{"id":20368,"date":"2022-01-11T12:17:14","date_gmt":"2022-01-11T12:17:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ancient-literature.com\/?p=20368"},"modified":"2022-04-08T10:27:36","modified_gmt":"2022-04-08T10:27:36","slug":"hermes-in-the-odyssey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ancient-literature.com\/hermes-in-the-odyssey\/","title":{"rendered":"Hermes in The Odyssey: Odysseus\u2019 Counterpart"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"Hermes in The Odyssey<\/strong> guided and aided Odysseus in his quest to save his men.<\/p>\n

But how exactly did this come about? Who is Hermes in The Odyssey?<\/p>\n

We must go over Odysseus’ journey and how he ended up on the goddesses’ island to understand this further.<\/p>\n

Hermes in The Odyssey<\/strong><\/h2>\n

As Odysseus and his remaining men escape the island of the Laestrygonians<\/a><\/strong>, they venture off into an island inhabited by the goddess Circe. He sends 22 of his men, led by his second command, Eurylochus<\/a>, to explore the lands. In their exploration, they glimpse upon a beautiful lady singing and dancing.<\/p>\n

Eurylochus, apprehensive of the strange sight upon him, watches as his men eagerly rush towards the goddess. To his horror, the men turned into pigs right before his eyes. He rushes off to Odysseus in fear and begs him to leave the men behind to escape the strange island instead.<\/p>\n

Odysseus refuses and rushes to save his men but is stopped by a man on the way. Hermes, disguised as a tenant of the island<\/strong>, tells him to ingest an herb to immunize himself from Circe’s drug.<\/p>\n

He tells Odysseus to strike Circe hard after she casts her magic. Odysseus does as told and demands his men be turned back. He saves his men and ends up becoming the goddess’s lover, living in luxury for a year.<\/p>\n

Odysseus Imprisoned in Ogygia<\/strong><\/h3>\n

After living on Circe’s island for a year, Odysseus ventures to the underworld<\/a> to seek Tiresias’ advice for a safe travel home. He is told to journey into the sun god’s Helios’ island but was warned never to touch the golden cattle.<\/p>\n

Days pass, and soon Odysseus and his men quickly run out of food; seeking to resolve this, Odysseus explores the island alone, looking for a temple to pray in. While he was away, his men slaughtered one of Helios’ cattle and garnered the fury of the gods.<\/p>\n

In anger, Zeus\u00a0kills all of Odysseus’ men in a storm, leaving the lone leader to survive. He is then entrapped in the island Ogygia, where the nymph Calypso reigns. He remains trapped on the island for several years until the gods’ anger subsides.<\/p>\n

After seven excruciating years, Hermes convinces the spirit to let Odysseus go, and so Odysseus, once again, starts his journey to Ithaca.<\/p>\n

Who Is Hermes in The Odyssey?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

\"\"Hermes from The Odyssey<\/strong> is similar to the Hermes portrayed in Greek culture and text. The god of trade, wealth, thieves, and travel is considered the herald of god and protects human heralds, travelers, thieves, merchants, and orators.<\/p>\n

He does so by disguising himself and personally gives wisdom to those he chooses to save. He can move freely and quickly between the mortal and divine realms due to his winged sandals.<\/p>\n

In The Odyssey, Hermes impacts<\/strong> the play by guiding the traveler Odysseus to retrieve his men safely. He helps the young explorer both on Circe’s island and in the nymph Calypso’s mainland. Hermes witnesses the misfortune Odysseus goes through for angering the gods.<\/p>\n

Gods in The Odyssey<\/strong><\/h2>\n

If you’ve read or seen The Odyssey, then you’ve probably noticed the numerous gods that appear in the Greek classic, from Athena to Zeus and even to Hermes.<\/p>\n

Homer’s literary piece is heavily influenced by Greek mythology but just who these gods are in the play? What were their roles? And how did they affect the turn of events?<\/p>\n

To answer all these questions, let us give a rundown of all the Greek gods and goddesses that appear in the play:<\/em><\/p>\n