Elements of an Epic
Wyatt Newton
Plot centers around a Hero of Unbelievable Stature
Odysseus is the Epic Hero in this story. He has many qualities of being the hero. He was the strength, wits, and the character flaws that are associated with being an Epic Hero
Involves deeds of Superhuman strength or wits
Odysseus out witted many people/creatures. He tricked the cyclone to get drunk to stab his eye out. He also planned out the Trojan Horse.
Vast Setting
Odysseus had a very wide variety of travels. He went from Troy to being on the land of lotus eaters to being with the cyclopes.
Involves a Supernatural presence.
Athena was the main goddess who helped Odysseus with a little help from Zeus. Poseidon only punished Odysseus for making his son blind.
Athena
Athena helped Odysseus by disguising him as a beggar so that no one would know he was there.
Zeus
Zeus forced Calypso to let Odysseus go. She kept him hostage for a year.
Poseidon
Poseidon cursed Odysseus for making his son (the cyclops) blind. He made Odysseus's crew suffer and ended up killing them all
The Hero's Journey
- Call of Adventure- Odysseus's adventure started when he tried to raid an island, and his crew did not listen. It was a very fatal decision for the crew members.
- Entering Threshold- He entered the threshold when he was on the island with the cyclops and tried to steal all of his food and livestock. Odysseus ended up outsmarting the cyclops but the cyclops asked his father (Poseidon) to curse him.
- Mentor- Odysseus had help from the gods/goddess such as Athena and Zeus.
- Road of Trials- The series of difficulties began after the first raid where his men did not listen to him. Here are a few examples of the difficulties. They were trapped by a cyclopes and then cursed by the cyclops. He lost all of his men and was trapped on an island for 1 year.
- Death/Rebirth- After being trapped on the island for a year, Odysseus finally got good news that he would make it back home but, sadly his crew would not.
- Revelation- Odysseus learned that his crew would all die if they killed the Sun gods cows, but he kept it a secret so that they would not have a melt down.
- Transformation- Odysseus changed from an old beggar to a young warrior in a split second.
- Atonement- Odysseus asked for forgiveness from his wife and and kid after being gone so long
- Return Threshold- Odysseus returned from the threshold when he is getting on a boat to go back to Ithaca.
- Return- Odysseus returns to his homeland Ithaca after 20 years and many struggles later.
Works Cited
"Six Elements Of The Epic" Six Elements Of The Epic. N.p,n.d. Web. 07 Dec. 2015.
"Writeworld." WRITEWORLD. Web. 11 Dec. 2015.
Homer. "The Odyssey." Prentice Hall Literature. Upper Saddle River: Pearson, 2013. 1089-1114