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Odysseus and his selfish acts
Does Odysseus exhibit selfishness
What did odysseus do in the odyssey
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Odysseus didn’t really value his crew members very much. He used them to scout places out and didn’t really care if they died. Odysseus was greedy to receive a guest gift from the cyclops, Polyphemus, the son of the god, Poseidon, even after they had taken some of the Polyphemus's goods. When Odysseus is telling the Phaeacians of his journey he tells them, “From the start my comrades pressed me, pleading hard, ‘Let’s make away with the cheeses, then come back—”(Homer 9.252-253). If Odysseus would have done what his crew members told him to do then none of the crew members would have died. Odysseus didn’t care that they were invaded the house of a Polyphemus, all he cared about was receiving housewarming gifts from him. He put his greed before the safety of his crewmembers which is a careless act. …show more content…
Odysseus's greed causes him to be a bad man. The next supporting point is when Odysseus angered the god, Poseidon and caused him to act violently against him and his crew. Odysseus ended up blinding Poseidon’s son, Polyphemus after he didn’t give Odysseus a housewarming gift. “Nobody— that’s my
Odysseus lets himself and his men get trapped in a Cyclops’ cave where a number of men die (153, 312-316) Generally a true leader never allows his men to die for foolish and or unnecessary reasons. In this part of the text Odysseus allows his men to get trapped in a cave because he wants to wait to meet the owner of the cave which he was in. Hence, Odysseus is an awful leader due to the fact that he allows his men to die due to his own irresponsibility. Another similar instance is when he expects hospitality from the Lasitrygonês without even a shred of doubt that they would treat him well - even after making the same mistake with the cyclops’ earlier, both leading to the loss of many lives (168, 121-128). A great leader never lets men die due to their own error. In this case, Odysseus has entire benches worth of men die due to the fact that he did not learn from his earlier encounter with the cyclops. Thus, Odysseus is not as awe inspiring a leader as some may make him out to
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...
The introduction to this tale reveals a great deal of the importance of eloquence in speech, in this culture. Within moments of speaking Odysseus makes clear how important it is to speak well by comparing his ability to speak to the same abilities possessed by gods. Throughout this tale gods are used as a benchmark of the greatness of an individual, therefore for Odysseus to claim that his eloquence is the same as that of the gods is a bold claim and one he is certain he can back up. In the same introduction, Odysseus declares he is known for “all manner of wiles” (303). Therefore if Odysseus does have the a voice that is similar to what the others imagine the gods to have, and there is no mention of anyone refuting this claim, then a further
The Odyssey, usually accredited to Homer, contains several key conflicts which strengthen readers’ understanding of the protagonists. The conflicts are of particular help in understanding the hero Odysseus’ reasons for his actions. One episode in which Odysseus displays his key character traits of arrogance, cunning, and recklessness is book 9, in which Odysseus defeats the Cyclops Polyphemus.
There are many occasions in the story when Odysseus let his pride overcome his judgment and his crew suffered a consequence. When Odysseus defeated Polyphemus, his pride got in the way and caused him and his crew a lot of trouble. Instead of listening to his crew, who advised him "Why bait that beast again? Let him alone!" (495), he stayed and waited until the Cyclops of the cave returned. When Polyphemus stumbled into earshot of Odysseus, Odysseus shows how haughty he was. He insulted Polyphemus and told him “Cyclops, if any mortal man inquire how you were put to shame and blinded, tell him Odysseus, raider of cities, took your eye: Laertes’ son, who took your eye.” (502-505) knowing that Polyphemus was the son of Poseidon, the sea God and that all of his travels were to be made on the sea. In return, Polyphemus curses Odysseus and makes his journey hard and treacherous. Odysseus let his pride cloud his judgment and this led to him acting like a madman and openly challenging a monster, which makes his travels home a great deal longer. Anyone in his right mind would know better than to insult a monster, especially the son of a God whose help you a...
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 whole book he is having his men go and do crazy things that make them risk, and some even lose, their lives. After Odysseus offends Poseidon by harming the cyclops he started taunting the cyclops. One of his men scream, “God Sake Captain! Why bait the beast again? Let him alone!” (493-494). This is showing that he was “baiting the beast” again and putting his men in even more danger after he just saved his life and all of theirs. Odysseus also puts his men in danger by not telling them about Scylla. He doesn’t tell his men that six of them are going to die. Odysseus says, “Voices came down on me in distinguish, calling my name for the last time,” ((820-821). This is showing that Odysseus just put his men in even more danger plus he isn’t fighting for his men. Odysseus was such a bad leader to his
As a result of Odysseus’ dishonesty, Odysseus is able to save many of his fellow crewmates’ lives throughout Homer’s
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...
After they finally escaped from the brutal monster, Odysseus made another poor decision. The men were rowing their boats away from the island when Odysseus decided that it was a good idea to taunt the raging Cyclops: “So, Cyclops,...Your filthy crimes came down on your own head, you shameless cannibal...so Zeus and the other gods have paid you back” (9.531-36)! This angered Polyphemus more, which led him to hurl a mountain top into the water, forcing Odysseus and his men back near the shore. After one time, you’d think Odysseus would have learned his lesson, but he continued to taunt the monster after they had rowed back out: “Cyclops - if any man on the face of the earth should ask you who blinded you...say Odysseus, raider of cities...Laertes’ son who makes his home in Ithaca” (9.558-62)! Not only did Polyphemus acquire the location of his home, he cursed Odysseus, so that if and when he returned home, it would be late, he would be broken, and problems at home would arise, which was why taunting the Cyclops was a horrible decision. In conclusion, one could argue that most of Odysseus’ choices were favorable
Odysseus is a Foolish and selfish leader, who makes rash decisions that kill his men just for his own personal gain. One of Odysseus's many foolish decisions in the epic is when he lets his men raid and pillage the Kikones. This irrational decision ends up in the death of nearly 30 of his men. If he would have stopped and though about his decisions he could have saved his fellow soldiers. Another foolish decision is when he was on the island of the Kyklops, instead of just exploring the cave he decides to explore the entire island just so he can see a kyklops this exploration ends up with the death of many of his men and a curse set on Odysseus. Odysseus makes a selfish decision when he wrongfully tells his crew Kirke, "urged that I alone should listen to their song."(XII; 58-62) when Kirke really said that he should only listen to their deadly song only if he believed it was necessary. This selfish decision could have proved to be dea...
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
The Character Odysseus in Odyssey "Odyssey" is an epic story that has been a significant piece of literature since it was first composed and will remain so for ages to come. One of the reasons it has been so is because of the hero, Odysseus. Odysseus was one of the first Greek mythic heroes renowned for his brain as well as his muscles. Indeed he is a man with an inquiring mind, and he is also a man with outstanding prowess and bravery" (123helpme.com/assets/3603.html). "We also must not forget that he is a top-notch athlete which only adds more to this seemingly insuperable character.
Odysseus portrays his selfishness right as the book begins and this shows how truly incompetent of an individual he is. One form of selfishness Odysseys shows is adultery. He is unfaithful to Penelope many times throughout the book. He reveals this trait specifically when he is with Kalypso on Ogygia and with Kirke on Aiaia. Odysseus shows his selfishness when he steps foot on Kalypso’s island because he chooses to stay with her for seven years. He did not care about the crew’s feelings on the matter, since all’s he cared about was himself. By the time the seven years were up, the crew members finally realized they had to make Odysseus leave. These actions also make a liar out of Odysseus because he said he wanted to return home more than anything, yet he did not even make the slightest attempt to leave. On Aiaia, Odysseus was forced to sleep with Kirke to save his men from staying swine, but he still committed adultery. No matter what the reason, adultery is a choice that can be controlled. An additional negative quality Odysseus obtains is being self absorbed. This trait is seen when Odysseus traveled to the Land of the Dead. He shows his selfish qualities in this example because he travels there initially for his own benefit. Odysseus also has attendances to t...
Homer portrays Odysseus as a physically adept, intelligent, and good with quick thinking in high pressure situations. He has the characteristics of a homeric leader showing courage, nobility, and strength. He is a good speaker and has no troubles winning over an audience. But there comes moments that proves his humanity where he acts in foolish measures. Sometimes Odysseus’s glory seeking self let him looking foolish. For example, in book 9 written as a flashback, Odysseus and his men come upon a cave full of sheep and crates of cheese and milk on the island of the Cyclops. His men suggest to grab the crates and leave, but he decides to stay and feast on their upcomings. When the Cyclops Polyphemus returns to its cave, it seems hostile at