The Odyssey is often cited as an epitome of the hero’s journey and the monomyth. The hero of the story, Odysseus is on a 10 year battle homeward from the Trojan War to see his wife and son again. With the help divine intervention, Odysseus is able to return home and save his wife from the evil suitors who have continuously tried to win her. One could easily argued that Odysseus is an exemplar of the hero, but there is another story: Odysseus is the opposite of a hero and is not worthy to be called such. He is the villain where the gods are the hero. Odysseus is cruel and quick to anger, arrogant, and does not truly win in the end.
Along with the Hero’s journey, there is another journey that is not talked about. The villain’s journey is a parallel to the hero’s journey but usually ends the inverse of the Hero’s journey. Both hero and villain experience a call to adventure with guidance along the way. They experience trials and struggles to
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He is prideful and believes himself above others. Robin Hood brings him down a notch and when King Richard returns he humbles him even more. He forces him to work on the royal rock pile for the rest of his days. Before his death in the Lion King, Scar is the prideful ruler of the pridelands. Simba challenges him and knocks him off his high horse humbling him just in time for his death. In these cases as well as others, the villain is humbled by his defeat by the hero as is the case with Odysseus vs the gods.
Although Odysseus is considered a hero by most, he is cruel, controlled by his temper, and more similar to a villain than a hero. Odysseus goes through not a hero’s journey, but a villain’s journey. He returns humbled to his home which has been broken while he was away. In the end, Odysseus still follows the monomyth theory but is not the hero of the story, but the villain. The gods are the true heroes of the