Leadership In The Tanakh And The Odyssey

The Tanakh and the Odyssey are two different genres of ancient literature that provide important information about cultural values in ancient Greece and Israel. One significant idea that appears in both texts is the idea of leadership. The focus of this essay will be the similarities in leadership from Jacob and Odysseus. Both of these men demonstrate that their perseverance and cunning make them successful leaders because they are able to overcome their challenges while advancing their overall status in the process of doing so. These traits are significant because they show that both cultures value wit and strong will as traits of prosperous individuals.

An important quality for leaders in the Odyssey and the Tanakh is perseverance which

Like Jacob, he isn’t known for being very strong physically, but his cunning is compared to that of the gods. Odysseus’ superior wit is demonstrated when he tricks the cyclops in book 9 and, “Strong Polyphemus from inside/ replied, ‘My friends! Noman is killing me/ by tricks, not force’” (Homer, Odyssey, 9.407-9). In this quote, the use of words makes it so Polyphemus can’t call for backup. Odysseus’ clever trick of using the name “Noman” successfully fools the other cyclops into leaving Polyphemus alone despite his calls for help. It demonstrates that Odysseus is a man who fights with his words rather than arms and excels at doing so. In the end, the act of deception allows Odysseus and his men to escape while also taking Polyphemus’ flock. Furthermore, Odysseus is recognized by Athena for his trickery and cunningness. She helps him throughout his journey and relates to him through their shared skillset. Both Jacob and Odysseus prosper by their use of trickery and as a result, they are able to place themselves in a more advantageous position. However, they use their cunning in different ways. Jacob was willing to deceive his kin for his personal gain while Odysseus only turned to trickery against his enemies. The discrepancy between their use of deception may change the way the men’s followers think of them. For example, Jacobs' family may become distrusting of him. However, Jacob never suffers any real repercussions for his tricks which may be because this kind of deception seems to be common within the Tanakh. Both Abraham and Laban also resorted to trickery in the Tanakh and received no punishment. Furthermore, both texts suggest that trickery and cunningness is preferable to strength and honesty. Jacob and Odysseus’ victims are both physically gifted, but are not particularly intelligent. As a result, they suffer from defeat because of their lacking