The Things They Carried: Poem Analysis

Many have heard the tales of the Trojan War and the men who fought in them, most of which come from Homer's epic, The Odyssey. From these stories, we learn of the hardships many faced returning home after the bloody war. Within the tales, lies a man, whom some call a hero, and others do not. In Homer's epic poem, The Odyssey, the main character Odysseus should be viewed as a hero because he is clever, strong, and perseverant.

Odysseus shows a lot of hero traits, along his journey with all the situations he has to overcome in order to get back home to rule his kingdom. A situation was when Odysseus was sailing home from the Trojan War and the wind hit him so hard that he went another way, “let me tell you about the voyage fraught with hardship Zeus inflicted on

Modern literary scholars of The Odyssey have argued that Odysseus is a hero. Although closer perlustration shows that he is not a hero because he came back from war with no men, he’s selfish, a hypocrite, and he killed innocent people. The Odyssey tells the story of Odysseus and his journey to and from the Trojan War. And the story of his family and their life in Odysseus’s absence. Odysseus is selfish and hypocritical person, after twenty-years of being at war he expects to walk in like he has never left.

Odysseus faces many obstacle and life threatening situations but he overcome them all. Odysseus is an epic hero because he has supernatural help and he overcomes obstacle throughout his journey by proving himself in order to reach his goal, which is getting home to Ithaca and to take control over his kingdom. Odysseus is an epic hero because he is capable of deeds of great strength and courage. Odysseus shows he is brave/courageous when fights the monstrous Polyphemus and stabbed him in the eye with a giant olive tree. He proves he is

The first reasons why Odysseus is a hero is because he risks his life for crew multiple times throughout the story. In the story, ‘The Odyssey’ by Homer, Odysseus and his crew sail to Aeaea, home

The concept of hero has been interpreted in many ways throughout the ages. Hero have gone from knights slaying dragons and rescuing the princess, to heroes who save the world with their supernatural-like powers, to a modern day hero who is someone who has noble qualities and is regarded as a role model. In the epic, The Odyssey, by Robert Fagles, the heroic Odysseus is a well known in Greek mythology. However, although Odysseus is the most respected, honorable hero of Greek mythology he is not a modern hero. A modern day hero is someone who puts their life on the line to save the lives of other innocent people.

In the epic story the Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus is returning from the Trojan war, and on his way home he finds many obstacles ahead of him. Odysseus is the ruler of Ithaca and he is trying to return home to his land. Many creatures try and stop him from achieving his goal of returning home, but he and his crew have to push through and get home. Odysseus portrays bravery and courage leading his crew through these tough challenges. Odysseus heroically leads his crew and himself through dangerous obstacles, but also foolishly endangers them during the journey home.

The odyssey, an epic told by Homer in ancient greece, has many major themes following odysseus’s adventures. While Odysseus is sentenced to never return home after the Trojan War. He is overcoming challenges to return home to his wife penelope and his son Telemachus. Throughout the story major themes of loyalty, hospitality and vengeance are hidden within the plot. The story continues to show his heroic side with three major traits.

A hero is someone who is revered for his or her exceptional achievements and bravery. Anyone who puts themselves before others not for recognition or an award, but because it is the right thing to do, is a true hero. In "The Odyssey," written by Homer is an epic poem about a man named Odysseus and his crewmates competing against the power of the gods to return to their homeland, Ithaca. Throughout his journey, he loses almost all of his men, but Odysseus finally arrives home, concluding his prolonged twenty-year voyage. Odysseus must battle the suitors that have taken his wife Penelope, and may soon kill his son Telemachus.

Odysseus qualifies as an epic hero In the poem The Odyssey. One reason that contributes to the fact that Odysseus is an epic hero is because he engages in combat on his own. Odysseus tells his crew, " I / alone should listen to their song"(Homer 23-24). This evidence proves that Odysseus engages in combat on his own because he tells his men that he is going to listen to the sirens by himself. Another reason that contributes to the fact that Odysseus is an epic hero is because he is a strong leader.

Every past and modern culture over the course of history, has its hero’s. A hero is a person or figure that others look up to and use as forms of protection. Many cherish the hero’s, they make up who we are today. The Anglo-Saxon hero, Beowulf, and the postmodern hero/hero’s, the soldiers, both show the traits of bravery, selflessness, and loyalty. To have the trait of bravery you have to have lots of confidence in yourself and have courage.

Odysseus is an epic hero because of his bravery and confidence during every obstacle throughout his journey In Part 1 whie Odysseus is about to come across cyclops cave, he says “I brought along and victuals in a bag, for in my bones I knew some towering brute would be upon so soon- all outward power, a wild man, ignorant of civility. “ Odysseus is showing his bravery of not being petrified of what he might come across, like the cyclops. Odysseus has no intention of harming them, but he is not sure what their intention is. This example is important because not only does it show confidence in himself, he also shows confidence in his men. In Part 2 Odysseus also shows his confidence in his men in part 2 where Eurylochus says, “Are you flesh and blood, Odysseus, to endure more than a man can?

Heroes are, “People who take risks despite fear”(Source 2). In The Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus faces many challenges that make him a hero. He battles monsters, goddesses, and enchantresses. Odysseus is a hero in the way that he uses his brain to think about and approach dilemmas. When he and his men are on the Cyclops’ island, Odysseus tells the cyclops that his name was Nobody.

While many movies, books, and poems have heroes. Only some are the real epic

Odysseus has several moments throughout the story where he has some really heroic moments that might be the defining factor for some people. One of the biggest moments people use to describe him as heroic is when he saves his men from the cyclops. While on their way back to Ithaca, Odysseus and his men accidentally land