herody Free Essays on Homer's Odyssey - Odysseus Is Not A Hero

827 Words2 Pages

Odysseus Is Not A Hero

A hero is "a man noted for his special achievements" according to the

dictionary, but if you ask most people what a hero is, you will get the same

general response. They will probably say "someone who does something for other

people out of the goodness of his heart." Odysseus, who is the main character

of the book "The Odyssey" written by Homer, would fit the dictionary's

definition of a hero; but if you go deeper, looking at what people feel a hero

is, he doesn't even come close. In the book, Odysseus does nothing out of the

goodness of his heart. Even if Odysseus fought in the Trojan War, he is not a

hero because he is self-centered and ignorant to other people's values and needs.

There are multiple examples of Odysseus being self-centered, such as not

taking people's advice. Odysseus was given advice from Circe that said not to

try to fight Scylla even when she takes six of your men, but Odysseus tried to

fight her and he lost three more men than the six he already lost. He also

neglected to take the advice from his crew member, Eurylochus. Eurylochus told

Odysseus not to send men to see what was on Circe's island and because he sent

them anyway, they ended up being turned into pigs. Odysseus also neglects other

people's lives when he takes action; such as when he tried to fight Scylla after

strictly being told not to. Because of this ignorant action, he lost three more

men on top of the other six. He also sacrificed men when he waited at the

Cyclops' home for "gifts." Odysseus was very self-centered where real heroes

are not.

Odysseus also lacks the part of the hero profile which includes having a

good heart. Odysseus definitely does not have this because he kills people

without giving them a chance. Odysseus killed every one of the suitors in cold

blood when most of them didn't commit a crime suitable for the death penalty.

He also killed all of the maids who were raped by the suitors as if the had a

choice in the matter. Odysseus also doesn't care about his crew members.

More about herody Free Essays on Homer's Odyssey - Odysseus Is Not A Hero

Open Document