Characteristics Of Odysseus

Although Odysseus is one of the most well known greek heros in the world, he is also very controversial among the people as well. In the book, “The Odyssey” written by Homer, Odysseus made some choices that makes the readers question his role as a leader. In “The Odyssey”, it tells the story about Odysseus’ long journey home from the Trojan War. Along the way, Odyssey has extended his times away from home by making unintelligent decisions that led him to encounter one disaster after another. Although Odysseus has some positive attributes, he is a poor leader for the following reasons: he is too cocky and overconfident, he make careless decision, and finally, he is very selfish.

“The art of leadership is saying no, and not saying yes”(Tony Blair). In the Odyssey, Odysseus is the captain of a large fleet trying to get back to their home, Ithaca. Odysseus, with his crew, had to go through many obstacles to return to Ithaca. Odysseus was a bad leader because he was selfish, arrogant, and couldn’t control his men.

In the epic The Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus should not be considered a good leader because he is giving false hope to his crew and treats his crew very poorly by letting them die for his mistakes. A good leader should do what is necessary in order to achieve their goal and must be considerate of their crew, by respecting them and notifying them about any changes in their plans. It is the leader’s duty to let the crew decide what to do in tough situations and consider their opinions on entering risky scenarios.

Peter Drucker said, “Effective leadership is not about making speeches or being liked; leadership is defined by results, not attributes.” Homer proves this point in The Odyssey, which is an epic poem, and the main character is Odysseus. Odysseus is on his way back from the Trojan War and everyone returns back to Ithaca beside him, he is being held against his will, by Calypso, on Ogygia. He soon will be faced with problems that come about all because of himself. Some people like Odysseus are not fit to be a leader because he is arrogant, foolish, and a liar.

People look up to Odysseus and willingly like him as their leader shown by this quote “Men hold me formidable for guile in peace and war:this fame has gone abroad to the sky’s rim. My home is on the peaked sea-mark of Ithaca.” ( Homer 10) Odysseus knows he has a lot of responsibility to protect those around and be brave. In this story he shows time and time again that he should the leader.

Odysseus was a really good leader for many reasons.The first example or reason is that Odysseus wants to go home safe with his crew.

In Homer’s The Odyssey, Odysseus is an archetypal hero. Odysseus presents himself as a strong leader throughout this epic poem, but the characteristic that appeared the most is his encouraging attitude towards his men. Homer states, “I cheered my men along with battle talk to keep their courage up” (Applebee et al.906). Overall, Odysseus accomplished what leaders are supposed to do and uplifted his men even

After reading The Odyssey, I realized Odysseus and I both share a strong leadership trait. There are many different occasions throughout the epic that Odysseus shows true leadership. One of the most memorable moments of leadership, happened to be on their trip to the land of the cyclopes. Odysseus and his men had been sailing, looking for home, when they came to some new land. As they came ashore, Odysseus turned to his men and proclaimed, “Old shipmates, friends, the rest of you stand by; I’ll make the crossing in my own ship, with my own company, and find out what the mainland natives are!” (898) Odysseus was being a true leader by showing his men that he is willing to keep them safe at all costs. A second example of Odysseus showing leadership occurred when he arrived back to Ithaca.

In Homer’s epic, The Odyssey, Odysseus demonstrates good leadership because of the courage and decisiveness he shows whilst conquering the challenges he faces while attempting to lead his men back to Ithaca.

The Odyssey provides many instances of leadership shown in the main character, Odysseus. The epic written by Homer follows the twenty year quest of Odysseus as he tries to find his way home, running into many mythological Greek characters along the way. Odysseus is illustrated as a bad leader as he leads his men on something of a wild goose chase through ancient Greece. Odysseus repeatedly puts his men in the grip of death while on their way home. After escaping the Cyclops, in whom’s cave many men were eaten alive, he shouts back from his ship, “‘How do you like the beating that we gave you, you damned cannibal? Eater of guests under your roof! Zeus and the gods have paid you!’” (The Cyclops. 478-480). His statement angers the Cyclops, causing

Furthermore, the three traits described are what make Odysseus an epic hero: Endurance, Patience, and Intelligence. But does that make him a good leader? One could argue that he put his men in the path of oncoming danger, and one could argue his “Selfless” acts could come off as “Selfish” instead. In the end, he proves himself to be a good leader, winning the Trojan war, winning the battle against the suitors, and leading his men down the path of less danger. Being an epic hero and possessing the three aforementioned traits overall make him a good leader as

Odysseus shows how to be a true leader. Odysseus members obey him to show how good of a leader he is. Homer said that his crew “delivered me from my restraint.” Homers crew members show that he was a good leader by showing respect. They also respect everything he does as if he respects them.

After reading the Odyssey, and hearing about all of the actions that Odysseus took part in, the conclusion had been met that, even though he made some bad decisions, Odysseus is generally a strong leader. One event that show his guidance is when Odysseus was the leader of a group of men when they went together, bravely, into the rough Trojan War. During the war, Odysseus showed his strong leadership by never giving up on his men, he told his men to keep fighting and to keep moving. Although there were some events in which he did not make the best decision, or had to make a decision that might seem bad but will be good in the long run. Another reason why I believe that he is a strong leader is because, Odysseus is persistent in his choices,

Odysseus is a fantastic leader, in battle and out. His qualities make him almost god worthy, and he is wondrous at problem solving with these qualities. Odysseus proves himself a significant leader because of his intelligence, loyalty to his men and home, and strength, both emotional and physical. Odysseus is a very intelligent man without a doubt. He knows how to command a military, and surpass challenges any normal man would die in.

Throughout the Odyssey, Odysseus has obtained many heroic traits that make him a good leader. Being focused, caring, and thoughtful, are all traits of good leaders. Through his journey to different islands, facing many different obstacles, Odysseus has gained these. Today we can learn from Odysseus’s good leadership traits. We can also learn that the obstacles we face make us better people.