Heroes In The Odyssey

Courage comes in many shapes and sizes, however; when combined with self sacrifice it is truly displays a heroes noble character. Among them, Theseus reigns supreme, always putting himself in harms way to for his fellow countrymen. Theseus’ is a forgotten Prince who is traveling to Athens to rekindle his fathers’ love. However, his family wants him to travel the safe route, yet Theseus has others ideas.“But Theseus refused to go by water because the voyage was safe and easy…The journey was long and hazardous because of the bandits that beset the road. He killed them all, however; he left not one alive to trouble future travelers” (209). Theseus risks his own life for the safety and wellbeing of others to rid the passage of bandits. Despite the obvious dangers he lays his life down so others can live. King Minos regularly picks tributes for his Minotaurs inescapable labyrinth. Theseus unhesitatingly offers himself as one of the tributes. “At once Theseus came forward and offered to be

His bravery and fearlessness contributed to his significant victory. The word "boldly" in general is very important when thinking about Theseus's state of mind. It demonstrates how audacious he is and even suggests how powerful he is mentally and physically. Especially when Hamilton mentions how Theseus wrestles the beast and kills it with his own bare hands, without using any weapons at all to defeat the creature. Going up against any non-human entity in Greek Mythology was a challenge that no ordinary man could fulfill, but the fact that Theseus had the concentration and the enormous power to kill it with his own bare hands without any apprehension really demonstrates the value of being a courageous hero.

In ancient Greece, Theseus would be considered a hero because he was courageous while also being kind. Even as a small child, Theseus showed great courage. For example, when he was a young boy and was looking for his father, he chose travel by land instead of by sea because the land was more dangerous. The land was more dangerous because there were many bandits along the way, but Theseus wanted to become a hero as quickly as possible, so he traveled by land and killed every bandit along the way. Greeks would have valued this courage because in ancient Greece, people greatly admired brave and powerful heroes who wouldn't back down from any challenge. Although Theseus was brave, he was also kind to others. This is why he convinced Hercules not to kill himself after he murdered his family under the influence of Hera. Many other people would’ve agreed with Hercules ending his own life for what he’d done, but Theseus knew that it wasn’t his fault, and that suicide was not the right way. The ancient greeks would have valued this because ancient greece was a violent and dangerous, so someone who was kind and gentle and was also strong was person to be respected.

Now Theseus is older and is in his father’s palace in Athens, the fame seeking youth decided to set his sights on a new journey. A journey which would lead to him being loved and remembered by all the people of Athens. During this time Athens had a severe problem, the neighboring island Crete would attack them every so often. The king of Athens decided to try and compromise with Crete. He stated if Crete left Athens alone for nine years they would send fourteen Athenian youths seven male and seven females as a sacrifice to Minos to be fed to the Minotaur king Minos pet. The king of Athens goal was to build a strong navy, so they could defend themselves from Crete. Surprisingly the king of Crete Mino kept his word and never attacked Athens. Now nine years had come, and it was Athens turn to keep their word. The king of Athens was conflicted as he knew the value of keeping one's word. Theseus seeing this as the perfect opportunity to earn new fame and liken his image in Athens volunteered as the seventh male Athenian youth. Theseus’s goal is to slay the Minotaur and save his fellow Athenians. Theseus promises his father, he will return alive and when he does, he will change the color of the sail on the ship from white to black. In the event the sails stay black his father should assume Theseus has met his demise. After the Athenians arrive in Crete they are welcomed by King Mino’s and princess Ariadne, upon seeing

Both Theseus and Sir Gawain fight with honor and strength, but also their brain. Theseus uses his wits to defeat his opponent and use their weaknesses against them. Sir Gawain was trained by the Romans to use strategies and maneuvers to defeat his enemies. Both strategies are effective and are proven so in their stories. In Theseus' story, he runs into a villain named

If compared to Joseph Campbell’s hero’s journey theory, Theseus is considered a mythological hero; however, not in a historical manner in which he is often accredited.

Theseus has many changes in his character throughout his adventures. These developments in his mindset lead him from being a depressed, weak child, to a strong leader that many look up to.

After capturing the Athens, Minos declared that every nine years, seven maidens and seven youths were sacrificed to the Minotaur however Theseus volunteers as a sacrifice to defeat the Minotaur. “As an Oak tree falls on the hillside, crushing all that lies beneath. So Theseus, he presses out the life, the Brute’s savage life, and now it lies dead” (Hamilton 207) The author uses a simile to compare the beating of the Minotaur with an Oak tree falling on the hillside to show the reader how powerful Theseus is. Even though Theseus used his physical power to kill the Minotaur, an innocent creature born into madness, it was for good reason.

Theseus Versus Patrick Tillman Heroes are made by the paths they choose, not the powers they are graced with -brodi Ashton. To begin with, Theseus is a great hero, even in our time; he drove away Medea with the help of his father, Aegeus. Second of all, Theseus also defeated the Marathonian Bull, a mighty bull that is terrorizing the city of Marathon and Theseus cautiously and captured the bull in the city. Theseus also defeated the Minotaur that was living in the labyrinth in Athens, Greece; the Minotaur was hunting down the seven courageous boys and seven beautiful maidens. Furthermore, the major league football player Patrick Tillman; a great hero even to this day, Patrick was a football player for the Cardinals from 1998 to 2001.

Here, the author demonstrates the determination Jason gains due to his courage to face this seemingly impossible challenge. The author displays a major theme of courage in this quote to exhibit the unbreakable courage of a hero. Through this the author clarifies that even faced with life threatening situations, the real heroes of our world decide to be headstrong. Similarly, after receiving Circe’s hospitality for a year, Odysseus is to leave the island in search of his home and according to Circe ‘They must cross the river Ocean and beach the ship in Persephone’s shore, where there is the entrance to the dark realm of Hades. Odysseus, then must go and find the spirit of prophet Teiresias.

The story of Captain America teaches about the need for courage, while Theseus’ story teaches to not jump to conclusions. In the film Captain America: The First Avenger, Steve bravely decides to sneak behind enemy lines to rescue hundreds of American soldiers, “ ‘You saved nearly 400 men...Your a hero’ ” (Captain America: The First Avenger). Steve bravely sneaked behind German lines to release hundreds of men, including his best friend. No other soldier beside Steve would have the courage to perform such a task. Captain America’s story elaborates on the need for courage to perform any dangerous tasks. In the novel Mythology, Theseus’ father kills himself in desperation after seeing black flags of death on Theseus’ ship, “It was to him the

The greatest four heroes in greek mythology are Hercules, Jason, Theseus, and Perseus. Of these four heroes, one of them rises above the others and establishes themselves as their superior - Theseus. Theseus is a true warrior who is willing to sacrifice himself for the sake of others, being consistently altruistic. Besides his selflessness, Theseus is very wise, is a strong leader, and a good mentor. Theseus is often a major character in heroes’ errands, and is always shown as very selfless.

Jason wasn’t known as just a great hero, he was also very well known for being a master of exploring. Remember that Jason traveled thousands of miles on the seas to get to many different locations. Upon getting to his destinations he would search wildly for his objective, while searching for his objective on the lands he would encounter huge monstrous beasts that most would turn around and flee. One of the first of the many monsters that he encountered was the Minotaur. Jason had actually fought the Minotaur in a labyrinth because he was convicted for the death of the kings son named Minos. He also fell in love with the kings daughter who then gave him a string to escape

At the end of a day, Theseus became a very brawny and a savvy human being. He is the main character that changed throughout the story. Identically like other stories, they both have a nerve-racking villain, in this case, the two villains were called Grendel and Minotaur. Something unique about Theseus’s story is that Ariadne can be considered as an ally or lover.

Notwithstanding, the fact Perseus severed Gorgon Medusa's head, Theseus is braver than Perseus as he is more courageous and intelligent, consequently leading him to be a better role model for adolescents.