What Are the Characteristics of an Epic Hero? Copyright © 2021 Bright Hub Education. However, Homer's similes emphasize the ceremonial nature of the epic and the universal significance of the story by using references from everyday areas of human life. Here Homer compares Odysseus' skill with the bow to a musician stringing a lyre, an ancient stringed instrument similar to a harp. After 10 years of wandering, Odysseus is eager to leave the court of Alcinous and return home to Ithaca. Individual similes can be accessed through a selection list. Book 1 Book 2 Book 3 Book 4 Book 5 Book 6 Book 7 Book 8 Book 9 Book 10 Book 11 Book 12 Book 13 Book 14 Book 15 Book 16 Book 17 Book 18 Book 19 Book 20 Book 21 Book 22 Book 23 Book 24 Themes All Themes Fate, the Gods, and Free Will Piety, Customs, and Justice Cunning, Disguise, and Self-Restraint Memory and Grief Glory and Honor In book 2 of the Odyssey, Homer illustrates Telemachus coming age by using imagery of nature, formal diction, and simile portraying how he is maturing and developing himself to become like his father. Little do they know that Odysseus is among them in disguise. Directions: There are five epic similes printed below. Over several lines the simile grows its power. Homeric Similes, also known as Epic Similes, are elaborate comparisons between two different objects using like or as. Show More. Examples of Similes From The Odyssey. Page Citation. Homer includes formulaic elements that would have been essential for oral performance in order to keep the audience engaged and help the person performing the poem (called a bard) remember the lines. [caption id="" align=“aligncenter” width=“600”]. Penelope announces the contest and retrieves Odysseus' great backsprung bow from a secret storeroom deep in the palace. 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It began simply by comparing Athena's speed to the wind. An epic simile extends a comparison with elaborate, descriptive details that can fill several lines of verse.. Homer is comparing Penelope's frenetic thoughts to those of a lion surrounded by hunters. These similes demonstrate the festal and barbaric qualities that men adopt when they are in battle and often compare warriors to majestic animals, like lions, attacking prey. In The Odyssey, the author Homer uses epic similes to detract the reader from the brutality present in battle. This principle is premised on the idea that our actions determine our future. Epic Simile: “I drove my weight on it from above and bored it home like a shipwright bores his beam with a shipwright’s drill that men below, whipping the strap back and forth, whirl and the drill keeps twisting, never stopping –So we seized our stake with it fiery tip and bored it round and round in the giant’s eye." Aedon tried to kill Niobe's eldest son but instead accidentally killed her own son, Itylus. heart outlined. She is a contributing writer to Synonym.com, and various other websites. Even though he may be a hero and a brave king, Homer made him like a normal man with the same feelings as that of a humble farmer. In Book 21 of The Odyssey, Penelope holds a contest. In Book 4 of "The Odyssey," the suitors who have been occupying Odysseus’ house during his absence learn of Telemachus’ voyage, and they prepare an ambush for his return. Following are examples of epic similes in The Odyssey. Instead, in The Odyssey, the similes intensify the experience for the reader.