Brazen and wary, opposites with similarities, Odysseus and Mahatma Gandhi. In The Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus is the King of Ithaca and a Greek hero, he fought in the ten year Trojan War and journeyed home for yet another ten years. Mahatma Gandhi fought for Indian independence from England and had to go through much adversity. While Odysseus and Mahatma Gandhi both shared dedication and devotion towards their main objectives of returning home and bringing independence, incongruously the pair dealt with their setbacks and handled their personal lives in a very different manner.
Odysseus and Gandhi both have strong dedication and devotion when it comes to accomplishing their goals. Odysseus has been away from home for twenty years, trying to
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The leaders create solutions involving their strengths of power and reason respectively. Odysseus is a fantastic warrior and often uses violence, combat, or insolence to advance in his missions. He is brazen. In order to be prepared, Odysseus would “plan the slaughter of his foes” rather than confronting them with peace (Fagles XVI. 264). The warrior uses violence as his problem solver and often taunts his enemy, which tends to push him further from his goal, creating more problems. On the contrary, Mahatma Gandhi is a peaceful man with an amicable lifestyle and was willing to pay the price of his freedom or even his life to support his cause. He is wary. In 1919, Gandhi “called for a Satyagraha campaign of peaceful protests and strikes” and later on got taken into custody for the rebellion (“Mahatma Gandhi Biography”). Unlike Odysseus, Gandhi strives for tranquility and displayed numerous levels of propriety, even if it meant he would end up in prison. Gandhi’s route of leadership makes it possible for him to get his point across in a more effective way by not antagonizing those he stands against. Along with contrasting strategies to approach issues, Odysseus and Gandhi have completely different values and perspectives of personal
Although some could possibly call Odysseus, the protagonist of Homer’s The Odyssey, a great leader, the fact that he fails to earn his men’s respect, endangers his men’s lives repeatedly and allows them to die due to his own selfishness states otherwise.
Gilgamesh and Odysseus are similar not only in their physical appearances but also in the way the two of them deal with life's dilemmas. Although Gilgamesh and Odysseus possess great strength and sharp minds, their own flaws blind them similarly, which does not aid in their quest for what they desire. As part of their heroic character, the gods must guide them in order to reach their goals. In every epic from antiquity, the greatest challenge a hero must overcome is not a monster or an evil tyrant but themselves. They wish to have glory, honor, and a place in history forever. Doing something that no one else could ever do again is what a hero desires to do. From Gilgamesh to The Odyssey, epic heroes constantly have to reinvent themselves to overcome their own weaknesses and shortcomings. Each has to learn from their previous mistakes, using the gods? help, so they can fulfill their dreams. In doing this, Odysseus and Gilgamesh will reach their goals.
Ulysses Everett McGill from “O Brother Where Art Thou” is a man of action whereas Odysseus from “The Odyssey” is a man of morality. Judging primarily on these statements, whom appears to be a man that one should follow? Many are attempting to justify how can two such great leaders be compared to one another? Everett is a worthy representation of Odysseus because of their similar attributes such as boasting and dishonesty. Yet at times both can be braver than any other, sharing not only attributes, but also similar backgrounds as well.
The mission of Gandhi’s life was to help the people of India free themselves from British rule. Many people have struggled for independence. They have fought bloody battles or used terrorism in an attempt to achieve their goals. Gandhi’s revolution was different. He succeeded as an independence leader with the use of nonviolent methods. The young Mohandas Gandhi did not seem as a boy that would become a great leader. He changed as he studied in Britain and practiced in South Africa. He fought for the rights of Indians in both South Africa and India. Gandhi believed that all people in the world are brothers and sisters. He didn’t hate the English. Actually, he saw a lot that was good about them. His nonviolent means of revolution was referred to as satyagraha, which is a combination of two Sanskrit words, satya, meaning truth and love, plus agraha, meaning firmness. Many people were influenced by satyagraha.
Odysseus is unique among epic heroes in that his strength comes not from inhuman powers or exceptional physical ability, but mainly from his mind. Odysseus, regularly uses cunning, guile, and superiority of intellect to overcome obstacles. In this paper I will compare Odysseus to other epic heroes, both in terms of character and in terms of responses to crises, comparing his reactions with those of other heroes placed in similar situations.
There are numerous heroes throughout “The Odyssey,” but none of them are as significant as Odysseus. “The Odyssey” is a narrative poem written by Homer (around 800 and 600 BCE) to show the numerous adventures and experiences Odysseus goes through. Throughout the Odyssey, Odysseus a prominent Greek epic hero is on a quest to return back to his home in Ithaca; to his wife Penelope, and his son Telemachus. Just like real life, not all heroes are picture-perfect; they all have imperfections. In this case, Odysseus is sometimes insolent, and discourteous; but he is still considered an epic hero because of the many heroic qualities he endures. Odysseus proves himself to be an outstanding hero in various ways such as showing loyalty, intelligence, bravery, strength, and courage which are all some of the most momentous qualities found in a hero. If a true hero can prove they are a true hero, makes them a true hero.
In conclusion, Odysseus conveys the qualities of a true hero, He shows fortitude, bravery and he portrays qualities of management. Odysseus shows these qualities throughout the journey in which he faced many challenging people and places. However, Odysseus overcomes each and every one by having only one set goal: to get home. As long as he reached that goal, nothing could stop him. Like a true hero, Odysseus never lost these traits, no matter how bad of a mess he was in.
From the analysis above, although he never fully matches Odysseus either in wisdom or courage, we cannot deny their highly resemblance in initiative, sensitivity and socialization. Influenced by his father not only by hearing the great deeds spread by people but also fight with him for vengeance, he follows his father’s step and comes to his manhood.
...s throne. Odysseus, even today, is considered a modern day hero; the adventures he experienced on his way to Ithaca were portrayed in unlike any other literature piece. However, like most heroes, Odysseus’ flaw was his hubristic attitude towards the gods, particularly in the beginning of Homer’s Odyssey. Some actions, especially against Poseidon, caused his trip to be delayed, but he eventually made it home, and will forever be with Penelope, like it was meant to be since the beginning, for the gods spared his life despite his acts of hubris.
... (XI, 225-227). Odysseus’ self-centeredness caused emotional and physical harm to those he cares about, preventing his ability to become a hero.
This tale coincides with the times in Greece. This was a time that art and Philosophy were extremely important and respected by the people. Odysseus was a new type of hero that didn’t win by overpowering his opponents, but by using his mind to outwit them. Manners also seemed to play an important role to Odysseus, as he was learned to be polite and generous to strangers and in the end punished those who weren’t.
Homer's two central heroes, Odysseus and Achilles, are in many ways differing manifestations of the same themes. While Achilles' character is almost utterly consistent in his rage, pride, and near divinity, Odysseus' character is difficult to pin down to a single moral; though perhaps more human than Achilles, he remains more difficult to understand. Nevertheless, both heroes are defined not by their appearances, nor by the impressions they leave upon the minds of those around them, nor even so much by the words they speak, but almost entirely by their actions. Action is what drives the plot of both the Iliad and the Odyssey, and action is what holds the characters together. In this respect, the theme of humanity is revealed in both Odysseus and Achilles: man is a combination of his will, his actions, and his relationship to the divine. This blend allows Homer to divulge all that is human in his characters, and all that is a vehicle for the idyllic aspects of ancient Greek society. Accordingly, the apparent inconsistencies in the characterization of Odysseus can be accounted for by his spiritual distance from the god-like Achilles; Achilles is more coherent because he is the son of a god. This is not to say that Achilles is not at times petty or unimaginative, but that his standards of action are merely more continuous through time. Nevertheless, both of Homer's heroes embody important and admirable facets of ancient Greek culture, though they fracture in the ways they are represented.
In the tale The Odyssey, Odysseus, the epic hero, is trying to return to Ithaca from the Trojan War. Odysseus, the son of Laertes and Anticlea, is the King of Ithaca (Hionides). Throughout his journey, Poseidon, the God of the Sea, is trying to make it impossible for him to return home. He finally reaches Ithaca by the help of the goddess Athena. In Oedipus the King, Oedipus, the son of Laius and Jocasta, is the King of Thebes. Oedipus was destined for failure even before his birth (Hionides). He receives an oracle t...
Every day in our lives, we look around and we wonder about the people around us. There is good and evil in our world and we the people are the ones that are easily influenced by those events whether its poverty, disease, war, or even if were just people trying to figure out the kind person we are. We have the power to choose our own path, just like the characters in James Joyce and Homer’s stories: Odysseus and Leopold Bloom. Both characters have shown different qualities and traits that showed the readers why they are the heroes in their own perspective stories. Odysseus is a man who left his home of Ithaca, his wife and child, to fight in
Gandhi is motivated by religious means; he believes that everyone is equal in God’s eyes. He gets involved in several movements for equality, and he stresses non-violence very strongly. The Indians are very mad because British rule continues to limit their rights. They are supposed to all get fingerprinted, and their marriage laws are invalid. Gandhi’s followers vow to fight their oppressors to the death, but he discourages them from violence.