My Epic Hero Everyone has an epic hero of their own. My epic hero would be the great man Achilles. Achilles is one of the greatest heroes of all time. Many people know who this great man is but few know why he is such a great hero. Achilles is one of the most epic heroes of all time because he fought in the ten year Trojan war, his immortality was very great, and he is brave and courageous. Achilles fought in the ten year Trojan war. The year lasted about ten years and not once did Achilles give up. He alone killed very many Trojans, as well as some of the most fierce allies that were there during the war. This war was very brutal and it required very tough men to fight in this war Achilles was one of those men to be able to last …show more content…
All of Achilles was immortal except for one part of his body which was his heel. Achilles was taught martial arts from a very young age. From the day that Achilles was born, his mother wanted to make him immortal so she would cover him with ambrosia every night she would hold him by the heels over the fire. She eventually stopped this because Thetis told her to. Every part of him was immortal except for one part that was vulnerable which was his heel. He was in so many battles and he never died which made him look even more immortal. Even though his Achilles heel was very weak, Achilles still battled every battle that came to him and he won those battles. That makes him so much more immortal other than the fact that his mother would hold him over a fire every night. That makes him an epic hero because he never gave up. He could have given up but he did not and that makes him an impeccable hero. The last thing that made Achilles my epic hero would be because he was very brave and courageous. In order to be in all of those battles you must be courageous and brave. You cannot go into a battle with a mindset that you are going to lose or that you are scared. Achilles did not go into his wars with that mindset he was brave and he was full of courage. That makes him look very bold and it shows that he was a hero figure towards people that needed him. He is one of the bravest and most courageous heroes that I have ever heard
The question has been raised as to whether or not Odysseus, the hero of Homers The Odyssey, is an epic hero. An epic Hero portrays many classic properties, including being very strong and courageous. Odysseus is an epic hero, because he portrays many of these and other traits, such as having a goal that is foremost in his mind, and having descended into the underworld.
In my opinion, I think Achilles is more of a better hero, because of how he goes across things. Achilles is the type of leader who people want to follow because he wants what is best for not just himself, but the people as well. A hero, from my perspective, is someone who looks out for his men. Someone who wants to make sure the only battles that need to be fought are fought. He looks out for the good in the people he is fighting
An Epic Hero is a person who is a prominent figure in histories and legends. Epic heroes do not posses super powers, but rely on his or her own attributes to combat some sort of battle that a typical person could not accomplish. Such Epic Heroes are read about mostly in tall tales, myths, and legends, but they all own human traits that can relate to the average person. These human traits make it easy for people, such as the Greek people, to associate with the character. Inside Greek mythology qualities of braveness, determination, and decisiveness are prized. In Homers’ epic poem The Odyssey, Odysseus’ traits are perfectly aligned with the values of the Greek people.
The Iliad, Achilles is described as the greatest warrior in the world. Also, he was practically invulnerable as a fighter because at birth, his moth had dipped him in the River Styx, rendering him immortal everywhere but the heel, where she had held him (Sources of the West 40). As apparent by Achilles reputation as the greatest warrior in the world it is evident that society held him up as the example of a virtuous man.
People are heroes in different ways for different reasons. American soldiers are heroes because they fight boldly for their country. Corrie Ten Boom is also a hero because she took risks and saved hundreds of Jews. Abraham Lincoln is another example of a hero because he fought for what he thought was right and helped free all slaves. Similarly, Odysseus, the main character in Homer’s epic poem The Odyssey, possesses all of these characteristics and many more, making him a true epic hero.
...lles' pride required him to leave a name for himself; he had to become a legend. But how did he survive as long as he did? Was it luck? Was it skill? Was he blessed by the gods? I believe that his drive in combat was indeed his pride, but also he was compelled to fight in defiance of the prophecy. Achilles was far too brave a man to hide from danger; he chose instead to face it and to prove himself in every battle. His suicidal tendency is only truly clear after the vengeance for Patroclus has been taken. Achilles embraced the fact he would soon die and focused on defeating the Trojan army. With all ties broken and nothing more to gain in life but the glory and immortality he would receive in death, Achilles finally accepted his destiny and bravely placed his life in the hands of the gods as he went out to prove his worth on the battlefield one last time.
An epic hero is a brave and noble character in an epic story, admired for great achievements or affected by grand events. He has both many strengths and weaknesses. His many achievements make the hero seem almost god-like yet he always remains recognizably human. In The Odyssey, Odysseus is the epic hero. He encounters goddesses, sea monsters, dead spirits, and Cyclopes. While lost at sea for twenty years away from his homeland Ithaca, he faces many dangers. Odysseus will stop at nothing to see his native land once more. He possesses many qualities superior to most ordinary men such as his intelligence, bravery, and strength but his biggest weakness is his arrogance.
Odysseus, the protagonist of the Odyssey by Homer fits the outline of an epic hero because he is courageous, quick-witted, and a natural leader. Odysseus isn’t only known for his muscles, also his clever mind. He is one of the great heroes that possesses both brains and brawn. He is also a hero with outstanding skill and bravery. It is no wonder why many teachers refer to Odysseus as a powerful hero. I believe Odysseus is a hero because he is clever, can overcome obstacles, is very brave, a leader but like all great heroes, he has his weaknesses.
An epic hero is admired for their monumental achievements. In all ways of there lives they live to be an epic hero . Each possess the same characteristics which allow them to be considered an epic hero. Both Characters possess a otherworldly amount of courage, bravery and an overwhelming drive to defeat the supernatural beings in their life, in Achilles case it was his avenging his brother's death and for Beowulf it was protecting the villagers of Heorot from the evil Grendel.
Achilles, the greatest of the Greek warriors, is portrayed as a hero in some ways but, on the other hand, performs some controversial acts in the Iliad. Throughout the entire Trojan war, Achilles spent most of his time pouting in his tent after Agamemnon kidnapped his prized maiden, Chryseis.
In the introduction of the Essential Illiad given by Sheila Murnaghan, Achilles is labeled as “the greatest of the Greek heroes”. In classic mythology a hero is a person of great strength and courage celebrated for bold exploits and is often the offspring of a mortal and a god. Achilles was the greatest fighter among the Greeks or Trojans and feared no man in battle. He was also the offspring of a mortal and a god so by classic mythology definition, Achilles was indeed a hero. A hero is defined by the present day Websters Dictionary as: “one who inspires through manners and actions; an individual who leads through personal example and accomplishments requiring bravery, skill, determination, and other admirable qualities.” Achilles, in no manner, fits this definition. By contemporary standards, he is instead a pathetic villain. Aside from being a kidnapper, rapist and murderer, Achilles proves to be emotionally weak, selfish, and malicious. Many times throughout the Illiad, Achilles is also referred to as “godlike”. The gods of Greek mythology were subject to the same emotions and character flaws as humans, and though privileged to some foresight, the gods had similar mental capacities as humans. What really set the gods apart were their powers (controlling the elements, changing their appearance, etc.), great strength, and immortality. Because of his great strength and apparent invincibility, it is easy to see why Achilles would...
The first requirement of Aristotle's tragic hero is that they are more admirable than the average character. Achilles meets this requirement because of his ability on the battlefield. In The Iliad, the background to the story is the war between the Greeks and the Trojans. This background is not only the basis for the story overall, but is also the basis for Achilles' own story. This begins when Achilles refuses to join the battle because he is insulted by Agamemnon. This decision results in the action that drives the remainder of the story. Later in the story when Achilles becomes angered and goes to the other extreme, launching into battle and killing ferociously. The significance of this is that it places battle as central to both Achilles' story and to what is important in the setting of the story. Importantly, the aspect that makes Achilles greater than most is his ability o...
Achilles is introduced into The Iliad getting into a debacle with the leader of the Greek army, Agamemnon, during the last year of the Trojan War. Achilles starts a quarrel with Agamemnon because he has demanded possession of Achilles’ woman, Briseis, in consolation for having to give up his woman, Chryseis, so that the gods will end their plague upon the Greek soldiers. Achilles does all he can to get his loved one back, but he knows that nothing will waver Agamemnon’s decision. This is when Achil...
In literature, there are two types of heroes, epic and tragic. An epic hero reflects their society’s values, immortalized in the eyes of their people, and shows courage in the face of adverse situations. Achilles is an epic hero because he embodied the honor that was so highly regarded in Greek society, chose to die early in battle and be remembered gloriously rather than living a long anonymous life in his homeland of Pthia, and avenged Patroclus’s death.
Homer makes it clear that Achilles is a man mainly driven by his hunger for glory. Achilles has all the traits of a superhuman from his strength to his incredible ability to fight on the battlefield. Even with these great abilities, it is hard for many readers to perceive him as a hero because of the way he acts. Homer takes this brief time period out of this whole ten-year war just to demonstrate how Achilles cannot control himself when he goes into a rage. In todays world Achilles would not last long as a soldier in any army because he would be court marshaled for insubordination. Achilles ye...