ipl-logo

Leadership In Homer's Odyssey

96 Words1 Page

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. Good leaders should not put their followers at risk; risking lives instead of saving them demonstrates weakness. A weakness that Odyssey has is selfishness.Odyssey puts his own crew in jeopardy for him to hear the sirens.Homer’s text states ”Me only she permits those strains to hear.” Another weakness odyssey portrays is behavior.

Show More
Related

  • Pathos And Ethos Of Culture In Homer's Odyssey

    1177 Words  | 5 Pages

    However, examples within the literary narrative of the Odyssey leaves the discussion open with regards to his leadership. Thus, the question of leadership supersedes the topic of Arete. Was Odysseus the ideal leader or did he portray undesirable leadership tendencies? The examples that will presented will illustrate that Odysseus hubris, risk taking prowess, and at times unwillingness to follow instructions often placed his crew in danger as he journeyed Ithaca.

    Read More

  • Odysseus: An Exemplary Leader In The Odyssey

    769 Words  | 4 Pages

    Webster Dictionary defines leadership as simply, “providing direction or guidance,” but to be a successful leader one must focus on completing a goal in a way that is beneficial for the majority, not only the one in charge. This can be achieved by utilitarianism, which is doing of what is best for the most number of people, and carrying out actions that lead to positive effects, instead of merely being done with good intentions. In The Odyssey, Odysseus is not an exemplary leader because he went against utilitarianism by not being honest with his men, letting his arrogance control his behavior, and by killing many people in his house without a fair trial. Firstly, a leader must be truthful with those he works with in order for no errors or confusion to occur as a result of information being hidden. In The Odyssey, not being truthful lead to negative consequences for everyone on Odysseus’ ship, and thus contradicted the principle of utilitarianism stating that actions must lead to positive effects.

    Read More

  • Irresponsible Decisions In Odysseus's Traveling Journey

    799 Words  | 4 Pages

    The journey mattered more than the destination when he showed bad leadership and then became an honorary one. Odysseus said,” My men were mutinous, fools. On stores of wine.” (Homer, 563) Odyssey spoke badly of his own men even though he is their leader, this suggests that he is a bad leader.

    Read More

  • Odysseus Is A Bad Leader Essay

    508 Words  | 3 Pages

    A great leader views the world like he is looking through 3D glasses, always seeing the depth and vibrancy of the possibilities around him. A bad leader is like a cyclops wearing an eyepatch, never able to see his mighty hand in front of his own face. In The Odyssey, Homer illustrates the journey home to Ithaca taken by Odysseus and his men. Unfortunately, Odysseus makes poor choices throughout his travels and his actions often do more harm than good. Two character traits define Odysseus and shape his poor leadership style.

    Read More

  • Is Odysseus A Hero

    500 Words  | 2 Pages

    When Odysseus commands his men to go back to sea to voyage, he is a good leader because he is telling his men what to do. He is being a leader by protecting his men from the Ciccone 's army by leaving before reinforcements come. For example, when Odysseus and his men are heading to the sirens Odysseus states “you are to tie me up, tight as a splint” (Homer 1005). Odysseus is an admirable leader when he orders his men to tie him up and do not untie him because he is sacrificing himself for the good of his men. He is a leader when he does this because he lets his men not suffer the sirens while he has to.

    Read More

  • Greek Values In Odysseus In Homer's Odyssey

    811 Words  | 4 Pages

    Odyssey Essay Did you know Odysseus let many of his men die in the Odyssey? Well, Odysseus is also known for his brave and heroic acts, but to further understand him, you have to know about his Greek Values. In the Odyssey, Odysseus’ strength and weaknesses of leadership, intelligence, and his selfishness. This reflects the Greek Values of leading others to success, and accomplishment, outsmarting others, and caring for others.

    Read More

  • Examples Of Leadership In The Odyssey

    761 Words  | 4 Pages

    Bravery, cleverness, and determination are three traits a good leader has. In Homer’s epic “The Odyssey,” Odysseus, the hero in the story, is trying to return home to Ithaca after his victory in Troy. On their way back home, Odysseus and his men hurt the cyclops, Polyphemus, and angered his father, Poseidon. With a god angry at them, Odysseus and his men had to overcome many obstacles. These obstacles led them to strange islands that had goddesses and dangerous creatures.

    Read More

  • Pride And Recklessness In Homer's The Odyssey

    1107 Words  | 5 Pages

    The Odyssey by Homer is an exemplary story that teaches life lessons to those going on a journey for themselves. It illustrates how the challenges and obstacles one may face can help someone become a better leader. The Odyssey highlights one man, Odysseus, a man filled with excessive pride, experiencing the wrath of the god Poseidon. He expects to arrive at his home, Ithaca, safely to reunite with his wife, Penelope, but unfortunately faces many temptations and setbacks. Due to the challenges he faces, it prevents him from arriving home as early as he thought he would.

    Read More

  • Odysseus Is A Bad Leader Analysis

    285 Words  | 2 Pages

    However, in the Odyssey, Odysseus makes choices that both his crew and the reader find questionable. Although Odysseus has some positive attributes he is a bad leader for the following reasons he keeps secrets from his crew, he falls asleep at inappropriate times and is arrogant to a fault. Odysseus’s

    Read More

  • Why Did Odysseus Able To Get His Crew In The Odyssey By Homer

    591 Words  | 3 Pages

    Many leaders are able to get their crew out of difficults circumstances by their quick and clever thinking. They use good judgement to determine what they need to do to get out of a problem. In The Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus gets himself and his crew home while maneuvering through many obstacles along the way. Even though some of the crew was affected, he was able to get most of his crew around the obstacles they faced. Odysseus being very shrewd has the most significant impact on the narrative because this allowed him to manipulate his way out of tough situations with minimal damage.

    Read More

  • Odysseus Leadership In Homer's The Odyssey

    620 Words  | 3 Pages

    Throughout the story “The Odyssey” by Homer Odysseus, the main character counters countless amounts of trouble. As king and leader it is his job to keep his men save and get the job done. Odysseus does whatever it takes to keep his men unharmed, and more importantly, alive. All his crew and him dream about is getting back to their homeland, but first they have to pass the obstacles. Odysseus demonstrates good leadership qualities by doing whatever it takes to get the job done, using his advanced cunning abilities to trick his enemy, and constantly saving his crew from dangers.

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Everett And Odysseus

    1024 Words  | 5 Pages

    Once in a while leaders can get occupied, even the considerable ones, however they must understand that they committed an error and must endure the outcomes. Various leaders lead for the recognition. Odysseus from The Odyssey and Everett from O Brother Where Art Thou were both astonishing leaders and their men admired them. In spite of their likenesses there are a few things that set them apart. Despite the fact that Everett and Odysseus are similar, Everett has better initiative abilities, which at last causes him and his group get to where they have to go.

    Read More

  • Agamemnon's Leadership In The Iliad

    662 Words  | 3 Pages

    In Homer’s ancient work The Iliad, there are many forces of leadership at work, both strong models and poor examples. The two focal leaders in The Iliad are Agamemnon and Achilles. Both these characters exemplify leadership, but in drastically different ways. Agamemnon is immediately recognized as an authority because of his political standing; he is the leader in all technical meanings of the word. However, on Achilles part, it is his character and actions that earn him the recognition of a leader.

    Read More

  • The Transformation Of Odysseus In Homer's Odyssey

    688 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Odyssey by Homer revolves around the character, Odysseus, and his ten-year struggle to return home after the Trojan War. As the epic’s idol, he displays the combination of a clever, handsome, and courageous man popular among the mortals as well as the gods. Essentially, he embodies the ideals of the ancient Greek culture, being adorned with many favored characteristics of the era. However, an intriguing aspect of Odysseus lies in his personality. As the protagonist, he does not manifest the entirety of a stereotypical hero because Odysseus has a fatal flaw—his arrogance.

    Read More

  • Odysseus: A Good Leader In Homer's The Odyssey

    571 Words  | 3 Pages

    In Homer’s The Odyssey, Odysseus repeatedly shows that he is polytropos, for as Zeus says “There is no mortal half so wise”(3). Using his wits, Odysseus gets him and his men out of several sticky situations in the Odyssey, proving his leadership through his actions that save the lives of his crew member. On the other hand Odysseus’ streak of constantly outsmarting challenges, goes to his head, and unfortunately causes Odysseus to develop a hubris. His pride at times makes him arrogant, believing that he always knows best, which leads to the untimely demise of his crew. While Odysseus proves to be good leader by saving his crew from trouble with his wits, he is ultimately a bad leader because he refuses to listen to advice.

    Read More

More about Leadership In Homer's Odyssey

Open Document