The Role Of Heroism In The Odyssey

Odysseus the “Hero” Odysseus brings a thought of a great hero to your mind when you hear his name. But how much of a hero is he? Yes, he shows bravery, has the body built for a hero, has the brain to make strategic plans, and is a well-spoken leader. But at the same time, he continued to stumble over problems throughout his life, many of the problems him and his men put on themselves. He struggled with his arrogance, vanity, lied to his own men, made costly mistakes, and in the end lost all of his men. He cared more for himself than his men, making him an anti-hero. Therefore Odysseus should not be considered an archetype hero. Throughout the Odyssey, Odysseus seems like the hero that everyone looks up too, but upon deeper thought he made more mistakes then heroism acts. After stabbing Polyphemus in …show more content…
When they went to past Scylla, Circe told him to not fight the beast just flee and save as many men as you can. Odysseus pulled out his spears and armor prepared to kill the beast. All he did was giving Scylla more time to kill more of his men, making him a bad leader, sacrificing his men for the possibility of more fame. As they continue their journey towards Ithaca, the men continue to go through their food supplies and start to starve. The men stumble upon Helios’ Island where fat, immortal, grazing cattle live. Odysseus tells his men to not eat upon the cattle or they will be punished. Odysseus’s men disobey his orders showing his lack of leadership. After eating the cattle, Zeus strikes lightning upon his last ship killing every man except Odysseus. Many think Odysseus is the great Archetype hero that he is but upon deeper investigation he should not be considered the hero he is. He is self-centered, cares more for himself than his men, and cheated on his wife. He made many mistakes and even when he made himself look good by achieving great deeds, he screwed it up and made more