The Odyssey Essay

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The mother of a true hero remembers her swon who died recently from making the ultimate sacrifice. 28-year-old Lyle Francis Eagletail's body was found after he risked his life in an effort to save 6-year-old Garrett Martin Wallace, who fell in the Big Sioux River a week prior. Eagletail is being called the "biggest hero" for his sacrifice. In the poem, The Odyssey, the story is told of a greek hero named Odysseus who left his home of Ithaca to fight the Trojans. On his voyage home, Odysseus encounters many speed bumbs, but fights through. Although Odysseus occasionally displayed the flaw of hubris, which is overbearing pride and arrogance, his cleverness, bravery, and loyalty make Odysseus a true epic hero. Odysseus is a hero because he is clever. First of all, while stuck in the cave of the Cyclops, Odysseus is creating a plan for him and his men to escape. He contemplates killing the one-eyed monster, but then he has a startiling thought: "If I kill him we perished there as well, for we could never move this ponderous doorway slap asid, So we are left to groan and wait for morning" (903). If Odysseus was not clever, he would think quickly and kill the Cyclops. The smart man he is, he realizes they need the Cyclops alive to move the big rock blocking their escape. Secondly, also in the Land of Cyclopes, Odysseus now realizes he needs to come up with a plan to get him and his men out safe. He decides to blind the Cyclops by stabbing his eye. "So with our brand we bored the great eye socket while blood ran out around the red hot bar. Eyelid and lash were sealed; the pierced ball hissed broiling, and the roots popped" (906). Now Odysseus needs to create a plan that will get him and his men out of the Cyclop's cave alive. He decides the best way to do this is to blind him. He gets the Cyclops drunk, and when he passes out, he fastens a tool and stabs his eye, causing him to go blind. Not only is this plan creative, but it is very clever. Lastily, in the Cyclop's cave, Odysseus needs to think fast when the cyclops wants to know who he is. Odysseus replies, "My name is Nohbdy: my mother, father, and friends, everyone calls me Nohbdy" (906). Odysseus is clever when he says this. He realizes there will be consequences if he shares his identity. So instead, Odysseus tells the Cyclops his name is "Nohbdy." Odysseus is clever which shows he is heroic. Despite his cleverness, Odysseus occasionally displays the flaw of hubris, which is overbearing pride and arrogance. For example, as Odysseus and his men are fleeing the island of Cyclops, Odysseus lets his anger flare and yells: "Cyclops, if ever 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 Ithaca!" (Od 9. 416-419). At first, Odysseus is escaping the island with his true identity a secret. Overcome with pride, however, Odysseus has to claim this evil trick. His arrogance gets the best of him and he chants that he is the perpetrator. Later, at Aeaea, the island of Circe, Odysseus shows his arrogance when Eurylochus reminds Odysseus and the other crew of Odysseus' mistake at the Cyclopes' island. "When I heard this I had a mind to draw the blade that swung against my side and chop him, bowling his head upon the ground-Kinsman or no Kinsman, close to me though he was" (Od 10.147-150). Odysseus became very angry when he was reminded of a mistake he made. Despite being close with Eurylochus. His arrogance gets the best of him and he kills Eurylochus. Finally, even Circe, Odysseus's lover and friend, acknowledges Odysseus's arrogance (hubris) when she warns him of the dangers to come. "Old Contender, will you not yield to the immortal gods?...there is no frightening her, no power can fight her" (Od 12.77-81). There are a lot of dangers to come on Odysseus'
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