Is Odysseus a Hero?

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for we could never move this ponderous doorway slab aside” (Homer 663). He was the only man to think of the future and block out the adrenaline that he was surrounded by and be able to be intelligent enough to realize that killing the cyclops would not help them. Odysseus has shown that he is extremely intelligent in many ways throughout the novel.

The final and most relevant aspect of heroism that Odysseus shows throughout the Odyssey is bravery. In the novel when his men get turned into animals by circe he was brave enough to rush into the castle alone and fight her in order to save his men. The author states “Odysseus leaves the ship and rushes to Circe’s hall...The goddess, realizing she met her match, frees his men”(Homer 675). This best demonstrates his bravery because he goes into her castle by himself to fight a god in order to save his men. Odysseus also showed he was brave because although he knew that Scylla and Charybdis were ahead he encouraged his men and stayed strong and rowed on. He states bravely “Hug the cliff of Scylla, take your ship through on a racing stroke. Better to mourn six men than lose them all, and the ship” (Homer 675). Odysseus demonstrates his bravery in many different situations throughout the novel and has proven to be brave many times.

To conclude The Odyssey demonstrates many of the aspects we look for in a hero such as being altruistic, intelligent and brave. Odysseus has proven to be all three and more in many different situations throughout the novel, he has done things that many others may not have done making him stand out from the rest. By the end of The Odyssey many come to find the hero in Odysseus that we all know and love.