As stated by Joseph Campbell, “a hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself.” When one contemplates what defines a hero, varied qualities emerge. While one person might imagine a chivalrous knight battling a fearsome foe, another may have Jane Addams or Oskar Schindler come to mind. People, in general, tend to focus on the positive qualities of heroism. The flaws, however, are frequently overlooked. In Persepolis, Marji Satrapi is a young girl growing up, in Iran, during the fall of the Shah, the Islamic revolution, and the Iran-Iraq war. In The Odyssey, Odysseus is a Trojan War veteran trying to return back to his home, Ithaca. Odysseus and Marji possess some of the same heroic qualities, whether it …show more content…
be positive or negative in nature. Marji and Odysseus both express an abundance of sharp intellect and quick wit. Odysseus’s journey is defined by his intelligence. He faces a multitude of obstacles where he must use reasoning and rational thought to solve the trial. For example, Odysseus and his crew are captured by the Cyclops, Polyphemus. Odysseus quickly begins to formulate a plan to escape. Odysseus tricks Polyphemus by telling the Cyclops that his name is “Nohbody”. This prevents aid from any other Cyclops who live on the island. Odysseus proceeds to blind Polyphemus and safely escapes with the remaining crew members. This experience demonstrates Odysseus’s ability to comprehend situations and to configure a solution in a short amount of time. Marji is presented with a similar, more realistic situation. Through one pivotal panel, Marji’s quick wit and craftiness are revealed. The panels depict Marji being pursued by one of the Guardians of the Revolution (Satrapi 134. 1-4). The source of the confrontation was Marji’s western appearance (i.e. her jean jacket, sneakers, and Michael Jackson pin). When asked by the Guardian as to why she was wearing each article of clothing, Marji fashioned a response, without hesitation, for each item. When the excuses were dismissed, Marji burst into tears and rambled on about a spurious maudlin plea. After her stellar performance, the Guardian released Marji with a warning. This indicates not only Marji’s maturity, but her cunning nature as well. Intellect is a prominent component in the making of any heroic tale. Marji and Odysseus display their intellect throughout their respective novels quite often. Arrogance and pride is a fatal flaw in most heroes.
Both Marji and Odysseus exhibit this weakness throughout the novels they appear in. Odysseus’s arrogance is the most prominent of the two. Odysseus’s arrogance and narcissism play a major role and is vital to his development and journey. This imperfection is discerned throughout The Odysseus repeatedly. The first instance where his excessive pride is shown is the incident with the Cyclops. Instead of leaving Polyphemus and humbly accepting his good fortune, Odysseus makes a fatal mistake. A mistake that will cost him his crew and his youth. Odysseus allows his hubris to overcome him and he taunts the blinded Cyclops with cruel insults. He torments Polyphemus and reveals his name, but what is unbeknownst to Odysseus, is the Cyclops’s personal connection to a god. More specifically, he is the son of Poseidon. After this incident, Poseidon is infuriated and livid. Poseidon would not forgive the indignity that Odysseus had visited upon his son and Zeus could not save Odysseus from Poseidon’s wrath. Poseidon caused Odysseus and his family constant misery, but he did not kill the haggard wanderer; he just kept driving him away from his home and his happiness. Odysseus displays his conceit with the Sirens, as well. Odysseus tells his men that he is supposed to listen to the bewitching song of the Sirens. In reality, he merely wants to listen to the Sirens’ song. This reveals Odysseus’s pomposity and narcissism. Marji’s arrogance is not stereotypical, like Odysseus’s, and is more difficult to define. Her arrogance presents itself in a childish, innocent form. In “The Party”, Marji and her friends learn that Ramin’s father killed 1 million people (Satrapi .-). Due to her arrogance and blind sense of justice, Marji puts nails between her fingers and plans to harm Ramin for his father’s actions. Luckily, Marji’s mother intervenes and explains to Marji that everyone is their own individual and the actions
others committed are not another’s fault. In another instance, Mali and her family move in with the Satrapi’s, temporarily. Due to this, Marji is forced to share her room with Mali’s young sons. In this series of panels, the two boys ask Marji if she has any toys. She responds by conveying a facial expression of superiority and tells the boys that she is mature and only possesses books. After that, she orders the boys to go to bed. Although, Marji’s arrogance is not as extreme and prevalent as Odysseus’s, it is still present and existent. A hero can be anyone: a person of any status and of any gender or background with any sort of skill set. A hero can be a god, a human who is lucky enough to obtain godly powers, or a child who believes in the equal power of all humans. A hero must act or desire to act in order to achieve a purpose. The act can be grand and depth-defying or it can be small and filled with humility. Both types of acts can hold the same impact. Odysseus and Marji are examples of these heroic traits; it is through them that the indefinable can be defined. They represent the range of people that can be heroes; from warriors to oppressed children, they give the people who read about them hope that they too can be heroes.
A true hero will go through immeasurable lengths to benefit not him or herself, but the people around them. Heroes are neither selfish nor uncaring. They seek every opportunity they get to help those in need. One must have also gone through the entire hero’s journey to be deemed a hero. He must start off naïve and inept and through his challenges, transform into someone worth calling a hero. Most importantly, a hero is not perfect. He must listen to other’s ideas and utilize them. However, in The Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus disrespects his crew men and the gods’ advice, lets hubris interfere with his men’s lives, and is unfaithful to his wife Penelope.
Opposed to that of common thought, superman is not the only type of character that fits the heroic persona. Although “superheroes” typically come to mind when one thinks of a hero, there are many other ordinary people capable of extraordinary things. A hero is a person who takes the initiative to set out on a journey of internal growth. During this symbolic journey, one truly finds himself and betters the lives of other mentally and physically. In Homer’s epic poem The Odyssey, Odysseus takes the path of heroism, resulting in the reborn spirit of a selfless, modest hero. During the process, Odysseus is faced with many challenges that he must overcome in order to earn the noble title. Odysseus proves himself to be a well-deserving hero because he is intelligent with his decisions, he displays cleverness, and he rids himself of hubris.
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.
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
Arrogance has been the downfall of many great leaders including Odysseus. Examples of Odysseus’s arrogance are clearly discernible at the Cyclops’s island. “Here we stand, beholden for your help, or any gifts you give – as custom is to honor strangers. We would entreat you, great Sir, have a care for the gods’ courtesy; Zeus will avenge the unoffending guest” (Homer 900). This exhibits Odysseus’s arrogance as he threatens a much stronger foe with the god’s power, not his own. “Cyclops, if ever mortal men inquire how you were put to shame and blinded, tell him Odysseus, raider of cities, took your eye: Laertes’ son, whose home’s on Ithaca!” (908). This is another illustration of Odysseus’s deadly ego. Despite his crewmate’s suggestions, he taunts Polyphemus, almost
Odysseus displays his desire for glory through his careless actions during his encounter with the Cyclops Polyphemus. The desire for glory Odysseus displays is shown through the words he speaks to Polyphemus. He is a clever character but makes rash decisions that affect the outcome of his original goals and intentions. While Odysseus is trapped inside of the cave of the Cyclops, he begins to taunt Polyphemus. “I called back to the Cyclops, stinging taunts: So, Cyclops, no weak coward it was whose crew you bent to devour three in your vaulted cave—with your brute voice! Filthy crimes came down on your own head, you shameless cannibal” (Fagles, 226). Odysseus was insulting the Cyclops, and those insults caused the rage of the monster to boil over. The Cyclops was already angry with Odysseus blinding him, and was even more demoralized and angry when Odysseus began to taunt him. As Odysseus goes on with his insults and as his anger rises, he says, “Cyclops—if any man on the face of the earth should ask you who blinded you, shamed—say Odysseus, raider of cities, he gouged out your eye, La...
The hero is the man who fights for what he loves. A hero is someone who rises above circumstance to take back what is his or hers. A hero is a man who was favored by the gods. All of these qualities and more can be found in both Odysseus and Telemachus. Odysseus and Telemachus both showed many manifestations of a hero throughout the Odyssey. It was a journey of change and growth for both men. Out of this journey they returned with much wisdom and personal gain. Odysseus and Telemachus have truly walked the path of the hero’s journey.
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.
Heroes are found everywhere. They are seen in movies, on television, in books, and in reality. A hero can be anyone from a friend to a fictional character. To be considered a hero, one must make selfless sacrifices, develop and learn, overcome challenges and temptations, and ultimately present their known world with a gift of any kind. Homer’s The Odyssey paints a picture of the supposed savior Odysseus. The irony of Odysseus’ situation is that he really is not the marvelous hero that many who read The Odyssey see him to be. When imagining a great hero, the words of cruel, unfaithful, selfish, or careless never come to mind, but the son of Laertes sets examples for each attribute. Odysseus makes many poor decisions that cause his dislikable traits to highly outweigh his few better ones. Several of his more prominent characteristics are exhibited on numerous accounts. Odysseus cannot possibly earn the title of being a hero because he harbors hubris, he displays a lack of faith, and his self-centeredness causes unfortunate events.
As seen throughout The Odyssey, a hero is perceived as a person who achieves great success never before seen and whose legacy lives beyond their years. Since The Odyssey was written around the eighth century BCE, the people that we view as heros in present day tend to embody different traits than the heroes of that time. Even though the word, “hero” does not have one specific definition, a hero is generally categorized as someone who is idolized for their bravery and does anything necessary to defend their people. Although Odysseus embodies the Homeric ideals of heroism in that he accomplishes triumphs that others have not, his successes are the product of divine intervention and his actions were primarily selfish; therefore, he is not a true
People are heroes in different ways for different reasons. American soldiers are heroes because they fight boldly for their country. Corrie Ten Boom is also a hero because she took risks and saved hundreds of Jews. Abraham Lincoln is another example of a hero because he fought for what he thought was right and helped free all slaves. Similarly, Odysseus, the main character in Homer’s epic poem The Odyssey, possesses all of these characteristics and many more, making him a true epic hero.
In The Odyssey, Homer, or more so, the characters, often referred to Odysseus as the ‘Great Odysseus’. In the text, it is obvious to see that Odysseus demonstrates arrogance, charisma, over-confidence, and pride. Odysseus and his m...
Odysseus portrays himself as anything but a hero throughout Homer’s The Odyssey. Odysseus goes through his life believing he is the best. He has no regard for anyone’s feelings but his own, and he believes nothing and no one can harm him, not even the gods. Odysseus feels he is always the leader and no one can tell him otherwise. Odysseus should not be considered a hero because he portrays himself as a selfish man that failed his crew, and is controlled by his hubris.
The main character of the Odyssey, Odysseus the King of Ithaca is given a complex personality to an extent where it is hard to identify whether he is a true hero or not. True heroism is only achieved when a person achieves certain qualities that portray heroism. Odysseus is not a hero based on the standards of merciful, selfless, and gentle because of his actions of sacrificing his men, killing the suitors and being ruthless throughout the Odyssey. Along with many others qualities these three are helpful and necessary in a hero. A hero must be willing to do service for others and put the needs of others safety and protection before his own. Odysseus does not even come close to matching these qualities because he is a person, who only serves of himself, and he sacrifices his allies to achieve his goals and often he takes action ruthlessly.
The idea of a true hero is varied from person to person, because each viewpoint has a different idea of the personality that makes one a hero. There have been many fiction and non-fiction heroes that show different character traits, which influence people’s definitions of a hero. However, each person’s unique thought about a hero still focuses about one central idea: a hero must prove himself in order to earn his heroic status. This is the cornerstone of all the opinions about heroes because heroes have to show their heroism in order to become who they are in the end. At the beginning they are inexperienced, ordinary people who go on their adventures, and face their fears and weaknesses, but they develop greatly throughout these journeys. After comprehending what true heroism is and following it only then will they become heroes even though each of them has different traits. In the epic poem The Odyssey, by Homer, Odysseus gains the title of hero during his journey back to Ithaka, from Troy, by proving to be one. It is through his characteristics and experiences that he becomes the well developed man at the end of the book. In truth, because of his confidence, loyalty, and difficult struggles, Odysseus becomes a genuine hero to the people he defended.