Odysseus Hero Characteristics

Words: 691

Pages: 3

Open Document

A great hero does not need to wear shining armour and ride a horse. A true hero needs more than that. Heroes are assessed through their personal characteristics. Odysseus can be proclaimed a hero from three factors; his bravery, leadership, and intelligence. Nevertheless, he has negative traits. His emotional struggles give him impaired judgement, boosting his arrogance and ignorance . Despite his obvious negative aspects, he is portrayed as a hero.
Odysseus’s bravery can be clearly acknowledged during his confrontations with the Cyclops. Due to his arrogant self, he boasts to the Cyclops, “Cyclops, if anyone ever asks you how you came by your blindness, tell him your eye was put out by Odysseus, sacker of cities, the son of Laertes, who lives in Ithica.” (9.501-505). After defeating him, while not intellectually smart, but still brave, he yells at the Cyclops and tells him his name. Meeting the Cyclops purely for means of curiosity with no fear, boasting about not needing Gods and defying Poseidon, and saying that he did not need Gods to beat the Trojans, are all …show more content…
His men are affected by his emotions, and it is difficult for him to stay positive. Odysseus has a difficult time making normal decisions due to his emotional state. Once Odysseus has defeated Polyphemus by stabbing out his one eye blinding him forever, his emotions of victory and arrogance over take him. Polyphemus calls out to Poseidon, “Grant that Odysseus, raider of cities, never see his home again” (9.486-487). Becoming ignorant and taunting the Cyclops, Odysseus caused Polyphemus to pray to Poseidon and make his journey home to Ithaca longer and more agonizing. With a longer, more terrible journey it decreases Odysseus’s hope making it very emotionally straining to continue on in life, and the journey, leading to more negative situations bringing out the worst in

Characteristics Of Odysseus A Hero

A hero is a person who is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities according to dictionary.com. Odysseus has characteristics that make him a hero but he also has a lot of characteristics that don’t make him hero like. Odysseus is an epic poem about a Greek warrior, who was just in the Trojan War. This story was written by Homer and Scholars believe it was composed in 8th century B.C. Odysseus is not a hero because he is naturally focused and he is dishonest.…

Words 484 - Pages 2

Odysseus Hero Characteristics

To be a hero you have to have certain traits like, being intelligent, a good leader, and determined to do what you need to do. In the The Odyssey by Homer, one of the characters, odysseus is the hero in the Greek epic. One of the most important characteristics is that you need to be intelligent. Odysseus showed his intelligence after he got stuck in a cave with a huge cyclops. When the cyclops asks odysseus his name he said that his name was nohbdy. He decided to blind the cyclops with a spear…

Words 445 - Pages 2

Odysseus: The Characteristics Of An Epic Hero

story of Odysseus during his journey back to Ithaca, Scylla took six of Odysseus men, so he had to fight the Trojan war. Odysseus fits in the definition and the characteristics of an epic hero in many ways such as showing bravery along his epic adventure. He shows superhuman strengths during his journey and gigantic bravery. He is a very great and strong leader and he overcomes many problems. He also risks his life in danger looking for a better future for him and others. Odysseus is an epic hero because…

Words 237 - Pages 1

Characteristics Of Odysseus As An Epic Hero

followers, they create leaders.” Odysseus is the main focus within the book “The Odyssey” by Homer, a blind poet. Odysseus is a father and a husband who got sent away, regarding the Trojan War. During his way home himself and his crew faced difficult obstacles that set them back from his return. Do you believe Odysseus is an epic hero? I do not believe that Odysseus was a hero because in each sentence between the characteristics (self-centered, vain, and curiosity) of Odysseus are what make him to be this…

Words 565 - Pages 3

Odysseus A Hero

Heroes, what exactly makes up a hero? This is the question that not everyone will agree on with what really makes a hero a hero. In my opinion, I think the characteristics that make up a hero is intelligence, courage, bravery, caring, strength, leadership, patience, and selflessness. I do believe that Odysseus has all those characteristics that a hero should have, because I do believe he is a hero. The story begins with Odysseus, Odysseus’s wife, Penelope, and his son Telemachus. They were all…

Words 373 - Pages 2

The Hero's Journey of the Odyssey Essay

Ms. Gibson English 1/2 H p5 16 December 2013 Odysseus’ Clock Heroes are everywhere... such can be the Americans who fight over seas, the leaders who defend our human rights, the civilians who save the unfortunate, the people who feed us and shelter us from the cold and unknown, and the souls that lie within every one of us. We do not realize this because the definition of a hero is ambiguous. According to Merriam Webster Dictionary, a hero is a mythological or legendary figure often of divine…

Words 1570 - Pages 7

Odysseus Epic Hero

Odysseus: An Epic Hero There are many different types of heroes in literature. One example of a hero is an epic hero. An epic hero is a loyal and brave warrior who goes on a quest or a journey taking the values of his society with him. Furthermore, an epic hero also has some negative traits, including arrogance. One epic hero in particular plays a role in The Odyssey by Homer. This epic hero is Odysseus. Odysseus is an example of an epic hero. First of all, Odysseus is an epic hero because…

Words 753 - Pages 4

Odyssey Comparative Essay

Honors English 1 March 10, 2014 The Making of a Hero “A hero, a mythological or legendary figure often of divine descent endowed with great strength or ability,” (“Merriam-Webster”). There are two types of heroes, epic heroes and modern heroes. Odysseus and Mahatma Gandhi are both heroes who show courage, perseverance, and leadership, but differ in adventure. However, one thing is certain, modern heroes can be identical to epic heroes if they are larger than life, express the morals of their culture…

Words 516 - Pages 3

Epic Conventions In The Odyssey Essay

diction to thoroughly describe Odysseus actions, feelings and emotions, and intentions and display the epic conventions among the story. In Book XXII, many examples of this can be seen through Odysseus’ actions and his ways of thinking in lines 1 through 43. After his arrival to Ithaka, Odysseus witnessed sights which he can’t bear to see and is absolutely outraged by what he saw. After carefully thinking of an approach on how to attack and get rid of the suitors, Odysseus gets Telemachus to join him…

Words 583 - Pages 3

Oedipus Tragic Hero Research Paper

The meaning of a hero as Peter S. Beagle says, “Great heroes need great sorrows and burdens, or half their greatness goes unnoticed.” All great heroes have gone through something truly tragic in their lives that inspires them to overcome any hardship; although the end is not always a joyous one. A tragic hero is a hero who's actions leads to their own demise, regardless of how hard they try to prevent it. Oedipus is a great example of a tragic hero. A few characteristics of tragic heroes are hamartia…

Words 1333 - Pages 6