The Odyssey is a story filled with adventure, bravery, and peril.(H) The Odyssey was written by Homer, a blind poet, in the 8th century, and it was intended to be a sequel to The Iliad, another story written by Homer.(HC) The story is based around the Greek gods, which were commonly believed to exist when Homer wrote The Odyssey.(HC) The Odyssey inspires perseverance in continued hardship and love for family, ideas which are as relevant today as they were when The Odyssey was written.(CM)
In the Adventures of Odysseus, the narrative points to the fact that even those individuals who appear to be untouchable or immortal have fundamental flaws and that pride and hubris make them vulnerable. Odysseus is a famed warrior who has been away from his home for 19 long years due to the Trojan War and a troubled journey home. His adventures include fighting a mighty Cyclops, outwitting the sorceress, Circe, and traveling to the land of the dead. When the Gods finally smile down on him and help him find his way home, he faces more hardships, for there are many suitors of his wife that would kill him if they knew who he was. Throughout the story Odysseus shows strength and fortitude through his hardships, but again and again his pride leads him
Odysseus of Ithaka. Some historians have argued for years that he is a noble hero, and others say he is just a man trying to get home from many hardship and challenges, however Odysseus is the definition of a hero. During Odysseus’s journey it becomes evident that Odysseus is a hero like the legends say, he meets all the criterias of being a hero such as being brave, smart, fighting against evil, and protecting others from danger. For generations people have been correct to honor the great Odysseus, for his actions along his adventures. Although there has been some evidence that points to Odysseus not being a hero, this essay will give three reasons why Odysseus should be respected as a hero. The first reasons why Odysseus is a hero is because he risks his life for crew multiple times throughout the story.
Odysseus is an epic hero because of his bravery and confidence during every obstacle throughout his journey In Part 1 whie Odysseus is about to come across cyclops cave, he says “I brought along and victuals in a bag, for in my bones I knew some towering brute would be upon so soon- all outward power, a wild man, ignorant of civility. “ Odysseus is showing his bravery of not being petrified of what he might come across, like the cyclops. Odysseus has no intention of harming them, but he is not sure what their intention is. This example is important because not only does it show confidence in himself, he also shows confidence in his men. In Part 2 Odysseus also shows his confidence in his men in part 2 where Eurylochus says, “Are you flesh and blood, Odysseus, to endure more than a man can? Do you ever tire?”
Odysseus can be seen as a naive epic hero. This is because he doesn't step up to be a stern leader with his shipmates and he allows his shipmates to walk over him. An example of this is when Odysseus reaches Thrinacia, the island home to Helio’s cattles. Odysseus tells his
In the novel The Odyssey, written by Homer, Odysseus is portrayed as a bad leader because of his selfish decisions and bad character. Odysseus makes a selfish decision when he leads his crew to stay in Polyphemus’s cave thinking he would offer gifts and Odysseus would “accept (his) help, or any gifts/” he had to “give” (9.726-727). This is a selfish act because he is putting his crew in danger for something that would only benefit himself. In the end, many of his people died and no one benefited. Once again, Odysseus displayed selfish acts when Circe told him “ he will be the only survivor of their long journey” (Homer 764). Odysseus is extremely selfish by betraying his crew. His crew believes that Odysseus is trying to help them return home, when he is actually only concerned about himself.
A hero is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements or noble qualities. In the movie, Odysseus shows that he is a hero by showing off his bravery and courage to defeat several monsters. He showed courage when he faced the Cyclops, when he met Lotus Eaters, and when he went back to Ithaca to see his wife.
In the epic story the Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus is returning from the Trojan war, and on his way home he finds many obstacles ahead of him. Odysseus is the ruler of Ithaca and he is trying to return home to his land. Many creatures try and stop him from achieving his goal of returning home, but he and his crew have to push through and get home. Odysseus portrays bravery and courage leading his crew through these tough challenges. Odysseus heroically leads his crew and himself through dangerous obstacles, but also foolishly endangers them during the journey home.
Being a hero originally means “a brave person who is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities.”. Odysseus was well known for being a hero. He has the qualities of being a hero in some situations but also has flaws which make him seem less of a hero at times. Being loyal, clever, and dedicated are examples of being a heroic person. Odysseus has these qualities and more.
Odysseus is a typical example of a hero. He is able to pull off miraculous things to save himself and his crew seemingly without fail. The story of his journey is well known, and a great tale of his adventures. In the two parts we have read so far, we see what he is willing to do for his crew, and his intelligence and quick thinking in difficult situations. The first challenge that waits them is the island of Cyclopes. They begin by checking out the island to see if there is any danger, but they are caught. Odysseus then has to lie about the ship saying it had been destroyed. Then after his friends meet a terrible fate, he tells Polyphemus, the giant, his name is Nohbdy. After he stabs the cyclops in the eye, this leads him to say that nobody hurt him. After this Odysseus makes his escape, and is almost caught as they leave, so Odysseus taunts them, telling them his name and story. This is the end of act one. In act two they tell us of the island of Aeolus which ends up giving them a worthless gift, and then the land of Laestrygones, that destroy all of their ships but one. They then end up at Aeaea, and split up into two groups, one to search the island, and the other to watch the ship. The exploring group then gets trapped by Circe’s cunning magic. Following this news, Odysseus is offered help from Hermes for ways to avoid Circe’s magic. He then enters and tries to avoid the fate of his crew. Eventually he is told to bring all of his crew there, and he ends up
Odysseus portrays those three heroic traits throughout his voyage home to Ithaca, which is why he is a hero. Odysseus is highly dedicated to his reputation and ego for the whole of his rocky and treacherous journey. From going up against a cyclops that is five times the size of him, to placing wax upon his crewmates’ ears to mute the singing of the Sirens, Odysseus is brave when he faces his fears and intelligent when he creates lifesaving tools from ship materials. A modern hero can be someone who saves a life or even sacrifices his or her own for someone else. Odysseus can be compared to a modern hero because he risks his own life to protect his crewmates. Also comparable to a modern hero, Odysseus portrays human qualities throughout the highs and lows of his journey, such as sadness when he learns that his mother had died during his time away. Odysseus should be considered a hero because throughout the good and bad of his voyage, Odysseus continued to lead his crew and came through with all of his
In conclusion, Odysseus is a hero because of his many great qualities. While he has bad qualities additionally, the things he does in order to save his crew show valor, nobleness, and strength. His bravery, cunning, and hard work ethic truly make him a hero, even though he has some frowned upon qualities, such as excessive pride, immense curiosity, and a rather large
The first characteristic that Odysseus possessed, which shows he is an epic hero, is how brave he was. For instance, when Odysseus wanted to venture off to Circe and leave the island, it was Eurylochos that told him not to go without his
Odysseus, he’s known as a war hero on his way back to his homeland, who ends up going on a ten year long journey due to unforeseen circumstances. On this journey, he encounters many monsters, many ladies, and we see his good side and his bad side. Due to the fact that he’s very noble and brave (and in an epic poem), that makes him an epic hero. He’s also a very famous archetype for The Hero. Odysseus has some good traits, some bad flaws, and has been in some ugly situations, but overall he is a true hero.
A hero takes many forms, such as an allegorical hero, a tragic hero, or an epic hero. In the age of postmodernism, there are instances where a person can be both a hero and a villain. Odysseus is difficult to identify as a hero because of his many vices. However, he has many traits that explain his clouded judgement. Odysseus may be leaderful, but he can be too curious. He is brave, but also conceited. He is intelligent, yet boastful. Odysseus is hard to classify because of his contradicting traits. No person is perfect, and challenging the ideas of who a hero is reveals the illusion of perfection. Humans make mistakes, and seeing Odysseus’ failures humanizes him and makes him more realistic.