...Is Odysseus Is a Hero Or Not? Do you think Odysseus is a hero? Does Odysseus’s actions define and symbolize him as a true hero? A hero is somebody who strives for the greatest and shows kindness, integrity, motivation and leadership. Odysseus is not a hero because he does nothing out of the goodness of his heart. Although Odysseus fought in the Trojan war, he's not a hero because he is self-centered and ignorant. He did not demonstrate heroic qualities because he cheats, steals and lies and those are not ideal heroic qualities. In this essay I will be explaining some of the many examples of his ignorance and self centeredness and his disloyalty, risk taking actions that make him who he is. Odysseus is self-centered. He doesn't take people’s advice and assumes he's correct and everything he will do is going to end up being right. He was receiving advice from Circe about fighting Scylla and decided not to take it. Circe said that the crew must pass between Scylla, a terrible six-headed monster, and Charybdis, who creates a whirlpool that sucks whole ship's down into the sea three times a day. Odysseus neglected all advice he was given, from Circe and from other crew members. Also, he doesn't value other people's lives compared than his. He was strongly encouraged not to fight Scylla , and proceeded to try, considering the fact he risked all of his men's lives and had to pay a...
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...Odysseus lived in the late bronze age of the 13th century B.C and he played a major role in the Trojan War. He committed to fighting in the war and being away from his wife for 20 years. Odysseus’s idea of the Trojan horse helped the Greeks defeat Troy. I feel like Odysseus was a hero because of his contribution to the war, his idea of the wooden Trojan horse, and his loyalty in a spiritual and physical sense. Odysseus was a hero because of his contribution to the war. Without him, the Greeks would have had many complications during the fight. He first had an immense grudge on fighting in the war. An oracle told him that if he fought, he would fight for 20 years and return home as a beggar. He started to pretend he was mad so he started to plow his fields to avoid the war. Unfortunately, the Greeks weren’t going to accept Odysseus not being in the war. One day, Palamedes put his infant son in front of the plow and Odysseus finally gave up his grudge and contributed the next 20 years of his life to the war. Along with him joining, he persuaded Neoptolemus and Philoctetes to join in battle. Odysseus was a very reliant fighter....
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...Odyssey, written by Homer, the main character, Odysseus, had the leadership qualities one must possess to be an epic hero. People in general, always will follow a leader no matter what his or her characteristics are.An epic hero is defined as a human in the favor of the gods who is the main character in an epic poem, has larger than life qualities, goes on an adventure, leads a group of people, and has at least one flaw. All of these characteristics are what make a leader into an epic hero. Odysseus is was exactly what the definition states. There are so many things that can turn an ordinary person into an epic hero and Odysseus is a great example of this. One of the requirements an epic hero must have is the favor of the gods. Odysseus was in the favor of multiple gods and goddesses. Many of them gave him advice or things to help him along his journey. Hermes gave him a magical plant called, Moly, which would protect him from Circe’s drink. Athena was probably the goddess that helped him the most throughout his journey. She warns Odysseus about the suitors back home and helped him fight against them as well as the Trojans. Zeus went both ways about helping Odysseus, sometimes he did and sometimes he did not. The “omen” that Zeus sent when Odysseus faced the suitors is an example of Odysseus being in his favor. Aeolus, King of the Wind, also helped the epic hero. When Odysseus and his crew left the King’s island he gave Odysseus two parting gifts. One of them was a wind that...
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...odyssey there is a character named Odysseus. Odysseus goes on an amazing journey and along his way he goes through many things that mold him into an epic hero. Odysseus also proves his heroism through his behavior. During the story Odysseus often presents us with his great intelligence, his superhuman strength, and also his great leadership and bravery. However though Odysseus does not always act like a hero and does immoral things but when the time is right, the true heroic side of him will come out and we will see how heroic Odysseus really is. Odysseus is a true epic hero and has the the personal characteristics to prove it. Throughout the Odyssey Odysseus presents us with examples of his superhuman strength. That is characteristic...
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...Is Odysseus a hero? Everyone hears the word “hero” from time to time, but has it ever occurred to any of those people, of what a hero is to them? Some define heroes as someone they admire or even someone with super powers. Just know that a hero is someone who is not perfect. Heroes have imperfections like humans do. If one were to read The Odyssey, one of the most controversial questions that would be asked if whether or not Odysseus is a hero. Certainly, some may say he is not because of all the terrible things he did throughout, but remember a hero has flaws. Otherwise than that Odysseus is a hero. Throughout his journey, it is shown that he possesses many qualities of a hero such as intelligence, the strength he shows, the hardships he encounters and how he deals with them, and so on. According to The Odyssey written by Homer, it is shown that a hero has a quality of being a risk taker, a trait Odysseus demonstrates in his adventure. The part where Odysseus stabbed the Cyclopes in the eye is considered a huge risk. “Straight forward they sprinted, lifting it, and rammed it deep in his crater eye” (Homer, 414). The reason is, is because Odysseus already knew what the Cyclopes was capable of. If he was not successful then he along with his crew would become the Cyclopes dinner. Odysseus also shows how smart and cunning he is. When he is talking to one of the suitors he says “ I too once lived in a lofty house that men admired; rolling in wealth I’d often give to a...
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...Odysseus has everything he needs in order to take on the role of hero throughout his journey. In Odysseus’s personality, he possesses the ability to strategize. The protection and care that Odysseus gives to his men help in portraying him as a hero. Odysseus has a goal-oriented mindset, the work and effort he puts into achieving his goal shows the heroic side of him. The character traits worn by Odysseus’s personality make it easy to see the hero inside of him. Odysseus possesses character traits amongst a wide variety that make him a hero in Homer’s, The Odyssey. Having the ability to strategize in all aspects of life aids in the characterization of Odysseus as a hero; Odysseus clearly displays his abilities through his decisions over the...
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...A hero “is a typical man, who is admired or idealized for his courage, exceptional achievements, or noble qualities” according to the dictionary, and most people would probably agree too that a hero is “someone who does something extraordinary for other people or a country. Odysseus, the main character of the Odyssey written by Homer, would probably fit the definition of a hero for some people. However, when going deeper on what a hero is or supposed to be, Odysseus is not even close to own that title. In the Odyssey, Odysseus is revealed as an authentic hero. After analyzing the three major characteristics of a hero which are selflessness, compassion, and intelligent it is seen that Odysseus has only one of them and should not be viewed as...
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...When people think of a hero, they think of people like Batman and Superman. Odysseus on the other hand, is his own kind of hero. At tough times through Odysseus’ journey to get back home, he still proceeds to go home with the same will and force to see his loving wife, Penelope. In his effort to get back to Ithaca, Odysseus uses all his force to protect his men from the dangerous creatures and bad guys of the world. Odysseus is the greatest hero of all time because of his care and safety for his crew, motivation to go back home, and loyalty to his wife Penelope. One thing about a hero is they need to make sure that their city is in line and they need to take care of their people. Like Odysseus, he takes cares of his men like they are his brothers....
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...Isabelle Kim Mr. Wiegman English 1 Honors 21 May 2024 The Epic Hero Mahatma Gandhi once said, “A true hero is not defined by their strength but by their ability to inspire and lead others.” His words inspired others that heroes are not determined by being physical but also by the capacity to motivate and guide others. In The Odyssey, Odysseus shows his heroic traits of his cleverness when he stabbed Polyphemus in the eye allowing him and his men to escape the cave. Additionally, he shows loyalty as part of his traits by staying loyal to Penelope throughout the 20 years despite being offered love by Circe. Ultimately, his pride was his fatal flaw, causing his journey to take 20 years to return home. Throughout his journey, Odysseus shows many heroic traits that define him...
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...Waiting for grade I believe Odysseus is not a hero in modern day standards because heroes in modern day standards wouldn't make decisions such as Odysseus does in the odyssey. Odysseus makes some bad mistakes and confrontations most heroes today would prevent and avoid. Most heroes today have made mistakes but Odysseus has made many. Is Odysseus a hero using modern day standards? No, but in some ways he can be. I strongly believe that Odysseus is not a hero in today's standards because he was not very worthy to his men and/or team this is demonstrated when he encounters the cyclops, Polyphemus for example. This is shown when Odysseus basically watches a couple of his men get eaten by this gargantuan beast and doesn't try to slay it. Afterwards he does stab it's eye with a giant log but he didn't do anything directly after the dreadful murdering.they get away and even after he has blinded the cyclops, he is taunting it on his way off of the island and puts his men in even more danger because Polyphemus is hurling boulders at the ship and nearly hits it multiple times....
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...and are able to sympathize with others. Odysseus, from the epic poem, The Odyssey, by Homer, is a man who obtains these hero-like qualities. Unfortunately, he has been away from home for ten years due to the many obstacles he encountered on his journey back to his home island, Ithaca. In this story, he shows hero-like traits to many people. He defeated the cyclops, Polyphemus, from trapping him and his men, slept with the enchantress Circe, he is able to pass the Sirens, Scylla, and Charybdis who blocked his and his men's path home, encountered walking corpses in the Land of the Dead to meet Tiresias, and cried for his dog,...
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...Killing a hundred eight men doesn't sound hero but in the case of Odysseus from the Odyssey, that's what happens. In Homer's epic poem the Odyssey the hero Odysseus Fill the spot of the hero, however, he does have anti- hero traits at times. Some epic hero Qualities he shows are abnormal abilities, tested on his quest, and restitution. According to the epic hero guideline, a hero must possess supernatural ability. Odysseus showed this in these quotes “He cut down twenty trees used his bronze axe to trim and is deftly smooth them then lined them up” and “by the fourth day he had completed all this work”. Odysseus also showed this ability When He swam for two days straight in a raging waters. Here is an example from the book on how bad the...
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...Was Odysseus a good hero? The generic definition of a hero is “a person who is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities.” There is many ways that Odysseus can be considered a hero, but i feel as though there are more ways he can be considered not a hero. Three reasons that will prove that he isn’t a hero is: Odysseus didn’t take advice from people which led to great consequences, and also Odysseus was very self-centered and didn’t care for others lives, and finally, Odysseus cheated on his wife multiple times. There is multiple occasions that Odysseus was offered advice that would've helped him, but he was just too arrogant to use it. An example of this is when Circe gave advice about Scylla and how he should choose to go to her instead of passing through the whirlpool of Charybdis because of how dangerous it would have been. Odysseus partially took that advice, because he went to Scylla, but when he got there he decided not to fight her. When Odysseus decided not to fight Scylla the 6 headed monster, six of his men died, and it was all his fault....
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...According to Joseph Campbell, “A hero is born among a hundred, a wise man is found among a thousand, but an accomplished one might not be found even among a hundred thousand men.” In The Odyssey, Odysseus tries to get his men home safe, but he fails. Along the way, Odysseus and his men have many obstacles and stuff to prevent them. Odysseus shows he is a hero because he is smarter, stronger, and emotionally stronger than other men. Odysseus shows he is a hero when he is able to string his bow, but the other can’t. Odysseus talks to a goddess and says how he got lost from his home and how it’s taking forever to get back. Odysseus explains, “He saw the townlands and learned the minds of many distant men, and weathered many bitter nights and days in his deep heart at sea, while he fought only to save his life, to bring his shipmates home”(1.6-9)....
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...Odysseus the Great Do you ever thought of how hard it is to be a hero? How about what a hero really is? In Homer’s timeless epic The Odyssey,Odysseus of Ithaca is the hero. A hero is someone who is loyal to his country, family and gods. Odysseus, king of Ithaca because he is loyal to his country, family, and gods. “Odysseus leaves the ship and rushes to Circe’s hall. The god Hermes stops him to give him a plant that will act like as an antidote to Circe’s power” (page 7580).This shows loyalty to his country because Odysseus is willing to eat something that might kill him to save his men. “I sent out two picked men and a runner to learn what race of men that land sustained.They fell in, soon enough, with lotus eater, who showed no will to do us harm, only offering the sweet lotus to...
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