IndexIntroductionThe Argument of OdysseusThe Argument of PoseidonIntroductionAfter the events of the Trojan War, Odysseus and his men returned home to Ithaca. During their journey, they unknowingly stopped at Cyclops' Island to gather supplies for their long journey home. Unfortunately, the inhabitants of the island were not very friendly, especially a Cyclops named Polyphemus. In an attempt to hide from the other giants, Odysseus and his men hid in Polyphemus' cave. Polyphemus then trapped the men inside with a huge boulder that blocked the only way in and out. One by one, Polyphemus ate Odysseus' crew. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Odysseus, keeping his wits about him, hatched a plan to escape. Odysseus had some undiluted wine with him and cunningly offered it to Polyphemus without telling him how strong the wine was. Polyphemus greedily drank the wine, got drunk and immediately fell asleep. Odysseus and his remaining men heated a wooden stake in the fire and proceeded to blind one of Polyphemus' eyes. After screaming in pain, the men hid under the giant's sheep, where they could not be touched or eaten. The next morning, when Polyphemus let his sheep out to graze, Odysseus and his men slipped out under the sheep's woolly bellies and fled to their ship. Polyphemus realized that the men had fled after Odysseus was already at sea. Polyphemus threw a (poorly aimed) boulder at the ship and called for revenge on his father Poseidon. Poseidon, in his anger, destroyed Odysseus' ship, as well as his entire crew, during a ten-year voyage back to Ithaca. Odysseus only survived because he had Athena's favor and protection. Odysseus' ArgumentOdysseus was acting in self-defense. As captain and king, he had a duty to protect himself and his men at all costs. He used his wits to escape a life-threatening situation. He also didn't know that Polyphemus was the son of Poseidon. Regardless of who Polyphemus was, Odysseus did not kill him, despite the threat against Odysseus and his crew; it would have been just as easy to kill him while he was drunk or asleep. Poseidon, being a god, acts out of extreme emotion and decides that his son's wound justifies mass murder. Odysseus thought rationally and spared the man-eater Polyphemus; Poseidon acted irrationally and eradicated Odysseus' crew. Poseidon could have been more merciful and quickly wiped out Odysseus and his crew. Instead Poseidon extended Odysseus' punishment and made him suffer as he watched his entire crew die over the course of ten years. Furthermore, this long journey caused unrest in Odysseus' kingdom of Ithaca. When Odysseus left for Troy, his son Telemachus was too young to take the throne. This left Penelope to rule the entire country. While Odysseus was away, suitors came to woo Penelope, raiding her palace while they were there. Since there was no evidence that Odysseus had survived the Trojan War, the suitors constantly pressured Penelope to remarry. She did not want to, instead of stalling the suitors until Odysseus returned because she believed he was still alive. Poseidon's Argument Before Poseidon did anything to Odysseus, he had to get approval for his idea from Zeus, king of the gods. Furthermore, Odysseus was in Poseidon's domain, the ocean, for most of his journey, which already places him in a precarious position. Poseidon's intended target was Odysseus; the rest of the crew.