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What does the Odyssey tell us about what it means to be a hero?
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| Submitted: Wed Oct 22 2003
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What does the Odyssey tell us about what it means to be a hero? The Iliadic view of what it is to be a hero is winning honour through combat and in a competitive situation. A hero would be someone who has great fighting skill and would have to risk death to have honour. The Iliadic view is challenged in the Odyssey by brining in different characteristics of what it means to be a hero. In the Odyssey, mere fighting skill does not necessarily mean that one is a hero. In Odysseus for example, we see a man who is very shrewd and cunning. A man whose skills in a variety of things match his ability to lead. And although he is a brilliant fighter, he also shows restraint and mercy. We know that Odysseus would fulfil the Iliad's view of a hero because there are references to his fighting ability....
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