We saw it in the blackness of the sky. Smoke coming from land afar. Odysseus told us that this was worth exploring since it was the second day that we were running low on rations and weapons. I told him to be wary and to proceed with caution for I knew that this was the land of the Cyclops's. Odysseus, a man capable of risk, headed my warning and we pushed onward in the night sky to an island of unforeseen dangers.
When our ship arrived at the shores, Odysseus and I, along with 19 other men we ordered to leave the ship behind and go on an expedition to uncover the secrets of this island. As the smoke from the island started to fade, our men started to walk faster. The smoke was our only clue to what this island holds. It took us many hours, but we eventually made it to the origin of the smoke. It came from a cave as big at the mountains. We proceeded with caution and as we entered we saw riches in forms of sheep, water, endless amounts of food and drinks to last us years. We began to suspect that the inhabitant of this cave would come back soon. Odysseus decided to wait until they got back and ask for hospitality from them. I was skeptical. What if this person was a great threat to us? In the end, we made ourselves at home and began to eat and drink the sheep and wine.
(Polyphemus and Odysseus, Source: Detsky & Nabytek)
It didn't take long for the Cyclopes to appear from his hunt of sheep. He was a big as the cave itself and towered over us. Looking at Odysseus he asked who we were. Odysseus answered that we were band of men that got lost at sea only looking for hospitality for our troubles. Polyphemus, the Cyclopes, answered with rage and took us surprise. He wept up my men and ate them. First their heads, then their legs, and finally their bodies. About 5 of my men died that night. Polyphemus settled down after feasting on my companions for he was full and needed something to wash down his throat. I was astonished at how fast Odysseus came to devise a plan in the mist of the rampage. He told us that while he would offer Polyphemus wine to wash down the food, the rest of us including myself would sharpen at spear to pierce the one eye of the Cyclopes, blinding him.
We did as he told us and as we watched Odysseus offer the wine to the Cyclopes. We waited awhile before Polyphemus began to become impaired from the wine. That was our cue to spear him. We rushed out from behind the sheep and lunged towards his eye, piercing it with all our strength. Polyphemus yelled in pain. He shook the very foundation of the island with his feet stomping all around. While he was busy trying to get the spear out of his eye, we hid underneath the sheep so that we may escape his clutches. As he felt threw his sheep, looking for me and my men, we were all tied to the bottoms making it impossible for him to find us. We miraculously made it out alive and with all our limbs intact. I rushed our men back to the ship as soon as we had made way out of the cave, but as we headed back in panic Odysseus stayed behind. I could hear him shouting at the Cyclopes as I was heading back. I don't know what Odysseus said to this day, but whatever he said to the Cyclopes angered him so greatly that as we were sailing away from the island he heaved a rock so big that it almost made impact with our ship. We were all lucky to have survived that day. Although that was only one of our many troubles along the odyssey.
Author's Notes:
Odysseus stumbled upon an island inhabited by Cyclops's. He and his went to go explore this island and found a cave filled with sheep and other riches. They decided to stay there and ask the cyclopes for hospitality, however when he returned he set a great huge stone in front on the entrance and began eat the men. Odysseus devised a plan to get the Cyclopes drunk with wine and blind him using a spear. Once he was blinded they tied sheep to themselves. The cyclopes moved the stone door and started to search for the men by shifting through the sheep. Once they made their escape, Odysseus shouted to the Cyclopes enraging him and making him throw huge stones at the ship. The only thing I changed about this story was the point of view it was told in. Instead of Odysseus, it was told from the point of view from Eurylochus, a close companion to Odysseus. I gave a little bit more of an introduction to give insight as to how the crew ended up where they were.
Bibliography: "The Odyssey" by Homer. Web Source
First thing's first, I am overly impressed with how much you decided to write for your story. It must have been a load to write such a long story, but I think it paid off, it's an impressive piece of work! My second comment, is that I appreciate you keeping your language straight. What I mean by that is that you did not try to mix old language with new language, as I have seen in some stories, which can make stories frustrating to read, as it draws our attention away from the main idea of the story. I felt like you stayed consistent throughout, and stuck to more modern language. My third comment, which is something that I remember from the original Odyssey stories, is the use of imagery throughout the stories. The narrator would set up these incredible images for us, so we could play out the whole scenes in our head. While it may be difficult, I definitely feel like you could throw some imagery into your stories, which I think would only make them greater than they already are :) That, and it would bring your ideas closer to those of the original stories.
ReplyDeleteHi Charles! Great job on your story this week! I really appreciate how much work you put into this story, it's really detailed! I have a little familiarity with The Odyssey so it was cool to see your take on it! You write really directly which makes it super easy to understand! Great job!
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