Odysseus Defines a Hero in The Odyssey
How do you define a hero? Some may define a hero as someone with great courage and bravery; to others a hero might be a strong warrior and leader who wins battles; others may define a hero as one who uses his brain as much as his brawn to win. In Homer's epic poem, Odyssey, Odysseus is portrayed as a hero by every definition.
Courage and bravery are two things that Odysseus has a lot of. This is evident when he defies the god Poseidon, telling him that he is unstoppable. Odysseus then gets back on his ship on starts to sail on Poseidon's waters back to Ithaca. Pride is good to have, but in Odysseus抯 case, it抯 a little too much. On the other hand, he does things that make him a great hero. When Circeturned his crew into animals, he climbed straight up a mountain, risking his life just to save his crew. He will do anything to get back to Ithaca and see his wife and son, no matter how crazy it is. He even goes into the underworld to speak to a prophet about how to get back to Ithaca. Being brave and courageous is all about being willing and able to go to the extremes to help or possibly save people or even a place in need.
As well as having courage and bravery, Odysseus is also a strong warrior and leader. Living as king of Ithaca, he leads his fleet of warriors across Poseidon抯 sea into a great battle against the Trojans. It is here where Odysseus and his fleet of warriors defeated the Trojans because of his great leadership. Knowing that he cannot defeat the Trojans from outside the immense walls, he comes up with a different plan. A plan that will get him through the walls with a little help from Poseidon. He makes a giant wooden horse (Trojan Horse) and has a person present it as a gift to accept a peace with them. The Trojans accept the gift and open the walls for the horse, not knowing that inside the horse was Odysseus and a small fleet of soldiers. The Trojans had a great celebration for what they thought was a victory. As the Trojans finally went to sleep, Odysseus and his fleet crept out of the horse and completely slaughtered the Trojans in a very bloody battle. Ithaca was victorious and the soldiers could now return back home happy, all because of the great leadership of Odysseus. Odysseus and his soldiers were mighty warriors and did have the strength to defeat the Trojans, but Odysseus used something that was more powerful than his strength - intelligence.
Intelligence is the one thing that Odysseus has the most of and also the reason why he not only defeated the Trojans, but also survived the great journey he went through to get back to Ithaca. Throughout the story, Odysseus often hesitates before acting. This being because he uses his reason and his gift of intelligence to evaluate what the situation is. This patience is one of his most important attributes. It has saved him and his men many times, and can be easily seen in numerous instances throughout his journey, not only when he makes the wooden horse, but times such as when he disguises himself as a beggar when he finally reached Ithaca. Here he used his patience and waited for the right moment to reveal himself. Many people in his situation would抳e been too anxious to wait and would immediately show who he was, risking a chance of being killed. Odysseus hesitated and used his reason to think of a better way to show himself. He succeeds and things work out just the way he wants.
Like many heroes, Odysseus does have weaknesses such as his chronic cheating problem and his problem with pride. Nonetheless, Odysseus survived all that happened to him. His courage, bravery, wits, and endurance enable him to come through each and every challenge and eventually arrive home safely. Thus proving himself worthy of being a true hero.
When you think about Greek Epic heroes, Odysseus will most
likely come to mind. Odysseus is the main character in
Homer's poem "The Odyssey." "The Odyssey" is a narrative
poem that describes Odysseus' adventures and obstacles in
his quest to return home to Ithaca, where he is king, from
the Trojan war. Odysseus has been gone for two decades. All
the other chieftains have returned home, however, Odysseus'
whereabouts are unknown.
One of the things that makes Odysseus a Greek hero is that
he is favored by the gods. In the Odyssey the gods help
Odysseus many times. When Poseidon struck Odysseus' ship
with lightning, Odysseus was able to survive because a
goddess named Ino gave him a magical cloak. The cloak
prevents Odysseus from drowning. When Odysseus' men are
turned into swine by Circe, Hermes the messenger god gives
Odysseus a magical herb that prevents Circe from using her
spells on him. Due to this Odysseus was able to gain favor
in Circe's eyes and he convinced her to turn his men back
to normal. Towards the end of the book, when Odysseus
returns to Ithica, Athena disguises him as a beggar. The
disguise was to fool the suitors, who are eating Odysseus
out of his home and are harassing his wife Penelope, and to
get Odysseus access to the palace.
The ancient Greeks used to say that a true hero must show
respect to the gods by giving them sacrifices and praying
to them. Odysseus gives sacrifices to the gods in many
instances in "The Odyssey." When Odysseus goes to Hades ,
the underworld, he sacrifices a ram and an ewe to the gods.
When Odysseus defeats Polyphemus, the Cyclops, who is the
son of Poseidon the god of the sea, Odysseus gives
sacrifices to the gods. Lastly when Odysseus defeats those
horrible suitors that outnumbered him by so much Odysseus
realizes that it was the gods who helped him do this. The
feats of strength and the ability to overcome
insurmountable odds could not be performed by a mere mortal
without help from the gods. Therefore he makes sacrifices
to the gods. When Odysseus is in trouble he always shows
that he is depending on the gods by praying to them. The
fact that the gods usually listen to him shows that he is
well liked by the gods. In order to be a Greek hero you had
to be liked by the gods since religion was such a big part
in their lives.
Odysseus, with the help of the gods, can survive adventures
that kill most other men. Odysseus travels to the island of
the Cyclopians. The Cyclopians are giants that have one
eye, they don't fear the gods because they believe that
they are better than the gods and they eat people. They
represent the opposite of what Greek men should be.
Odysseus and his men meet Polyphemus the cyclops.
Polyphemus being a cyclops eats some of Odysseus' men.
Odysseus with the help of the gods figures out a plan to
escape and he does. Scylla is a ferocious monster with six
heads that kills most men that pass by her island. She
kills six of Odysseus' men. Odysseus prevents her from
killing himself and more men . There is another ferocious
monster named Charybdis. Charybdis sucks in water from the
sea and creates a whirlpool that kills any ship that passes
by. Odysseus passes by her. His crew is killed and his ship
is destroyed in the whirlpool but Odysseus alone survives.
There is an island that Odysseus passes by with monsters
called Sirens on it. The Sirens sing beautiful songs that
lure ships toward them. The ships then crash into the
island and the people are killed. Nobody has heard the song
of the Sirens and survived. Odysseus is warned of this
island by a god. He then puts plugs in his men's ears
because Odysseus wants to hear the song, he ties himself to
the front of the boat and tells his men to tighten his
ropes if he tries to get away. Odysseus and his men survive
and Odysseus is the only mortal to hear the song of the
Sirens and live to tell it.
The pictures and sculptures of the ancient Greeks showed
only men with perfect bodies and men in battle. Therefore
in order to be a true Greek epic hero you had to be both
strong and good in battle. Odysseus showed both of these
signs. Odysseus travels to the land of the Phaeacians. The
Phaeacians have many games such as the discus throw and a
javelin throw. Odysseus wins all of these events. When
Odysseus gets back to Ithica Penelope, thinking that
Odysseus her husband is dead, has a contest in which she
will marry the winner. The winner must string a bow and
shoot an arrow through twelve axes on the floor. All of the
mighty suitors try, but none of them come even close to
triumph. Odysseus, being dressed up as a beggar, tries it
and succeeds. The suitors were all mighty men but Odysseus
was the only one to triumph. This shows his greatness.
After this a war breaks out and Odysseus befriended only by
Eumaeus the swineherd and Malanthius the goatherd defeats
all of the suitors. The fact that Odysseus was able to
defeat the suitors definitely shows that Odysseus is truly
a great warrior.
Odysseus is a true Greek epic hero . When he is able to use
power given to him by the gods, he does so willingly.
However this alone would not make him a hero. This would
only make him a servant of the gods. Odysseus uses his
intellect, farsightedness, and insight to control his fate
as best as he can. For example, when he returns home,
rather then revealing his true identity Odysseus uses
patience and caution to devise and execute a plan that will
defeat the suitors. Odysseus is now acting independently of
the gods and his heroic personality triumphs.
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Odysseus, the Hero
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An individual抯 characteristics are the key to their behavior. Homer抯 The Odyssey takes place about 700BC in the Mediterranean, near Greece. The epic tells of a man who left his home twenty years earlier to fight in the Trojan War. His mission now is to make his way home to Ithaca. Odysseus shows good and bad traits throughout the epic that influence his way home . (65 words)
The courage and wisdom of Odysseus help him survive through the whole epic. For example, Odysseus kills the Cyclops while the giant is asleep, even though the monster ate two men minutes before (P.110). Odysseus has courage to stand up for his beliefs and never lets the opinion of others keep him from doing what is right. Some think Odysseus shows his courage throughout the epic because he is proud and does not want to leave any job unfinished. Furthermore, Odysseus by plugs the sailors?ears with wax when going through the Sirens, whose sweet singing lures sailors to there doom (p. 141). Odysseus often hesitates before acting, because he uses reason to evaluate the situation, which saves him and his men many times. Odysseus knows that there is no progress without the wisdom to back it up. Using courage and wisdom throughout life allows a person to see greatness in life.
As great as he was, Odysseus still had some weaknesses, most importantly that of his pride and sensualness, that prolongs his voyage back to Ithaca. This is clearly evident in the episode on the Cyclopes?Island when Odysseus and his men are safely away from the island when Odysseus brags about his exploits making Polythemus hurl giant boulders almost sinking the ship (P. 114). This incident hurt Odysseus more than just losing a few men, because Poseidon makes his travel home very long and arduous. This proud characteristic shows Odysseus has a lack of respect for others and that he is selfish. Furthermore, Odysseus stays with Circe for one year before his men remind him of home (p. 116). This characteristic of sensualness demonstrates that Odysseus is unable to resist temptation. This hinders his mission; setting him back in his journey. Odysseus抯 weaknesses in life downsize him, making himself less powerful.
The story portrays how an individual抯 characteristics can affect the outcomes of their life. Nonetheless, Odysseus survives all that happens to him. His courage, wisdom, intelligence and endurance enable him to come through each and every difficulty and bring him home safely.
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