ulysses

By all means, I think
Tennyson is a wonderful writer and this poem is absolutely gorgeous,
but it contradicts a bit with the original story. Having read the
original epic, I have to say that Tennyson’s argument for having
Odysseus leave Ithaca for a second time is pretty weak. Throughout
the Odyssey, Odysseus's perseverance is driven purely by his desire
to return home, not by adventurous spirit. Even after living with
Calypso for ten years, Odysseus admits, "each day I long for home,"
and no matter what trial the gods put before him, his "tough heart
can undergo it." In Tennyson’s poem, however, a different purpose
seems to drive Odysseus. Odysseus says his "purpose holds to sail
beyond the ...