The Character Of Odysseus In Homer's The Odyssey

What if the person one looks up to or longs to return is not the person they expect that person to be? In the Odyssey, by Homer, this is the case for Odysseus. He is not the man everyone thinks he is. To begin with, the epic the Odyssey is about the return of the “great” king of Ithaka, Odysseus, from the Trojan War. He spends ten years fighting the war and is now on his way home where he is creating tension that is prolonging his return to Ithaka. This tension is making Odysseus show his true character that one would not think he would show. He is showing the side that no one knows and he is not as noble as one might think he would be. At present time, Odysseus is an incredibly arrogant person. Contemporary readers of the Odyssey expect Odysseus …show more content…
He does not follow the value because he is showing that he does not care for the safety or well being of his crew while they are out on the sea. Odysseus is quick to call out his men when the circumstances do not go to his liking, by stating, “My men were mutinous, fools, on stores of wine. Sheep after sheep they butchered by the surf, and shambling cattle, feasting,-- while fugitives went inland, running to call to arms the main force of Kikones” (Homer.IX.51-55.146). While his men are doing something that upsets Odysseus, he is not not following the expectation of Arete because he is not being a good leader. One would think that good leaders would not try to demoralize their crew, even if the circumstances are not going in their favor. Likewise, Odysseus is showing the lack of his leadership by not making the logical decision by not listening to the song of the Seirenes. He again is lacking in Homer’s expectation of Arete by not showing excellence or being a good leader, which should be the goal in one’s life. On the outside, Odysseus is perceived as a good leader and person, but once one starts peeling the layers back of his personality his true colors start to show. He also puts an unnecessary burden on the shoulders of his men and himself that would have been avoided if not for Odysseus’s narcissistic morals. Odysseus is showing Narcissism by projecting …show more content…
Not only is he not valuing humans but, also not valuing an even greater power, a Kyklopes, a one eyed beast. To get rolling, Odysseus’s run in with one Kyklopes is not going in his favor. With that fact, he is not treating the one he encounters, Polyphemos, with any respect. This is not a good idea with and his arrogance is showing really early with the beast by responding to Polyphemus 's question with,“Kyklops, you ask my honorable name? Remember the gift you promised me, and I shall tell you. My name is Nohbdy: mother, father, and friends, everyone calls me Nohbdy”(IX.394-398.135-136). The lack of humanism is too much too much to handle, one does not lie about his or her name even in any circumstance. In general, people do not lie like that because they are showing arrogance and also that he has no problem lying. Odysseus’s arrogance is showing by the lack humanism he is showing to the beast. Lucky for Odysseus the beast is oblivious to his arrogance and proceeds with his normal actions, eating men and stuff like that. One might think good leaders would not lie because of the power they have and if the lie were to be found out, undesirable actions might unfold. Odysseus is showing his lack leadership above, because one might think that a leader will not be arrogant or a bad leader. In this case, Odysseus lies which is much worse because one