In what ways is the Telemachy important to the Odyssey as a whole? What would the poem lose if these first four books were removed? Homer’s the Odyssey is the epic tale of Odysseus’ return home from the battle of Troy, yet we do not truly get to the hero in action until after we are drawn through the story of his son life in the absence of his father in Ithaka. In the first four books, we see how Telemachos, Odysseus’ son, matures and through his eyes Homer shows us the unrest and troubles of Ithaka without Odysseus’ presence. The Telemachy proves its importance to Odyssey showing the audience the characters and setting the scene for the Odysseus’ tale whilst foreshadowing the events in order to heighten the audience’s expectations.
The Telemachy is more than just a tool to set up for Odysseus’ Nostos; I feel that is actually a great piece of entertainment and a show of Homers literary skills. Few ancient works are still intact or recorded and I believe that Homers work is kept because of how outstandingly good it was a piece of art. The Telemachy brings a great deal of drama but it also allows Homer to meddle with the timeline of his epic. A very interesting idea and we cannot forget that this would have said for entertainment purposes. By beginning with the Telemachy Homer also creates the opportunity to set up the entire epic and its hero without meeting him which makes it less the audience judging the characters by their actions, they predisposed to have certain thoughts because of the characters introductions. Also structurally the Telemachy brings a lot by introducing our hero and our villains and really creating tension for the eager audience. I think that these literary techniques Homer uses to create the Telemachy, aid in not only The Odysseys claim as one of the best pieces of ancient work but its survival as well. I have stressed the Telemachys importance to the Odyssey through its setup of characters and to setup the entire epic, so I would like to say that without the Telemachy The Odyssey, would loose a lot of depth in its characters and that the audiences emotions throughout would be lessened. Although it is argued that the