User:TiffaniHunter/Nostos

In the Odyssey, Homer has nostos being the "return home from Troy by sea." Nostos can be told by those who experienced it themselves, or there are simply instances in which it's present. Those who told their adventures on the sea on their journey back home from Troy were Menelaus, Nestor, and Odysseus. Those three recount their adventures to others in the epic. With Menelaus, in Book Four, he tells of his time in Egypt and other irregular stops. He did not stop at just his nostos but he told of Agamemnon's fatal nostos in great detail as well as a small section of Odysseus' journey. Nestor gives more on Menelaus' nostos and his journey home with Odysseus and Menelaus. In Book Three Nestor made it evident to the audience that his and Diomedes' journey home was a perfect nostos, they had no issues, which was quite different than Agamemnon's. This great difference shows how different each hero's journey home could be. In these instances where nostos is simply present and not told by the individual in The Odyssey, there is an intention to reach a specific destination and some other force blowing the characters off course and arrive in unexpected places on their journey to their home. The Odyssey had several different instances of nostos. One specific instance where Odysseus' companions lost their nostos, was when they ate Helios cattle and were killed for this since they were specifically told not to. This situation took away their nostos because their journey home came to an end.

Not all heroes experience nostos, Achilles' nostos is unique in The Iliad, this is because he knows himself that he will not have a nostos and this creates a greater difference in him and the other heroes, such as Odysseus. Achilles knows that he has two options when it comes to the Trojan War, he can either die in the battle with glory and have a short life or not participate and live a long insignificant life. In book nine has says "My nostos has perished, but my kleos will be unwilting," in this instance he has chose the glory and says how he will not return home because its destined he will die in battle.

Nostos and Odysseus

Odysseus was able to tell his own story of his nostos since he has survived. [inset sentence that starts with another instance] Odysseus was able to tell part of his nostos to the Phaeacians, and the length of his journey shows how difficult it can be to achieve nostos. This arrival and telling of his tails is a big deal, though he has not reached home it is a huge mile marker. After Odysseus and his companions leave Circe's palace safely his crew members show their happiness by saying "we rejoice for you saved yourself, nourished by Zeus, as much as if we had reached Ithaca," which shows the comparison of escaping to returning home.

Nostos meant several different things in this epic, it meant escaping death, safe landings, returning home from war, and being back home. All of those come through because as the hero returned from war the idea of escaping death from war remained in their forethought. These meanings all resemble nostos and when heroes are on their journey back they will have the ultimate Kleos once they have arrived and that is celebrated.