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Odysseus Is A Dishonest

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In the book The Odyssey, a general from Ithaca, named Odysseus, has gone through a long journey to get home from the war in Troy. He and his crew have faced many rigorous unexpected challenges on their way home. On this journey, Odysseus has tried to be the hero and have everyone come out alive, but he was not successful. The actions of Odysseus, during his journey, does not qualify him as a hero. He is dishonest to his crew and friends and he takes them for granted. He also takes credit for many successes while blaming people for his mistakes. Odysseus is not only dishonest but irresponsible for protecting the lives of his crew and others. Odysseus is dishonest to his crew and friends which has caused him to have many setbacks on his journey …show more content…

Athena has a great interest in Odysseus and tells him everything he should know on his journey home so he can come back alive. For instance, when Odysseus reveals himself to the suitors, she makes their spears miss him while they are in a fight. “But Athena made their shots all come to nothing, one man hitting the doorpost, another the door, another’s bronze-tipped ash spear sticking into the wall.”(Book 22, lines 272-275). She also releases him from being trapped on an island for seven years, and she influences his son to keep faith that his father is still alive. Without her he would have died. He falsely said that he escaped and didn’t get any help. Another example of this was when Odysseus was told to watch out for the whirlpool, Charybdis, and a sea monster, Scylla by Circe. With Circe’s warning in mind, they got to the whirlpool and sea monster but didn’t brace for the worst. He also put on his armor, which he was told specifically not to do, to defend himself from the monster. When they were next to a whirlpool a big wave hit the boat. “Scylla, seized six from our ship, the six strongest hands aboard. Turning my eyes to the deck and my crew, I saw above me their hands and feet as they were raised aloft. They cried down to me, calling me by name that one last time in their agony.” (Book 12, lines 252-257). This shows that even when his men were …show more content…

His curiosity costs him the lives of his men. He decides to take a group of men to go see what these creatures look like. When then go to a cave of one of the Cyclopes they are trapped in by a huge stone the Cyclopes has placed in the doorway. Odysseus, as usual, strikes a conversation with the Cyclopes only to have some of his men eaten. “His hands reached out, seized two of them, and smashed them to the ground like puppies.” (Book 9, lines 280-282). If Odysseus didn’t take his men to the cave, or even think about exploring these monster beings, then his men wouldn’t have been eaten alive. He also decided to stay in that cave for a day while many of his men get were getting eaten by the Cyclopes. Odysseus had to do this because he was ‘thinking of a plan’ to save everyone

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