Essay about Odysseus: The Antihero

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.

A hero accepts who he is as an individual, but strives to change himself for the better. In the epic poem, The Odyssey, by Homer, the main character Odysseus is a valiant king who embarks on a life-changing voyage. While traveling from Troy back to his home in Ithaka, King Odysseus overcomes daunting obstacles, and in doing so discovers his place in the world. Odysseus is truly a heroic figure because he demonstrates courage, improves his character, and wins the support of the gods.

First, an example of his unfaithfulness to his wife is when on the island of Kirke he was told to sleep with the evil witch, and he automatically did it without even asking questions. He could have threatened to kill Kirke or reason with her, but no he took his favorite way out, sleeping with her. Another time Odysseus was unfaithful to his wife was while on the island of Kylpso he willingly slept with her countless times over his seven year captivity on the island. Penelope, Odysseus' faithful wife, never cheated on him once during his 20 year absence in Ithaka. A time he is unfaithful to the Gods is when he receives the ride home from the Phaeakians he did not pry or sacrifice anything to Poseidon before his trip if he would have done this he could have saved the lives of the Phaeakians sailors, who were killed by Poseidon. Finally, Odysseus was unfaithful to the Gods when he does not except Polyphemos sincere apology and says, “ Kyklops, if any 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 Ithaka!” (IX 548-552). Which shows disrespect to the Gods by not

Near the end of this chapter when he has finished off all of the suitors, (mostly with the aid of Athena), Odysseus feels he has prevailed as the winner, righted the wrong. At one point he exclaims "these men the doom of the gods has brought low, and their own indecent acts. They'd no regard for any man who chanced come their way. And so thanks to their reckless work, they met their shameful fate."(435-438). The irony of this quote is the fact that he is

Odysseus was both physically and emotionally unfaithful to Penelope, his wife. On the island of Ogygia, Odysseus slept with Kalypso numerous times over the seven years. Although it was Kalypso that wished to lay with Odysseus, it was his choice to agree to her, “She received me, she loved me.” (224) His decision to be unfaithful to his wife was caused by no one but himself. His promiscuous behavior followed him to the island of Aiolia. He was smitten by Kirke, a witch who had transformed Odysseus’s men into pigs. His affair with her lasted for an entire year. If it were not for his crew, it is without a doubt that Odysseus would have forgotten about Ithaka and remained on Aiolia forever, “So day… year grew fat.” (pg 179). All the while Odysseus had been

As the king of Ithaca and the crew leader of several men accompanying him on his focal return journey from the site of the Trojan War, Odysseus is necessarily loyal to his men, and to his denizens, as otherwise, Ithaca would falter, and the men on board with him would not be able to withstand the lengthy, epic journey as they had done. The demonstrations of this vital heroic character trait are numerous, such as when Odysseus remains alongside his supportive crew men during an assault upon his ships, with only the one upon which the previous portion of the odyssey had been conducted remaining afterward, and when his men are in despair at his temporary absence, coming to them in order to not only assuage them, but more importantly to signal to all of them that he would always be with them; that he would be their natural, passionate

Heroes are portrayed as perfect, flawless beings with the strength of the boldest and the heart of the noblest, yet heroes are merely regular men made immortal. As Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “A hero is no braver than an ordinary man, but he is brave five minutes longer.” In the epic poem, The Odyssey, written by Homer, Odysseus is a young man who is faced with a painstaking quest to return to his homeland Ithaca, but along the way meets many foes and obstacles. Through his quests, he is realized not to be just a hero, but a man with many faults and hardships in his life, who in his journey, like any other man, realizes many important lessons. In The Odyssey, Homer employs multiple literary devices to demonstrate different themes that occur in his renowned epic poem.

When we hear the word 'hero,' more than one idea comes to mind. Not only do we think of people that we look up to in our world, but we also think of heroes in the fictional world. To be a hero can mean a variety of different things. Leaders, singers, and even parents can be a hero that someone looks up too. But in the fictional world, a hero is someone who has learned from his or hers journey to come out a changed person. Some characters complete the journey, while others do not quite make it to the end. In The Odyssey, Odysseus takes more than one leap of faith on his journey to become a hero by learning from his mistakes, making personal sacrifices, and becoming a better man.

Odysseus has a recurring complicated relationship with being loyal to his wife, Penelope, and being unfaithful. He seems loyal to Penelope by always wanting to go home and asking for help to get back to his home. For example, when Calypso asks him to marry her and live on her island for ever he declines. Even when she said she could bring Penelope and his son, he

Odysseus was forced to sleep with Calypso, but he never forgot his wife and wept at night begging to go back home. This reveals to the reader his loyalty and his faithfulness to his wife Penelope. On the other hand, Penelope was also very loyal to Odysseus. Even though she was almost certain he was dead, she never married any of the suitors and

Have you ever heard of a man- a very mortal man- who can defeat a cyclops, outwitt any opponent, kill men six times in number, and survive twenty years at sea? This man, is Odysseus, the son of Laertes. Odysseus can be read about in the epic poem called The Odyssey written by Homer. An epic poem is a long narrative poem about a serious event. Odysseus is the epic hero of this poem. An epic hero is a character who is smart, powerful, and fears almost nothing. Odysseus fits the definition of an epic hero.

Heroism in the Odyssey One of the main points of The Odyssey focuses on the heroism of the protagonist, Odysseus. His large troubles and ridiculous conflicts with himself and others show his brave and intelligent characteristics. Although bravery and intelligence contribute to a fuller image of a “hero”, I do not believe Odysseus has shown himself to be a hero through The Odyssey. A hero uses his/her powers for good, always, and Odysseus did not.

Any successful leader’s goal is to lead his group, and for Odysseus to allow his men to aimlessly wander around the island, does not illustrate proper leadership. Although Odysseus’s intention is to explore the island first, he should have either gone alone or with a few of his men, which would have portrayed courage and adequate leadership. Additionally, through several of his adventures, Odysseus loses his men one by one, ending up not bringing any of his men home to Ithaka. For example, Helios’s resentment toward Odysseus’s men prompts him to exclaim, “O Father Zeus and gods in bliss forever,/ punish Odysseus’ men!” (XII, 484-485) As stated, the gods punish the men for consuming the cattle, proving how Odysseus is solely not able to guide his men to survival. Also, when the Kyklopes, “laid hands upon a bigger stone/ and wheeled around, titanic for the cast,/ to let it fly in the black-prowed vessel’s track” (IX, 587-589) due to Odysseus’s hubris, a number of ships are destroyed, limiting the space for his crew and providing them with less stable transportation. Instances like the Kyklopes episode, and when Zeus uses his thunderbolt to once again destroy ships, all demonstrate the lacking leadership that Odysseus continues to encompass throughout the epic poem and reasonably can be deemed his fault. Moreover, Odysseus’s leadership is yet

The World of Odysseus was written by Sir Moses I. Finley, and it is an in depth analysis of the Iliad and the Odyssey. The period in history that helped to produce these two phenomenal works is veiled with uncertainty due to the fact that an actual written history doesn't exist. Homer put his history of the period together from the traditional custom of oral poetic story telling that originated from the late Dark Age and early Archaic Period. The first three chapters of Finley's text provide the reader with an understanding of the Greek world so the information presented in the fourth and fifth chapters is easier to understand.

“Pride and excess bring disaster for man.” -Xunzi. Odysseus is the Greek King of Ithaca, who along with his comrades, makes his way back home after the final victory against the Trojans in the Trojan War. Odysseus and his men face many hardships along the way, and in the end, Odysseus is the sole man of his fleet to survive the long journey. Although Odysseus from The Odyssey is portrayed as a brave hero who saves his crew from danger, in reality, it is Odysseus’ pride and overconfidence that put him and his sailors in unnecessarily dangerous situations, especially when compared to other greek heroes.