Odysseus Anti Hero Research Paper

Have you ever heard of an anti-hero? Anti-heroes are typically seen as good or bad. The stories Things Fall Apart and The Odyssey both have anti-heros. The main character in Things Fall Apart is Okonkwo, and the main character in The Odyssey is Odysseus. They both are anti-heroes. Okonkwo is a willing, active, gung-ho hero, while Odysseus is more of a traditional epic hero. Odysseus goes on a quest, which is him trying to get home. He gets help with some of the Gods, but some of them are against him. Okonkwo lives in a tribe, and has many wives and children. His father was unsuccessful, but he does not let that happen to him. Though both Okonkwo and Odysseus are heroes, Odysseus fits the mold of a traditional hero better than Okonkwo of a traditional epic hero. One reason that Odysseus fits his hero type best, is because he is superhuman. For example, he fought off the Cyclops in the cave (Homer 19-21). Odysseus fought this Cyclops with much bravery and strategy. He tricked the Cyclops into thinking his name was “Nobody.” When another Cyclops comes in to check on him, they asked, “Is someone harming you?” And the Cyclops said “It’s Nobody”(Homer 20). Although Odysseus had help from his men, at the end of the day, he still was the hero.

To illustrate, “I made my way to the house in the clearing and Circe bade me enter. I downed the potion. Then just as she showed her wand, I unsheathed my sword and held it to her neck” (Homer 23). This is when they came upon Circe’s island, and Circe turned Odysseus’ men into swine. Odysseus gets help from Hermes and defeats Circe. Even though Hermes helped, it was still a heroic deed that Odysseus was at the head of! Odysseus could have left his men behind, but he loved his men. And he mourned when they had been overcome by death of some kind of