The Odyssey

Q1. What are the characteristics of a hero in Homer's poems? What attributes are valued?

The Homeric epics describe a race of heroic men: these men are more powerful than ordinary men, and yet, they are not quite as glorious as gods. The heroes are characterized by their strength, warfare skill, intelligence, moral character, and favor of the gods.

The Homeric heroes are strong and skillful warriors. Achilles is noted for being the greatest Greek warrior. He is known as “the great runner” (109). He is fast, strong, and skilled with his spear. When Achilles confronts Hector, King Priam implores Hector to flee. He tells Hector that he “can’t face Achilles” for “he’s too much” (174). As Achilles closes in on Hector, he looks like the “God of War himself” (177). Brave Hector, the greatest of the Trojan wars, loses his nerve and flees in terror. Achilles is a brave warrior; he is not afraid of anything. He charges against the Trojan army single-handedly. He routs the Trojans, killing every Trojan in his path. When he refuses to fight due to his feud with Agamemnon, the Greeks are unable to stand without him. His very presence brings courage to the Greeks and sends fear to the Trojans.

Physical strength is not the only thing that is valued. Odysseus is the hero who demonstrates the wit and intelligence can sometimes overpower brute force. Odysseus is introduced as “the man of twists and turns” (207). His cunning and crafty skills are mentioned numerous times in the poem. The best display of Odysseus’ cunningness is his plan of escape from the Cyclops’ cave. Odysseus knows that he cannot merely kill the Cyclops in his sleep; none of them are strong enough to roll back the immense stone. So, he devises a clever plan, calling himsel...

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...shows himself to be the worst of the suitors, though he may be the handsomest. The other are horrified to see how Antinous treats the beggar. They know that “the gods do take on the look of strangers” (414). They know that Antinous’ “fate is sealed” (414). Antinous lacks any sense of morality and hospitality which a civilized Greek should display.

The Odyssey illustrates the importance of hospitality. It shows examples of people who manifest hospitality and are blessed by it or who become instruments of blessing others. It also shows by contrast, guests who take scorn their host’s hospitality and hosts who are inhospitable to their guests. Those who manifest xenia, whether host or guest, are the civilized and moral characters. Those who violate the rules of xenia are seen as savage and ill-bred; they eventually incur judgment for failing in their religious duty.