Throughout the movie, Phil helped Hercules on his journey to becoming a true hero and finding his place. After an intense period of training, Phil managed to transform Hercules from a scrawny boy to a strong man. They then set out for the city of Thebes, where there were many catastrophes and problems. Hercules hoped that if he could prevent some of these disasters and help the people of Thebes, he would then be considered a true hero. In Thebes, the Threshold, Hercules tried to convince the people that he is a hero, but no one believed him.
They offered Philoctetes a chance to leave the island to help the Greeks fight in Troy. Odysseus was in need of Philoctetes so that the society of Greek would continue to run smoothly. Odysseus said, “My main concern is to keep things moving on in the right direction” (Heaney 57). Philoctetes had to choose between selfishness by remaining on the island to ensure his freedom from slavery or forgive society for abandoning him on the island for ten years. Philoctetes was not sure about leaving the island because he was afraid that his freedom would be taken from him and that he could become a slave of the army.
Richard Rodriguez RN102 Due 12-19-2010 From “City Sacker” to “Great Hearted”: The Transformation of Odysseus The purpose of an ancient journey, especially that of an ancient hero, is to conduct the hero across difficult thresholds of transformation that demands change in the pattern of the hero’s life. In The Odyssey, the protagonist and hero, Odysseus is returning from a 10-year war in Troy and thus embarking on his own great journey. As Odysseus progresses along his journey he faces conflict externally, however the key conflict he faces is internally. He is struggling to find himself between two identities; the “godlike” hero and “city sacker” and the “long suffering” hero with a “great heart”. Early on it is Oddyseus’ warrior persona that prevails, but ultimately begins to recognize his limits.
Statement of Intent Homer’s epic poem, “The Odyssey” is irrefutably a story of an archetypical hero, Odysseus’, journey home. The poem begins ten years past the fall of Troy in Ithaca where a mass of aggressive suitors continue to pillage Odysseus’ resources and court his wife. Nevertheless with Telemachus’ departure from Ithaca and Odysseus release from Calypso’s island, Ogygia, the situation takes a turn for the better. Subsequent to fighting countless battles Odysseus finally lands in the safety of the Phaeacians’ island. Here, he recounts his adventures, including the occurrence involving Helios’ cattle in Trinacia.
His ruse failed when he was forced to show his sanity in order to save his infant son’s life. With no choice he sets off for Troy where he spends the next 10 years. During the war his role was mainly that of an adviser and strategist. He became most famous for his idea to leave a huge wooden horse as a gift for the Trojans. The Trojans brought the horse inside their city walls not realizing that the horse was hollow and filled with Archaean soldiers.
Homer’s exploration of Achilles’ struggle for eternal glory establishes the main element of the Hero in ancient Greek culture as the immortalisation of his life in song or epic poetry. Kleos, meaning ‘glory, fame, that which is heard’ refers to both the medium and the message, and is one of the driving forces for many of the warriors in the Illiad. For the heroes, and indeed Achilles, they fight not for their Kings or countries, but for the concept of kleos. In order to achieve this, they have to suffer through an ordeal, accomplish great deeds, show excellence in fighting, and ultimately, die in battle. According to Goldhill, “Poetry confers
The Role of a Hero in Epic Literature In order to analyze the function of something, one must first seek to know what it is. A hero is defined as a man of distinguished courage or ability, admired for his brave deeds and noble qualities. So, in essence, a hero’s role, first and foremost, is to fulfill dauntless tasks in order to achieve an illustrious status. However, the pragmatics behind the subject do not allow for such a simple answer. An epic is more or less a story that has been considerably exaggerated to the extent that, in some cases, gods that possess the ability to manipulate the laws under which the natural world operates interfere and pose such a threat, that the security of everything we know is at stake.
This heroic age is conveyed by one main character, Achilles. Achilles <br>represents the tragic Greek hero in The Iliad, tragic because he chose his own death. <br>Achilles knew (because of his mother Thetis), that he could either lead a long and <br>insignificant life, or die young but glorious. Achilles chose the latter. Throughout The <br>Iliad, Achilles went through some significant changes that affected himself, as well as the <br>Achaeans and Trojans.
Every society/culture since the creation of man has created this type of hero to embody the values and mores of that time period. To be thought of as an epic hero the character must be endowed with specific traits. A few of these traits are: having great stature, always larger than life, have traits most valued by that society (i.e. tremendous courage, humility, super human strength.) a quick wit accompanied by extraordinary intelligence and a perspicacity for the journeys he must endure and the adversaries that he will have to thwart.
These two stories, although very different content, have the same frame. Both heroes, although brave and heroic in their own ways, must rely on others in order to succeed. “Booze”, by Pinckney Benedict is a perfect example of a basic quest myth. While this story does not contain the glory, and the heroism as Beowulf, the protagonist carries out the responsibilities of a quest myth hero. The protagonist must find the courage to vanquish a beast that has burdened him since he was a young boy.