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The Role Of Heroism In Homer's The Odyssey

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Heroism is a concept from storytelling as far back as Homer’s The Odyssey. Hero characters often start with an unusual birth, such as Moses when he was left in a basket and became royalty. Heros are tested and change through traumatic events. With supernatural help, they must prove themselves in some way. Rahab, a prostitute mentioned in Joshua 2-6, doesn’t come to many people’s minds as a heroine. An unlikely candidate to be favored by God, she proves her worth by helping two of Joshua’s spies assess Jericho. Because she let them escape, she and her family are not harmed when Joshua’s fleet attacks the city.

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