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Examples Of Odysseus As An Epic Hero

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Is Odysseus, in The Odyssey by Homer, an epic hero or just a common hero? An epic hero has traits such as supernatural help, quests, challenges, help from companions, learning, growth, and fatal flaws. A common hero has traits such as courage, honesty, selflessness, determination, etc. Odysseus is more of an epic hero than a common hero because he has supernatural help, quests, and fatal flaws. One reason Odysseus is considered an epic hero is the supernatural help he receives. Throughout the whole story, Odysseus got help from Athena to get back home. In book five, all the gods, not including Poseidon, discuss Odysseus and his outcome. Athena requests her father, Zeus, to give abettance to Odysseus when he’s trapped on Calypso’s Island. So then Zeus sends Hermes to Calypso to release Odysseus. Calypso agrees to it as long as Odysseus wants to, which then allows Odysseus to escape. While trying to get back home, Odysseus gets in a lot of predicament and Athena aids him throughout the whole journey and gets him back home to his family. …show more content…

He goes from Troy and tries to get back home to Itheca and then ends up going to several islands including Calypso’s, Circe’s, and Cyclops Island. In book one, Odysseus is trying to get home after the Trojan War. He however has many obstacles in the way, he encounters monsters, storms, and women. All the while his wife is waiting for him, but he eventually gets back to Ithaca and back home to his wife and son. Even after having so many obstacles, makes it back home and finishes his 20 year long

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Odysseus receives guidance, and help, from mainly Athena, the daughter of Zeus. She helps Odysseus and his son, Telemachus, throughout the whole book. Often, she disguises herself as the Mentor or another person. Athena was also the one god who spoke up for Odysseus and his son during the council of the gods. Although Odysseus does gain support from a few of the other gods, at the same time, he becomes an enemy to others, such as Poseidon, so having Athena on his side helps him to further move towards his end goal to return home.

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Athena helped Odysseus return home, after being away from Ithaca for about twenty years. (Greek Goddess Athena) When Odysseus finally found his way home to Ithaca, Athena protected him by disguising him as a beggar. (Greek Goddess Athena) After Odysseus “shot an arrow through twelve ax handles and killed all of the suitors”, (Sparknotes) Athena changed him, from a beggar, back into Odysseus. Athena was known to give Odysseus strength.

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Is Odysseus an Archetypal Hero? Greek literature has given birth to highly polished and complex long epics that revolved around heroes. In the epic poem, “The Odyssey,” Homer vivified the story of Odysseus, who used his immortal intelligence and bravery to endeavor unattainable obstacles that hindered him from reuniting with his family. Although Odysseus’ return home sacrificed many, but in the ancient Greeks, people celebrated him for his intelligence. However, as time shifts, heroism seems to enhance not only the heroes’ own glory, but the significance they leave for the world.

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And his son is worried about his father, and there are suitors who want his wife in order to gain authority and power for themselves, but she remains faithful to the king. Clypso who is a goddess with a special love interest in Odysseus traps him on her island where he cannot escape. Odysseus faces a lot of challenges in his travel back home his biggest challenge is probably facing the cyclops from which this story this creature was made famous all around America, the cyclops is a giant one eyed monster who tries to kill Odysseus but fails to do so. Athena which is the Greek goddess of wisdom is one of the supporters of Odysseus and tries to help him, and eventually Zeus which is basically the god of all gods, helps Odysseus as well and sent Hermes to help Odysseus.

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(1.73-7). Athena wanted Odysseus to come home and was willing to help him get home and convinced Zeus to help her due to her positive perspective on Odysseus being away from home.

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An epic hero is defined as a character who embodies the ideals and morals of a certain society and goes on a quest or adventure. The idea of an epic hero is not a new one has many ancient authors included epic heroes in their works. Perhaps, the most famous on these epics is the Odyssey by Homer. In his novel, Homer creates an epic hero in the form of Odysseus, and shows it in three key ways. First by Odysseus' superior strength, second his wisdom, and lastly his courage.

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The most crucial one in which Athena assisted Odysseus the most was helping him escape from Kalypso following Poseidon’s wish for him to live there forever. At Poseidon’s absence, Athena pleads to Zeus to assist Odyssey as “he cannot stir, cannot fare homeward, for no ship is left him, fitted with oars- no crewmen or companions [are there] to pull him on the broad back of the sea” (81). Athena had begged for his mercy from Kalypso in order to return home to his family in Ithika. Without Athena brining awareness to Odysseus’s struggle, he would have forever stayed upon the island with Kalypso with no aid from the Gods. In this setting, Homer has once again established Athena’s loyalty to Odysseus by assisting him off the island and watching over the remainder of his journey home.

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He has a substantial relationship with Athena, who assists him in multiple situations. Add more here. During Odysseus’ travels home, him and his crew receive help from Aeolus, the ruler of the winds. After the crew sets themselves back in their travels, Aeolus refuses to help them anymore, showing the division between humans and gods in this world. Along the same lines, some of the gods play a huge part in keeping Odysseus from returning home.

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Well the definition of an epic hero is, “a brave and noble character in an epic poem, admired for great achievements or affected by grand events. ”(Dictionary.com) If that doesn’t describe Odysseus, I don’t know what does. He risks his life in many circumstances, and he’s widely admired for being the one of the reasons the trojans won the war. He is also affected by lots of events throughout his adventures.

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