Odysseus's Leadership In The Odyssey

In Greek society, there are many valued characteristics of the hero Odysseus which are still valued today. These traits may not be as important in today’s modern world, but there is no doubt that Odysseus is an epic hero. In Homer’s The Odyssey, Odysseus proves that he is an epic hero through divine intervention in the Call, where he blinds Polyphemus in the Challenges, and the Atonement, where he goes through a transformation.

Trapped against their foes, fighting to survive. The common problems while trying to fight for your life. In the book The Odyssey by Homer, the main character Odysseus has just began to return home from Troy after fighting in the Trojan war. During his journey home he experiences many impeding steps, For example a cyclops battle, being trapped with the goddess Circe’s on her island, and being trapped with Calypso. In “The Most Dangerous Game” by Richard Connell, Rainsford, the protagonist in the story, gets stranded on an island and is hunted by the antagonist General Zaroff. General Zaroff’s hunting sport is the hunting of Humans in the story. In both stories the main characters have to fight to survive against their foes. In the Odyssey

Leaders come in all shapes and sizes, however, what gives someone the title of a good or bad is decided by the decisions they make and how those decisions affect others. Odysseus led the squadron of soldiers in the trojan horse and is a hero of the Trojan War and the king of Ithaca. Consequently, this gives him experience when it comes acting in difficult situations. This experience should guide him to choose correctly when being put in a tight spot. 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.

Would one think of Odysseus as an epic hero? Although he had excessive pride and cheated on his wife, he has many traits that makes him an epic hero. For example, Odysseus was able to come up with a genius plan to injure Polyphemos before he could eat any more of Odysseus’ men, that demonstrates the trait of intelligence. Odysseus has been through many hardships and has always used his traits to help him get through any obstacle. Throughout Odysseus’ journey home, he demonstrates leadership, intelligence, and superhuman strength.

Furthermore, Odysseus lacks a leadership role. To illustrate, when Odysseus is back in Ithaca the response he received wasn't the one anticipated. Odysseus is dressed as a beggar in order to see who is in his side and to see whether or not his wife has been faithful. However, Odysseus is bothered at the fact there are men in his house. When Odysseus reveals himself to the men, numerous of his men try to kill him, “He drew his own sword as he spoke, a broadsword of fine bronze, honed like a razor on either edge. Then crying hoarse and loud he hurled himself at Odysseus” (XXll. 80-82). Thereafter, revealing himself Odysseus killed the men. The leadership he has between he and his men lacks. Instead of his men being happy and receiving him

In Homer’s The Odyssey, Odysseus is an effective leader in chapter twelve. A leader who has too much pride is now showing too much humbleness for what’s important by following all the things he has told to do to save his crew and himself. He does what he is told to do to save his crew and keep them safe. “ But now, fearing death , all eyes fixed on Charybdis now Scylla snatched six men from our hollow ship, the toughest, strongest hands I had, and glancing backwards over the decks, searching or my crew I could see their hands and feet already hoisted, failing, high, higher, over my head, look wailing down at me, comrades riven in agony. Shrieking out my name for one last time” ( XII 265-270). This quote clearly makes us see that Odysseus has

To begin, Odysseus is not a hero because he does not possess the certain characteristics needed to become a hero. He is selfish, cruel, and a sorry excuse for a King of Ithaca. Most of all, he is wary of others, including his own crewmates. This is exemplified in this quote from the Odyssey, “I sent them on toward Scylla, I told them nothing as they could nothing”(Homer,937). Odysseus then goes on to describe how he believes that his men would desert him if they knew the dangers that they were sailing toward.This quote shows that Odysseus is distrustful of his crew and will not tell them the truth. Odysseus was focused on getting himself home and did not take his crew’s feelings into account. He

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. The first trait is that he is a very arrogant person and this often puts him and his men in danger. Secondly, Odysseus can be deceitful and not fully communicate the facts of each situation. Odysseus was a weak leader and his lack of vision in not seeing the strength and possibilities in his men combined with his inability to effectively communicate to those around him ultimately led to his failure of not being able to safely deliver his men back to Ithaca.

In the epic the The Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus is bad leader because his selfishness leads to bad outcomes and he does not communicate with his men properly.

The journey of Odysseus attempting to return home, to Ithaca, after being being in Troy is recited in Homer's epic named the Odyssey. Greek gods are extremely impactful in the voyage of his crew and himself. Without challenges, leadership skills are not able to be identified as clearly. Not all of the gods cause challenges for Odysseus to face yet some do. Athena, god of wisdom, is a mentor for Odysseus throughout the challenges the other gods put him in. For example, Polyphemus, a Cyclops, test the leader’s skills by confining the crew in his cave. Subsequently, as Odysseus completes that task another God named Poseidon effects sea travel. The dad of Polyphemus is revealed to be Poseidon, god of sea, earthquakes

The brilliant U.S. Army General Douglas MacArthur once said, “A true leader has the confidence to stand alone, the courage to make tough decisions, and the compassion to listen to the needs of others.” This description of a leader can be used when telling of the great adventures of Odysseus on his way home to Ithaca after fighting in the Trojan War. In Homer's epic poem The Odyssey, Odysseus exhibits many qualities that confirm his ability to fit the role of a good leader. He encountered and overcame many obstacles that include fighting cyclops, monsters, giants and more. He did all of this with only the goal of returning to his beloved family in mind. Even though others may claim that Odysseus is not a good leader because of the amount of hubris he shows, the positive qualities such as his good judgement, bravery, and his ability to inspire others prove otherwise.

The courage and wisdom of Odysseus help him to prolong his life and survive throughout his whole journey back to his homelands. For example, Odysseus gouges the Cyclops eye while the giant is asleep, even though the Cyclopes has murdered multiple of his men moments before. Odysseus displays his courage when he states,”So we seized our stake with its fiery tip and bored it round and round in the giant's eye” (B9 L.433-34). Odysseus throughout the novel stands up for himself and his crew for the right thing. He displays his leadership when he doesn't let others influence his opinions. Some people may think that Odysseus shows off his courage and wisdom to others

At various times throughout the story, mainly through the trials, Odysseus made many decisions and forced his crew to go through many potentially lethal situations without preparing his own crew, or situations that were just a waste of time. This then leads to not only all of his crew being killed but the creation of many bad relationships. The first example of Odysseus mistreating his crew is when he and his crew went through the trails, “No more. Come, / let me tell you about the voyage fraught with hardship / Zeus inflicted on me, homeward bound from Troy...” 9.42-44. During these trials, many burdens were put on Odysseus’ crew, which led to all of his crew eventually all being killed before returning to Ithaca. The 2nd instance where Odysseus made a wrong choice that affected his crew is when he didn’t even really trust his crew. So he stayed up for days straight and

In The Odyssey Homer makes Odysseus’ journey to his beloved Ithaca excruciating. Odysseus encounters many friends and foes throughout his journey and has to be a leader throughout his experiences. As an example, he encounters Polyphemus and Poseidon, both of whom make his journey mentally and physically painful. Odysseus faces countless scenarios in which he has to save multiple people in those situations. He also encounters the suitors, who are a group of men that try to marry Penelope, when he returns to reclaim his home. During these situations, Odysseus gains leadership and tactical skills from fighting in the war in Troy, which costs him 10 years of his life and another 10 years of sailing out on the sea from Poseidon 's curse. Odysseus is therefore a heroic and efficient leader because he plans his moves ahead of time and is vigilant at all times to ensure his safety. Yet, though Odysseus possesses these heroic leadership qualities, his arrogance sometimes leads to his downfall and inability to lead.

Odysseus was an effective and an ineffective leader for many reasons. One example is when Odysseus’ didn’t tell his crew that they are going to be killed by the Sirens and Charybdis. An effective leader is suppose to be honest, and in this part of the story Odysseus’ was being dishonest towards his crew by not warning them that they are going to be killed. If Odysseus’ were to be honest to his crew his leadership might have been much more effective, and his crew would’ve been alive. Another example is when Odysseus’ was courageous when he saved his crew from the Lotus Eaters by retreating to the ship. Effective leaders are courageous, which is what Odysseus’ has showed by saving his crew from being killed by the Lotus Eaters. When Odysseus’