Free Essays on Homers Odyssey: Telemachus :: Homer Odyssey Essays

Telemakhos of The Odyssey Telemakhos, Odysseus's son, finally realizes that in order to preserve his estate he must fill in his father's shoes and grow up. Telemakhos not only needs to do this for himself, but for his father who is still alive. Telemakhos became a man his father would be proud of. Twenty years ago Odysseus left for Troy, leaving Telemakhos without a father figure since he was an infant. He grew up a mommy's boy not knowing his role in the kingdom because Odysseus was far away. Telemakhos recognizes that all the men trying to court his mother, Penelope, only want control of his kingdom. Zeus, King of the God's, gives his daughter, Athena permission to encourage Telemakhos to fall into his fathers shoes and become the man he was meant to be. "For my part, I shall visit Ithaka to put more courage in the son, and rouse him."(211 &212) In a way Zeus and Athena are doing what Odysseus could not be there to do. The reader is left to question if Telemakhos needed to be encouraged or would he have grown up on his own? The first sign that Telemakhos is becoming a man is when instead of comforting his mother in her grieving for Odysseus, he scolds her and tells her "Mother, why do you grudge our own dear minstrel joy of song, wherever his thought may lead?" (218) "Odysseus was not the only one at Troy never to know the day of his homecoming. Others, how many others, lost their lives!" (218) Telemakhos then went to his mother's suitors and told them "At daybreak we shall sit down in assembly and I shall tell you---take it as you will---you are to leave this hall." (218) This was very stunning to all the suitors because Telemakhos had no male guidance and they wondered who had invoked him to take back his home and inheritance. The suitors questioned Telemakhos if the God's were "teaching you this high and mighty manner." (218) Telemakhos justified himself by saying "all I insist on is that I rule our house and rule the slaves my father won for me.