The Journey of Life

1. The poem gives the readers a lesson that the journey is more important than the destination. The poem is based on Homer’s account of the hero, Odysseus in his journey home. The moral of the poem is that life is filled with several complexities involving positive memories and drawbacks which are inevitable.

2. The poem is written in the second person and the speaker in the poem gives an account of similar events as Odysseus on his journey as he returned home after the war though his name is not mentioned. The poet gives the account of Odysseus in a symbolic way as he also advises the readers on the journey of life.

3. The main theme in the poem is life as a journey. The theme of the poem may be summed up as it is better to journey than to arrive at the author contemplates on the events that take place in the life of a person.

4. The imagery with respect to the poem is depicted in Ithaca, which was the homeland of Odysseus while his journey home represents the maturity of the soul of an individual.

5. The metaphor in the poem is depicted in the journey of life, as the poem alludes to Odysseus journey home to Ithaca. The journey is more important than the arrival or endpoint.

6. The journey as revealed in the poem is in fixed form since for one to arrive at a destination, they must embark on a journey. In the interpretation of the poem, life has many good moments and hurdles which one must pass through before attaining maturity.

7. The poet uses Odysseus due to his influence and is seen as a traveler, adventurer as well as a reader, hence easy for the reader to relate the events and key points that the poet wants to drive home. The author uses the illustration of Odysseus to illustrate the journey of life.

8. The author uses the illustration of Cyclopes, Laestrygonians as well as the god of Poseidon to illustrate the journey of life and the challenges that one is likely to encounter. The poet illustrates that the hurdles do not last for long and one must overcome them to reach their destination.

9. Ithaka was the hometown of Odysseus and it represents the maturity stage where one has passed through the ups and downs of life and can now make rightful discernment.

10. The tone of the poem is persuasive and appreciative. The poem encourages the readers to keep on pushing in the struggles for life as well as not to give up. More to that, it appreciates the strength and zeal of keeping on moving.