In the epic poem The Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus demonstrates bravery as a trait of exceptional leadership when he fearlessly rescues his crewman from Circe’s potion. Despite seeing the “blinding tears” and “dry lips” of one of his crewmen, Eurylokhos, after returning for Circe’s hall, Odysseus decides to visit anyway and rescue his crewman from the unknown. When Eurylokhos arrives in a frantic state near the ship where Odysseus awaits the return of his men; Odysseus remains calm after he discovers his men are in danger, he “ [sees] nothing for it but to go” and rushes to the rescue (Homer 173, line 300-301). He “ [takes] the inland path alone” to arrive at Circe’s hall in the most effective amount of time where his men are held captive by…
With the bag of winds blowing the whole ship back to where they began and the backlash from the crew as the result of him hiding their destiny with the Scylla, it is shown that Odysseus was not a perfect leader. 2 Both Circe and Calypso had been with and liked Odysseus because they believed it was their destiny. Circe was keeping Odysseus on her island for a short amount of time in exchange for valuable information about his journey home. However, she had spoiled him during his time on her island, making him lose track of time, keeping him much longer than he originally intended.…
Odysseus was an effective leader for many reasons. First of all, Odysseus was an effective leader because he was intelligent. An example of this is in the Cyclops cave. He figured a way out of the cave and that was to give the Cyclops a lot of wine and made him fall asleep so they could escape. Another way Odysseus was an effective leader because he was courageous.…
They still followed his commands and were able overcome many obstacles. Being the head of the group and leading men into something harmful, can be very hard to do, but Odysseus seemed to always be right in the front. Running into battle or something harmful can be hard, but with Odysseus right by their…
John Maxwell once said, “Leaders become great, not because of their power, but because of their ability to empower others.” Odysseus, a hero in the epic The Odyssey, becomes an example of this in his attempt to return to his home. While sailing, he decided to sail by a large creature and lose only a few men, compared to sailing by a whirlpool and possibly losing everyone and his ship. Odysseus also gets his crew to blind a large one-eyed monster and hide under his animals to free him and his crew. Odysseus was a strong leader and did everything he could to help his crew because of his decisions to sacrifice some men rather than possibly lose them all and to escape from a monster by hiding under his livestock.…
In The Odyssey, Homer writes of Odysseus, a good leader. Odysseus does make mistakes, for example when he leaves Ismarus he says, “I sacked the city, killed the men” and then he takes the riches and wives as plunder (9. 46-47). In this situation Odysseus acts similar to a pirate and goes against the Greek value of order. Also, when Eurylochus and the crew asks to land on the island of the Sun God’s cattle Odysseus says, “I’m one against all, the upper hand is yours” even though this island is where Odysseus was told he will have their greatest disaster (12. 322-323). Odysseus giving in leads to the death of his entire crew and ship.…
Although some readers think his actions are reckless, I believe Odysseus is a clever, heroic leader. In my opinion, someone is heroic if they put something at risk to complete a task, and are courageous in doing so. To be a good leader, one should inspire people and work alongside them to accomplish a goal. A leader should be compassionate and diplomatic.…
In the epic poem The Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus is not an example of an effective leader as he does not make the best decisions and does not communicate well with his companions. One of the many characteristics of a good leader is the ability to make good decisions and Odysseus does not perform this ability well. When Odysseus and his crew arrive at the Cyclops Island, his men decide to steal some food and run back to the ship but Odysseus, however, demands to see the cyclops Polyphemus, who lives on the island. “Ah, how sound that was!…
Odysseus puts earwax in his crew’s ears to protect them from the sirens. This is an example of a good leader because he is not only looking out for himself, but also looking out for his crew and making sure they are as protected as possible. Another reason Odysseus was a good leader when he did this was he was thinking fast and used the resources around him, just like a good leader would. Next, Odysseus is a strong leader…
Do you think Odysseus is a hero? I do not think he is a hero, but a cold-blooded monster. He knew his men were going to die and did not tell them. He lied, cheated, stole and survived. He lied to his men.…
In the comedy epic, The Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus is not a good leader because his arrogance causes his crew members to pass away and the lack of trust from his crew makes him unable to control them. Odysseus’s arrogance leads to the death of his crew. For example, while Odysseus and his crew are approaching Scylla, Odysseus knows that six of the crew members paddling will die. However, he says, “I told them nothing, as they could do nothing”(ln 620-621). Odysseus is implying that, as they approach Scylla, she will devour six crew members alive.…
To be a hero you have to have characteristics of being brave, strong, and willing to risk your life for your friends or family. In The Odyssey, Odysseus has different heroic characteristics like being very strategic, having an emotional side and being a leader. Odysseus and his men are trying to get home to Ithaca. Odysseus has to do some heroic things and lose all the lives of his men as he learns to overcome challenges. Odysseus is a very strategic leader.…
In The Odyssey written by Homer, Odysseus embodies an Epic hero. An Epic Hero has to have specific traits to be considered an Epic hero. Some of those traits include possessing superhuman strength, craftiness, and confidence, being helped or harmed by gods or fate, and overcoming perilous situations. Odysseus possesses all of these traits, therefore proving himself to be an Epic hero. Odysseus demonstrates his superhuman strength, craftiness, and confidence when he outsmarts the Cyclops in part one of the Odyssey.…
In the epic poem The Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus demonstrates bravery as a trait of exceptional leadership when he fearlessly rescues his crew from permanently being transformed by Circe’s magical potion. After Eurylokhos, one of Odysseus’s crewmen, leads a search group onto the island of Circe, he returns from Circe’s hall so horrified he is unable to speak, with “blinding tears” pooling in his eyes (Homer 172, 272). By questioning Eurylokhos about the events that took place at Circe’s house, Odysseus learns his men are in some sort of danger, and therefore is determined to retrieve them at once. Odysseus commands Eurylokhos to lead him back to the house from which he came, but Eurylokhos begs Odysseus to let him stay behind, and Odysseus,…
In his journey, his excessive pride and self-confidence diminishes and his patience increases. Odysseus has the defining character traits of a Homeric leader: strength, courage, nobility, a thirst for glory, and confidence in his authority. His most distinguishing trait is his sharp intellect. Due to these qualities, he had a lot of pride in himself. But, by the end of the…