Odysseus’s Traits Throughout the Odyssey, the main character Odysseus goes on an epic adventure with his focus being to get home to his wife Penelope, and his son Telemachus. He faces many obstacles dealing with characters such as the Cyclopes, Poseidon, Aeolus, Athena, Helios, Calypso, Zeus, Hermes, Scylla, and Circe. Odysseus’s men are some of the most valuable people to him throughout the Odyssey. He always puts himself in front of danger for them to protect them even though they all died from an unexpected turn of events soon before he returns home. When Odysseus comes home he greets his twenty year old son and straightens things out on his homeland, Ithaca. The only reason Odysseus makes it through twenty years of life …show more content…
Upon the coastline of lotus eaters Odysseus sends out 2 men and a runner to see what is on the land. He later notices that the lotus flowers his men have been eating make them not want to leave the island. Odysseus first shows his men loyalty when he goes to get his men no matter how much of a fight they put up and he then ties them to the ship so they can’t escape. Odysseus says to his men, “I drove them, all three wailing, to the ships, / tied them down under their rowing benches, / and called the rest” (Homer 9. 48-50). While on Calypso’s Island, Calypso falls in love with Odysseus and wants him to stay even offering him immortality. He is so loyal and goal oriented to getting home that he rejected the offer and wants to leave the island to find home. Odysseus breaks news to Calypso, “Yet, it is true, each day / I long for home. Long for the sight of home…. “(5. 85-86). When he started out on his adventure at the Cyclops Island, he decided to go there along with 12 of his best men to check the situation out. He acted with loyalty by going on the island and not having just his men go. He didn’t know what the place was like so he was protecting them by going with only 12 of his best …show more content…
He used it to outsmart many of the characters, which is most likely why he made it home after the many obstacles he faced. At the Cyclops Island when Odysseus and the 12 chosen men talk to The Cyclops, they can tell he is no good. When the Cyclops asks where their ship is, Odysseus tells him it has been wrecked so the Cyclops doesn’t try to wreck it himself or take his men. Odysseus tells Cyclops, “My ship? / Poseidon Lord, who sets the earth a-tremble, / broke it up on the rocks at your land’s end” (9. 187-188). After Odysseus men are eaten by the Cyclops, they come up with a plan to hurt him so they could escape. When they stab the Cyclops in the eye, the Cyclops calls the other Cyclopes. When they approach they ask who ruined him and the Cyclops answers, “Nobody, Nobody's tricked me, Nobody's ruined me!” (9. 317). Earlier in the poem when The Cyclops asks Odysseus for his name, Odysseus tells him the name is Nobody. This takes a tremendous amount of intelligence which is why Odysseus is known for his cleverness. When Odysseus finally returns home, he has Athena disguise him so he can look at how his home has been going without him. Everyone besides his wife, son, and two other of his men have been disloyal to him and there is a group of suitors there who have overstayed their visit trying to get Penelope to be their wife. Odysseus locks the suitors all in one room where the
The crewman’s idea is very solid and poses little risk with a substantial reward. However, Odysseus decides to take a risk and go into the cave to see the cyclops. The cyclopses have no value for hospitality at all. Odysseus looses many men while staying at the cyclops’ island. His crew could have left the island with enough resources and no losses at all if not for Odysseus’ ineffective leadership.
Although Odysseus proved to have guile on the Island of the Cyclops, he made crucial mistakes. Odysseus’ first mistake was taking his men into the Cyclops cave. This brought upon a dreadful chain of events, for even Odysseus knew. In fact he said “I knew some towering brute would be upon us soon-- all outward power, a wild man, ignorant of Civility” (Homer 8). This quote states how Odysseus had already predicted that the presentence of him and his men would come down on them; but his selfishness made the lives of his men expendable.
But he was only trying to trick, the cyclops into believing that ended in the cave accidently, but the fact is that he did it intentionally. Depict his crew’s advice, they told him to just still some food and hurry back. But he decided to explore and mess around in the cyclops cave. Then when he found out that the cyclops was going to kill him, he waited for the perfect opportunities to trick with the cyclops. When he saw that the cyclops was too tough for him, he made a plan to outsmart him.
On Island #3 in Homer’s The Odyssey, the epic hero trait that Odysseus displays is being clever. Odysseus and 12 of his men go into a cave on Kyklopes Island. The cave is owned by Polyphemus, the kyklopes. Odysseus and his men are trapped in the cave and Odysseus comes up with a very clever idea.
This passage shows Odysseus as a true leader for he does not hesitate, does not even think twice, about putting himself in harm's way for his crew. He is clearly portrayed as someone who cares deeply, and is selfless when it comes to those who are close to him. Odysseus is ever loyal to his crew and would never leave them to fend for themselves. Because of this, Odysseus has proven himself to be a selfless and loyal
Odysseus was normally viewed as a strong, heroic figure, but those who knew him knew that there was more to him then just a hero. They knew that he could be very curious at times and almost willing to sacrifice anything to find out what he wanted to know. Along his twenty year journey away from home he encountered many different gods and monsters that faced him with trials and tribulations. Through these trials Odysseus’ strengths and weaknesses were exposed in several different ways. One of the first monsters that Odysseus and his men encountered were the cyclops.
Odysseus’s violent behavior in this situation is shown as necessary in order to escape, for the Cyclops wasn’t willing let him
The natives there gave Odysseus and his men an intoxicating fruit of the lotus. After Odysseus and his men eat the fruit, they forget all of their thoughts about home and decide to eat more of the fruit. The only way that Odysseus can get him and his men back home is by dragging his men back to the ship and lock them up, Odysseus decides to go along with it. When Odysseus went back to Ithaca, He made the wise choice to go and see his wife Penelope. Odysseus was so brave to go see his wife because he didn’t know if she was going to recognize him at all or want to be with him for the rest of her life.
Overall, Odysseus is often portrayed as a “model hero”, but in reality he has many faults such as being untrustworthy, arrogant and
Homer writes, “if mortal man inquire tell him Odysseus raider of cities took your eye.” Odysseus first told the cyclops his name was “nohbody” which masked his
When the cyclops asked Odysseus what his name was he said no man and when Odysseus stabbed the cyclops the cyclops asked for help from his brother than the brother came and said what happened and said what's wrong the hurt cyclops said no man hurt me. Odysseus is intelligent Odysseus tied his men on the side of the sheep and when the cyclops felt the sheep he did not feel the men on the top. Odysseus is intelligent because he got the idea to leave the men in the horse and sent as a gift to the enemy and when the enemy went to sleep the men came out and
Odysseus eventually learns that wisdom comes from long thought, suffering, and experience. As a result
In The Odyssey an epic poem by Homer, Odysseus, a hero from Ithaca, is trapped on his way home from Athens and Troy. His son, Telemachus, goes on a journey looking for his lost father. Both son and father want to reclaim their house from the suitors who wish to marry Penelope, Odysseus’ wife. Genghis Khan, Choi Yuna, my brother, An Thai, and Odysseus have traits like strength, thoughtfulness, and attractiveness. People need heroes with these traits because they need role models and someone to guide them through life.
Before he may return home, he must overcome numerous challenges put forth by both mortals and gods that test his abilities and virtues. Odysseus surpasses all morals in strength of mind and body;
Odysseus was a man of great stature and strength; however, Odysseus was not only physically strong, but mentally strong as well (Olson). We can see Odysseus’ mental strength, or cunning, and bravery when he is in the den of Polyphemus and devises the plan to save him and his crew by calling himself nobody and stabbing out the cyclops’ eye. He also recognizes that he