Emilie Mika
Mrs. Miller
December 22, 2016
Is Odysseus really a Hero? Not everyone is perfect. Even the Gods have flaws. Odysseus, as he is shown by Homer is a epic hero, but as it appears to evidence in the book and movie the real hero is Penelope. An epic hero as shown in literature has to excel in skill, strength, and courage, succeeds in war and adventure, values honor and glory, usually has a guide, battles demons or monsters, is generous to his followers but ruthless to enemies, is a man of action, accepts challenges and sometimes invites problems, sometimes make rash decisions and takes unnecessary risks, meets monsters and temptations, encounters women who tempt him, descends into darkness (often the underworld), and achieves his goals. So by literatures rules he is a epic hero but no one seems to look at Penelope. Penelope also has to deal with monsters (the men that come to suit her(Book 19)), she excels in skill, strength, and courage, she values honor and glory, she is a woman of action, she does except challenges and invite problems, she also has to make rash decisions, and one of Odysseus’ final faults is not being able to see the things he did wrong.
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(Book 10) With this Odysseus brought out one of his many flaws, he chooses lust over love. This effects his choices throughout the rest of the story along with his relationship with Calypso. Him, along with his crew chose to stay with Circe and they ended staying there for 5 years, but they did not know it it had been 5 years, they thought it had been 5 days. Lust can take over your
Odysseus is not a hero because he constantly puts his men in danger and makes decisions without thinking. Odysseus is sailing away from Cyclops Island and he is teasing Polyphemus about escaping. The crew tries to get Odysseus to be quiet, but his ego gets in the way, and he tells Polyphemus his name; leading to Polyphemus cursing him and his men to make the journey home slow and painful. Odysseus tells the Phaeacians in his story, “So they spoke, but they could not persuade my great-hearted spirit; and I answered him again with angry heart: “‘Cyclops, if any one of mortal men shall ask thee about the shameful blinding of thine eye, say that Odysseus, the sacker of cities, blinded it, even the son of Laertes, whose home is in Ithaca’””(Homer.9.500-506). Odysseus comments that his crew tried to calm him down and get him to stop talking, but he
Is Odysseus, the main character of Homer’s The Odyssey, really an epic hero? An epic hero embodies several heroic traits such as; having superior or super-human strength; being intellectual and courageous; and being a strong and responsible leader. An epic hero struggles and is overwhelmed with difficulties. An epic hero is on a quest of self discovery, war or some sort of goal. In the Odyssey, Odysseus is on a quest to return home to Ithaca after ten years of war in Troy. Odysseus, during his quest, is forced to venture through a merciless Cyclops, angered Gods, deeply obstinate Goddesses, the underworld, and determined suitors that are after his wife Penelope. Odysseus surmounts
One of the opposing sides reasons for Odysseus being a hero might be that he killed the suitors for Penelope. This is not a good reason because the suitors were not guilty enough to be killed. The only thing they did wrong was steal from him and try to marry his wife. How were the suitors supposed to know Odysseus wasn’t dead? Imagine what Penelope would feel like if she did not have the suitors constantly bothering her, which kept her from thinking about Odysseus all the time. Odysseus had no good reasons to kill all of the suitors. He let his rage consume him which turned him into a
Lastly, Odysseus is an epic hero is that Odysseus was born from royalty and had supernatural help on his quest. Odysseus, like any other, has many fantastic qualities and a handful of flaws. He had self- control and turned away from nectar that would make him forget everything about his dear home. He was brave and often got himself and his friends out of trouble. Odysseus, in all his bravery and courage, had flaws.
In Homer’s The Odyssey, both Odysseus and Penelope demonstrate heroic qualities. However Odysseus is the better hero according to. One reason that I think Odysseus is a hero is because of the way he can deceive his enemies for the good. A good example would be the way he deceived the Cyclopes into thinking that his name was “nobody”. The second reason is that he was a strong leader. He led his men through the toughest challenges and overcame them like Cerce’s island where the men were ready to leave because some were turned into pigs. Why I think Odysseus is the hero instead of Penelope is because even though Penelope has good traits she did not achieve as much or go through as much as Odysseus. Odysseus went through many life-threatening challenges
A major part of being a hero is trying to protect the ones you love from any harm, hurt, and danger. Odysseus, however, does not protect his family from harm because he leaves Ithaca for so long. In particular, Odysseus does not protect his wife from hurt when he cheats on her. Every minute of each day that Odysseus was gone, Penelope was mourning the absence of her husband, not knowing that he was deceiving her. Odysseus not only cheats on Penelope once, but twice. First, Odysseus is held sex captive by Calypso, a nymph goddess, on her island for many years. This means that at some point Odysseus had fallen for temptation. Odysseus then cheats on his wife yet again with another goddess named Circe. Although this affair does not last as long, Odysseus still sets
Ten years after the fall of Troy, Odysseus a great hero has yet to return to his home in Ithaca. It begins with Athena and Poseidon who helped the Greeks during the Trojan War. Athena turned against the Greeks and convinces Poseidon to do the same. The Greeks are hit by storms on the way home and many ships are destroyed and the fleet is scattered. The war and his distress at sea keep Odysseus away from Ithaca for twenty years.
As a final point, being brave, strong, and making a quick decisions was many kinds of being a hero and that’s what Odysseus had that make him a hero. Odysseus with his men going through a lot of challenges but in the end he is the only one survived and alive. With this in mind, the epic poem showed us how big the difference between the people 3,000 years ago and people in this generation. The author shows in the epic poem how whimsical the world 3,000 years ago and how powerful the gods in their maturity.
In literature, a bold character or hero is often the principle character. In the epic poem The Odyssey there are many immortals, but only one hero, Odysseus. The differences between the immortals and the hero are few. The god-like Odysseus is plagued with the human weaknesses of pettiness, self-doubt, and dependence on the pity of others.
In The Odyssey, the reader is easily able to distinguish that Odysseus is a hero in the story. He is a god-like figure. Odysseus’s wife, Penelope, is a hero and seen by many readers as such especially females. Both possess characteristics of heroes and they deserve to be considered such but that does not mean that they are the true hero of the story. Their son Telemachus is the true hero in The Odyssey. The reader should be able to identify with him the most and realize everything that has happened in his life and he deals with it with extreme heroism. He handles the situation in his life the way every human being should.
In the story The Odyssey the main character Odysseus is not a true hero. A man with so much hatred and anger should not be someone to hold to a high prestige, or want to be. The needless killing and disrespect to other people 's wishes is not part of what a hero should be, or is to endanger the people that he is in charge of. This is why odysseus is not a true hero.
Odysseus: a hero in every way. He is a real man, skilled in the sports, handy with a sword and spear, and a master of war strategy. Most of the challenges and adventures in his return voyage from Troy show us this even if we had no idea of his great heroic stature and accomplishments in the Trojan war. I found in my reading of the Odyssey that most of the trials the gods place upon him are readily faced with heroic means. These challenges are not
A hero accepts who he is as an individual, but strives to change himself for the better. In the epic poem, The Odyssey, by Homer, the main character Odysseus is a valiant king who embarks on a life-changing voyage. While traveling from Troy back to his home in Ithaka, King Odysseus overcomes daunting obstacles, and in doing so discovers his place in the world. Odysseus is truly a heroic figure because he demonstrates courage, improves his character, and wins the support of the gods.
Throughout The Odyssey Odysseus goes on many adventures through epic lands, encounters dangerous creatures, and has affairs with goddesses. At home in Ithaca Penelope is surrounded by suitors trying to take everything and rising a son on her own. Penelope is the true hero being everything. She stays true to many attributes of a hero, more than Odysseus. She is clever and a fast thinker always thinking of new ideas to persuade and trick hundreds of suitors. Odysseus isn't the real hero Penelope is and she is much
A Homeric epic hero is considered to be above a normal human being. The traits of a typical epic hero are strength, loyalty, courage, and intelligence. In fact, the Macmillan Dictionary for Students defines a hero as "one who is admired and looked up to for valor, achievements, and noble qualities" (483). Odysseus fulfills all of the requirements for an epic hero and more. He demonstrates his ability to be an articulate speaker, and his poise aids him on his journey. His endless curiosity has gotten him into dilemmas, while his superb displays of strength and cunningness have helped both him and his crew escape danger. His arrogance sets him back, but his loyalty is what drives him forward on his long and treacherous expedition. In the