Was Odysseus A Hero Essay

Was Odysseus a Hero?
Many know the great story of the mighty Odysseus. A man who was drafted to the Trojan War, and battled to find his way home for twenty years. He has been known throughout history as a legend, and heroic figure for centuries. Consequently, being known as such a famous person means leading a life under criticism. Although modern scholars have argued that Odysseus was a hero, closer examination of the greek legend shows that Odysseus was not a hero, because he was ungrateful to the gods, he cheated on his wife, and he returned to Ithaka without any men.

Odysseus, King of Ithaka, was called upon to fight in the Trojan War. At first, he was averse to the idea of going to war, because his son, Telemachus, had been born days before. Eventually, he sailed to Troy, with the best of his men, and fought bravely against the Trojans for ten years. When he thought that surrender was inevitable, he came up with the brilliant idea of the Trojan Horse, and the war was won. But on his voyage home, he ran into much trouble, which created another ten years of sailing and dodging certain death. First, he and his men defeated the great cyclops Polyphemus. Second, his men were turned into beasts by the sorceress Circe, and then the remaining men of his army sailed through the straits of Scylla and Charybdis. Lastly, he was marooned on the island of Ogygia, with the goddess Calypso. After all of these trials, he was finally permitted to sail home, alone and past his prime. When he reappeared on Ithaka, he was greeted by hundreds of suitors who were fighting for the hand of his wife, Penelope. Each and every suitor was killed by Odysseus and his now grown son, Telemachus. Odysseus and Penelope are reunited, and fall in love with each other all over again. First and foremost, Odysseus was ungrateful to the gods. It was custom in the ancient greek way of life to be grateful, and completely worship the gods. Because of his victories during the Trojan War, he became arrogant and haughty, and his abundance of confidence became a reason for him to boast of his greatness to everyone, including the gods. Traditionally, heroes are known for being humble and modest, even after their victories. Odysseus was anything but humble, and therefore does not deserve to be called a hero. Secondly, Odysseus cheated on his faithful wife, Penelope, twice during his voyage home. …show more content…
When his men visited the sorceress Circe, he was offered her bed in exchange for secrets and advice on how to safely return home. Years later, he washed up on the shores of Ogygia, and found the goddess Calypso. He spent seven years on her island, and the hero and immortal maiden become very close over his stay. All while this was happening, Odysseus’ wife Penelope remained faithful to him, even fighting off the courting of hundreds of suitors while Odysseus was away. A legendary hero is known as faithful, especially to a certain special lover. Since Odysseus was not faithful to his wife, he should not be remembered like he was. Lastly, Odysseus returned from his voyage by himself. He couldn't manage to bring back a single man other than himself. After all of the trials that his crew went through, he