The epic poem, ‘The Odyssey, by Homer, tells the story of Odysseus’ trials in returning to Ithica. As a boy of 14, Telemachus searches for his father, because suitors are invading his father’s kingdom.
In a speech written for Telemachus, Homer’s stylistic devices create Telemachus as a young man who is mature enough to hear of his father’s death.
Homer creates Telemachus as a sensible young man. Telemachus reminds Nestor of Odysseus’ prowess in battle “while fighting at your side” and their defeat of the Trojan forces.
He appeals to Nestor’s emotions to gain more information. His emotional appeal suggests Telemachus’s prudent nature. Telemachus expects Nestor to remember his former allegiance to Odysseus, knowing that he will influence Nestor to not withhold the information he knows.
Telemachus informs Nestor of his fear that his father was lost on his voyage home to Ithica, and states that “she who gave birth to him gave birth to grief.”
The alliteration suggests Telemachus’s wisdom. Telemachus manipulates Nestor into feeling pity for him and his kingdom so he will give away what he knows of his father’s whereabouts.
Homer’s stylistic devices indicate Telemachus’s experience. As Telemachus speaks of Nestor’s years fighting by Odysseus’s side, he says that the fate of his father cannot be changed, for it is the will of “Crono’s son.”
The kenning suggests Telemachus’s education and knowledge. He appeals to Nestor’s sense of culture, knowing that Nestor will be impressed by his knowledge of his culture’s history. Telemachus tells Nestor of Ithica, “the sunlit city” from whence he came to seek knowledge of his father.
The symbol represents the pureness of Telemachus’s cause. Telemachus attempts to persuade Nestor by revealing his knowledge of Ithica’s status in the Greek world.
Telemachus is a young man of maturity. As Telemachus introduces himself and tells of what has brought him to Nestor’s feet, he calls Nestor “the Greeks’ great pride.” The emotional appeal suggests Telemachus’s sophistication.
The alliteration appeals to Nestor’s sense of pride. As Telemachus asks about his father, “the famous, the unfaltering, Odysseus,” he states that Odysseus’s fate is unknown.
The parallelism points toward Telemachus’s maturity by mirroring him with his father. Telemachus understands that he must devise any method by which to gain more information about his father.
Homer’s stylistic devices fabricate Telemachus as a mature young man, who seeks to learn of his father’s fate. Telemachus hopes to purge Ithica of the suitors who seek Penelope’s hand.
Telemachus has hope that one day his family will be reunited, and this hope leads him to Nestor. In ‘The Odyssey, Homer creates Telemachus as a strong-willed and optimistic young man, who will stop at nothing to learn of Odysseus’s fate.
