Review of Book The Odyssey by Homer

In book 6, in the evening, Nausicaa, the Phaeacian princess is visited by Athena in a dream and obliges her to clean her dress. Once Nausiacaa wakes up, she takes her maids and a mule-pushcart, and the maids clean her attire in the ponds by the river. They then clean themselves and performance a game while naked. Odysseus, unclothed himself, wakens after he listens to them. Odysseus goes towards them, however, his muddy, wild look scares them away apart from Nausicaa. He inquires whether she is a goddess or mortal, and compliments her outstanding attractiveness. Odysseus requests her assistance in offering him an outfit and guiding him to the city. Nausicaa delightedly agrees. Odysseus washes up and is given a drink and food. To avoid gossip by people, Nausicaa requests him to hide as they enter the city, then to enquire direction afterwards to the Alcinous palace, where he will meet her mom, whom he must request assistance; if she is fond of him, then she would have him in the household before long. Odysseus demonstrates himself a wise decision-maker and judge of character. When he frightens retainers of Nausicaa with his fearsome, nude look, he needs to decide if to hug knees of Nausicaa in the plea, a usual gesticulation to charm her. As he regularly does, Odysseus utilizes words, almost forty lines' value, to praise her attractiveness and enquiry whether she is a deity and, most significantly: "I stand in awe so great / I cannot take your knees" (book 6 180-181). Obviously, the actual motive he doesn’t do it, at the start, is for the reason that in his current condition "he could irritate the girl, touching her knees" (book 6 159). Here, expressions aren’t simply an alternative for deed, instead, are the merely substitute to it.

In book 7, when Odysseus awaits Nausicaa to visit her dad's palace, he makes his way unaccompanied and meets Athena in a form of a small girl and requests her the way to the palace. Athena leads Odysseus to the palace while covering him in fog so that nobody may observe him. Odysseus gets in the luxurious, lavish palace and meets the queen and the king. He hugs the knees of Arete and requests her for entry into his household. Alcinous takes him to the dinning, in which Odysseus is nourished. Alcinous questions whether Odysseus is a deity; he reassures him he is not. Arete distinguishes Odysseus' attire as her personal making and enquires him who provided him with his clothing and who he is. He narrates his tale from Calypso's isle up until the help of Nausicaa that day. Alcinous states Nausicaa ought to have gone with him home directly, nonetheless Odysseus states it was his opinion to trail her individually. Alcinous promises to assist him to get home.

Here, once again, Odysseus applies his intelligence in taking accountability for a plan of Nausicaa to go to the palace individually. He so cleverly and modestly avoids the implication behind their unconnected paths - that Nausicaa, to some extent optimistically, maybe, believed public could contemplate they were engaged - that Alcinous even gives him Nausicaa as his companion must he visit. Furthermore, Odysseus cleverly selects this period to hug the knees of Arete; earlier with Nausicaa, he failed to do so in order to not frighten her. He recognizes the appropriate dignity and, as usual, he combines his activities with principled, touching words.

In book 8, the numerous songs-within-the-poem clarifies the themes and identity of Odyssey. The deliberate exposure of the identity of Odysseus appears in the initial and final songs as he is disloyal to his intimate understanding of the destiny of persons who perished at Troy. The mid-song regarding Aphrodite and Ares is, however, a different tale of retribution and adultery, and must have huge significance for Odysseus, who has been disloyal to his companion and whose spouse is terrifyingly near to being disloyal to him. Nevertheless, for the first time, Odysseus isn’t cleverly familiar with the consequences, and he simply finds "sweet pleasure in the tale" (book 8 395). Odysseus is seen in an infrequent instant of anger after Seareach injuries his pride. The Greeks regarded disproportionate pride, as a significant personality weakness, and it founds one of the key subjects of The Iliad. Odysseus shows certain hubristic trends, particularly afterwards when he has rare slips in the ruling.