Being a Hero in The Histories of Herodotus Essay

Herodotus Portrays Leonidas and the Spartans as brave and strong throughout the text because Leonidas is a Greek descent as well as Herodotus himself. In the reading of The History of Herodotus, one of the first things Herodotus states is Leonidas’ ancestors. He states, “Now Leonidas was the son of Anaxandridas, who was the son of Leo, who was the son of Eurycratidas, who was the son of Anaxander, who was the son of Eurycrates...who was the son of Hyllus, who was the son of Hercules. Leonidas had come to be king of Sparta quite unexpectedly(Herodotus 7.204). Herodotus explains how Leonidas is Greek because he is a descendant of the Greek God Hercules. This is an important aspect to consider because It is easy for Herodotus to portray Leonidas and the Spartans as

Herodotus, consider as the father of history, was born in the ancient Halicarnassus, current Turkey, and lived between 485 and 425 BC, about 150 years previous to the creation of the Library of Alexandria. Moreover, due to Persian rule over greece, Herodotus fled to Samos resulting from his conflicts with the local government and will not return until 450 BC, when he participated part in the campaign to defeat Lygdamis, to once again leave the city after the completion of the campaign. Furthermore, Herodotus traveled to Athens at the time of its peak, allowed him to contemplate the great political and cultural boom of the city. During his stay in Athens, Herodotus met Pericles, and became friends with both Sophocles and Anaxagoras, focusing

Often through great literature, there is an epic hero. In the Odyssey, Homer tells the journey of one man’s journey home from the Trojan War. The protagonist of the epic poem Odysseus is often regarded as a great hero. However, Odysseus is not quite the glorious soldier that people often see him as. Odysseus shows that he is an antihero through his pride, disloyalty, and bloodthirstiness.

Herodotus' writes his Histories for Greeks. Specifically for Greeks living in Herodotus' own time. The statement of purpose which begins the work seems to contradict this hypothesis. Herodotus claims to wish to "prevent the traces of human events from being erased by time, and to preserve the fame of the important and remarkable achievements…" [Herodotus, 1.0]. The underlying assumption here is that the author is preserving these events and achievements for future generations and perhaps even future civilizations. The text however does not does not follow these guidelines. Herodotus assumes that his reader will have certain amount of common knowledge.

Odysseus was a strong person, and was thought of to be brave but he does have his flaws, showing he doesn't need god like powers to be a hero. The ruler of Ithaca, Odysseus, was brave but he was not very bright. So what he didn’t have in intelligence he made up for bravery and strength, even Odysseus second in command Eurylochus said "You are a hard, man, Odysseus. Your force is greater, your limbs never wear out. You must be made all of iron" (12.279-80). A moment where this is true can be seen when Odysseus lead some of what was left of his soldiers into a cyclops’ cave expecting gifts because he thought themselves as guest, but the cyclops feels as it trespassing and thievery.

Often through great literature, there is an epic hero. In the Odyssey, Homer tells the journey of one man’s journey home from the Trojan War. The protagonist of the epic poem Odysseus is often regarded as a great hero. However, Odysseus is not quite the glorious soldier that people often see him as. Odysseus disproves his title of a hero through his pride, his disloyalty, and his bloodthirstiness.

As such, the focus upon the heroism of a person modernly upheld to the standard and consideration of a hero lies mainly within their courage and leadership, two characteristics which Odysseus doubtless carries to full extent and potential. This phenomenon, in fact, has mainly come about due to the influx of reflection upon Odysseus' archetypal character and being into the modern world and its pre-existing infusion of established heroic figures, with his archetypal status critical to the outcome of the present. Distinctly, the modern hero is somewhat objectified as one who pursues their ultimate goal with the greatest of valor and zealousness, as opposed to a more diversified, deeper-reaching set of qualities endowed by Odysseus, among others alongside him. The influence is evident and of great magnitude: without Odysseus and the birth of the work in which he is centered around, countless modern heroes would never have come into the world society is familiar and comfortable with at present. This leads inevitably to the conclusion that modifications from Odysseus to more recent heroic figures underlie within the more sentimental, reflective facets of loyalty, and the optimums of qualities which remain the same in themselves on the surface, the standout justification for these occurrences being the comparative lack of struggle in a

To most people, Odysseus is believed as a hero. A hero is a person who is admired or idealized for courage, achievements, and noble qualities. In one of Homer’s classic epics, The Odyssey, Odysseus is admired by many people as a man who has intelligence, nobility, and confidence. However, women who both loved and knew Odysseus than anyone, thought of him differently and knew him in depth. Through The Meadowlands and The Penelopiad, Circe and Penelope showed their strong opinions of this “hero” through their own perspectives.

According to the article “What Really Is A Hery, Anyway”, Arhur Ashe stated, “Heroes are people who transform compassion into heroic actions.” Heroes can be an ordinary person who helps you throughout life and can lead you on the best path of life. They can also be a special person who is there for you in the time of need. Odysseus is king of Ithaca and a man of honor to the Ithaca people . Odysseus goes on an journey but on his journey he tries to get back home , but on his journey home he cheated on his wife and didn’t care about any of his crew members that came with him. In result of the things Odysseus does he is not a modern day hero.

This another one of the traits Odysseus holds. He was never afraid to head straight into battle and fight for the Greeks. He possessed a strong confidence that helped him stay alive. There was no point where his perseverance broke and he gave up. He escaped a blood thirsty cyclops, terribles storms at sea, defeated many men in battle, and slew dozens of greedy suitors. Unlike like the almost immortal Achilles who was too narrow-minded to go into battle in the beginning of the war because of a servant. Though Odysseus was a very valiant man he can sometimes show some impudence. One example of his hubris is in the book The Wanderings Of Odysseus by Rosemary Sutcliff where Odysseus screams in pride at the cyclops his name, revealing himself. Angering the cyclops's father, and resulting in the death of some of his

Herodotus marked a new way of recording and interpreting history: conducting research. He recorded what he saw, heard, and experienced as he traveled around places like the Mediterranean Sea, the Black Sea, and as far up as Babylon. He went on expeditions and encountered much of his information through in person exchange, an accomplishment surely to be considered great. Martin believes Herodotus explored an extensive amount of history and peoples and showcased a spectrum of topics like “war, politics, religion, commerce, geography, climate, ethnography, and individual human motivations” (Martin 7). In his writings called The Histories, Herodotus begins with The Story of Croesus and

The true definition of a hero has been argued among authors time and time again but Christopher Reeve, the man who played the role of the well-known superhero Superman, stated it the best when he said “A hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles.” Many people have the option between choosing to be brave and choosing to be a coward. One of the main things that differentiates the two is that one who is brave is willing to face and endure pain or danger for the better of people around them. A coward however, is someone who lacks the courage to overcome their obstacles and instead of confronting their dangers, they run for them. A hero

There are many types of heroes (such as the ones in comic books, myths, movies, or even just everyday life heroes) but all of them have perseverance when they’re going through a conflict. Heroes are role models and they’re people that we look up too. They all have unique and special qualities that make one another different from each other. For example policemen battle crime everyday and when they’re overcoming a conflict they have determination, courage and other traits that people admire them for and that make them as a hero. Typically a hero is admired for their achievement/actions and qualities.

Herodotus shows that one should fight in battle under any circumstance in different instances throughout book seven. As Xerxes marches towards Greece he and his army are provided food, shelter, and money by Pythius. All that Pythius asks for in return for his “generosity” is that is eldest son does not go to war with Persia and stays to care for him. Xerxes is enrages with this request because not fighting is not acceptable by anyone not even to the king himself. Xerxes says “Vile creature, I am myself marching to Greece, and with me are my children, my brothers, my household, and my friends (Xerxes 7.39)” and he punishes Pythius for even considering his

In conclusion, Oedipus’ is excessively proud in himself but that will eventually lead to his downfall that will label him as a tragic hero. Aristotle even claims Oedipus to be the ideal tragic hero in Greek tragedy. Sophocles supports the way that Aristotle defines a tragic hero through the character of Oedipus form his Oedipus the King.