Being a legitimate hero is not all about having the extraordinary supernatural powers commonly seen on television. Heroes are people who aid others, often putting themselves at risk to do so. They made the decision to fight, not necessarily physically, for their values. Odysseus, the main character in The Odyssey, should be considered a hero. He put his own life in jeopardy to protect his men from the supernatural threats that they faced throughout their journey. Odysseus should be regarded as a hero because he is brave, clever, and cautious.
Odysseus shows his heroism through his bravery. When Circe turned his men into swine, Odysseus confronted her: "I drew my sharpened sword and in one bound held it against her throat"("Circe, the
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My name is Nohbdy'"("The Cyclops" lines 312-315). Odysseus' astuteness is apparent in this situation because he refused to reveal his identity to Polyphemus while he was vulnerable. His decision prevented the other Cyclops from coming to aid of Polyphemus. By precluding this beforehand, he demonstrated his heroic quality of wiliness. The ingenuity established by these actions personifies Odysseus as a hero.
Furthermore, Odysseus reveals his cautious qualities that verify his heroism. In "Sea Perils and Defeat", Odysseus does not notify his men about the Sirens: "Odysseus decides to tell the men only of Circe's warnings about the Sirens"(narration). Odysseus noticeably gave forethought to this action because he knew his men would be fearful, and that it would interfere with their goal. His judgment forestalled his men from trying to avoid Scylla, as the anxiety of facing Scylla may have overwhelmed them, therefore, saving them from annihilation. Correspondingly, Odysseus shows his circumspect behavior in "The Challenge": "Odysseus took his time, turning the bow, tapping it, every inch"(lines 1359-1360). This instance reflects Odysseus' value of prudence; he made sure that the bow was in suitable condition for him to make an accurate shot. Placing importance on his discretion, Odysseus displays his heroic characteristics. Odysseus' alertness in these situations validates his heroism.
Confidence,
In my eyes a hero is a person who shows courage, is humble, does not give up, and is someone everybody can relate to. The protagonist in “The Odyssey” by Homer, Odysseus is a hero because although he is emotional throughout the book and lets his emotions take over his actions, he displays immense courage and perseveres through his journey and hardships.
Odysseus is a man to be acknowledged as a hero because he wisely resided with Circe, allowing him to learn of the dangers that lay ahead. After Odysseus returns from his visit with the dead prophet Tiresias, Circe informs him he must “Listen with care to this...in your ship’s path are Sirens, crying
What heroic qualities does Odysseus show? Explain the situations in which Odysseus shows these qualities.
‘Cyclops you ask my noble name, and I will tell it; but do you give the stranger’s gift, just as you promised. My name is Noman. Noman I am called by mother, father, and by all my comrades’” (86). Odysseus tells Polyphemus his name is Noman to ruse him. Odysseus soon gets Polyphemus drunk. Odysseus takes the staff and blinds Polyphemus. Polyphemus removes the boulder and asks for help from the other Cyclops. “Then in his turn from out the cave big Polyphemus answered: ‘Friends Noman is murdering me by craft. Force there is none.’
Many think being a hero is having super powers, but on the contrary it's more than that. A hero is one who is distinguished for their courage and bravery, and looked upon for their great deeds. A hero like this is not just found in modern society today, but in mythology as well. In the epic poem The Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus earns the title of a true hero by conveying many qualities such as: determination, courage and leadership.
Odysseus is a hero because he acts courageously while facing the many challenges he encounters. Odysseus’s shows great bravery when he engages in physical challenges. Odysseus daringly fights against the suitors, while significantly outnumbered: “For I must
The majority of those who read The Odyssey consider the protagonist of the story, Odysseus, a hero. On many occasions, however, Odysseus makes decisions beneficial to himself alone. For example, when Odysseus and his men find themselves on Polyphemus's island, Odysseus's actions are self-centered and at the expense of his men. This can be said for most of Odysseus's actions in the story, as his main objective is to reach his home. Having his men by his side when he returns seems a trivial thing to him. Odysseus could be considered a hero, but many of his actions say otherwise. Due to the many unfaithful and self-centered decisions he makes in the story, Odysseus is not a hero.
Bravery was probably one of the traits Odysseus was known for best. Without his bravery, the story most-likely wouldn't have been as exciting and suspenseful as it was. One of the situations that displayed this trait was when they landed on the
When Odysseus becomes trapped in the Cyclops, Polyphemus’s, cave, he realizes that now is the time to use his strategy rather than strength. It all starts with his ‘libations’ to the Cyclops. Odysseus consistently gives Polyphemus wine “to top off the banquet of human flesh [he has] bolted down!” which is the crew members that Cyclops has eaten ( 9. 222). The most crucial part of Odysseus’s plan is when he tells Polyphemus his name is “Nobody- so my mother and father call me” (9. 223). This particular name that he tells Cyclops helps him escape the other cyclops on the island. Once they stab Polyphemus’s eye with a burning hot stick, the other cyclops wake up to ask him if anyone else is in there with him. Polyphemus, thinking that Odysseus’s name is actually ‘Nobody’, tells them that ‘Nobody’ is in there with him, While escaping death from the cyclops, Odysseus also blinds the cyclops, and saves the rest of his crew. Odysseus chose to use his strategy in place of trying to use his strength which would not have helped him escape. In this situation, strength is no use, seeing as the cyclops is ten times as strong as him.
A hero is one who sets a goal in which takes bravery and dedication in order to achieve. The book The Odyssey written by Homer reveals a story of a true hero. The main character is a man named Odysseus who displays hero characteristics throughout the book. Odysseus is a hero because he returns home with a changed perspective which reflects his heroic abilities, such as his bravery and dedication to return home.
sword from my hip I went along his flank to stab him where the midriff
Odysseus has many heroic qualities such as cleverness, physical strength,and bravery. First, Odysseus tricked the cyclops, Polyphemus, by telling him his name was “Nobody” ( The Odyssey 1058). This showed cleverness because Odysseus gave the cyclops a bottle of wine to make him drunk, which caused him to fall asleep. Then, Odysseus found some wood and sharpened it to stab Polyphemus in the eye. While Polyphemus was blind, he asked Odysseus what his name was, he said it was Nobody and made the cyclops believed that was his name. Another example of when he showed a heroic quality is when Odysseus tricked the suitors by doing an impossible task he knew no one could do and it was to string
Odysseus is the main character in an epic poem called the Odyssey. In the poem Odysseus has had some bad luck getting home, with some of the gods helping him and some hindering him; his journey towards home is a constant struggle. In this poem we see a man being broke and rebuilt, through constant irony his faith was damaged and without the help of Athena he probably would have given up on his journey. Through his hard work and wise spirit he finally does achieve his goal.
Throughout the many traits Odysseus has, his bravery is the most outstanding. Odysseus shows his bravery in the quote, “We lit a fire, burnt an offering, and took some cheese to eat, then sat in silence around the embers, waiting.” (Homer page 760 lines: 219-221) Odysseus was waiting for the cyclops. His bravery was shown when he broke into the cyclops home, took the cyclops food, and sat there and waited for him. Usually when you break into someone's home you do not give them an offering and take their stuff for them to find. In the next quote Odysseus shows even more bravery to go home and not fear the consequences if someone recognizes him. “... Odysseus, in his beggar disguise, finds his way to the heat of Eumclaus, his old and trusty swineherd.” (Homer page
One of the biggest traits Odysseus shows throughout the story is his bravery. The whole story Odysseus shows his courage. Taking every mission knowing there could be death; Odysseus still did not give up. Odysseus did whatever it took to make back to Ithaca for his wife and son. Odysseus showed courage by outsmarting the Cyclops. Odysseus went to the land of the dead just to bury a dead shipmate with no fear. But Odysseus showed his every bit of bravery when planning and fighting against the suitors. Odysseus set up plans to kill all the suitors with only 3 people with him. Odysseus refused to back down from the suitors so when the time came he was prepared. When all the suitors were killed Odysseus and his family had finally reunited. After 20 years of Odysseus bravery had all paid off. That’s why I think Odysseus shows he has lots of bravery throughout the story.