Odysseus Essay

Divine Destiny
Free will, man’s right to choose his own path. While clearly present in The Odyssey, it is through Homer’s writing that we begin to see the underlying belief, in ancient Greek culture, of divine intervention and the gods’ power to control and shape man’s destiny. Their influence is evident in determining the outcome of every adventure and obstacle that the hero, Odysseus, faces during his lengthy, perilous journey home following the events of the Trojan War. Man’s free will is overshadowed throughout this epic poem by the use of prophecy or the direct influence of the gods to ultimately foretell and decide the outcome. The choices Odysseus makes may have direct consequences and influence on his life, gaining or denying him favor with the gods. He cannot; however, change his fate or escape their will.
The influence of the gods is shown early on in The Odyssey during a meeting of the gods where they decide amongst themselves that the time for Odysseus to return to his home in Ithaca has come. At the time of the meeting, Odysseus is trapped in a suspended state of inactivity on the island Ogygia with the goddess Calypso. No matter the remarkable wit and cunning the hero is shown to possess, it is the decision of the gods at this meeting to send Hermes to pave the way for his release from the island. Zeus to Hermes: “Hermes, you’ve been our messenger before. / go tell that ringlet nymph it is my will / To let that patient man Odysseus go home. / Not with an escort, mind you, human or divine, / But on a rickety raft-tribulation at sea- / Until on the twentieth day he comes to Scheria / In the land of the Phaeacians, our distant relatives, / Who will treat Odysseus as if he were a god / Who will take him on a ship to his own native land / With gifts of bronze and clothing and gold, / More than he ever would have taken back from Troy / Had he come home safely with his share of loot. / That’s how he’s destined to see his dear ones again / And return to his high-gabled Ithacan home” (5.31-44). Here we can see the gods and their “destiny” for Odysseus. They decided that his journey would be a tribulation, full of obstacle and peril to delay his journey but that he would also be rewarded greatly at the end. Odysseus uses his wit and cunning during his encounter with Polyphemus, a one-eyed giant known as Cyclops. The hero and his men landed on the island of the Cyclops and found wild goats to which they could make a meal. Upon finding an unattended cave full of sheep, milk and cheese his men, inspired by their greed, wanted to quickly take and make off with their plunder. Odysseus’s curiosity caused him to linger and before they leave, Polyphemus returns to his cave and is at first hospitable to Odysseus and his men. This is short lived as he then swallows two of the men and holds captive Odysseus and the others. He later blinds the Cyclops and escapes with his remaining men on the underbellies of Polyphemus’s own sheep and ram. Arrogance gets the better of him and from offshore “[he] called out to the Cyclops, just to rub it in” (9.474). This lack of control on the part of Odysseus fueled Polyphemus to seek revenge. Being the son of the god Poseidon, he prayed “and the blue-maned sea-god heard him” (534). Zeus, the king of the gods, had already proclaimed the return of Odysseus to his home in Ithaca, so despite his self-disclosure and the difficulties that would later be inflicted on him from his actions with Polyphemus, his destiny still outweighed the anger of Poseidon, whom could only lengthen the hero’s nostros by interfering and “[blowing] some trouble his way” (5.291).
As an epic hero, Odysseus is smarter than most mortals and generally a problem solver. His self-assertion and character strengths help him overcome many of the difficulties faced along his journey. Alone and left to his wit; however, he would still have succumbed to the magical spells of Circe were it not for the intervention of the god Hermes. Just like all those that came before him, he would have been “Penned like pigs into crowded sties” (10.304). Hermes forewarning allowed Odysseus to ward off the goddess’ spells and ultimately earn her love.
The prophecy told by Circe and Theban Tiresias warned Odysseus of the cattle of Helios the Sun. Tiresias “[foretold] doom for [Odysseus], / [His] ship, and [his] crew” (11.110-111) and told him that “even if you / Yourself escape, you will come home late” (111-112). Thinking he could control his own fate, Odysseus attempted to sail right past the island of Thrinacia. Fate would win out though, as his men disputed him and they disembarked on the island anyway. Consenting to an oath that “No man [would] kill a single cow or sheep” (12.308). The crew’s “day of return / [was] Snuffed out by the Sun God” (431-432), because they were unable to uphold the oath as “Hunger gnawed at their bellies” (12.340). Once again the proclamation by Zeus holds and Odysseus survives to continue home as Zeus “Slivered his ship with lightning, and all his men / Went down, and he alone survived” (23.341-42).
Many suitors were courting Odysseus’s wife, Penelope and occupying his household while he was away. Their lack of respect with both Penelope and the property of Odysseus prompted anger and vengeance from the gods. Even the compassion Odysseus shows towards the suitor Amphinomus is trumped by the will of Athena. This compassion was brought on while Odysseus was disguised as the old man/beggar. He was touched by the kind words of Amphinomus, “may Zeus and the other gods grant you, stranger, / Whatever your heart dearly desires’ (18.120-121). Odysseus responds in kind by saying to the suitor “better for you if some god / Leads you away from here and takes you home / Before you meet him upon his return” (18.155-157). Homer showed that no matter what compassion Odysseus felt, his fate and the fate of the suitors was sealed, foretold by Athena in her council with the other gods. For Amphinomus, “He would not escape death, though. Pallas Athena / had him pinned, and he would be killed outright / By a spear from the hand of Telemachus” (18.164-166). Hinting at the gods’ desires outweighing those of men, Zeus comments to Athena: “But wasn’t this exactly your plan / so that Odysseus would make them pay for it later” (5.25)?
Throughout The Odyssey, Homer is most generous with showing examples of Odysseus using his wit, cunning and intellect to overcome multiple trials. The hero was praised and revered by both man and gods for these traits, yet it is the will of the gods and their guidance that Homer shows ultimately decides his fate and shapes his destiny. How their influence, judgment and plans both altered and controlled not only the final outcome of Odysseus’s journey home, but also of every trial he faced along the way.