Greed can be a good thing if it is used for the right reasons. For example, greed can be the key that leads to success. If a person wants to achieve recognition, they’ll go extreme measures to make it happen such as inventing something, excelling in their studies, or even being the best. However, in most cases, greed can lead to disaster. Having the desire to obtain something a person already possesses is selfish. In the “Odyssey,” Homer illustrates the lessons learned throughout Odysseus’ journey. This book exemplifies how greed can lead to misfortune through the story of Odysseus and the King of the Winds, Aeolus. Greed is the cause of Odysseus’ delayed travels, causing more to be lost than what was already given at the time. The lesson learned is that you should never desire for something that isn’t going to benefit you if you have to commit terrible acts in order to achieve them. Greed can not only hurt one …show more content…
However, I would have to commend Odysseus for the way he handled the situation. He could have easily punished his crew for what they had done, but he wasn’t angry at his crew for what they had done, he just brushed it off and kept pressing forward, “in the end, I decided to bear it and live” (Odyssey 10. 60) Odysseus practiced patience and that’s what made him a great warrior. The most important lesson I have learned from this episode is that one should never assume things out of greed. The sailors assumed there was silver and gold, so they opened it up to obtain the possessions. They didn’t realize how lucky they were to have gotten the wind from Aeolus until it was taken away and the sailors had to manually row themselves to the next target. Another lesson I learned is that no matter how hard you may think the journey is and how hard it gets, keep pushing forward because at the end comes a reward, just like Odysseus and his safe return back to his family in