Throughout, freedom and destiny are two aspects that are significantly evident in the Odyssey. Before getting into the details, you need to understand exactly what these two concepts really mean. First, freedom, or free will, in general, means having the ability to act or change without constraints. The latter, destiny, sometimes referred to as fate, is a predetermined course of events. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Philosophers and religious figures have been debating the topic of fate versus free will for a considerable number of years, more like decades. On the one hand there are individuals who believe in destiny. Typically, this meeting includes many religious people. If you believe in a higher power, such as a God, then you are likely to accept that God is responsible for the creation of the universe and all events within it. Everything that happens in every individual's life is God's will. Furthermore, in this category, there are individuals who are not that religious, or not religious at all, therefore, who do not believe in a God, but have faith in an ordered universe , in karma and destiny. On the other hand, there are individuals who believe in free will. These people believe that each individual is completely responsible for everything that happens in their life. There is no God or destiny. Life is irregular and random. Some cynics, agnostics, and atheists fall into this classification. Then there are those in the middle, the “intermediaries”. This group of people believes that our lives are a mix of fate and free will. We cannot know for sure whether our lives are governed by fate or free will, or perhaps both. As unenlightened beings, we do not have the ability to acquire this knowledge. However, we are capable of feeling what guides us. Often the feeling of what drives us is so strong that it takes control of our lives. We may feel a God guiding us; we can feel destiny guiding us; we may feel that it is only free will that guides us. Each of our meetings is extraordinary. In this ancient Greek epic, written by the author Homer, free will is depicted in which characters make certain decisions, perhaps even all of them. For example, Odysseus blinds the Cyclops, Polyphemus. Destiny, or fate, in the Odyssey, are the repercussions that are doled out due to specific activities. Because of Odysseus and Polyphemus, the repercussion is that when Odysseus is on a ship heading to his arrival in Ithaca, Poseidon, Polyphemus' father, sends a storm towards Odysseus because he is angry that Odysseus blinded his son. In this situation, Odysseus chooses to blind Polyphemus to escape, and so, the result is that Poseidon attempts to hit him with a storm in the ocean. The differentiating, or rather contrasting, themes of free will and destiny serve to speak to the poet's beliefs regarding the matter, underscoring the significance of both throughout the work. In the Odyssey, the importance of fate is that, ultimately, it determines what happens to all individuals. Furthermore, the Gods represent a huge part of that destiny or fate. Their free will is the element that can control and guide the destiny of normal, everyday humanity. Therefore, by exerting their strength and exercising their power, as well as making certain decisions, the Gods determine the decisions that humanity can make. For example, when Zeus chooses to send Hermes to free Odysseus from Calypso. Simply, the free will of the Gods serves as a guide to man's destiny. The Gods have the ability to direct man in the right direction.