Homer’s Odyssey is one of the greatest works of Western literature, telling the epic story of the Greek hero Odysseus and his long journey home after the Trojan War. Written around 800 BCE, the Odyssey has captivated audiences for thousands of years with its powerful storytelling, vivid imagery, and complex characters. The Odyssey is a nostos, or a story of return, and asks can one come home again, especially after years of bloody war? In fact, an odyssey is now meant generally as a long journey home, much like Odysseus’ after the fall of Troy. The Odyssey attempts to remake order after the chaos of war.
Odysseus, a young man when Agamemnon and Menelaus recruited him for the campaign against Ilium, is now a middle-aged survivor and veteran of that war who must be smarter than the champion Achilles and the leader Agamemnon in order to return home and set his lands in order. War almost seems easy in the light of Odysseus’ journey — at least in war, he knew his enemies. Enemies during peacetime wear many masks; Odysseus must do the same if he is to survive.
Composition and Structure
The Odyssey was composed around 800 BCE, during the Greek Dark Ages, a time when writing was not yet widespread, and stories were passed down orally through the generations. It is the second of Homer’s two great epic poems, the first being the Iliad, the story of Achilles rage and the Trojan War. The Odyssey consists of 24 books, written in dactylic hexameter, the traditional meter of epic poetry. The poem is divided into three main sections: the Telemachiad, which follows the journey of Odysseus’ son Telemachus as he searches for his father; the Wanderings, which tells the story of Odysseus’ long journey home; and the Homecoming, which describes Odysseus’ return to Ithaca and his reunion with his family.
| The Epic of Gilgamesh | |
|---|---|
| The Iliad | |
| The Odyssey | |
| The Aeneid |
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| Ovid | |
| The Divine Comedy | |
| Beowulf | |
