The Power of Belief

Document Type:Essay

Subject Area:Sociology

Document 1

A comparative analysis of two stories, the Iliad and the Odyssey set by the same the author but written in different forms and times helps us to understand this. The Iliad and the Odyssey are elevated as being religious stories that are uses mortals to and the power of belief to influence athletics and winning in sports. These two stories appeal to the audience as a religious instruction and a dint in the way that it represents critical issues in entertaining manner. Each of the two stories highlights humans trying to provide solutions through the help of Gods. The religious significance and of the Iliad and the Odyssey is particularly addressed by Herodotus both by the literary merits and the way in which it represents its religious believes. Their relationship to humanity and the impact that the belief in this Gods have on the lives of the mortals in their too short and brief lives.

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As a result of these, the stories end up showing two contrasting messages on the lives and the belief system of the athletes (Edward, 2011). The gods in the story the Iliad’s are portrayed as being deceptive, temperamental and being able to backstab each other. The magnitude of influence that the gods have in human life and essence in sports in this storyline highlights and supports the concept of belief in sports. The mortals in this story appear as being pawns in a more significant game of chess where they hope, -belief and trust that they will win. For instance, the Olympians are seen to be continually meddling with the affairs between the Trojans and the Greeks. These Gods can view the mortals as being a set of amusing pets that need to be cared for, played with and at most be able to be loved.

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On the other side, the worst they see human beings is as pawns to be shuffled around, be able to be sacrificed, and be able to enable them to win inter-Olympian ego clashes (Hague, 132). For the mortals, for them to be able to win a particular sport, they would be able to turn to the gods and pray and believe that they will win. When Zeus wants the Trojans to win, he will be able to turn the force of nature against the Greeks by, for instance, slaying one of their heroes or by being able to send an immortal to be able to help them out. Activities that human beings participate in are just, but those that try to prove which is greater than the other and this is portrayed even in sports.

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Mortals have no say in any matter and that they are shown to be only pawns in a great show where the gods are just pulling strings. However, in Odyssey, Homer takes a different view on this. Mortals in the story are portrayed as being masters of their self and that winning in the sports and the athletics are not a spiritual winning and fights between gods but as independent human beings. Athena does not help out odyssey when he has to be able to deal with Cyclopes or when he has to deal with Skyla because she doesn’t want to be able to get involved with human affairs. Siren songs: gender, audiences, and narrators in the Odyssey. University of Michigan Press, 1995. Edwards, Mark W. Homer: poet of the Iliad.

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Johns Hopkins University Press, 1990. Scott, William C. The Etiquette of Games in" Iliad" 23. Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies 38. Stewart,D. W (1980) Herodutus Histories by Cambridge University Thornton, Agathe. New York, etc. Peter Lang, 1996. Cased, £ 29. ISBN: 0-8024-2870-1. The Classical Review 49.

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