He has learned that a man is not as strong as he wants to be; a man is only as strong as the gods want him to be. Without the help of the gods Odysseus would not be the truly heroic leader he has become. He embodies all that is an epic hero, and upon his return home to his palace in Ithaka and his victory over the suitors Odysseus is definitely a larger than life hero.
A main reason why Odysseus is not a hero is because he manipulated the truth and achieved his victories through lies. Achilles, the hero from the Iliad explains his thoughts on the matter, “I hate that man like the very Gates of Death / who says one thing but hides another in his heart” (Knox, 37). Bernard Knox who wrote the introduction to the Odyssey explains how Odysseus prides himself on his ability to cover and manipulate the truth. Bernard also says, “He will gladly employ deceit to win victory” (Knox, 38). A hero is a man of honor with a noble purpose and heart, but Odysseus has neither. The main characteristics of a hero are that they can do heroic things, but retain their nobility. If we sacrifice the truth for progress then we are no
Odysseus is a figure in the Epic Poem, “The Odyssey,” who is established as brave. He displays several actions that can bring justification to that. After the disaster dealing
In “The Odyssey” by Homer, Odysseus is portrayed as a hero who got lost at sea along with his men on his way home to his island Ithaca from the Trojan War. On their journey home, they travel to many places and anger many beings including gods. Throughout this, Odysseus is seen as a great hero who is strong and intelligent but also arrogant and greedy. Many people view as a terrible hero because of these flaws, however, Odysseus is a great hero because of his intelligence and strength who can overcome any obstacle.
One reason Odysseus is a hero is that he made it back home to Ithaca and completed his quest. “Odysseus, laden with gifts, is returned to Ithaca in one of the magically swift Phaeacian ships” (Homer 790). Although Odysseus returns home without his men, he made it through all the hardships he faced, with the help of King Alcinous and his kingdom. Secondly, Odysseus is a hero because he cares about his men. “Odysseus makes them swear not to touch the god’s cattle” (Fitzgerald 784). Odysseus knows that if his men eat the cattle, they will die. He cares for his men by making them promise because he does not want them to die. Lastly, Odysseus cares about his home and family. “Odysseus’ arrows hit him under the
Odysseus is a hero because when his men got to the area where the sirens are he tells them to put wax in there ears so that they don't get attracted by their voices. Yet knowing that Circe told him to put wax in his mens ears, he could have forgotten all about that and him and all his men could have died. He also saved his men at the cave of the cyclops by helping them escape by hanging under the sheep's while they go out he also came up with the idea of stabbing the stick in the cyclops eye blinding him which gave the men of odysseus more cover to escape
One experience where Odysseus had to be brave, is when he encounters Scylla, a six headed monster, and Charybdis, a whirlpool that swallows up the sea and anything that passes by. As Odysseus and his men make their way through the whirl pool, the waters start to whirl and they started to get sucked in. Odysseus encourages his men to keep rowing, as they venture through. “Friends have we never been in danger before this? More fearsome is it now, than when the Cyclops penned us in his cave? What power he had! Did I not keep my nerve and use my wits to find a way out for us (603-608)?” Right after making it through the whirlpool, they saw the thing they dreaded the most. Heading toward them in the sky was Scylla. Swift as hawk the brutal beast sweeps down by the boat of Odysseus and takes 6 of his men, one for each head,eat them. This must have been been a tremendous to experience.” She ate them they shrieked there, in her den, in the dire grapple, reaching for me- and deathly pity ran me through at that sight- far the worst I ever suffered questing the passes of the strange sea. We rowed on. The Rocks were now behind; Charybdis, too, and Scylla dropped astern...
Despite Odysseus’ noble stature, he is just as human and vulnerable as anyone else. The weaknesses he exhibits give some insight into
In summation, Odysseus is a true hero. Through his bravery, level-headed attributes, and his respect and faithfulness for important figures Odysseus receives the title of hero. He successfully fits the definition of a hero. Although often hard to determine if a person was a hero it is easy to see that Odysseus meets the requirements. Through examination any person can be determined as a being a hero or not.
Odysseus, king of Ithaca, is well known throughout Greek mythology to be an epic hero. As a hero, Odysseus embodies both the classical characteristics and also makes many mistakes. Heroism ultimately comes with both noble qualities and flaws, and Odysseus is no different.
The Odyssey by Homer is said to be one of the most gripping tales for the contest of an ideal hero. An ideal hero in an adventurous tale is said to be a perfect man with great courage, no character flaws and always thinks about what is best for people around him. Of course, people would argue that Homer did not go through the whole struggle of writing this epic poem just to prove that Odysseus, the protagonist is an impostor, but there are a lot of cases throughout this story where he makes questionable choices. Odysseus is driven to many wanderings during which he sees many wonders and endures many sufferings to finally reach his family which would be a perfect definition for a hero according to a dictionary but if we look deeper Odysseus is man who is self-centered, rash and ignorant to other people's values and needs.
To the ancient Greeks the definition of “hero” is very different than it is today. In The Odyssey, an epic poem written by the ancient Greek poet known as Homer, the story of Odysseus, king of Ithaca and the conqueror of Troy, journey home. This journey takes ten years and in those years Odysseus has many more adventures and mishaps. Throughout these happenings, Odysseus is called a hero, a title that he does not deserve. Odysseus shows qualities such as abysmal leadership abilities, courage to the point of hubris and loyalty to his home, but not to his family.
The Odyssey by Homer is an epic about how Odysseus is unable to get home after about 16 years until he learns that he needs the gods and can’t do everything on his own. In the Odyssey, Homer clearly develops Odysseus as an epic hero, he is a great warrior,he travels over vast settings, and he is recognized as a national hero.
As you can see Odysseus demonstrates many heroic qualities through his courage, cunning, and generosity. Odysseus has to undergo many hardships that test him mentally and physically as a human being. He is faced with many challenges and temptations that most people would have succumb to. Even though Odysseus is not the perfect hero because of his rare moral flaws, he should still be considered a hero due to the fact that he is still a human.
A hero is a man or woman that has been recognized for an outstanding achievement. The generic definition of a hero that most people state is someone that does an action for a person out of the goodness of their heart. In The Odyssey, by Homer, Odysseus is a hero according to the definition, but not to most people’s thought of a hero. The only hero, Odysseus is a war hero from the Trojan War. Throughout the book, Odysseus does not do things that are out of the goodness of his heart. He is shown to be selfish and clueless to the needs and views of his crew and others.