Examples Of Odysseus Being An Epic Hero

The Making of a Hero Imagine being at bay in a cavern and there is dozens of middle aged men trapped by a one eyed beast. There is no way out. Men are being consumed by the beastly cyclops. It is necessary for a plan out before everyone becomes his feast. Then one man steps up with a plan to get everyone out. His name is Odysseus. In the Odyssey, Odysseus deserves the distinction of an epic hero for many reasons such as the fact that he is cunning, formidable, and resourceful. Furthermore, Odysseus deserves the distinction of an epic hero because he is a cunning man. Odysseus used much strategy to tackle obstacles and defeat many of his antagonists. To begin with, Odysseus succeeds due to his cunning nature when he defeats the cyclops, Polyphemus.

To start, he is formidable for all of his opponents because he is very strategic in his actions. He uses strategy way more that force in the Odyssey. For example, he bypasses Scylla and Charybdis by choosing to loose six men by Scylla or taking the chance of losing all of them with Charybdis. On this trip he did not warn them about the upcoming monster so that they would not behave like cowards when Scylla would charge their vessel. To continue, he is a formidable opponent because of his bravery. Leaving the cyclops Polyphemus behind, blind as a bat, he shows of his bravery by saying, “cyclops, if ever mortal men inquire how you were put to shame and blinded, tell him Odysseus, raider of cities, took your eye…” (Fitzgerald 1057). This shows that his bravery is a key factor of his formidable self because if he was not brave then nobody would look up to him, hence making him not a heroic man. Notably, his loyalty to his family and homeland make him a formidable foe. The main mission of his extreme quest was to get back to Penelope and Telemachus in Ithaca if he was not loyal to his family then he would have most likely fallen in love with calypso and not have even continued his quest. As stated in the odyssey, “…Odysseus in his stone seat to seaward-tear on tear brimming his eyes” (Fitzgerald 1040). Fitzgerald describes him this way because Odysseus is crying, for he misses his wife, Penelope, and is determined to meet her again in Ithaca. His family is the reason why he fights, so he does not want to let them down. He does eventually succeed after 20 years of strenuous battling. Obviously, Odysseus has rightfully deserved to be called an epic hero because he is