The Character Of Odysseus In Homer's The Odyssey

Odysseus played both the hero and villain role in The Odyssey; it all depends on whose perspective you see him through. Penelope saw her husband as a hero who fought hard to get back home to her. To Polyphemus, Odysseus was a villain who tricked him and blinded him. During the Trojan War he expressed an enormous amount of hero traits, but later in his journey, especially in books 9-12 his heroic behavior diminished.
Homer depicts Odysseus as the stereotypical epic hero. He was of noble birth, being the king of Ithaca. He was known for being cunning and brave, and traveled to fight against an evil. He fought in the Trojan War to rescue and return Helen to her husband Menelaus, King of Sparta. After the war he became a legend and everyone knew …show more content…
His need to win Kleos gets in the way, and puts his and his men’s lives at risk (Sparknotes editors). When they entered the Cyclops cave, he refused to leave when his men asked him. He wanted to be known for meeting and fighting a Cyclops. By staying he lost the lives of 6 men and risked the possibility of being eaten alive. After attacking the Cyclops his pride gets in the way when he informs Polyphemus the name of his attacker, which led to Poseidon thwarting his every move to get home. Penelope was deceived into thinking her husband was loyal and had spent many years suffering trying to get home. Instead Odysseus is unfaithful and is even offered marriage. He stayed with Circe many months and only left until his men asked him to leave. “What possesses you to stay here? Its time you thought of Ithica” (Homer, 137). He might be self-controlled, but his curiosity brings him trouble sometimes. His ego and arrogance was the root of his problems. He would refuse to be wrong and was full of himself. (Abbit. M, Malek. K.)
I believe Odysseus to be a hero, because all his flaws are what make him human. He is not a god, so he will make mistakes. His intelligence saves him and his men’s lives, and he does not give up. He was a great leader and was willing to pay a price for knowledge. He recognized that knowledge really is power, and decides to learn everything he can on his journey home. He also acknowledges that sometimes lying, cheating, and stealing might sometimes be necessary. That is what makes him human. “He achieves both kleos and nostos in the end and doesn’t have to die for either”