The Odyssey Character Analysis Essay

Stories all around the world include a hero that saves the day with his wit and strength. These heroes often present themselves as strong, smart, and selfless. They use these traits to save the people around them and protect the ones they love. Odysseus, the original hero, is the template all stories use for their heroes. Throughout the story Odysseus gets in multiple situations where he must prove himself to be a hero. In Homer’s The Odyssey, Odysseus uses his bravery and intellect to save his crew and prove himself as a hero.

Odysseus’ bravery allows him to charge into dangerous situations and save his crew.  Bravery is a required trait for all heros because without it they can’t save themselves or the people in danger. Odysseus is a prime example of needing bravery especially when he charges into Circe’s palace to save his men after they had been changed into pigs. Hermes, the god of the golden wand, helps him by granting him moly which allows him to resist Circe’s spell and save his men. Some people could have easily balled up and said I don’t want to get turned into a pig so I won’t save them. But, Odysseus uses his bravery and carries onward to save his men. Furthermore, Odysseus fights with his men and doesn’t cower in fear. For example, when they are fighting the second wave of the Cicones, Odysseus stands with his men and helps them defeat the wave and get away with the riches. Unlike a coward, he stands with his men and fights despite the increasing risk of death. However, his ego sometimes can take hold and prohibit him from doing the smart thing. He demonstrates this when he shouts his name back to the cyclops despite having already gotten away from the danger. This allowed the cyclops to tell Zeus to go after Odysseus. Although he has his moments of weakness and ego he is still a hero at the end of the day. The biggest moment he shows this is when he stabbed the Cyclops in the eye. He used his intellect to come up with a plan that would force the Cyclops to open the door and let them out. “ I dragged it from the flames, my men clustering round as some god breathed enormous courage through us all. Hoisting hig that olive stake with its stabbing point, straight into the monster's eye.” This took a lot of Bravery because the Cyclops could have easily woken up or killed them before opening the door. Without Odysseus his men would have been long dead. Odyessus’ bravery allows him to save his men, get riches, and sail back home alive.