Laertes comments that he is pleased to see his son and grandson as near equals in valor. Athena serves as a patroness to Odysseus during the Odyssey. Athena personally petitions her father, Zeus, to allow Odysseus to return home after ten years at sea. In Ithaca, Athena is even more closely involved. She takes on the role of Mentor, an old woman, to guide Telemachus and help him grow into a confident leader.
When the father and son are reunited, she gives them the wisdom and strength to outsmart and overpower the men who have taken over their palace. Finally, Athena ensures that no further violence will spring from the deaths of the suitors. When their families seek vengeance, Athena forbids escalation of the conflict. Athena does more for Odysseus than help him regain the throne for himself.
She restores vitality to both him and his father and guides his son in his absence. While the Trojan War and the Odyssey , both caused by the actions of the gods, weakened the state of Ithaca , the assistance provided by Athena left the country stronger and more stable instead of permanently ruined. My name is Mike and for as long as I can remember too long! I have been in love with all things related to Mythology.
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Are the Gods able to completely control the actions of the mortals? What influence did she have over him to prevent him from leaving? We discussed this a bit in class on Tuesday, about how Odysseus is the one mortal who is most like her. He is crafty and clever, two traits that Athena prides as the Goddess of Wisdom. I do think that you raise a valid question about the gods though: Why do they take an invested interest in the lives of mortals? Is there another reason Athena takes an interest in the life of Odysseus?
There does seem to be an interesting dualism between the idea of Fate and the gods. We mentioned at the beginning of the year how Fate is kind of the first and last word on the course of the universe, and not even the gods are above it; but now we see plenty of examples of gods altering circumstances to fit their own desires. So is Fate a more fluid concept than it appears, or are the gods themselves being controlled by their Fates to have these desires?
Or maybe the bards telling these stories just needed an excuse for convenient plot twists. But beyond helping Odysseus she put all of her effort into getting him home. Why would she have put SUCH care into this? Maybe helping Odysseus was simply entertaining for her?
This is in fact what happens, Nausikaa meets Odysseus, bathes him and agrees to help him by taking him to her parents. Athena continues to help Odysseus in that she disguises him again prior to him meeting Nausikaas parents. It is for this reason that Athena encourages Telemakhos to leave and search for his father. He protects the Trojans wall countless times when it was under attack, he also strips Patroclus of his armor so that Hector will be able to kill him.
He knows that if he do not help the Trojans, they will lose the war for sure. To ensure their chance of victory, Apollo actively participates in the war. Another active participant is Athena, Athena convinced Zeus to not save his son, Sarpedon, however Athena herself lead Hector to his death. From this readers can see that the gods are participating in the war because they want to win the war.
Ithaca symbolizes home, and the end of journey for Odysseus. It is important because no matter how long one stays away from home, they can never endure the same feelings as they might when they return to their home. Because Ithaca was invaded by the suitors, Odysseus and Telemachus plan an attack to get rid of the suitors and taking control over Ithaca back again.
His inner will to return home led Odysseus to win among every fight, thus gaining his power over his homeland,….
Telemachus prays to Athene, and she comes down in the form of Mentor and encourages him. Telemachus again speaks aggressively to the suitors, and they fear he is plotting to kill them. Meanwhile, Athene prepares everything and then goes on the boat with Telemachus as they set out for Pylos. Book 3 Athene again encourages Telemachus in his doubt.
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