Wednesday, October 12, 2016
In Medias Res: Chronological v. Narrative Order
In class we observed that the narrative order of the Odyssey, the order the event are retold in the epic, is different from the chronological order, the order the events occur in time. The epic begins in medias res, literally in the middle of things. What is ONE reason that the story begins in this way? Why doesn't the story begin with Odysseus leaving Troy?
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The epic The Odyssey starts off in a really peculiar way; beginning in the middle of the story rather than in chronological order. This kind of writing style is called In Medias Res. In Medias Res quit literally means “In the middle of things.” This kind of writing is very unique, which ultimately creates a suspense in the plot and the characters from the very beginning. The Odyssey starts off In Media Res because it causes the reader to engage more into the book, wanting to find out who the introduced character is and why they are significant. This is true because The Odyssey starts off with introducing Telemachus and Penelope, the son and wife of Odysseus, in a really a very tough situation; that suitors have invaded Odysseus’s house, and are trying to court Penelope and kill Telemachus in order to gain the wealth and power that Odysseus had, but Odysseus is not there for some reason. This causes the reader to “want to find out more” about who Odysseus is, what happened to him, how Penelope and Telemachus are important to the plot, and more about the suitors.
ReplyDeleteIf the story were to begin in chorological order, there would be a lot more confusion when characters are introduced. Imagine that if the story started out with Odysseus’s journey to the battle of Troy. First, his situation would be introduced, then he himself would need to be presented. The story would then go on to saying that Odysseus was going to Troy for a battle…etc. When he finally starts his journey, each of the people he meets would need to be introduced as well. Once he finally made it back home, we don’t even know what is happening in Ithaca. That would then need to be explained, and finally Telemachus and Penelope would be introduced. So, if the story was told in chronological order, the plot would be in a mess, and very hard to follow.
The epic The Odyssey starts in the middle of chronological order or in media res, because of many reasons but one significant reason of this occurrence is that the reader has a more emotional connection with characters such as Telemachus and Penelope. The first four books of The Odyssey have been dubbed “the Telemachiad” because the protagonist Odysseus does not appear a single time excluding flashbacks. Instead, the protagonist is Odysseus’ son, Telemachus. In the first four books, Telemachus’ journey from boy to man is shown in detail as well as his loyalty to his father. He decides that instead of sitting around in a palace that is overrun by his mother’s suitors, he will go find his father, and puts his word into action by calling the first assembly since Odysseus left 20 years ago. “At once he ordered heralds to cry out loud and clear and summon the flowing-haired Achaeans to full assembly” (2.8-9). Because Telemachus called an assembly, it shows that he is taking political action and represents he is developing the qualities of a man. Also, it shows his determination to find his father. Another important character in the “Telemachiad” is Telemachus’ mom and Odysseus’ wife: Penelope. Penelope has had suitors trying to marry her ever since the Trojan War ended. Instead of giving in to one of the suitors’ hand in marriage, she waits for Odysseus and she also develops a very clever way to divert the suitors’ attention for years. “‘Her very words, and despite our pride and passion we believed her. So by day she’d weave at her great and growing web – by night, by the light of torches set beside her, she would unravel all she’d done. Three whole years she deceived us blind, seduced us with this scheme…’” (2.144-118). This shows that simply by pretending to weave, which was considered a job only for women back then, Penelope is able to divert these suitors for long periods of time with deception. Because of the actions of Telemachus and Penelope, the reader is able to interpret some of the traits Odysseus might have for his wife and son to be so loyal to him after many years. This sort of interpretation would not have been possible had the epic not been started in media res. Therefore, the use of media res is very essential in the epic.
ReplyDeleteThe Odyssey begins in medias res because it is not the story of Odysseus, rather it is the story of Odysseus and Telemachus. Homer gives the reader a feeling of sympathy for Telemachus and Odysseus by staring the story in the middle of things. For example, in Book One Telemachus is at his house with the suitors, his “heart obsessed with grief” (1. 133) as he imagines his father coming home This creates a sense of longing for the reader. It illustrates the importance of a father son relationship and it shows the yearning a son has for his father when they are separated. The reader starts to connect to Telemachus through these emotions. As a result, when Odysseus starts his journey home later in the book, you too long for his return home. Later, in Book Two Telemachus and Athena set sail to find out about Odysseus’ return, “So come, / on with our voyage now, we’re wasting time” (2. 444-445). This showcases the strong relationship between Odysseus and Telemachus. Telemachus is willing to risk his life to learn information about the return of his father. The Odyssey teaches the reader what is means to have a good bond between father and son, and how important that is. Homer starts the story by showing the grief both Telemachus and Odysseus are feeling while they are separated. He creates a story that shows the love between Odysseus and Telemachus, it shows the love between father and son.
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ReplyDeleteThe epic of Odysseus begins in medias res or in the middle. This is a very unique way to start a story because it describes how others think about Odysseus as a leader and a person. The book starts with Telemachus waiting for his father to come back from the Trojan war. He still believes that his father is not dead and is returning home. In medias res starts the story with another character’s point of view so the reader could see the main character himself the way he portrays himself and the way others see him. This way of telling the story is also very unusual way to draw a reader into wanting to read the story more because they will be longing to find out what happens next since the text prefigures what is going to happen but does not tell the whole story at once. If the story started in chronological order, it would have been more boring to read it since the reader will know and predict what evens will happen in the upcoming chapter. In the chronological order the book would have started with Odysseus leaving for war and then continued with him trying to get back to his kingdom and family back to Ithaca. If the book started from Odysseus’s point of view, it would have portrayed him as the most significant person ever. This would mess up the epic because many character of Odysseus do not see him in the same exact way as he sees himself. In medias res is a very organized way to start an epic from the middle where all characters and their personalities are introduced and the connections between them and the main character are shown.
In the Odyssey the story starts with a snip-it of life in Ithaca without Odysseus, or in medias res. I think that starting the book in medias res made it really interesting because you are weaved through the story knowing what Ithaca is like witch is better than Odysseus recalling Ithaca in a memory or story. Although it is a very interesting story tactic, it can be hard to follow at times. I think that the in medias res is used to get used to people’s feelings about Odysseus. For example, you have Penelope who is very distraught over the missing Odysseus, and must hideaway in her room and weep for the missing Odysseus, in the other hand you have the suitors who do not have a care in the world about Odysseus and would rather him be dead so they could court with Penelope. Another reason to start the epic with the Telemachiad was to create a want to know what happened to Odysseus. In the Telemachiad it makes us question who is Odysseus, or it tells us why we should keep reading. In other words starting the book in medias res gives Homer what I would call a great hook.
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