The Odyssey

Jack Felechner

Guys and Lit

Mr. Cheng

6 December 2010

Themes of The Odyssey

            The famous author Ralph Waldo Emerson once wrote, “A hero is no braver than an ordinary man, but he is brave five minutes longer.”  Heroes tend to have a fatal flaw that they can either exploit in battle or it will be their downfall.  In Homer’s The Odyssey, the king of Ithaca, Odysseus, is traveling home from Troy after a great battle.  Odysseus is a proud man who has accomplished great feats in battle and respected by both soldiers and kings alike.  Odysseus, because of his arrogance is both helped and hindered along his journey home to reunite with his wife Penelope. 

            One example of Odysseus’ struggle with his arrogance occurs as he battles the Cyclops, “Polyphemous”, in the land of the giants.  Arrogance hurts him in the situation, because it allows him to get trapped in the Cyclops’ lair, and in turn several of his men get killed.  However, it is his brilliant plan to hide with the sheep and his arrogance that they would be able to pull it off, helps his men to escape their fate.  Later, it again harms Odysseus and his men when he choose to brag to the Cyclops about stabbing his eye.  Homer writes, “Cyclops-if any man on the face of the earth should ask you who blinded you, shamed out so-say Odysseus” (227).  This is important because if he had not made Poseidon angry, he and his men would have been free to sail home.
       Another part in the book that Odysseus shows his arrogance is when he arrives back to his kingdom in Ithaca. When the games are taking place for the next king of Ithaca and Penelope's hand in marriage, Odysseus shows up disguised as a beggar and completes the challenge and revealing him self to all the suiters and telling them they have betrayed him and they will pay the price.

Quote:"look-your crucial test is finished, now, at last! But another target's left that no one's  hit before - we'll see if I can hit it-Apollo give me glory!"

This is important because his arrogance kept him from revealing him self right when he returned home, instead Odysseus spied on his wife and servants to see who was still loyal to him and who was not.

        Lastly when Odysseus and his crew were sent on there journey past the sirens Odysseus again shows his arrogance  when he asks his crew to tie him to the mass of the ship and not to put wax in his ears because he want to hear what the sirens have to say.

This is important because his arrogance made him think that he could resist the sirens call and he failed and was screaming at his crew to untie him so they could go to the sirens.