As shown Odysseus in the beginning of the book was arrogant and prideful leading his crew eventually to their deaths but going through his journey he becomes a better man As the journey continues Odysseus slowly becomes a better person because of his journey instead of the thought of home He came across many dangers and faced death countless number of times One of those times is when his crew is killed by Zeus king of the gods In book 12 of the epic it says But heaving myself aloft to clutch at the fig tree s height like a bat I clung to its trunk for dear life Once again he has gotten himself into trouble being self-centered
His crew were dead and now he was barely hanging on to a fig tree hanging on for his life Through it all he finally makes it home years later and finally gets to see his wife An example of this occurs when the main character says And great Odysseus told his wife of all the pains he had dealt out to other men and all the hardships he d endured himself his story first to last and she listened on enchanted sleep never sealed her eyes till all was told Book 23 This quote shows how through everything on his devastating journey it has changed him into a better man He is now more humble and less prideful and arrogant In the end it is clear that the journey is what makes Odysseus transform into a more careful character who is thoughtful of his actions He does not just act without thinking anymore he thinks it through more and make smart decisions In the epic it states The more she spoke the more a deep desire for tears welled up inside his breast he wept as he held the wife he loved the soul of loyalty in his arms at last Book 23 Odysseus after a long journey holds his wife in his arms again He is grateful and appreciative of what he has now because his journey made him change In the epic it states So joyous now to her the sight of her husband vivid in her gaze that her white arms embracing his neck would never for a moment let him go Book 23 Being through so much pain and misery has made him better Now back in Ithaca he is a more caring and humble person after his rough journey After going through so much and facing many dangers along the way he has become more careful and thoughtful of his actions and the consequences that come along with them So in conclusion The Odyssey is a story about persistence and arrogance It teaches you that if you let those two get in the way it will lead you down a dangerous path Odysseus had to go down a dangerous path which was full of pain death and misery He had to learn that he needed to swallow his pride and so he did With that an ounce of good finally came his way At the end because of his journey Odysseus has changed to become a different but better person which helped him reach his goal After changing his ways he finally made it home to his caring family
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