Extreme Pride And Hubris In The Iliad

As The Odyssey begins Homer places Odysseus on a tiring and progressing journey to find humility after nine years of self-serving pride and glory in the Trojan War. While Homer focused much of The Iliad on how one ought to achieve excellence, he turns this point around and attempts to convey the message of the results of letting your pride get the best of you. Throughout Odysseus’ many trials, he learns to find hope in his darkest times and stay humble even when he seems to deserve it all. After fighting for nine years in Troy, Odysseus is ready to come home loaded with all the glory and spoils of war. Yet on his return trip, Odysseus’ journey was waylaid and Odysseus and his crew are faced with several onerous tasks deterring their voyage home.

The Odyssey by Homer, is about a twenty year long journey in Greece during the 700’s B.C. The story brings up many big ideas, however some are more prominent than others. The most important idea shown throughout The Odyssey is hubris. The reason why hubris was expressed throughout the story, was to express the idea that you should not show excessive self confidence, for it never leads to anything good.

Both Odysseus and I have shown pride. In The Odyssey, Odysseus and his men are going to fight in the Trojan War. Odysseus found a way to win the war. He and his men built a horse and Odysseus told his men to hide in the horse late at night. The next morning two of Odysseus’ men went to go talk to the Trojan’s leader.

The epitome of one who is hubris is Creon. Creon has some much pride and self-confidence that is causes him to be defiant towards the gods. In the beginning of the play, “Antigone”, Sophocles portrays Creon as a decent king. He makes rational decision and seem to rule like a king who knows what he’s doing. Then, a twist in the play occurs where Creon becomes more of a tyrant instead of a king.

Even though the Odyssey is one of the most significant pieces of literature left from Greece, it works against most Greek values. Unlike other epics such as the Iliad, also written by Homer, the Odyssey depicts the image that strategic thinking can overpower physical strength. This story's influence was most likely unwanted in Greek society by authority figures, as it demolished everything they stood for, which was making sure men always aspired to be the strongest warrior. Odysseus, the protagonist, does not fit this Greek-warrior archetype, because he is as wise as he is strong, if not even more so. Odysseus, 'his great mind teeming', embodies the concept of will-power, and demonstrates the superiority of the mind over physical strength, time and time again.

1st paragraph- Mahatma Gandhi once said: “Anger is the enemy of non-violence and pride is a monster that swallows it up.” Pride is seen by many as a weakness but pride is what encourages many to prove themselves. Odysseus’ major flaw is believing he is greater than any other human, sometimes even the gods. Odysseus demonstrates this weakness when he encounters the Cyclops and enrages him by trespassing into the one-eyed beast's cave.

Odyssey displays many traits of leadership. First,his leadership is demonstrated when his crew obeys his commands. Homer’s text states that his crew “delivers me from my restraint.” Because his crew respects him, they obey him. As well as demonstrating strengths, he also portrays character weaknesses.

Comparing these actions of Diomedes with Achilles fate (Killing Hector and dying dishonorably) , proves that Achilles has great care for Patroclus. This great compassion and care for Patroclus, is what drives Achilles into battle. In conclusion, the death of Patroclus sparked Achilles to truly unveil his characteristics through the actions that he took. Achilles revealed his true egotism, by fighting the godlike river.

In the well-known epics, Beowulf and The Iliad by Homer, both stories feature a majestic hero in each (Achilles and Beowulf), with inviable masculine powers and seeming complete invulnerability. They are both faced with a predicament that will determine the fate of their nation or fellow community. These heroes in contrasting situations tend to both reach their personal moral conviction, and decide to do what they think is necessary. In these epics both luminaries each must conquer their own ego to complete a task, were motivated to achieve their own personal renown (or Kleos), and confront death after achieving great triumph in battle. Commencing, these featured heroes, Achilles and Beowulf, were both faced with overcoming their ego and

"Hubris calls for nemesis, and in one form or another it 's going to get it, not as a punishment from outside but as the completion of a pattern already started," Mary Midgley, a British philosopher (Brainy Quotes). The cycle of hubris has been the same since the time of Homer and Thucydides. It starts with an important figure, either political or mythological, elevating themselves to the level of the Greek gods. Because of this excess pride, the gods then level this figure back to earth with tragedy more often than not.

Homer’s Iliad represents Western’s individualism as a foundation of Greeks in achieving honor. The main goal of the Greek is to obtain fame that resounds even after death, and “whose glory shall perish never” (Homer, Iliad 2.324). Honor and glory are the fundamental value that not only define true warrior or hero, but also define the true identity of oneself. However, unlike Confucius’s idea of collectivism, Greek’s definition of honor is highly individualistic. This concept of individual victory leads confliction between King Agamemnon and his great warrior Achilles.

Although Agamemnon’s sacrifice is a terrible and evil act to commit, he has no choice but to follow the orders of Artemis. It can be thus interpreted that because it was of the will of the goddess Artemis which forced Agamemnon to sacrifice Iphigenia, then it is in fact the goddess who is enacting such a misfortune on not only Agamemnon as punishment for the disrespect of Artemis, but also is a grave and fatal circumstance for Iphigenia as, although she may not be

Book 9 of The Iliad focuses on the Greek fighter Achilles, whose pride keeps him from accomplishment. In the satire Animal Farm, the pride of the animals clouds their judgment, and they are unable to see that they are suffering. In these texts, pride prevents the characters from seeing the consequences of their actions. In The Odyssey, Odysseus made a rash decision because of pride that caused him years of suffering.

Hubris, a reckless pride or ambition, has been a major factor in all the accomplishments humans have ever made. The drive of hubris is consequently prominent in literature from all eras, showing the hero overcoming odds or succumbing to their own lack of forethought, but is hubris the virtue it is often represented as in this species’ history, or is it a vice, causing unneeded conflict and death? Many of the writings that present hubris, Macbeth, Oedipus, and Into Thin Air in this case, will show how this part of human nature causes more strife than advancement. Possibly some of the oldest literature that uses hubris as a character’s tragic flaw is Oedipus Rex or Oedipus The King, written by the Greek philosopher Sophocles circa the year Four hundred and thirty BCE.

So, what is hubris any way? as defined, “excessive pride or self-confidence; arrogance.” Oedipus tragic flaws cause his death and leads to his downfall because of this. Throughout the story, Oedipus has felt a need to treat himself above everyone else.