Character Analysis of Odyseus
Uploaded by sls465 on Apr 18, 2007
Character Analysis of Odyseus
In The Odyssey, there are many important themes. One of the major ones is about memory. Being remembered is very important to the characters in the book. We see that all of the characters desire to be remembered, and many of them even ask to be remembered. In the Odyssey, there are many examples that show how important being remembered was to them, in fact it was the thing they cared about the most to be done after they passed away. Being remembered was an honor, and a way of living on. Telemachos desires to have his father be remembered, Elpenor desires to be remembered, and all the members of the underworld want to be remembered as well.
During the time that this epic took place; they lived in an oral culture. Literacy was not wide spread until 800 B.C. Most communication and record keeping was by word of mouth. People of that time kept track of history and events mostly in their minds. Everything was passed down through the generations, being retold many times. Since nothing was written down, all of the things of the past were kept in people’s minds, including the memories of their deceased heroes, friends, and family members. It was communal memories, instead of individual ones like we have today. They were cultural memories.
Remembering these people was a way of honoring them and the lives that they led. Proper burial rites were followed in order to ensure the passage of the people from earth to the underworld. When the living wished to talk to the dead, they had to go through a sacrifice in order to reach them.
Since everything was based on memory of individuals, when people died they would want to be remembered as well. Their surviving friends and family had to be responsible of keeping their memory alive. If they didn’t pass on the legends and stories about the deceased people, they would be forgotten forever. There were no records or books that future generations could go back and read to find out about the people who had already died. This made it so that memories of them were very important. The dead were important because they had lessons that could be learned from. One could talk to the dead and learn from their mistakes.
The sons carried on reputations and family stories. Their name...