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Examples of hubris in Odyssey
Examples of hubris in Odyssey
The role adversity plays in developing a persons character
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Changing oneself can only be done in one way: experiencing something that is the result of one’s flaws. Experience is the best way to truly understand who one really is. In Homer’s Odyssey, Odysseus goes on a journey and discovers how his excessive pride and temptations are negative to himself and his men. At the beginning of Odysseus’ journey, he has hubris and shows how easily he is affected by temptation. But as he goes through hardship and difficulty throughout his long journey, he develops to become a more patient character.
Odysseus strongly shows both his good and bad characteristics early in the epic. Even though his heroic traits are clearly seen at the start of the epic, his flaws are the ones that stand out. He displays lots of hubris,
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temptation, and foolishness towards the beginning of his journey. This is clearly seen twice at the scene of Odysseus and the cyclops, Polyphemus. Temptation is shown when Odysseus and his men the cave of the cyclops. Out of temptation, Odysseus says to his men “‘Old shipmates, friends, he rest of you stand by; I’ll make the crossing in my own ship, with my own company, and find out what the mainland natives are-for they may be wild savages, and lawless, or hospitable and god fearing men’” (IX. 84). Temptation is a major flaw that Odysseus has. His lack of patience and inability to stay on task bring him and his men great danger. Odysseus’ curiosity leads his men into trouble with the Polyphemus. Odysseus’ hubristic traits are represented during his escape from Polyphemus.
He and his get trapped in Polyphemus’s cave due to his temptations. Odysseus lies to Polyphemus and says his name is “Nobody”. As they cleverly and sneakily escape from the cave of Polyphemus by hiding under the herd of sheep, Odysseus’ hubris takes over. When they are sailing away from the cave safely, Odysseus and his foolish self shout ‘s his real name to Polyphemus, which only brings them the wrath of Poseidon. “‘Kyklops, if ever mortal man inquire how you were put to shame and blinded, tell him Odysseus, raider of cities, took your eye: Laertes; son, whose home’s on Ithaka!’” (160). Odysseus’s hubris is greatly represented in this passage. Odysseus’ hubris is one of his greatest weaknesses. His hubris causes his journey to be more difficult, long, and dangerous. When Polyphemus hears Odysseus’ real name, he wishes a curse upon Odysseus, his men, and their ship. He asks his father, Poseidon, god of the seas, to create a long, difficult journey home, for Odysseus’ men to die, and for the ship to be destroyed. This curse is a result of Odysseus and his foolish self. He displays how his foolishness results in risk of losing himself and his men. These passages show Odysseus’ weakness at the start of the epic. As he experiences intense and extreme events, he begins to …show more content…
change. At the start of the epic, Odysseus is foolish, arrogant, and agog.
But as Odysseus encounters life changing events, he develops to become a more humble and patient man. Odysseus demonstrates his patience through many scenes. He shows his development through his forbearance with his ability to restrain himself from anger and his reunion with Penelope. As Odysseus is on his journey home from the long Trojan War, the suitors in Ithaca harass Odysseus’ wife, Penelope, took over his house, and feasted on his livestock. Once Odysseus’ has found out about this, he is filled with rage and revenge. Despite how angry he is, he learned from experience that he must have patience in order to succeed. Odysseus disguises as a beggar and encounters the suitors. Some of the suitors torment Odysseus because of their authority of the beggar. Odysseus holds in his rage and allows this harassment. “And like a drunken fool he kicked Odysseus’ hip as he passed by. Not even jogged off stride, or off the trail, the lord Odysseus walked along, debating inwardly where to whirl and beat the life out of this fellow with his stick, or toss him, brain him on the stony ground. Then he controlled himself, and bore it quietly” (XVII 297). By Odysseus restraining his rage and not fighting back, he demonstrates great patience and tolerance. Odysseus realizes that patience leads to good results. Odysseus shows greater strength by demonstrating his newfound tolerance. This shows his evolvement from his
impatient self at the beginning of his journey. The next scene where Odysseus strongly shows his patience is his reunion with his wife, Penelope. He hasn’t seen Penelope in twenty years, and when he finally returns, he takes caution instead of reuniting with Penelope right away. He decides to test her loyalty to him incase if she has lost her faith in Odysseus. He also decides to wait until he reveals himself to Penelope to do his business with the suitors first, then go home with everything dealt with as Odysseus. “A smile came now to the lips of the patient hero, Odysseus, who tuned to Telémakhos and said: ‘Peace: let your mother test me at her leisure’” (XXIII 126). Odysseus wants to test Penelope to see if she still is faithful to Odysseus. He also wants to deal with the suitors (kill them) before he reveals himself to Penelope so that both he can go home problem-free, and so the suitors will not be prepared for his attack. Despite that Odysseus hasn’t seen his wife in twenty years, he is able to restrain himself from his reveal to Penelope. This shows that he has grown tolerance and great restrainment from temptation. He is not as easily affected by temptation like with Polyphemus. This shows his growth from the start of his journey, to the end of his journey. Odysseus shows a large development throughout the epic. He grows from a hubristic and sensitive hero, to a tolerant and patient man. At first, his hubristic traits and his sensitivity to temptation is easily seen at the moment with the cyclops, Polyphemus. His foolish actions lead him and his men into great danger. It results in a longer and more difficult journey back home, along with the death of his men. When he finally returns alone from the long journey, Odysseus shows his patience and his restraint from temptation through a couple of scenes. First he withdraws himself from attacking a drunk fool after he kick Odysseus in the hip. Odysseus is able to hold himself back and restrain himself from rage. Next, Odysseus waits to reveal himself to his wife Penelope after twenty years of solitude. Odysseus shows that he is patient and does what he needs to do, even if it means not reuniting with is wife right away after twenty years. Odysseus is a dynamic character in this epic. These scenes show that Odysseus has grown from cocky and sensitive fool to become a patient and tolerant man. It is shown how arrogance and temptation both lead into risky and dangerous situations. Sometimes being patient and humble can even save lives.
One of Odysseus's many qualities is determination. He remains determined throughout the entire saga to get back to his family. During Odysseus's Odyssey he encounters many obstacles, beast, god, and nature. Odysseus must get through all of these hardships before he can make it back to his family and home. On his way back Odysseus is next to Charybdis and she swallows his boat. He must holds on to the branches of a fig tree to survive, "But I clung grimly, thinking my mast and keel would come back to the surface when she spouted. And ah! How long, with what desiree, I waited! Till, at the twilight hour...the long poles at last reared from the sea"(12.560-64). Odysseus shows his determination to get home, because it would be easy for him to just let go and drown, but no Odysseus hangs on so he can see his wife again. Once he is at home he finds suitors at his house. Odysseus kills one of them and the others beg for mercy, ??Not for the whole treasure of your fathers, all you enjoy, lands, flocks, or any gold put up by others, would I hold my hand??(22.65-67). Odysseus is determined to get revenge on all of the suitors and he will not be satisfied until they are all dead. Without his strong will and determination Odysseus would not have made it through his trials. Although determination is a must for a journey such as Odysseus?s cunning is also just as essential.
In the Hero’s journey, The Odyssey, the main protagonist, Odysseus, changes in a way which helps him gain self-knowledge. Odysseus ' experiences transformed his personality from how he was in the beginning to the end, by leading him through a heroic journey, also known as a quest. The real reason for a quest never involves the stated reason, and this is no different with Odysseus. As the story developed, many of Odysseus’ sides were exposed through the challenges he faced. Out of the countless dangers and obstacles every step back home, him and his crew have only acquired minimal character changes. Even though they are minimal, they are those which take many decades to achieve.
When people think of Odysseus, they think of a great, cunning, warrior. Who wouldn’t see him that way, he fought his way through Troy and embarked on a journey back home to see his son and wife again. On the surface Odysseus seems like a genius but in Homer’s, The Odyssey, Odysseus shows many instances where he outwits his foes but his foolishness heavily outweighs his smarts; he becomes boastful after a victory which leads to more hardships, he leaves precious cargo in the open for his brutish crew to mess with, and refuses help from the gods which nearly leads to his demise.
Over a lifetime, people grow into smart people with different personalities and different interests. In The Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus does something just like that. Faced with many hardships and rough decisions to make, Odysseus has to either become different for the better or stay the same forever. The definition of change is to make or become different. Over time in the epic, Odysseus changes for the better of his future. Before Odysseus returned home, he didn’t care and simply nothing mattered. When he returned home, he was a completely different person. His change to himself got him home to his wife and son as a more mature person.
In his part of the story Odysseus is trying to get him and his men free of the cyclops so they can go home. The cyclops is Poseidon's son and Odysseus offended Poseidon when he harms the cyclops, which is very disrespectful. These are two huge examples that show why Odysseus is a bad
To start, within the course of The Odyssey, Odysseus displays hubris through many of his actions. The most prominent instance in which Odysseus shows hubris is while he and his men are trying to escape from the Cyclops Polyphemus. They drug the monster until it passes out, and then stab him with a timber in his single eye. Polyphemus, now blinded, removes the gigantic boulder blocking Odysseus’ escape, and waits for the men to move, so he can kill them. The men escape from the cave to their boat by tying themselves under flocks of rams, so they can easily slip by. Odysseus, now proud after beating the giant, starts to yell at Polyphemus, instead of making a silent escape. Odysseus’ men ask him to stop before Polyphemus would “get the range and lob a boulder” (436). But Odysseus shows hubris by saying that if they were to meet again, Odysseus would “take your life” and “hurl you down to hell!” (462; 463). Polyphemus, now extremely angry with Odysseus, prays to his father, Poseidon, to make Odysseus “never see his home” again, and after which, throws a mountain towards the sound of Odysseus’ voice. (470). Because of Odysseus’ hubris after blinding Polyphemus, Poseidon grants the prayer, and it takes Odysseus 20 years to return home, at the cost of the lives of all his men.
In the epic poem, The Odyssey, Odysseus’ heroic deeds are recounted through a narrative, written by Homer, that describes his arduous journey of his return from the Trojan war to his homeland of Ithaca. Loyalty, patience, and determination, are necessary traits to survive the perilous, painstaking journey that Odysseus embarks upon to return to his native land. Loyalty is exhibited when Odysseus goes to rescue his crewmen on Kirke’s Island despite the probability of jeopardizing his own life. Odysseus presents patience throughout the entirety of his journey, but most specifically when his crew opens the bag of wind, which causes much regression on the embark homeward. Determination is displayed when Odysseus is on Calypso’s island.
Before letting him leave the island, Circe tells Odysseus that he must face Scylla, a sea monster, and Charybdis, a whirlpool. Circe says, “Better by far to lose six men and keep you ship” (274). Odysseus is told beforehand that no ship could pass unscathed, but he chooses to not to tell his crew. He knowingly sacrifices his crewmembers’ lives and has no qualms about it, which shows his inner selfishness. He makes sure to protect his own life, but he sees his crew as disposable. Homer characterizes Odysseus this way in order to convey his views about humanity: humans are instinctively selfish. Odysseus also carelessley kills his remaining crew when he taunts the Cyclops. After hearing Odysseus’s name, Polyphemus prays to Poseidon and asks that Odysseus “never reaches home” but if he is destined to return, make sure he returns “a broken man—all shipmates lost, alone in a strangers ship” (228). If Odysseus had never told Polyphemus his name, he and his crew might have made it home more quickly and safely. Instead, his hubris causes an inescapable curse. Odysseus cannot bear the thought of forfeiting his fame, which leads to even more hardship on his quest to return home. Homer uses Odysseus to demonstrate the danger of egotistical
Homer’s The Odyssey, a magnificent story of lust, deceit, greed, and heroism, still fascinates scholars and casual readers alike today in the same way it fascinated its audience at the time it was written. The Odyssey, a journey of determination, patience, and virtue, tells the tail of Odysseus, the main character, on his voyage home to Ithaka after the end of the Trojan War. Odysseus goes through many unforeseen trials and tribulations, which exemplify his character. During these different happenings, Odysseus makes decisions that do not correspond to his character.
With the Odyssey, Odysseus learned a big lesson in humility. The greatest example of this is in the last five books or so within the story. He has to dress, act, and live like a beggar in order to regain everything he had lost. While he was a beggar, the suitors treated him horribly. Antinous, leader of the suitors, was the worst of them all. He was the first to mistreat Odysseus and planned to kill Telemachus. He was also the one that would abuse him physically and verbally for some time to come. Also, if that weren’t enough, he planned a boxing match for Odysseus to be in to watch him get beat up. All this was happening and the other suitors were most likely following their leader in whatever he was doing. Odysseus had to control himself the whole time this was happening. If he had lost his temper, the suitors would have killed him, his son, and most likely taken over the kingdom. That didn’t happen though. Odysseus learned self-control and humility. He may not be perfect at it, but going through all the humility made him a better man. Along the same topic, he was a king going through this humility. It would be one thing for a peasant to go through it, but a king? This made it even harder for Odysseus. He had rank above all the suitors and could rightly kick them out of his kingdom. Instead he waits for the right time and kills them all. The “pre-journey” Odysseus would of thought of himself invincible and probably would have died trying to get his kingdom back.
A person’s character is developed and influenced by the experiences they undergo during their lifetime. For instance, someone who was isolated during adolescents will likely have difficulty communicating with others just like an abuse victim will be more inclined to have trust issues. All throughout The Odyssey, Odysseus goes through major misfortunes that continued to develop his character even after his return home. The decisions and judgments that he makes determine the evolvement in his character. Odysseus’ character was altered throughout the chorus of Homer’s epic poem The Odyssey, progressing from reckless to cautious, impulsive to patient, and egotistical to relatively humble.
One of the major themes of Homer’s Odyssey is the importance of cunning over strength. This also happens to be the case with Odysseus and his long ten year journey home from fighting in Troy. Odysseus uses his intelligence over strength to ‘fight’ through tough times and bring himself home to Ithaca. Odysseus uses his intelligence when he has his men tie him down while passing the Sirens, so he himself will be able to hear their beautiful song, but not be entranced by their singing. He also uses cunning to escape from the Cyclops’ cave without being harmed. He then uses his cunning by storing away all of the armory, shields, and knives from the suitors so he is able to kill them easily.
Odysseus is a wise and strategic man who becomes a better person because of the lessons he learns on his journey. Odysseus learns to have hope and he learns not to have so much pride in himself. He also learns that people cannot change their fate, and that years of grieving can create a hard heart.It is hard for people to enjoy their goals in life if they do not think about the journey they took to get to where they are in life. After all, people learn a lot on the journeys they venture through and become stronger people from them.
...nd deceit, he respected and honored the gods, and he respected his crew as well. Odysseus proved himself a great man by becoming humble but still retaining the amazing qualities that he already had. Overall, Odysseus was a great man capable of many things. He would put his own life on the line to save someone else’s. Putting one’s life on the line to save someone else’s the ultimate sacrifice. It is one that not many people are willing to make. People in this world are selfish and do not want to give of themselves for others. Though Odysseus starts out this way, he certainly did not end up this way. By the end of the epic poem, Odysseus is the picture perfect person. Everyone hopes to achieve this status; by some it has already been done. As a result, the world becomes a better place, and with progressions such as these, it is becoming better every second.
In conclusion, Odysseus displays the good and heroic characteristics of cleverness, bravery and strength throughout his actions in response to the challenges he faced in The Odyssey. Like any great heroes in literature, Odysseus does have some character flaws, such as pride and violence. But his good characteristics makes him a hero to root for and agree with, despite any flaws that he has.