Odysseus Leadership Skills In Homer's The Odyssey

During The Odyssey, the hero and king of Ithaca, Odysseus, shows restraint which I think is the most important trait for a hero to exhibit. A very good example of this would be when he and his men were with Polyphemus. His men wanted to leave but he said to stay and see what Polyphemus looked like. Eventually when they had gotten trapped in and Polyphemus’s cave and Polyphemus has fallen asleep, Odysseus had the chance to drive a large stick into him and kill him. However, he knew that his men would never be able to move the boulder so he waited to make his move and had restrained from killing Polyphemus.

In Homer's The Odyssey, Odysseus focuses his attention on gaining the Greek ideal of kleos while disregarding his men and their safety. After receiving advice to focus his attention on getting him and his men back alive, Odysseus still puts them at danger for his own good. His desire to return home a hero and the advice he receives conflict him, but he ultimately chooses to follow the former. When Odysseus is informed that he can be tied down without wax in his ears to be able to listen to the Sirens, he changes that message and presents it to his men as if only he is meant to listen to the Sirens. He makes this statement based off of his need to be able to say that he had heard the sirens and that he lived through it as well.

He gives the peroration before the slaughter and calls out their traits and actions that he once had early on in the Odyssey, so this speech is what shows the change within himself. He no longer arrogantly seeks glory or forsake others or the gods for his own sake, like all archetypal Homeric heroes. His heart and mind now are focused on the sake of his wife, son, and kingdom and claiming what is his by right. So he must vanquish the evil that stands in his way and wants to eliminate them and punish for their contempt of the gods and breaking the rules of Xenia as he once had done. Odysseus brings upon his wrath on the suitors, who are much like the younger Odysseus in the earlier tales, which is the easiest way to see that he has changed because he now looks down upon those who have done what he use to be proud

He is just simply a mere mortal who yearns to get to his kingdom and to his family. He is one man against all odds and gods. Odysseus is alone and lost and longs to be in his home. Odysseus is flawed and average, just like us. Even though a god detests him, Odysseus never gave up or fall in despair, instead, every strike and hit makes him even more determined to get home.

Laura and Howie’s excursion was an immature action for which they should have been punished. Howies and Laura’s excursion was an immature action because they could have solved the situation easily by going back to the camp and act as if nothing would have happened. Although, I would have also felt mad if some boys would have stripped and marooned me as they did to Howie , Howie and Laura would have just gotten revenge to them and act chill. All the things Laura and Howie did lead to a series of unreasonable events that could have had a better solution and could have ended peacefully. One better decision could have changed the entire situations and events that occurred.

Usually, epic heroes share common character traits such as bravery,courage,loyalty,. In Homer’s Odyssey, it is my belief that Odysseus is not heroic mostly because he was loyal when he was gone and left his wife. For example, when he went where Hades was all his men went and they ended up dieing.Even though some people may argue he is a hero because he had a good idea on how to win the war,also when Cyclops tried killing them Odysseus didn't say his name and stabbed him so they escaped. I maintain that he is not a hero because he wasn't loyal because he slept with Calypso and his men died.

Survival is the act of doing what you need to do to stay alive, however sometimes people go too far. In Lord of the Flies by William Golding the boy’s actions result in their loss of identity and could be argued that it was only because of their survival instincts. However some of the boys’ actions cannot be blamed on the harsh conditions and human survival instincts. Some of these include Rodger and his brutality to children and animals, Jack and obsession with becoming a leader, and the gruesome murder of Piggy. All of these events were unnecessary to the survival of the boys’ and actually resulted in unwanted deaths and situations.

Odysseus believes that his words are final and his actions are always right and just, but he often lets his ego take over his rational thinking, causing harm to his crew and tampering with the gods’s plans. His team could have returned home safely for it is the wish of Athena and the other heavenly gods who sit next to her in Mount Olympus, but Odysseus takes it to himself to anger and blind Polyphemus, the monstrous son of Poseidon, loved by his father but hated by the people, thus sabotaging their entire plan. After being blinded by the heroine, Polyphemus throws giant pieces of rocks at Odysseus's ship, almost destroying them all at once. But instead of retreating for safety, Odysseus continues to taunt Polyphemus and “[calls] out to the cyclopes again, with [his] men hanging all over [him] begging him not to”(Book 9, 491-492). His sense of pride and arrogance makes him neglect the pleas of his men even in these dire situations.

Even after he was able to free himself and his crew from the cyclops’ captivity, Odysseus exposes himself to Polyphemus and further jeopardizing his men, “ '"Cyclops, if any mortal man ever asks you who it was that inflicted upon your eye this shameful blinding, tell him that you were blinded by Odysseus, sacker of cities. Laertes is his father, and he makes his home on Ithaka" (9.500-505). Odysseus’ inability to control his hubris and be considerate about the lives of his crew validate the idea that he isn’t an admirable hero. His lack of selflessness and humility drives him to make flawed judgments. This deprives him of the title of an epic hero because his tendency to take unhealthy risks causes him to delay his trip back to his homeland of

He fights to the best of his abilities against many monsters such as Polyphemus, Circe, and the sea monster Scylla. There has been many claims that Odysseus isn’t hero because he lets his crew die. Just because his crew didn’t survive, it certainly does not mean he isn’t a hero. He tries his very best and even test his limits in order to get him and his crew back home. An example of this is in Homer’s ‘The Odyssey” where Odysseus tries to persuade his crew to bypass Thrinacia, the island of the sun god Helios, but they were too stubborn and insisted on landing.