herody Free Essay on Homers Odyssey - Odysseus and the Mind of a Hero :: Homer, Odyssey Essays

The Mind of a Hero The American Heritage High-school lexicon defines a wedge as a man, often of divine ancestry, who is indue with great courage and strength. Is that what a shooter truly is? Does he occupy only strength and courage? Does a hero not emergency a mind? Any man can be heavy and brave, but does that mean he is a hero? Nay, a hero must have more. He must be quick-witted and invariably think with his head and never his fear. A man must be guileful (mentally bright, superficially skillful or witty) to be considered a hero. A hero has many characteristics but one of the most important is to be able to think his way out of trouble. Not that a hero shouldnt be physically strong, thats always good, but sometimes you cant fight your way out things without getting yourself killed. Odysseus, fagot of Ithaca, is a very clever man. He shows that quality time and over again in The Odyssey. For example, the Trojan War. The Greeks fought with the Trojans for ten years without success. They had to get over the mole around Troy. No one had any ideas. But then Odysseus and his clever mind thought of a way to trick the Trojans. He order the Greeks to build a huge wooden horse in which they could hide. Odysseus pass judgment that when the Trojans wake up to the horse and no Greeks in sight that theyd acknowledge the horse as a peace offering and follow it inside the city. The Trojans did as Odysseus had guessed and after ten long years the state of war with Troy was finally over. Another example of Odysseus cleverness is when he met a giant, one-eyed monster named Polyphemus. Odysseus and his men went into this giants cave and stayed to meet him. What they saw when Polyphemus came dwelling was a huge surprise. Polyphemus liked humans, yes he did. He liked them as dinner, lunch, and breakfast. Odysseus was losing his men rapidly while they were trapped in the cave. He had to do something. Suddenly an idea popped in his head. He and his men sharpened a stick, and shoved it into Polyphemus eye while he was sleeping. Plus, when Polyphemus called for help, nobody listened because Odysseus had told him that his name was Nohbdy. If that doesnt take a clever mind then I dont know what dose.