Saturday, November 6, 2010
Book 22
In book 22, Odysseus defeats the suitors. Odysseus decides to kill the worst of them first, whom are Antinoos, then Eurymachus . Why do you think he kills the worst of all the suitors first instead of saving "the best for last"? Would you make the same choice as Odysseus in this situation and why? After many deaths Odysseus is still outnumbered by the suitors and is beginning to be cornered. Athene shows up disguised as Mentor, however Odysseus recognizes her and calls for help. Does Athene immediately help Odysseus or Telemachus? why or why not? Do you think this is the climax compared to the rest of the epic? why?
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I think he kills the worst of all the suitors first because Odysseus might think that they do not deserve to live anymore and because he wants to kill the "leaders" of the suitors because they were the ones who were instigating all of the trouble. Also, I think that Odysseus believes that without their leader, the suitors do not know what they are doing. I would not have done the same thing as Odysseus because I would want to "save the best for last," and cause as much pain and suffering as possible to them. Athena does not immediately help Odysseus or Telemachus because she doesn't want to help to much and she wants them to fight a little by themselves. I do think this is the climax of the epic because this is the book when Odysseus lets out all of his anger and bottled-up emotions. Also, I think this is the climax because this is when Odysseus regains his throne and fights with his loved son.
ReplyDeleteI think he killed the worst of the suitors first because he thought they didn't deserve to live longer, and they would be out of his hair so to speak. Yes, I would make the same choice because if he would've interfered anymore he could've changed the outcome of what would happen like killing Telemachus instead of Telemachus living. No Athena doesn't help Odysseus first because she doesn't think that they have proven themselves for her aid. I think this is the climax of the whole epic because this is what the last 10 or so books have been preparing us for.
ReplyDeleteI think he kills the worst of the suitors first because he wants to make a point to not mess with him and if you do then you will be the first to die. Yes I would make the same choice because I would want them to go to the underworld as quickly as possible, and feel the hardships down there. Athena does not help Odysseus first because they haven't proven that they are worthy of her help. I think this is the climax because it is the "action packed" book, so it excites the reader.
ReplyDeleteI think Odysseus kills the leader of the suitors first because he fears he could be killed when fighting them, and doesn't want to give Antinous a chance to fight back. Another reason which is plausible could be that he is so overtaken with rage that he cannot control himself and kills the leader first. I would definitely make this decision, as it removes the suitors leader whom they will turn to.
ReplyDeleteAthena does not see the need to help Odysseus right away, so she decides to test him. But to make sure he succeeds, she eventually reveals her true form and ends the battle swiftly. I do not think that this moment is the climax of the book because it was foreseen that he would emerge victorious, leading me to conclude it is destined falling action.
Odysseus probably didn't give much thought into what order he killed them. He was probably just so angry that he didn't feel like waiting around and saving the best for last. It was probably almost just his natural instinct to kill them first. He just wanted them gone and out of his life. Also, he wouldn't want to risk them somehow escaping because of his own foolishness. When Odysseus is being cornered, he does not automatically get helped by Athena because she still wants to try to stay uninvolved because Zeus asked her not to get involved. I think that this part is more of an exciting conclusion. We get to see all of Odysseus problems come to an end, and everything is starting to turn out okay again.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion I believe Odysseus kills the worst suitors first because when he was testing these suitors he might have thought that Antinous was their leader. Usually when you kill a leader of the group it phycologically has an effect on the other suitors. I would have made the same exact choice Odysseus had made. Also it is important to understand the amount of shock and fear a suitor would have after seeing the most fearsome suitor having an arrow going through his neck. As Julia had previously said Athena did not interviene in the situation because of Zeus asking her to stay out a little more. I understand you didn't ask for this but I think Homer decided to make Odysseus and Telemachus more independent to give a sense of panic to the reader, and make them think that the battle could end both ways. I believe this is the climax because as Thomas had said, all of Odysseus' bottled up emotions are let out. I would also like to point out that in literature after a climax there is a decline of excitement which occurs right after book 22 and everything begins to calm. For this reason too, I believe Homer intended for this to be the climax.
ReplyDeleteI think Odysseus kills the worst suitors first because he wants to prove to the other suitors that he can kill the strongest ones, and this means he can kill them too. He uses this to scare the suitors into thinking that if the strongest suitors were overcome by Odysseus, they would surely be heading to their doom. Athena doesn’t help Odysseus, and I think this was a good decision because she needed to see if Odysseus could take this challenge on his own. If he could, he would prove to everyone that he was worthy of his throne. She needed to test him and prove that he wasn’t an old king disguised as a beggar, but a smart respectable king who earned his rule over Ithaca. This is the climax of the story because it is the final battle; the final fight to end all conflicts in the story.
ReplyDeleteOdysseus actually doesn't kill Eurymachus first. When Eurymachus is taking weapons to the other suitors Telemachus hangs him on a column and he is saved to be the last one killed. Odysseus killed Antinoos first because he was more a leader and was a strong man the others looked up to. In a fight like this they would look to him for guidance and he would most likely be a leader but he cannot lead if he is already dead, this is very strategic of Odysseus. I would make the same choice in both cases, Eurymachus's case because he should have to hang suffering until everyone else is dead after supplying the weapons. He would just have to wait and hear all of his friends dying and know he couldnt help at all. Athena does immediatly help Odysseus and Telemachus once she is there but at first she waits to see how much of the fight Odysseus can handle himself. I do think this is the climax because even though it is so near the end of the book this is what everything lead up to.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion Odysseus kills the worst of the suitors first to insure that they do not get away and because the worst ones seemed to be the best fighters and they were the leaders and without a leader it is hard to reunite and fight back. Yes, i would have done the same because they were the leaders of the suitors and seemed to be the best fighters so if you kill them first then you do not have to worry about them later. No Athene does not immediately help Odysseus or Telemachus because she wants them to prove to her that they are worthy of help from a goddess. I think that its the end of the climax because he is killing the suitors and making his kingdom how it should be.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, Odysseus kills the worst of the suitors first because since they are the worst, they are the most powerful, so he chooses to get them out of the way first because they cause the most trouble and he thought they didn't deserve to live any longer. I personally would have killed them first because then you don't have to be concerned about all the possibilities they could planning. Also, when Odysseus is cornered, Athena does not help him right away because she wants them to prove themselves worthy of her help and she is trying to not interfere because Zeus ordered her to not get involved. I think this is the climax of the book because Homer has been preparing us for this scene for quite sometime now. And also, the climax is typically the most exciting part of the story.
ReplyDeleteI think that Odysseus had killed the suitors in that order because he thought that they did not deserve to live anymore, especially those select few men who he killed first. Personally, I would have done the same thing that Odysseus had done, in that same situation, which is killing the more powerful suitors first. Also, I would do that because if I would not have killed them first, then they could have escaped. Athena does not help Odysseus and Telemachus right away, mainly because I think that Athena wanted to see what Odysseus and Telemachus were capable of. I think that this is not the climax of the book, but actually it is on the recovery part of the story, or the decreasing action, and is in place where amends are being made in the story.
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