Epic Heroes Essays - Ancient Greek Religion, Epic Cycle,

Epic Heroes Furthermore, we have not even to risk the adventure alone, for the heroes of all time have gone before us. The labyrinth is thoroughly known. We have only to follow the thread of the hero path, and where we had thought to find an abomination, we shall find a god. And where we had thought to slay another, we shall slay ourselves. Where we had thought to travel outward we will come to the center of our own existence. And where we had thought to be alone, we will be with all the world. Joseph Campbell, The Power of Myth Heroes have been popular throughout the existence of human beings because that's what's worth writing about (Campbell 123). Hero myths help us to evolve into better humans by learning from the trials and triumphs of the hero. In classical Greek literature, the epic hero can be defined in terms of the contrasting characters of Achilles and Odysseus, the two most important figures in Homer's great epic poems The Iliad and The Odyssey. The two heroes represent the two different types of heroes that we have, a hero with a spiritual deed and a hero with a physical deed: There are two types of deed. One is the physical deed in which the hero performs a courageous act in battle. The other is a kind of spiritual deed, in which the hero learns to experience the supernormal range of human spiritual life and then comes back with a message. (Campbell 123) Achilles, the greatest warrior of the Greeks in the Trojan War, is actually a demi-god rather than a human hero, having been dipped in charmed waters by his mother and given the gift of invulnerability. He represents the physical deed. Odysseus, on the other hand, is a fully human character, and his heroism consists more in his cleverness, boldness and cunning than his martial ability. He represents the spiritual deed. The contrast between these two models of the epic hero could not be stronger, for although Achilles is godlike and almost immortal in his fighting prowess, he remains childish and petulant in his personality, even in the moment of his greatest triumph he lacks the nobility and generosity expected of a truly great hero. The man of many ways Odysseus, however, rises above his purely human limitations to achieve a much greater destiny, triumphing over the dangers of war and wandering to come home to his wife and family. Achilles, the first tragic hero in literature, depicts both sides of human nature: Achilles personifies what is best and worst in human nature. He is at his best when he?offers compassion and consolation that reveal his profound understanding of the human condition. However at his worst he behaves like a selfish child and acts like a brutal beast. (Rosenberg 121) We observe the more unpleasant aspects of Achilles' character shortly after we first encounter him in The Iliad, during his quarrel with Agamemnon over the possession of a concubine. Before the assembled Greek leaders, Achilles complains that he never gets his fair share of the prizes, that the Achaeans do not give him sufficient honor, and that he has grown weary of fighting the Trojans, since to me they have done nothing (Lattimore, 1967:63). When Agamemnon decides to teach him a lesson and take his concubine Briseis from him, Achilles demonstrates a fit of temper and warns all the Greeks that they will be sorry they refused to cater to his desires: And then you will eat out the heart within you in sorrow, that you did no honour to the best of the Achaeans (Lattimore, 1967:65). Then he leaves to sulk in his tent. Achilles unarguably is indeed the best of the Achaeans in combat, but since he is the son of a goddess and blessed with invulnerability in battle, heroism is not the quali ty that makes him a great warrior. His counterpart among the Trojans, Hector, in truth, is a much nobler character-- loving to his parents, wife and children, fearless in battle, and willing to sacrifice everything for his people. In comparison with Hector, Achilles resembles something of a mama's boy; in fact, we see him crying to his mother Thetis