Essays on Poems Page 15

The Odyssey is the second epic written by Homer. Odysseus was torn away from his homeland, Ithaca, and he wanted to return home after the Trojan War. Known as a heroic figure, the King of Ithaca and an epic hero. When he was once frayed away from Ithaca, he had to leave his people, family…

The depiction of woman throughout history has been overall degrading. Whether it be through media, books, or sometimes even research we see how females are degraded in many ways, mostly sexually. We hardly see media depicting women in leadership positions, over 20 countries have female presidents. For the last few years there has been a…

Athena, the dynamic virgin Greek goddess of sapience and war. Born an adult and virtually dressed in armor, it is pellucid from the near beginning her role in this sublime book. She is one of a few protagonists in the Odyssey that continually exhibits empowerment by ultimately being capable of commanding men, prosperously manipulating gods and…

Every Trip Is a Quest (Except When It’s Not) A very simple situation is presented: a boy struggles through physical hazards to get bread at a store, while also meeting with emotional conflict about a possible lover and enemy on the way. The book describes even this small “venture” as a literary quest. The various…

Ever done something without really thinking about it? Ever done something that you didn’t really like, but still did it anyway? That’s what my essay is about, to understand the characters. If you ever read the Odyssey, you would appreciate the varied character portrayal and complexity of their relationships. But what are the characters’ personalities? What…

A major value of the Greeks, as seen in The Odyssey, is hospitality. In Greek culture, you are to do unto others as you would have them do unto you. In the Odyssey, this idea is presented throughout the entire story, from Odysseus’s encounter with the Cyclops to his final defeat of the insolent suitors….

Characters, in a story or poem, who undergo personal struggles and trials is not a new concept in literature and Sir Gawain in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight thought to be written by the Pearl Poet and Satan in Paradise Lost by John Milton are no exception. While Sir Gawain could be considered the…

This is a poem about a young boy who using a buzz saw who becomes distracted by the thought of dinner and cuts his hand. Later when the doctor arrives, the boy slowly dies. The buzz-saw snarling and rattling in the yard is the sound the saw makes when the boy is cutting what im…

All heros, in fact, all people have character, but what separates the common-folk from the great heroes of our time is a hero’s ability to maintain moral character. In Susan Thompsons’ rendition of “Gawain and the Green Knight”, Gawain not only proves this time-tested quality, but he also portrays why it is optimal. One of…

Ask anyone if lying is an appropriate course of action in any situation and their response will most likely be a hard “no.” For our entire lives we are taught that lying and deceiving others is completely wrong no matter the circumstances. But sometimes lies and deceit are not only completely acceptable, but also necessary….