Why does Poseidon hate Odysseus?
Answer
Poseidon was the Olympic God and a major enemy of Odysseus. The hatred of Odysseus for the hero started after Odysseus had blinded the son of Poseidon, Polyphemus. The humiliation of his son had prompted Poseidon in usage of the powers with the aim of stopping the hero from coming back to Ithaca. The wrath of Poseidon is considered to be a major obstacle that affected the journey of Odysseus adversely after he gained a triumph in Trojan War. The poem by Homer has presented the hero based on various antagonists who wanted to stop Odysseus from coming back to his home. However, the god of sea Poseidon was the most dangerous and imposing opponent faced by Odysseus. Poseidon was Zeus’ brother who is also an Olympic God and is hugely offended at the treatment that Odysseus provided to his son. Poseidon was not able to forget the embarrassment that Polyphemus had faced from Odysseus along with his crew. Polyphemus, the son of Poseidon was a nymph of the sea and a famous Cyclops who are considered to be human-like gigantic creatures in the myths. Odysseus had met Polyphemus at start of the journey taken by him with the aim of reaching Ithaca. The encounter that Odysseus had with lotus-eaters played an important role in leading to the step taken by him of killing Polyphemus. Odysseus and his crew stopped in a front of a cave where they found food and wine after which they entered the lair without any information related to the vicious giant who was present there. Polyphemus had blocked them from entering the cave as the Cyclops was not ready for providing them with appropriate hospitality. Odysseus however tricks the Cyclops and gets him drunk and also humiliated him due to which Polyphemus complains to his father regarding his insult. After this insult Odysseus faces the wrath of Poseidon due to which he controls the sea and drives Ithaca’s king away from the Island.
Leave a Reply