Great Works of Literature, Fall 2019: Telemachus's Odyssey Analysis

This report analyzes the psychosocial development of Telemachus in Homer's epic poem, the Odyssey. The author examines Telemachus's transformation from a fearful child to a courageous young man, highlighting the relevance of Erik Erikson's stages of development to his journey. The report explores the impact of conflicting emotions, the quest for justice, and the development of resilience, drawing parallels between Telemachus's experiences and modern youth. The analysis covers Telemachus's search for identity and purpose, emphasizing the relevance of his story to social psychological studies and humanistic psychology. The assignment fulfills the requirements of Great Works of Literature, Fall 2019 (Prof. Boselli), focusing on a specific point of view as a contemporary character, providing a succinct article for a contemporary newspaper or specialized magazine as a reviewer of the materials contained in the Odyssey. The author utilizes impactful speeches and situations, emphasizing the themes of fear, courage, vengeance, and solidarity in Telemachus's character arc. The report concludes by underscoring the enduring relevance of Telemachus's quest for meaning in life, and the use of relevant bibliography.

RUNNING HEAD: ENGLISH
ENGLISH
Name of Student
Name of University
Author note

1ENGLISH
‘The becoming of Telemachus’
In the epic poem ‘Odyssey’, Telemachus who is the son of Odyssey undergoes a
drastic transformation from his childhood to the adulthood and in later years, he becomes a
completely different person. Over the course of the poem, the character has grown immensely
and become what was actually written in his destiny. In the epic poem by Homer, a heretic
mythological world has been beautifully represented with Gods, Omens and talons is
portrayed with the air of classical art and adventure which gives the feel of intense magical
realism and the drive for human transcendence through the mentoring of great men and bliss
of Gods1. In the poem, Telemachus who is son of Odyssey is a character of typical scientific
interest and passion, especially in the field of social psychological and developmental
psychology2.
The young people of the modern century undergo a lot of changes psycho socially and
psycho-culturally – given the huge competition for jobs and academic qualifications in the
modern era. There is a lot of confusion about the identity, role and becoming of an adult
from an adolescent and in the poem, the transition of Telemachus has been overtly and
covertly depicted through the extensive use of impactful speeches and impactful situations
throughout the course of the story. The character Telemachus who is at first a afraid child
with a lot of life threatening violent events happening around him. The stages of Telemachus’
psycho social development can be related to Erik Erikson’s stages of development as in the
poem, he has been portrayed for being in situations of contradictory thoughts and emotional
dispositions – such as shame versus guild for not being able to return his father back to the
palace. It has been starkly implied in the poem that the character has been greatly suffering
1 Wright, Tim. "Telemachus’ Recognition of Odysseus." Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Studies 58, no. 1 (2018):
1-18.
2 Gale, Cengage Learning. A Study Guide for Joseph Brodsky's" Odysseus to Telemachus". Gale, Cengage
Learning, 2016.

2ENGLISH
from conflicting emotions such as identity versus confusion (which according to the theorist,
occurs predominantly at the adolescent stage. And in the poem, Odyssey – the stages of
development of the character Telemachus undergoes a tremendous transition in terms of
purpose, hope and will to find his lost father who did not return from the war and as the story
unfolds, the character development and personality development of Telemachus happens
through various twists and eventful turns3. The fear residing within the soul of the character
Telemachus, goes through an emotional development to courage, vengeance and solidarity,
driven by the conscious act of will and purpose to revenge for his father. The quest for
justice, rivalry through endurance of pain and development of resilience against the darker
situations of life and fate marks the splendid psychosocial transformation of a man growing
through the adult years of his life, seeking identity and purpose in life. The quest for justice
has been critically depicted in various parts of the poem where Telemachus travels lands to
seek his father and finally finds his father and together, they return to revenge against the
suitors who resided between the walls of their house4.
In modern era, the youth wanders as well just like Telemachus – looking for justice,
purpose, will and more than everything – a social identity and a psychological
transformation. The Telemachus stages of psychosocial development is very much relevant to
social psychological studies and humanistic psychology to this day as it describes with
complete profoundness – the conscious drive for search of life’s meaning as we grow in life.
3 Mari, Francesco. "The stranger on the threshold. Telemachus welcomes Athena in Odyssey 1.102–143: a case
study of polite interaction in ancient Greek culture." Journal of Politeness Research 12, no. 2 (2016): 221-244.
4 Carbone, Maurizio. "Beyond the Telemachus Complex: Courses, Discourses and the 20014 Italian Presidency
of the Council of the European Union." J. Common Mkt. Stud. 53 (2015): 83.

3ENGLISH
Bibliography
Wright, Tim. "Telemachus’ Recognition of Odysseus." Greek, Roman, and Byzantine
Studies 58, no. 1 (2018): 1-18.
Carbone, Maurizio. "Beyond the Telemachus Complex: Courses, Discourses and the 20014
Italian Presidency of the Council of the European Union." J. Common Mkt. Stud. 53 (2015):
83.
Mari, Francesco. "The stranger on the threshold. Telemachus welcomes Athena in Odyssey
1.102–143: a case study of polite interaction in ancient Greek culture." Journal of Politeness
Research 12, no. 2 (2016): 221-244.
Gale, Cengage Learning. A Study Guide for Joseph Brodsky's" Odysseus to Telemachus".
Gale, Cengage Learning, 2016.