by Eduardo Lopez 6 years ago
265
Odisseus Vs Oedipus
by Eduardo Lopez 6 years ago
265
The best description of Ulysses is found after washing ashore and he is found by Nausicaa. She assists to wash him and we see a description of him.
King of Ithaca, loyal husband and father. Skillful sailor. He is strong with broad shoulders, full head of long curly hair, tall and good looking.
He is a very smart and educated individual.
"Then they stood on one side and went to tell the girl, while Ulysses washed himself in the stream and scrubbed the brine from his back and from his broad shoulders. When he had thoroughly washed himself, and had got the brine out of his hair, he anointed himself with oil, and put on the clothes which the girl had given him; Minerva then made him look taller and stronger than before, she also made the hair grow thick on the top of his head, and flow down in curls like hyacinth blossoms; she glorified him about the head and shoulders as a skillful workman who has studied art of all kinds under Vulcan and Minerva enriches a piece of silver plate by gilding it—and his work is full of beauty."
For Odysseus the struggle is external. Is Odysseus vs the World. He wishes to return home but giants, gods, Sea, man-eaters, sirens, a gorgeous nymph, a sexy witch and the his wife's suitors are in the way of his return home.
His mind never falters away from his ultimate goal.
Ulysses as a character is static. His virtues remain the same throughout the whole epic making him a force to reckon. The only change we see is in his emotional state which is fluctuant during the entire play having moments of happiness in his prolonged misery.
Odysseus is intrepid, smart, valorous, haughty and honorable we see this throughout the story. From one of the first challenges he faces to the slaughter of his wife suitors he remains the same.
Here we see Ulysses haughtiness and ingenuity even when he has disadvantage over the cyclops.
“’Look here, Cyclops,’ said I, you have been eating a great deal of man’s flesh, so take this and drink some wine, that you may see what kind of liquor we had on board my ship. I was bringing it to you as a drink-offering, in the hope that you would take compassion upon me and further me on my way home, whereas all you do is to go on ramping and raving most intolerably. You ought to be ashamed yourself; how can you expect people to come see you any more if you treat them in this way?’
Here we see after smartly murdering one of his wife's suitors how he scolds everyone even though he is overmanned and in disadvantage again.
Thus they spoke, for they thought that he had killed Antinous by mistake, and did not perceive that death was hanging over the head of every one of them. But Ulysses glared at them and said:
“Dogs, did you think that I should not come back from Troy? You have wasted my substance, have forced my women servants to lie with you, and have wooed my wife while I was still living. You have feared neither Cod nor man, and now you shall die.”
Ulysses knows his worth and he is not afraid to prove himself to others.
Ulysses or Odysseus is a hero. More to be said he is the definition of the perfect hero.
Odysseus is a man returning a hero from war in Troy having devised the Trojan horse plan. His sole desire is to return home to his family but he encounters numerous obstacles in the way.
His men disobey his orders which brings as consequence punishment by the gods. First, his men open his bag of wind, then they kill the sun god's cattle; this brings as consequence his travels to be delayed.
Odysseus still protects his men with all his wits and strength. Athena protects him and as he yearns to return to his family. This is his only goal during the epic. He beats all obstacles in his way not seeking for glory but to obtain passage home. Glory is obtained as a cause and effect action rather than as a seek for glory itself.
After Circe has sworn to release Odysseus men, Circe treats Odysseus to dinner. Odysseus does not partake in this meal. Circe asks Odisseus what is wrong, why doesn't he eats his meal with her. Odysseus replies:
“And I said, ‘Circe, no man with any sense of what is right can think of either eating or drinking in your house until you have set his friends free and let him see them. If you want me to eat and drink, you must free my men and bring them to me that I may see them with my own eyes."
Odysseus had not eaten in a while due to being marooned at sea but yet he contained his impulses until his men were safe and would be able to enjoy of the privilege imparted by Circe with them.
Odyseus is captive by the nymph Calypso. He has been captive with the purpose to serve as husband to Calypso. Under orders of Zeus with intervention of goddess Athena, Calypso is to release him. Ulysses appears to have the blessing of all gods except Poseidon.
Even upon being ordered to release Odysseus, Calypso offers him to stay.
“Son of Laertes in the line of Zeus, my wily Odysseus, Do you really want to go home to your beloved country Right away? Now? Well, you still have my blessings. But if you had any idea of all the pain You’re destined to suffer before getting home, You’d stay here with me, deathless"
Ulysses is destined to suffer but he is to emerge victorious.
Athena watches over him. When Poseidon attacks Ulysses unleashing the sea on him, Athena intervenes.
"But Zeus’ daughter Athena had other ideas. She barricaded all the winds but one And ordered them to rest and fall asleep. Boreas, though, she sent cracking through the waves, A tailwind for Odysseus until he was safe on Phaeacia, And had beaten off the dark birds of death."
Athena watches over him again and again.
When Ulysses men are captured by Circe, one man returns and explains the events in detail. This man begs Ulysses to not go and to not ask him to go either. Ulysses men have been turned into pigs and there is little hope for them now. Ulysses' troop who has escaped asks Ulysses to flee with the remaining men available to which Odisseus answers:
“’Stay where you are, then, ‘answered I, ‘eating and drinking at the ship, but I must go, for I am most urgently bound to do so."
Odisseus nature is to help. He rushes towards his men aid without regard to his own safety.
He is ingenious.
Ulysses drunken a cyclops and blinds him. Ulysses devices a way to escape cyclops Polyphemus by tying his men under the giant's sheeps.
On top of that Ulysses names himself "Noman" ; when the other giants try to ask Polyphemus "who did that harm to him? Poor Polyphemus answers Noman. This gives time to Ulysses to escape as confusion is risen.
‘Noman is killing me by some kind of trick!’
King of Thebes. He has swollen feet thus his name. He is highly intelligent and has high regards of himself. He solved the riddle of the sphinx. His people love him and try to conceal his faults to avoid suffering to himself.
Oedipus conflict is intern. He has sworn to find the responsible of the murder of the previous King of Thebes Laus. Upon searching for the truth, Tiresias lets him know he is the responsible for it. Oedipus then has two options keep seeking the truth or ignore it, he knows if to be true this rumor will cause his death or exile. Yet he continues searching for truth. His duty towards his people, knowing the truth and adherence to his oath is more important than his happiness and wellbeing.
Oedipus shows a dynamic change.
At the beginning of the epic he is proud, demanding, rageful, and untrusting. We see his transformation from an arrogant leader to a broken man gradually as he begins to discover he is the one responsible for the Thebans' plague. The final straw is learning he killed his father, married his mother and loses her the same day he finds out about this atrocity. He loses a mother and a wife. He blinds himself and is left with no other option than to trust his life to his daughter to guide him.
Oedipus is sadly the antagonist. He believes to be the hero who will relieve the pestilence from his citizen but he turns out to be the cause of it. As a final affront to himself, he could not escape the curse the gods had stowed upon him since birth. All a sick joke to his life.
Oedipus seeks to fulfill his vow of searching for the culprit of Laertes. He finds out that is himself even upon the various warnings he receives. His wife warns him to not seek the truth; Tiresias warns him to not seek the truth (mostly for fear of his life) and himself is afraid of finding the truth.
When he finds out he is the culprit, he leaves in exile. He does not makes excusers or takes in consideration the position he holds in Thebes over his oath.
As himself states:
"But his saying was completely clear— That I, the disrespectful one, the patricide, must depart."
Oedipus is a coward. Due to his cursed becoming upon learning he would kil his father and marry his mother he flees his home giving place to the profecy.
After hearing the profecy in Pythos, Oedipus explains:
"That I must copulate with my mother—and show, For mortals to behold, a family who would not endure— And also be the killer of the father who planted me. I, after hearing this—and regarding Corinth— Thereafter by the stars measured the ground I fled upon so that I would never have to face— Because of that inauspicious prophecy—the disgrace of its fulfilment."
Oedipus taught by running by his destiny he would be able to avoid it. If he had fought against his destiny in Corinth his story might have ended differently but no mortal can oppose the gods will.
Tiresias states he is the cause for the plague in Thebes. Instead of listening he attacks Creon with doubts and trust issues. He accuses Creon he is after the throne of Thebes.
"Yes indeed I will yield to the anger possessing me Since I do understand! For I know you appear to me To have worked together with others to produce that deed, Although it was not your hand that did the killing. But—had you sight— I would say that the blow was yours and yours alone!"
These words were emitted by Oedipus when Tiresias tried to hide the truth about who murdered Laius. He offers death to Tiresias.
The murder of Laius itself was due to rage and a lack of self-control by Oedipus.
He has a cursed existence since birth. He is destined to kill his father and marry his mother. He ends up furfilling this curse while trying to avoid it.
After his curse is complete he blinds himself. Oedipus states:
"It was Apollo—Apollo, my friend, Who brought such troubles to such a troubled end. But it was my own hand, and no other, which made the assault— I, who suffer this. For why should I have sight When there was nothing pleasing to see?"
