How would you feel upon returning home after 20 years to find your house commandeered by suitors desiring to gain your wealth and power? The epic poem ' 'The Odyssey ' ' centers around the protagonist Odysseus and his journey returning home after the Trojan war. As any other conventional epic poem, the protagonist is an epic hero, which is evident about Odysseus. Odysseus most fits the description of an epic hero in the sense that he journeys, has superhuman strength, and has a major flaw.
A large portion of Odysseus ' life is a journey. He spent 20 years away from home and has been around many corners of the world and met many gods and evils. In the beginning of the story, as Homer introduces Odysseus, he reveals Athena and Zeus intend to aid Odysseus, ' 'Who has been wandering for ten years on the sea ' ' ( I. 18-19). This informs us Odysseus already has two gods backed in his corner from the very beginning on his journey to return home. Later in book IX, Homer reveals that after leaving Troy Odysseus and his crew land on Ismarus ' 'the city of the Cicones. The Cicones are allies of the Trojans and therefore enemies of Odysseus ( IX. 26) . This shows that Odysseus has the courage and heart of an adventurer because he would dare to land on enemy territory where him and his crew are clearly outnumbered, however this doesn 't seem to phase him. Odysseus is a traveler who loves the thrill of adventure and journeying, so it certainly helped having superhuman strength and