Directions: Read the poem below, and then write a paragraph in response to the question that follows, analyzing at least three pieces of evidence from the text to justify your answer.

Question

"Ithaka" by C. P. Cavafy

1 As you set out for Ithaka
hope your road is a long one,
full of adventure, full of discovery.
Laistrygonians, Cyclops,
5 angry Poseidon—don't be afraid of them:
you'll never find things like that on your way
as long as you keep your thoughts raised high,
as long as a rare excitement
stirs your spirit and body.
10 Laistrygonians, Cyclops,
wild Poseidon—you won't encounter them
unless you bring them along inside your soul,
unless your soul sets them up in front of you.

Hope your road is a long one.
15 May there be many summer mornings when,
with what pleasure, what joy,
you enter harbors you're seeing for the first time;
may you stop at Phoenician trading stations
to buy fine things,
20 mother of pearl and coral, amber and ebony,
sensual perfume of every kind—
as many sensual perfumes as you can;
and may you visit many Egyptian cities
to learn and go on learning from their scholars.

25 Keep Ithaka always in your mind.
Arriving there is what you're destined for.
But don't hurry the journey at all.
Better if it lasts for years,
so you're old by the time you reach the island,
30 wealthy with all you've gained on the way,
not expecting Ithaka to make you rich.

Ithaka gave you the marvelous journey.
Without her you wouldn't have set out.
She has nothing left to give you now.

35 And if you find her poor, Ithaka won't have fooled you.
Wise as you will have become, so full of experience,
you'll have understood by then what these Ithakas mean.
Prompt: Why does the speaker tell Odysseus that they "hope [his] road is a long one"? written like a 8th grader

Answer 1

In the poem "Ithaka" by C.P. Cavafy, the speaker wishes for Odysseus's journey to be long because the experiences and adventures along the way are what truly matter. First, the speaker encourages Odysseus to embrace the challenges he might face, like the "Laistrygonians, Cyclops, angry Poseidon," suggesting that these obstacles are not external threats but can only affect him if he lets fear take hold in his heart (lines 4-10). This means that the difficulties will help him grow as a person. Also, the speaker highlights the value of discovery and learning, wishing that Odysseus encounters beautiful new places and things, like “mother of pearl and coral” and visits “many Egyptian cities to learn from their scholars” (lines 18-24). This shows that the journey is about gathering wisdom and experience rather than just reaching a destination. Finally, the poem emphasizes that reaching Ithaka is important, but it is the journey that enriches him and makes him “wealthy with all [he's] gained” (lines 29-30). This idea teaches us that life is about the experiences we have and the knowledge we gain along the way, not just the end result.