Odysseus

                                                                                                                          

 Epic

 Odysseus

Odysseus is a modern man and enters the imaginary of Western culture as subjects of literature and art up to our days, thrown from one side of the Mediterranean to the other by the will of the gods, has become the very image of man in  journey, which faces dangers thanks to courage and intelligence.  He is a man used to facing fear as with the tiring and dangerous departure from Troy.  In addition to courage, métis or acute, rational and cold intelligence is another characteristic quality.  The term polýmētis indicates these abilities.

 The Odyssey tells of a long fantastic journey, made up of many stages and each one will put Ulysses to the test.  He will have to overcome obstacles and difficult trials, where he will have to use curiosity and intelligence.  An example is the episode of the Sirens, where Odysseus will enjoy their song.  The places are much discussed as they do not have a precise geographical position being a fantastic journey.

 The stages are many and have many locations

 1 Troy-> Troy

 2 land of the Ciconi-> Thrace

 3 land of the lotophaguses -> coasts of Libya

 4 land of the Cyclops -> Sicily or Campania

 5 island of Aeolus -> Aeolian archipelago

 6 land of the Lestrigoni-> between Formia and Gaeta

 7 caves of the sorceress circe-> island of eea

 8 land of the cimmerians -> black sea

 9 island of the sirens-> Capri

 10 Scilla and Cariddi-> Strait of Messina

 11 island of the sun -> Sicily

 12 island of ogigia-> island of ceuta

 13 island of scheria, land of the Feaci-> Corfu

 14 Ithaca-> archipelago of the Ionian islands

 The sirens

When Odysseus decides to plug his companions' ears with wax, but to be tied to the ship's mast, without any protection against the siren song, he demonstrates a characteristic that accompanies him throughout the poem: the desire to know and  to know, the desire to try new things that no other man has ever tried.  Dante also talks about it in the XXVI canto of the Inferno, where he tells the story of Ulysses, who, having returned to Ithaca, chooses to leave to cross the Pillars of Hercules with his companions, thus pushing himself beyond the limits allowed to man and finally going towards death  .

And it will be precisely on this that the Sirens will force themselves to push Odysseus to join them: they will tempt him by promising to reveal him “.  .  .  what happens on the fertile earth.  “Odysseus can resist only thanks to the proverbial wisdom of him who advised him to be tied up in case his willpower was not enough alone to oppose the enchanting song of the Sirens.  It is not from the Sirens that Odysseus must defend himself, but from himself, from his desires and passions stronger than him.