Odysseus is a combination of the self-made, self-assured man and the embodiment of the standards and mores of his culture. He is favored by the gods and respected and admired by the mortals. Even the wrath of Poseidon does not keep him from his homecoming. But is Odysseus consider a hero?
In the epic novel The Odyssey by Homer, the audience becomes familiar with the main character Odysseus in such a way that one can create a detailed character sketch of Odysseus. Odysseus is an extraordinary character. His amiable qualities of physical strength, mental power, and wit, as well as his less admirable characteristic of arrogance all make up his heroic character. Throughout the novel, his characteristics allow him to grow from an arrogant hero to a humble survivor, appreciative of the goal he worked so hard to achieve. Odysseus has amiable characteristics that allow him to be associated with the stature of a hero. The first of these characteristics is his physical prowess. Odysseus is a man like no other, and at times the gods make him comparable to themselves in strength. Although his men assist him in warfare, Odysseus was always at the heart of the battle. His strength is superior
…show more content…
I consider Odysseus a true hero because he kills the Cyclopes, fights the suitors, and saves his friends from the suitors. Also because he stops the Cyclopes, Odysseus and the Cyclopes come face to face and battle to allow his men sprint straight forward, lifted it, and rammed a stick, deep in the crater of the Cyclopes eye. This shows that Odysseus is brave, and has no fears. This is important because he kills the Cyclopes and saves the rest of his men from being eaten. After he kills the Cyclopes he leaves heading towards Ithaca. Odysseus gets there and the suitors get mad because they found out he was Odysseus. This shows that Odysseus is a true warrior with bravery, because he is ready to fight at any time for his and his friends
The Odyssey, a Greek epic written by Homer has many characters that could be considered heroes, but none as greatly debated on whether he should be called a hero as Odysseus. Odysseus is a hero due to the fact that he wants to protect the ones he loves, shows courage through his actions and words, and as a leader is able to inspire others to have courage. Odysseus’s family
I believe Odysseus is not a hero because he let many people die. He also didn't save his men from the Cyclops “He couldn't save his people.” I personally think that he didn’t try to save them at all. Odysseus did not save his people in time. According to Homer, “ While he fought only to save his life, to bring his shipmates home.
As the Webster Dictionary says a hero is a person admired for great deeds, courage or fine qualities. Odysseus was a hero modeling all three of those examples. The King showed many qualities of a hero when Odysseus volunteered to fight in the battle of Troy, when Odysseus helps the men escape the cyclops, and when Odysseus keeps all emotions together after watching some of the sailors get eaten by the monster Scylla. Odysseus shows qualities of a hero when the king of Ithaca offers to go fight in the battle of Troy. Odysseus fights for Ithaca in the battle of Troy voluntarily.
He is a very important fictional character in Greek mythology, for he fought many monsters and l “defeated” many obstacles that went through his way. In the definition of a hero, Odysseus fits the characteristics of being admired and for having big achievements, however, a person's definition of a hero is someone who does things by heart or is brave enough to put others before him which Odysseus definitely does
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.
Odysseus is not a hero because he stabs Polyphemus in the eye and blinds him. Odysseus is still a hero because he is a leader. Moreover, after Odysseus and his men fight the Cicones, he orders ¨Back and Quickly! Out to sea again!” (Homer 984).
Some think Odysseus is a hero for many reasons, mainly because he helps many people including his family and his crew. Even when terrible things happen to him and his crew he perseveres and continues on his journey home. Even though Odysseus and his men do bad things like eating the sun god’s cattle there still are many reasons why he is a hero. One reason to support my claim is that he saves his crew many times. One example is when they sailed by the Sirens.
One of the reasons those people might say that is because Odysseus has a hero’s key traits: he was loyal, compassionate, and cunning. Odysseus was loyal to his family by trying his best to get home and succeeding. Compassion was shown by Odysseus when he was patient while plotting against the Trojans. Last but not least Odysseus was cunning when he defeated the Cyclops in the cave whilst escaping.
It is clear that Odysseus is not a hero through his terrible leadership. In conclusion, Odysseus is not a hero because of his impulsive decisions, his hubris, and terrible leadership. He does not plan ahead, he is not humble and a sore loser, and he strays away from telling important things to his men. Though in Greek society Odysseus is seen as a hero, he can not be called one now.
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.
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?
Well the definition of an epic hero is, “a brave and noble character in an epic poem, admired for great achievements or affected by grand events. ”(Dictionary.com) If that doesn’t describe Odysseus, I don’t know what does. He risks his life in many circumstances, and he’s widely admired for being the one of the reasons the trojans won the war. He is also affected by lots of events throughout his adventures.
Odysseus was a man of great stature and strength; however, Odysseus was not only physically strong, but mentally strong as well (Olson). We can see Odysseus’ mental strength, or cunning, and bravery when he is in the den of Polyphemus and devises the plan to save him and his crew by calling himself nobody and stabbing out the cyclops’ eye. He also recognizes that he
In The Odyssey, Odysseus was a major hero of the novel. He had both heroic traits and human weaknesses. Odysseus defeated the Cyclops, defeated the suitors that were courting his wife, and overcome other challenges throughout the novel. A special trait that made Odysseus a hero was that he was a courageous