Mitchell 1

Will Mitchell

Holsinger

LA/7th

6 March 2020

Should The Odyssey be taught in high school?

“Now from his breast into the eyes the ache of longing mounted, and he wept at last, his

dear wife, clear and faithful, in his arms, longed for as the sun warmed earth is longed for by a

swimmer spent in rough water where his ship went down under Poseidon's blows, gale winds

and tons of sea. Few men can keep alive through a big serf to crawl, clotted with brine, on kindly

beaches in joy, in joy, knowing the abyss behind: and so she too rejoiced, her gaze upon her

husband, her white arms round him pressed as though forever.” This is of course describing the

Odyssey. The epic tale of a commander that fought in troy; a hero, a legend, a man of mistakes. A

father and husband, a persistent soul, and a flawed man. There are many things to learn from

Odysseus and the story of the odyssey in general. From the representation of greek culture, to the

many moral lessons and examples of problems we can still see in the world today. It is a timeless

masterpiece that can help teach students and people in general about mistakes, learning and

growing as humans and more. The fact that the Odyssey should be taught in school is a valid

statement and can help students open discussions on what life was like in olden greek times and

how it has changed to what we have today.

One reason that the Odyssey should be taught in schools is for its strong moral lessons

that high schoolers and people in general should have. A.G. Lombardo, who has been teaching

The Odyssey for over 20 years offers a list of morals in the story: “The Lotus Eaters: the perils of

addiction, hedonism vs monogamy. Circe and Calypso: tradition vs. independent roles for

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women. The underworld: does a belief in the afterlife undermine this life?” This shows the many

lessons that Lombardo sees throughout the book. One of the lessons happens in the lotus eaters

story. In this story, Odysseus and his crew land on an island inhabited by natives that eat a

special flower which makes the person lose sight of all their life goals and ambitions. In modern

society, this story can spark conversations about drug use and its consequences. Another example

that Lombardo describes is the stories of Circe and Calypso. These stories of powerful women

show students the negative depiction of women in this time, and raise questions about the

stereotypes of women in this era and offer a chance to discuss contemporary women. In the story

of Calypso she trapped Odysseus on her island for 7 years and forced him to sleep with her at

night, but all that Odysseus wants to do is leave the island and return home. Homer uses Calypso

to try to give a voice to women. When Zeus askes Calypso to release Odysseus, she critiques the

gods and their “double standards” arguing that male gods seduce morals with no consequences

while she isn’t allowed to keep Odysseus.

Overall, Lombardo argues that the odyssey has an abundance of important lessons and

can help people see into the greek culture and the lessons that can be applied to modern society

today. For example he states,”Once I guided my kids - their humble tiresias- just a bit below the

text, they began to see Homer as more than story and myth; the Odyssey was a fun-house mirror,

an endless rorschacher blot in which we could see, not just yourself and family, but the world

too.” This shows through the analogy of the rorschach blot; that people can perceive the odyssey

in many different ways and that it can show dark and light sides of our world through its stories.

The Odyssey is also valuable for what it shows about Greek history and customs, such as

hospitality and loyalty; Telemakus invites a stranger into his home, and we learn that this is

expected during that time period. For example, "Greetings, stranger! Welcome to our feast. There

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will be time to tell your errand later." (Homer 5) This shows the hospitality of Telemakus;

inviting a complete stranger into his home and giving him a place to stay for the night. These

traditions are somewhat different from modern expectations, servants and citizens in general

were expected to be loyal to people in their households’. Towards the end of the book we see the

loyalty of telemachus and his mother tested as the suitors and Odysseus try to earn their trust, an

example of this is when telemachus hides the fact that his father has returned from his mother,

“And you must keep it from my mother… so the old woman vowed by all the gods, and vowed

again his wishes.” This shows the loyalty the old women has to telemakus in this example, and

the loyalty that she has to not tell his mother the secret telemakus has told the old women.

Admittedly there are people who view the Odyssey as a bad influence in the education

system and believe that it should not be taught in high schools. According to Janice Campbell,

“On a fundamental level, the Odyssey shows us how this monolithic passage of time still hasn’t

done much to change human nature”. In this quotation Campbell believes that all the mistakes in

the odyssey are being repeated today. She is arguing that the Odyssey hasn’t helped us change

the way we act. One example is Odysseus sleeping with Calypso and Circe when he has a wife

and son; and endangering his men by telling a Kyklops his real name, leading him and his crew

to be cursed Poseidon for 9 years. These examples from the story are repeated through ignorance,

lust and more which we can see today in most movies, television shows and literature. Although

humans haven’t changed much, the fact of talking about our flaws/mistakes still helps us grow.

This is shown throughout the book through Odysseus's perseverance and his way of pushing

through tough situations.

To wrap things up, the Odyssey should be taught in schools, for its life lessons, to its real

life situations and decisions, and the Greek values that it shows through that time period. As all

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the evidence concludes, many of the poems and stories from the book show tradition, life lessons

as well as greek values and culture at that time. It's an example of making mistakes, being human

and learning to grow. It shows and symbolizes many metaphors for the real world and lets people

glimpse into what it was like back in the ancient Greek times, and while some people believe that

it shouldn’t be taught for its repetition of mistakes in the past, its overwhelming examples of

perseverance and determination through many of the characters overweights the lack of growth

seen in the novel. So lets end with one final quote, “Finally, we were done, home like Odysseus.

The great poet had taught us what life is: a journey, compassion for others, home and family. The

world had thrown everything against us, but couldn’t stop us from returning safe, tested and

stronger than ever, to the ones we love.”

Work Cited

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Lombardo, A.G. “Why The Odyssey Is the Perfect Book for High School English.” Literary

Hub, 4 Apr. 2019, lithub.com/why-the-odyssey-is-the-perfect-book-for-high-school-english/.

Campbell, Janice. “Why Read The Odyssey?” Excellence in Literature by Janice Campbell, 3

Feb. 2020, excellence-in-literature.com/why-read-the-odyssey-2/.

Zaborowski, Samantha. “The Odyssey: Greek Values.” Prezi.com, 2015,

prezi.com/bjpmiyahzzj8/the-odyssey-greek-values/.

Homer , and Robert Fitzgerald. The Odyssey. New York: Vintage Books, 1990. Print.

Cartwright, Mark. “Odyssey.” Ancient History Encyclopedia, Ancient History Encyclopedia, 9

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