Season 96, Episode 1141: Why We Sometimes Don’t Want What We Say We Want: The Odyssey Monologue Series with Jay Doran

Scene one, they're on the boat passing-- about to pass the sirens.

[sighs] And Odysseus tells his men to put wax in their ears, but he wants to hear the song.

He wants to, he wants to hear it, but he wants them to tie him to the mast.

He wants to know.

He wants to hear.

He, he-- I think it reflects his-- If he wanted to-- If he never wanted to go home, and he was very clear about that he didn't want to, if he was forever running, Robin Hood, then he'd be the gentleman.

One of the soldiers pulled the wax out of his ears, heard the song, and ran to the sirens.

He, he made his choice to run If he put the wax in his ears, it reflects his s- his cl-- He's clear that he wants to go back home.

He's clear of who he is and where he wants to go.

But he isn't.

So he, he wants to hear the song, but have structure in place so that he can't succumb to his-- so his behaviors can't match, 'cause he's, he's-- there's an ambiguity about his deci- he hasn't decided, but that deciding is a decision.

And so he's aware enough that he's not in control, that his desires could take over control, but he wants to know.

He has a belief that he can handle it.

And so by, by listening to the song, that's where he becomes more aware of what's really going on in him, that he doesn't actually wanna go home.

He, he-- You know, what if much of how he's been acting with the men, going back to episode three, controls the shadow of responsibility.

Much of how he's been acting with the men is because he hasn't forgiven himself, and he's ho- he's placed an identity on what he did, that he's the breaker of the world, which we see later in the movie when he is acting as-- he's un- you know, he's acting as this veteran of the Trojan War, Sinon, the beggar, talking to Penelope, saying that he did it.

He's the one that broke the world, or he's the one that made the choice, and she tries to take it off him.

"No, everyone, you know, it wasn't just you, but it was my idea." So he's holding all the weight.

He's putting all of that on his shoulders.

He's, he's made that his identity.

Rather than it being a mistake and it's something to reflect on, he's made it his identity.

And ultimately, he won't get through it until he honors his men in the West, I think, until he lets go and gives his son, Telemachus, power.

But we-we're watching him.

Him-- He is unclear because he's still holding on to that decision that he made that he believes was a mistake.

It was an immoral decision based on his moral alignment, his thoughts, words, and deeds, his the ali- his integrity, based on how he lived his life, his operating desires prior to Agamemnon's war that he won with the deception that contradicted h-how he lived his h- life prior to h- the expectations he had for his m- his citizens, the culture that he led in Ithaca, how his son was raised, the, w- the, the, the substance that l- l- led Penelope to protect the, their institution for twenty years in spite of all the people trying to hijack it.

Scene one, they're on the boat passing-- about to pass the sirens.

[sighs] And Odysseus tells his men to put wax in their ears, but he wants to hear the song.

He wants to, he wants to hear it, but he wants them to tie him to the mast.

He wants to know.

He wants to hear.

He, he-- I think it reflects his-- If he wanted to-- If he never wanted to go home, and he was very clear about that he didn't want to, if he was forever running, Robin Hood, then he'd be the gentleman.

One of the soldiers pulled the wax out of his ears, heard the song, and ran to the sirens.

He, he made his choice to run If he put the wax in his ears, it reflects his s- his cl-- He's clear that he wants to go back home.

He's clear of who he is and where he wants to go.

But he isn't.

So he, he wants to hear the song, but have structure in place so that he can't succumb to his-- so his behaviors can't match, 'cause he's, he's-- there's an ambiguity about his deci- he hasn't decided, but that deciding is a decision.

And so he's aware enough that he's not in control, that his desires could take over control, but he wants to know.

He has a belief that he can handle it.

And so by, by listening to the song, that's where he becomes more aware of what's really going on in him, that he doesn't actually wanna go home.

He, he-- You know, what if much of how he's been acting with the men, going back to episode three, controls the shadow of responsibility.

Much of how he's been acting with the men is because he hasn't forgiven himself, and he's ho- he's placed an identity on what he did, that he's the breaker of the world, which we see later in the movie when he is acting as-- he's un- you know, he's acting as this veteran of the Trojan War, Sinon, the beggar, talking to Penelope, saying that he did it.

He's the one that broke the world, or he's the one that made the choice, and she tries to take it off him.

"No, everyone, you know, it wasn't just you, but it was my idea." So he's holding all the weight.

He's putting all of that on his shoulders.

He's, he's made that his identity.

Rather than it being a mistake and it's something to reflect on, he's made it his identity.

And ultimately, he won't get through it until he honors his men in the West, I think, until he lets go and gives his son, Telemachus, power.

But we-we're watching him.

Him-- He is unclear because he's still holding on to that decision that he made that he believes was a mistake.

It was an immoral decision based on his moral alignment, his thoughts, words, and deeds, his the ali- his integrity, based on how he lived his life, his operating desires prior to Agamemnon's war that he won with the deception that contradicted h-how he lived his h- life prior to h- the expectations he had for his m- his citizens, the culture that he led in Ithaca, how his son was raised, the, w- the, the, the substance that l- l- led Penelope to protect the, their institution for twenty years in spite of all the people trying to hijack it.