Throughout history, there have always been heroes. Those strong-willed, brave individuals who perform courageous acts for fame and glory are prevalent in most cultures.. Societies have these heroes as standards of their cultures’ moral codes. Every society has their own definition of these codes are, so a unifying definition of hero can be hard to achieve. However, Philip Zimbardo says “Simply put, then, the key to heroism is a concern for other people in need—a concern to defend a moral cause, knowing there is a personal risk, done without expectation of reward.” With this basic definition, I will be examining various epic heroes I’ve studied throughout the course of my senior year for characteristics. From the copious amounts of studying, I’ve deduced that Achilles, Odysseus, Aeneas, Socrates, Gilgamesh, Beowulf, and Arthur all have characteristics that make them heroic.
First off, Achilles has a few heroic characteristics. I don’t want to compare him to any other heroes I’ve studied because I don’t like him, but I’d say Odysseus, because they fought for the same goal in the Trojan War. But personally, I think he is a sissy for not fighting throughout the entire Trojan War until things got personal because Hector killed his friend. But hey, killing Hector in his blind rage helped the cause, and thusly his people. So he isn’t all that bad. Then, as N.S. Gill will write, Achilles does this. “An enraged Achilles kills Hector and then dishonors the body by dragging it around tied to the back of a chariot for 9 days.” So, yeah, Achilles is kind of a prick. But then again, Achilles reflects the moral codes of the culture that bore him, so in a strange way, he is the embodiment of a hero. To them at least. To me, he seems to have good ...
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Works Cited
Garcia, Christopher. "The Anglo-Saxon Hero." The Anglo-Saxon Hero. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Nov. 2013.
Gill, N. S. "Achilles - Greek Hero at Troy." About.com Ancient / Classical History. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Nov. 2013.
Green, Art. "Header Menu." Blogcritics. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Nov. 2013.
Hunter, James. "Aeneas." Aeneas. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Nov. 2013.
Kohen, Ari. "Plato 's Heroic Vision: The Difficult Choices of the Socratic Life." Digital Commons. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Nov. 2013.
Little, Steve. "The Once And Future King." The Once And Future King. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Nov. 2013.
Olley, John. "Gilgamesh Was a True Hero." Yahoo Contributor Network. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Nov. 2013.
Wilson, Emily. "Contact Us." The Good Rogue Odysseus. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Nov. 2013.
Zimbardo, Philip. "Greater Good." What Makes a Hero? N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Nov. 2013.
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Achilles, in Homer’s epic poem, The Iliad, is a flawed character. For example, when Agamemnon only allows Chryseis to be taken back if he can have Briseis, Achilles’ prize, Achilles outrages and calls Agamemnon a “king who devours his people” and goes back to Phthia, saying it is “better that way by far” (1.270,199). This shows that Achilles has so much hubris that he decides to stop fighting and abandon his Greek comrades in order to prevent himself from losing his pride. This also shows that Achilles
The first requirement of Aristotle's tragic hero is that they are more admirable than the average character. Achilles meets this requirement because of his ability on the battlefield. In The Iliad, the background to the story is the war between the Greeks and the Trojans. This background is not only the basis for the story overall, but is also the basis for Achilles' own story. This begins when Achilles refuses to join the battle because he is insulted by Agamemnon. This decision results in the action that drives the remainder of the story. Later in the story when Achilles becomes angered and goes to the other extreme, launching into battle and killing ferociously. The significance of this is that it places battle as central to both Achilles' story and to what is important in the setting of the story. Importantly, the aspect that makes Achilles greater than most is his ability o...
Achilles, the king of the Myrmidons, is a Greek hero who fights Hector, the leader of the Trojan forces. Achilles shows the qualities of the epic hero because his great skills as a warrior, his loyalty to his people and friend, and his compassion. The Iliad illustrates him as a simple but honorable hero. Achilles is enraged after Hector kills his best friend Patroclus. He then seeks revenge for the death of his close friend. Determined, he fearlessly fights Hector until his brutal death. Achilles is the most powerful of the Greek warriors. His actions show his major character flaws as an epic hero. For example, fighting his battle with Hector out of revenge, for his own glory. He is willing to sacrifice everything he has so everybody will remember his name, wanting only fame and glory. Although Achilles has superhuman strength and is very brave, he may be considered not heroic to many people because of his actions against Hector.
Dating back to Ancient Greek mythology, heroes have been known for their victories and defeats, foe their courageous acts of bravery, and for simply being epic. The stories of these heroes have been passed down from generation to generation. Two epic heroes that have comparable stories are Gilgamesh and Achilles. To each man’s culture, the heroes are considered epic due to their long, dangerous journeys and bravery. Just like every story, both Gilgamesh and Achilles experience conflict during their journey.
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