The “Odysseys” is a great and epic piece of English literature that has been famed for its many adventures and bouts of good vs. evil since it was first written. It will remain a great piece of literature for many years to come. The obvious success of the “Odysseys” is due to Odysseus who is the main character and the story’s hero.
Famed for his brawn as well as his brain, Odysseus is one of the first of many mythic Greek heroes. He is a man blessed with great bravery, valor and superior athletic abilities which gives him the edge over most enemies or competition. He can be overwhelmed with curiosity which sometimes gets him into trouble. However, with his cunning intelligence, he has the ability and the gift of great reasoning and evaluation
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of the situations he is put into during his journey. Although he is a great warrior and has great intelligence when it comes to difficult situations, he has some major weaknesses that interfere with plan to get home, such as his curiosity to want to go to the land of the Cyclops who are an uncivilized race of giants who only have one eye.
This in return gets some of his men killed.
Odysseus has a list of great strengths such as intelligence, courage, confidence, nobility, ambition, and great athleticism. However I think his greatest strengths are his cunningness and his creativeness with his ideals in solving any problem or difficulty he faced during his journey.
In the beginning of book nine of the odyssey we learn how much self control, determination, and will power Odysseus has when he faces the Lotus-Eaters. He also shows us his great leadership and authority over his crew. He is telling the story of how he escaped from the Lotus-Eaters and he
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says “They headed out and made contact with the Lotus-Eaters, Who meant no harm but did give my men Some lotus to eat. Whoever ate that sweet fruit Lost the will to report back, preferring instead To stay there, munching lotus, oblivious to home. I hauled them back wailing to the ships, Bound them under the benches, then ordered All hands to board their ships on the double Before anyone else tasted the lotus.” (IX. 92-99). He is able to forcefully get his crew back to the ship and focus on their main goal, which is for them to get home. This shows his great ambition and also his longing to be back to his homeland and his family. This also gives us a great picture of how determined he is when faced with an obstacle to overcome it in order to get home. He displays how cunning he is in book nine of the odyssey when he faces the troubles of the Cyclops in the land of the Cyclops. Whenever the Cyclops asks him a question or makes a statement, Odysseus has a very clever answer and he chooses his words wisely while engaging in conversation with the Cyclops. In book nine of the odyssey Odysseus says this “Cyclops, you ask me my name, my glorious name, And I will tell it to you. Remember now, To give me the gift as you promised. Noman is my name. They call me Noman My mother, my father, and all my friends too.” (IX. 360-365). In return to what Odysseus has told him the Cyclops replies back and says, “Noman I will eat last after his friends. Friends first, him last. That’s my gift to you.” (IX. 367-368). So even before Odysseus knows what he is going to say, he has come up with a brilliant plan and is two steps ahead of the Cyclops even though he knows he could possibly die. In the end he ends up spearing the Cyclops thru his eye and blinding him while he is in a drunken sleep from all the wine that he drank. This in return allows him to escape under the bellies of the sheep with his remaining men and free them from the Cyclops’s cave. Because Odysseus told the Cyclops that his name was Noman, the other Cyclops thinks that he is crazy because he keeps repeating to them that Noman did this to him. Odysseus has two noticeable weaknesses in this part of the story which causes more trouble than he needs in order for him and his crew to make it back home.
Odysseus’s first weakness in this journey was his overzealous curiosity because if he would not have ever gone into the cave with his men, some of them would still be alive and all that time would not have been wasted and they could have focused their efforts and made it back home sooner. His second weakness is his pride because he tells the Cyclops his real name and doesn’t know that he is the son of the god of the sea Poseidon. When the Cyclops tells his father who blinded and tricked him, he makes Odysseus’s journey even more treacherous and causes him to lose even more time away from home. So if he would have bypassed then land of the Cyclops he and his crew would have made it home
sooner. I believe this to be his worst or his lowest point in the entire story because his curiosity fuels his arrogance and his over confidence makes his men pay the price and some eventually get killed. For someone who is in charge of the lives of others, I think this is one of his biggest failures and biggest mistakes because essentially he is in charge of their health and their safety and he puts them in danger. A hero is characterized by their outstanding achievements or noble qualities and is a person who finds the strength to overcome any obstacles thru perseverance. So I think that although Odysseus had a lot of flaws and at times wasn’t the best leader and allowed his men to get hurt or be put in danger, he is truly a hero because he was faced with many difficulties and he overcame every situation through his athleticism, strength, courage, valor, will power, intelligence, and his cunning creativity.
One of Odysseus’ traits is bravery. One example of Odysseus’ bravery is when he injures a Cyclops that is 5 times his size, “I drew it from the coals and my four fellows/ gave me a hand, lugging it near the Cyclops/ as more than natural force nerved them, straight forward they sprinted, lifted it, and rammed it/ deep in his crater eye. 329-332” This quote shows how brave Odysseus and his men are to face the Cyclops. Odysseus was intelligent to think about this idea, but he was brave for actually following through and doing it. Odysseus was also brave for fighting Penelope’s suitors even when he was outnumbered, “Now shrugging off his rags the wiliest fighter of the islands/ leapt and stood on the broad doorsill, his own bow in his hand/ he poured out at his feet a rain of arrows from the quiver/ and spoke to the c...
The first bad decision that Odysseus made was poking Polyphemus’ eye out. Even though it was necessary to escape, poking the sea god’s son’s eye out is never a good idea. To make matters worse, Odysseus bragged about his accomplishment later to the cyclops. The only reason why it took Odysseus ten extra years to get home was because Poseidon was angry at him for severely injuring his son. Also, if Odysseus would not have revealed his name to the cyclops, Polyphemus would never have known who poked his eye out. In return, Polyphemus would never had told his father, Poseidon, that Odysseus injured him and that he should give him a hard time on his journey home. So, if Odysse...
Being so cunning and intelligent allowed Odysseus to be such a tactical person when it came to battle. Odysseus' reason for being so good at battle is the fact that he was a fearless person and would stop a nothing.
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.
Odysseus was within arms reach of home but because of how naive he was he was forced to keep going on his journey. After all of Aeolus’ hospitality and such a powerful gift Odysseus is still mindless at what this meant and because of him not being cautious, he could not complete his adventure. It’s surprising knowing that after being on a powerful god’s bad side and being forced back to sea, that Odysseus can be even more of a fool.
Throughout The Odyssey, Odysseus shows us a vast amount of bravery and courage; the primary thing a hero needs. In book 9, when Odysseus battled Polyphemus (the Cyclops) to try and save the lives of all the crew members held captive in the cave, he was demonstrating bravery the entire time because, the true meaning of bravery is when you have the ability to challenge fear, or danger which is exactly what he did in this situation. Even though Odysseus was afraid to confront the Cyclops, he did it anyway in order to get him and his crew members out of the Cyclops cave alive; despite the 2 men the Cyclops ate. Another way Odysseus demonstrates courage and bravery was when he didn’t give us on his crew even when things got rough for example, when he faced Scylla knowing he would lose se...
In The Odyssey, book nine and ten written by Homer, Odysseus constantly embodies the principal characteristics of a hero which are : cleverness, leadership, and selflessness. Thus, this character is regarded as an idol among the other characters and greatly captures the reader’s sympathy for his choices and the fruit to his actions in life. First, Odysseus displays cleverness in Book Nine when he tricks the Cyclops Poluphemus that his name is “nobody” in order to escape the horrors of the cyclop’s cave. He states: “Nobody--so my mother and father call me, all my friends” (Homer, 18). Second, Odysseus is a brave leader of his army especially in book ten when he displays leadership by motivating his comrades in keep trying to sail despite the
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.
As you might know, many of the characters in Homer’s tale of The Odyssey are known for their physical strength as their main tool used to strive for success. On the other hand, there is Odysseus, who uses something a little different to help him make his way home. His impressive oratory skills help him to escape some sticky situations. His spectacular ability to disguise himself within a crowd gives him advantages that others do not have. Each plan that he effortlessly conceives to find his way home was outstanding and shows his abundance of intelligence. Although many men use their physical strength as their main power to succeed in their travels in The Odyssey, Odysseus’s brains are his strongest
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.
necessarily welcomed by Odysseus but accepted as part of his role. He is the hero, its his lot to wield sword and shield and bravely face the next army or monster. Then we begin to see more of the challenges do not require our hero to fight his way out. These threats are the most difficult problems for Odysseus to overcome. The tests like the isle of the lotus eaters, Circe's island, and Calypso's island were the hardest challenges for Odysseus. His encounter with Polyphemus the Cyclops, the Laestrygonians, Charybdis and Scyylla, and the kingdom of the dead: these dangers were on his level, heroic battles where he could fight valiantly and if it was his fate, die valiantly. The challenges where heroic means were not a solution to overcome the danger were the most formidable tasks that could easily destroy Odysseus. Odysseus and crew are finally on their way home after the war, after nine days on the rough sea, they arrive at the isle of the lotus eaters. The lotus eaters are a group of people who have a lot of fun, thanks to their consumption of the lotus flower. This confrontation provides Odysseus and his crew with the first of their challenges (Odyssey 9:1-103). This threat is definitely one that a heroic confrontation is unlikely. This danger is not any physical threat to him or his men. The lotus eaters create a situation where Odysseus and his crew are tempted by a gift. This gift of immediate gratification threatens to take away several their basic heroic element. By eating the lotus flower they would find immediate happiness, however they would never make it home. They would died old men on that island without their families, they would be broken in a sense. Without the memories of their homes, wives, and children they would be just a shell of who they were. Odysseus would sooner die than to never see Penelope again and be ...
The second characteristic Odysseus possesses that shows that he is an epic hero is the confrontations he faces throughout his journeys. His first confrontation is at the land of the Cicones where he and his men get carried away by greed and stay until the Cicones turn on them and kill six men per ship. His next confrontation is with the Lotus Eaters. The Lotus Eaters feed his men some intoxicating fruit and make them forget about going home. Odysseus has to carry them off the island and lock them up on the ship to continue on his journey.
To begin with, Odysseus is an intelligent and clever man. He is a hero because he has the capacity to understand the situations and think through the struggles they are going to face. Odysseus is put against all the odds possible, and at times it seems like the gods are against him. Odysseus tricks the Cyclops, Polyphemus, in a very strategic way and handled the situation effectively. “My name is Nohbdy: mother, father, and friends, / everyone calls me Nohbdy (Homer 498). Odysseus’ cleverness is brought out because he conceived an idea that would be adequate enough to trick a Cyclops. Later when Polyphemus is stabbed, he screams, “Nohbdy, Nohbdy’s tricked
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.
The challenges that Homer give the protagonist is all a test of character. Odysseus continues to pass the obstacles with flying colors, but his arrogance is the one flaw that is in dire need of correction. Some of the many challenges Odysseus overcomes on his voyage home is defeating the Cicones, surviving the Island of the Lotus Eaters, outsmarting the Giant Cyclops, saving his men from Circe, Traveling to Hades, passing between Scylla and Charybdis, escaping Calypsos’ Island and many more. Odysseus survives these obstacles and uses his smarts to escape near disaster. Often times he was the only one to survive these things and his crew often lost their lives due to their own stupidity. “‘We left the island and resumed our journey in a state of gloom; and the heart was taken out of my men by the wearisome rowing. But was our own stupidity that had deprived us of the wind.’”(P127 L75-79) Odysseus shows how he is an extraordinary man by being much smarter than his crew and the men that follow him. As a part of this stripping of Odysseus, Homer shows that Odysseus is a collective symbol of Everyman. On the one hand Odysseus is a great warrior, who is extremely intelligent, noble, and a great man. Although he has many god- like qualities he is still human. He shows that he is human and like every man, because of the fact that he still has major flaws. The