Examples Of Hubris In Odysseus

In Greek mythology, hubris means to have excessive self confidence or pride. In The Odyssey, we often see Odysseus getting into trouble because of his hubris. There are many examples where this flaw is exhibited. These include when Odysseus defeats the cyclops Polyphemus, when he and his crew sail past the sirens, and when he got the bag of winds from Aeolus. Hubris leads him to disregard the Gods, and make unwise decisions because his pride blinds him of his ability to see the consequences in making those choices. Odysseus’ hubris also makes his trip home harder and longer than it had to be.

Hubris is Oedipus's tragic flaw. He is now overly full of himself because: he rescued the city of Thebes from the Sphinx, people admire him, the citizens worship him as if he were an idol, the citizens think of him as their hero, and the Thebans have such a high esteem for him, that they made him King. One instance that proves he is filled with overbearing pride is when he proclaims, "I, Oedipus, a name that all men know." (8) This statement also brings about irony. It is ironic because his name will be remembered and well-known everywhere--as a polluter, the

During Odysseus’ journey in ‘The Odyssey’, Odysseus runs into a couple problems. He leaves home ready to fight in the Trojan War. Although he had plans on coming home, he never made it home. His wife Penelope and his son Telemachus assumed that Odysseus was dead. It was not until Athena came to Telemachus and gave him everything he needed to make it to his dad. What Telemachus did not know was that Odysseus wanted to come home, but he could not because he was being held prisoner on an island named Ogygia. Odysseus wants nothing more to return home and see his lovely wife Penelope.

Homer gives Odysseus series of conflicts even to the point of Odysseus returning home after 20 years. When Odysseus is given a chance to compete for Penelope, he does not hesitate in killing the ringleader of the suitors. As a result of Odysseus's determination, he tells them that will not “escape death”(1286). This act proves that he will not let anyone try to get with his women. This sense of courage and determination get him what he wants. In spite of Odysseus conquering this task he still has a more important one ahead. Penelope still has doubts and believe he could just be a trick from the gods. As a result, Telemachus tries to convince his mother that he is the real Odysseus and she does not need to question him. As a

Throughout the epic poem The Odyssey, Odysseus has been characterized as an epic hero. A characteristic of odysseus that makes him an epic hero is that he has hubris. An example of him having hubris is when after the men escape and blind the cyclops polyphemus odysseus states “If ever a mortal man inquire how you were put to shame and blinded, tell him odysseus, raider of cities, took your eye Laertes son whose home's on ithaca”(409-412). Odysseus is bragging about how he blinded polyphemus and wanted him to tell anyone who asked about his eye that it was he who did it. The theme hospitality plays a big role throughout the epic poem. The reason that Odysseus had to blind the cyclops is that he killed some of the crew

His greed, not only for materialistic wealth, but also for human connections and high stature, creates unnecessary obstacles in his path to success. For example, after sacking the Cicones’ land by robbing its treasures and enslaving its women, he becomes so concerned with wanting more that he travels to the land of the cyclopes. There, he traps himself and his men in a cave, leading to many deaths, and a risky escape that all could have been avoided. In addition, when his ship passes the sirens, Odysseus is obsessed with hearing the sirens’ song, and surviving their call. His “heart was filled with such a longing to listen” (Homer 162), that he nearly jeopardizes his mission to reach home by making himself and his crew vulnerable to defeat. Odysseus is also very egotistical and this exaggerated self importance causes him to make selfish decisions. When he finally escapes the cyclopes’ island, he is so thirsty for recognition of this conquest that he endangers his men’s lives by revealing his envied name to Polyphemus, son of Poseidon. This conceited action ignites Poseidon's anger against Odysseus and his men on their journey home. Continuing, Odysseus’ self pride results in him undermining trust in others. For instance, when Odysseus is given a bag of winds by Aeolus, he does not notify his crew of the important contents, leading to a failure in reaching Ithaca. Indeed, when the Phaeacians later take Odysseus to

In the epic poem, The Odyssey, the poet Homer, tries to argue that one should not have pride against the gods, this is because in his poem whenever one shows hubris he is either faced with many hardships or death The first example I would like to address is the hubris shown by Odysseus. One example, is shown when Odysseus taunts the cyclops Polyphemus, who himself is semi divine. This taunted leads to Polyphemus praying to Poseidon saying “grant Odysseus… never reaches home” (228).

Odysseus was a very robust individual who was obligated to leave his kingdom of Ithaca to embark on a journey to fight the battles of Greek and win over Troy. To do this, he was required to leave behind his newborn son Telemachus, and his wife Penelope the Queen. The war lasted 10 years, and once the battle was over Odysseus and his fleet split and attempted to sail back to Ithaca. There, he was favored by Athena, goddess of handicrafts, learning, and the arts, and despised by Poseidon, god of the sea. His journey back home went off track and Odysseus eventually returned home after 20 years. Throughout the journey, Odysseus encountered many different situations in which he made some respectable choices, but the poorer ones landed him in a

A ten years at war, then another ten years at sea returning home. This is Odysseus’ reality in Homer’s two epics. He is the head of a crew, but his leadership suffers from his hubris. In Greek mythology, hubris is excessive pride in one’s self. It usually occurs in the main hero, and it is typically that hero’s downfall. Homer argues that hubris is the downfall of leaders through the effect of Odysseus’ actions on his crew.

Approximately ten or so years have passed and the Hero Odysseus never returned from his voyage and his wife Penelope still remains loyal/faithful that her love will come back one day and be together again once and for all. But Odysseus has to deal with the suitors who are a big problem stopping him to leave the area to continue his adventures and trying his best to go home to his wife after days go day….They manage to kill them all and escape from the place. Odysseus had a long and painful journey after what happened with all the trouble he had to go through whether it’ll be the Cyclopes, Witch, Nor the men opening the bag of wind he had gotten from the God of Air to help him go home however, luckily he finally comes home with his men to

Lastly, Odysseus's perseverance made it possible for him to finally make it home to Ithaka, his persistence effects his crew which looks up to him for guidance.When Odysseus arrives home he describes what he had to endure to his wife Penelope: “’My lady, / what ordeals have we not endured! Here, waiting/ you had your grief, while my return dragged out-/ my hard adventures, pitting myself against/ the god’s will… But now our life resumes: we’ve come together to our longed-for-bed”’ (Homer 23. 394-400). Both Odysseus and his wife have to cope with many challenges throughout Odysseus's 20 year absence. Even after his crew perished and he is left shipless, Odysseus does not give up. Likewise, when Odysseus has to sacrifice his men in a fight against Skylla, he grieves for his loss but he understands that he must push on : “Now I let go with hands and feet, plunging/ straight into the foam beside the timbers, /pulled astride, /and rowed hard with my hands/ to pass

Odysseus and his men's returns home after the Trojan War. Struggling to get home, Poseidon (God of the sea), made it very difficult for Odysseus to return home. From getting their ships blown off and landing in places filled with Cyclopes. After, escaping from the Cyclopes, Odysseus finds out there are suitors pursuing his wife Penelope. Goddess Athena gives Odysseus a transformation as a beggar to fool the suitors. Odysseus and Telemachus plan to massacre all the suitors. In the end, Odysseus finally returns home to Ithaca and reunited with Penelope.

In the play Oedipus Rex, the author Sophocles depicts Oedipus as a tragic hero by giving him the hamartia of, hubris which leads to his downfall. For example, Oedipus proclaims “Whoever killed King Laius might-who knows?-Decide at any moment to kill me as well.” (Line 142) Oedipus’ hubris is illuminated in this quotation because he believes that the “killer” will come after him since he is as noble as the former king. Further, Oedipus does not even consider the possibility that he may be the killer of King Laius and he believes someone else is responsible.

Odysseus longs for home, and to see his wife, Penelope and son, Telemachus. Odysseus embarks on a long journey to get home, he faces many obstacles before returning to his wife. Dangers like being trapped in islands with lots of deathly creatures. But always in the back of his mind, he is thinking that it's worth it because he will be seeing his family soon.

Oedipus becomes a victim of the unforseen consequences of his own actions. The actions are fueled by his own pride and his arrogance to think he can avoid Apollo's prophecy, and pride turned to anger in being pushed off the road when he feels the other driver should be giving way to his own great self (Ancient Greek road rage!). He may have been doomed since before birth by Apollo's curse on his family, but Oedipus opes up and also creates his own problems. In believing he can avoid Apollo's prophecy, he showed us that he thinks he has outsmarted the gods, that he is greater than the gods. This, then, is the ultimate hubris and his ultimate