Odyessy - Circe and Calipso

A detailed Summary of Odyessy - Circe and Calipso

ODYSSEUS: A MERE MORTAL, BUT PURELY MORAL

In Homer's Odyssey, he uses the stories of Calypso and Circe to give a reader a glimpse at Greek values. Odysseus is a "perfectly" moral man by Greek standards. In the Calypso episode, Odysseus demonstrates the value of faithfulness, and in the Circe episode, he illustrates Greek values in general. While both goddesses seek Odysseus to be their husband, Odysseus responds as a perfect Greek hero. During the Calypso episode, Homer teachers that one must remain faithful in their hearts. The Circe episode shows the loyalty between a commander and his troops, burial rights, hospitality, and the relationship between host and guest. The Calypso episode explains how a man must be faithful to his wife in his heart.

The Calypso scene opens with a description of how beautiful her island of meadows and flowers is and how "even a deathless god who came upon that place would gaze in wonder, heart entranced with pleasure" (154). The story proceeds to describe the goddess as having a "breathtaking voice" (154) and being "lustrous" (155). Yet, when the story describes Odysseus, he is "wrenching his heart with sobs and groans and anguish" (156). Even though, Odysseus resides on a beautiful island with a

When the story begins with an analysis on how guests ought to be treated. Circe is an enchantress who welcomes some of Odysseus's troops into her home for food and drink. Then, she made a potion that would clear their memories so that when she struck them with her magic wand, they turned into pigs. Zeus or Hermes must have witnessed this episode because Hermes came to Odysseus with a "potent drug" (239) that would counteract Circe's potion. Since Zeus is the god of hospitality, Circe was in the wrong by harming her guests as she did. So, Odysseus went to Circe with the drug, and when she attempted to do the same thing, Odysseus was able to triumph over trickery. Thus, another important Greek value is to be kind to strangers, treat them as guests, and follow the hospitality etiquette. The next event demonstrates that the commander must be loyal to his troops. Circe offers Odysseus marvelous food with "appetizers aplenty too, lavish with her bounty" (242), but her refuses the food saying that "any man in his right mind" (242) could not accept food "before he'd freed his comrades-in-arms and looked them in the eyes" (242). So, Greek soldiers must be loyal to each other. This is further demonstrated when Circe sends for Odysseus's ship to come closer to shore.

Then, on their final departing from Aeaea, Circe gives them food and drink to take on their voyage as well as a swift wind. She gives them several gifts as expected by a hostess when her guest leaves. Therefore, while host must be gracious and giving to guests, the guests are expected to be respectful of their host.

Finally, Homer t

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Approximate Word count = 1079
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English