Merriam-Webster’s definition of a hero is a man admired for his achievements and noble qualities. Using that definition, yes, Odysseus is a hero. He was admired for his great bravery, and cunningness, but nowhere in the definition does it say that doing wrong things may have disqualified Odysseus from earning the title “hero”. Does plundering the island of Cicones, or staying back with Calypso and being untruthful to his wife make him a bad candidate for the title? If Odysseus were doing the things that he did today, he would certainly not be a hero in my eyes. There is no excuse for his behavior, except his own selfish pride and hubris. So no, Odysseus is not a Hero.
The Odyssey, a Greek epic written by Homer has many characters that could be considered heroes, but none as greatly debated on whether he should be called a hero as Odysseus. Odysseus is a hero due to the fact that he wants to protect the ones he loves, shows courage through his actions and words, and as a leader is able to inspire others to have courage. Odysseus’s family
Odysseus doesn’t deserve the title of a hero because he made bad decisions that affected his crew poorly, Athena did almost all of the work in getting him home, and he cheated on his wife multiple times throughout his journey home. My first reason why Odysseus does not deserve the title of a hero is because he made
Waiting for grade Odysseus should be considered a hero. Odysseus had been the protagonist throughout the story and we see the struggles he overcomes. Throughout the story, we see his hard dedication and hard work. He is known to be very helpful, has always put others before him, and he tries his hardest not to give up.
Everyone thinks he is not a hero is he slept with circe there is a reason why that is not a strong reason that he is not a hero. The first reason is odysseus is smart, kind, and brave. One piece of evidence for this is when a commander of his asked him to return to circe’s house and “burn me with whatever armor I have.”(p.105). Odysseus does do this so this means he is kind and respectful of his comrades. Another piece of evidence for this is when him and his men are in the cyclops cave.
Odysseus is the spitting image of what an ancient Greek hero would be like but in today’s society or just in general, Odysseus is not heroic. He may have super hero qualities such as extreme strength and cleverness but he doesn’t embody them the way one should. In many cases he only saves himself, he is selfish, and he isn’t humble. These reasons alone leaves me, and should leave you, to believe that Odysseus is not heroic.
Odysseus, king of Ithaca, from The Odyssey by Homer was considered a hero of that time. Odysseus is not a modern day hero under any circumstances because of his actions and attitude. Ancient Greeks and some historians would and have considered Odysseus to be a hero because of
He fights to the best of his abilities against many monsters such as Polyphemus, Circe, and the sea monster Scylla. There has been many claims that Odysseus isn’t hero because he lets his crew die. Just because his crew didn’t survive, it certainly does not mean he isn’t a hero. He tries his very best and even test his limits in order to get him and his crew back home. An example of this is in Homer’s
Odysseus: Hero or Not? A hero can be defined as a person who has special achievements, abilities, or personal qualities and is a respectable and well-followed leader. The Odyssey chronicles the poem’s epic hero, Odysseus, on his journey home to Ithaca with his men. En route, he encounters many obstacles and challenges but is able to overcome them using his own military knowledge and with help from the gods.
Odysseus is not a hero because he stabs Polyphemus in the eye and blinds him. Odysseus is still a hero because he is a leader. Moreover, after Odysseus and his men fight the Cicones, he orders ¨Back and Quickly! Out to sea again!” (Homer 984).
He is not a hero because of what he did to the suitors. The suitors were the people that wanted to replace him as the new king of Ithaca and take his wife. Odysseus knew that they were after his kingdom so he wanted to stop them. Once he found out that they were trying to kill his son and basically destroy his kingdom he spent his whole life making. He decided to trap them all without any weapons and kill them all.
Some think Odysseus is a hero for many reasons, mainly because he helps many people including his family and his crew. Even when terrible things happen to him and his crew he perseveres and continues on his journey home. Even though Odysseus and his men do bad things like eating the sun god’s cattle there still are many reasons why he is a hero. One reason to support my claim is that he saves his crew many times. One example is when they sailed by the Sirens.
Odysseus was the hero, he could do no wrong. But some of the decisions he made and actions he took that made him a hero to all, would bring him all the wrong kinds of fame in our society today. After winning the Trojan War, Odysseus and his men ransacked the Ciccone's island of Ismarus. They “killed the men” and dragged “the wives and plunder” away (Homer 212). This kind of disregard and blatant disrespect for other people would make Odysseus the opposite of a hero today, he and his men would be the kind of people that parents pray their children don’t turn into.
Odysseus’ heroicness proves that he is a hero. In the beginning Odysseus proves to be heroic when he states “Have we never been... In danger before this? Did I not keep my nerve, and use my wits to find a way out for us?”, according to line 41. Odysseus’ heroicness reveals that he is a hero because he saved his men and got his men back home safe.
It is clear that Odysseus is not a hero through his terrible leadership. In conclusion, Odysseus is not a hero because of his impulsive decisions, his hubris, and terrible leadership. He does not plan ahead, he is not humble and a sore loser, and he strays away from telling important things to his men. Though in Greek society Odysseus is seen as a hero, he can not be called one now.
During those year out of sea Odysseus overcomes life threatening situations and proves himself to be a hero. According to the definition of a hero provided in the beginning, a hero has “noble qualities”. One of the many things that makes Odysseus a hero is his loyalty and intelligence. Not only does he maintain loyalty to his wife and home, but also to his crew members.