Odysseus’ Journey to Heroism The Odyssey is an epic poem by Homer, set in 800 B.C between Ithaca and Troy. This epic poem portrays Odysseus, the king of Ithaca’s journey back from Troy. Penelope, Odysseus’ wife waits for him at home along with their son, Telemachus. Suitors think that Odysseus has died, so they harass Penelope and Telemachus because they want to become king. Poseidon, god of the sea constantly throws obstacles at Odysseus because Odysseus blinded his son, Polyphemus.
Odysseus is a hero because all of the suitors were invading his home when Telemachus and Penelope did not like it. In The Odyssey, Odysseus and Telemachus fought every single suitor until they were all dead. This shows Odysseus is a hero because it is what everyone wanted, is the suitors to leave. Also in The Odyssey, when Penelope heard Odysseus was home she was filled with joy and fainted from so much excitement. This shows Odysseus is a hero because Penelope was saved by him and now he has returned back home to her.
From the onset of the book, death is a recurring event, persistent throughout the entire poem. In many ways, the Odyssey is the story of the death of all of Odysseus’ friends and fellow fighters during their return home from conquering Troy. These deaths are particularly heartbreaking to Odysseus because, normally, one would expect that all dying would conclude with the end of the war against Troy. In this case, however, the anticipation of his return to his family at home became a series of tragedies. This sequence of events changes his view and molds Odysseus’ character in regard to his surviving friends and family.
Odysseus’s Tumultuous Journey Heroes in today’s literature often take on difficult challenges that put themselves in constant danger to better themselves. Joseph Campbell came out with a book in 1949 called “A Hero with a Thousand Faces” which he introduced the “Hero’s Journey” formula that Odysseus closely follows. The Odyssey is a Greek mythology following Odysseus, a Trojan War hero who faces many dangers trying to get back to his homeland of Ithaca. At his homeland of Ithaca suitors are eating out his home and trying to marry his wife while Telemachus sets out to find his father, but eventually comes back unsuccessful. Finally, Odysseus comes home and takes back his home and family.
Heroes always do something that most people don’t.” Philip Zimbardo's statement stays true in The Odyssey by Homer. In the book Odysseus, the king of Ithaca has to leave his family to fight in the Trojan war. He leaves behind his loving wife, Penelope along with his newborn son, Telemachus. Unfortunately, even after the Trojan war Odysseus faces many hardships and troubles returning home to Ithaca Throughout all hardships, Odysseus proves himself as a hero in The Odyssey. For starters, Odysseus is a hero because he shows many leadership like qualities.
Odysseus' Journey Sailing around every corner of the world, Odysseus shows off his heroic abilities as he battles monsters and makes decisive decisions in The Odyssey. The epic poem which contains the story of Odysseus was written by Homer called, The Odyssey. The this epic poem, Homer talks about Odysseus' journey across the world as he tries to find his way home to Ithaca. However, as he was cursed by the gods, he faces many obstacles such as fighting monsters. In the end, Odysseus shows that he's a hero by being brave, fighting through the gods' curse, and never giving up on your goals just like the modern day hero, Bethany Hamilton.
By the end of this epic, Odysseus has learned to temper his pride with patience in others. This leads him to make all the right decisions in the end and everything turns out great for Odysseus and his family. His long journey home has shown the readers that he is very cunning, determined, and a strong leader. He has become a better king and a better husband than he could have ever been without his struggle
Odysseus hears from the mouths of his comrades, enemies, and family the significance of family over honor and wealth in battle. It is by his journey to Hades that Odysseus’ warrior mentality begins to “die” and his domestic mindset begins to take root once again . The further along in their adventures they go the more Odysseus’ men lose their trust towards their leader. Challenging his words and directly going against his warnings as seen in the cases when his men open the bag of winds gifted by Aeolus, master of the winds, and later when they eat the sacred cows of Helios. It is by Odysseus’ and his men’s arrogance and warrior drive that Odysseus loses more and more men till it is just him left.
Odysseus has such a big ego that he could not stand people making fun of him, he had to waste more time and play the games with them. Throughout the book, Odysseus could not just worry about himself, he has to worry about his crew as well, and in some cases he has to save them. When Odysseus and his crew docked on the island where Polyphemus lived,
He fought for his wife, and his child. He fought any bad guy who came along just with a bow and arrow. He did what he needed to get to the end alive with his men and saving people on the way, even if that meant making some mistakes. Odysseus needed to be a hero to get back to where he did in the end. In the end because of his bravery and loyalty he got back to his wife and stuck all the way through the tough times.