Athena and Odyessus, The Relationship

Just into the reading of The Odyssey, I wondered why Athena wanted so to help Odysseus. Why did Athena go to her father Zeus in favor of Odysseus? What was her motive, what was the connection? Their relationship seemed to be that of best friends although she was a god and he was a mortal. Athena fought tooth and nail to help Odysseus, and finally I decided that it was because she saw traits in …

…takers, able to rise to any occasion put before them. Athena saw great delight in Odysseus, seeing so much of herself in a mere mortal; Athena was hopelessly drawn to the favor of Odysseus. Works Cited Kerestes, A. “Athena's Role in Homer.” Online posting. 22 September 2002. http://www.richeast.org/htwm/Greeks/athena/athena.html Lawall, Sarah, et al., eds. The Norton Anthology of World Literature . Vol. A. New York: W.W. Norton & Company Ltd., 2002. 225-474.