Traits of Odysseus

In “The Odyssey”, Odysseus uses many traits on his twenty year journey back to Ithaca. Odysseus and his men fight the Cyclops, Sirens, and resist their temptation of the Lotus plants. In order to be a famous epic hero, like Odysseus, one needs to have numerous traits. Odysseus’s traits are strength, intelligence, and self confidence. These traits help define Odysseus as a hero and save his men from many close encounters with mythical beings.
Odysseus shows his strength on their long voyage home. He and his men land upon an island filled with beautiful tasty flowers called Lotus. Hungry and tired from the journey, they began to do as natives had done in the past and eat the flowers. This causes Odysseus and his men to stop caring about their families and the sail home, only eating the lotus all day mattered most to the warriors. Realizing something was wrong; Odysseus was able to rescue himself and his crewmates from the drug - inducing effects of the Lotus and make it back to the ship. Even though the effects of the plant were strong, through shear confidence was Odysseus able to understand his state of mind and his comrades.
Odysseus displays his gift of intelligence and patience on the island of Cyclops. A scouting party led by Odysseus comes upon a huge cave filled with plump and delicious sheep. Odysseus and his men quickly begin devouring the sheep until the Cyclops named Polyphemus returns and lock the men inside the cave. Polyphemus proceeds to eat several crew members that were trapped in the cave. Devising a master plan, Odysseus gave Polyphemus a barrel of unaltered wine that got him completely drunk. The drunken Polyphemus then asked Odysseus his name, replying “Nobody” the giant took this name and fell asleep. While Polyphemus was sleep the men took the hardened spear and rammed it into the Cyclops’s eye. Screaming with pain the Cyclops calls for help and was heard by his fellow Cyclops. They came and began asking who the intruder was. “Nobody is killing me either by treachery or brute violence!” Polyphemus replied to his friend and they began to retreat back into their own caves. Just as Odysseus is foreseen he began to work on his next plan, escaping under the belly of the sheep. Once again, Odysseus uses his intelligence to outwit the Cyclops and escape only to land upon another burden.
Even though it takes Odysseus twenty years to return home, he still keeps pushing on, only to find his house in turmoil. Odysseus dresses as a beggar enters the tournament to win his wife back. This determination shows how Odysseus has self confidence. Facing more than one hundred foes, Odysseus strung his great bow back and begins killing all of the people who polluted his household. Outnumbered by many, Odysseus stood his ground as a true hero and won back who he loves, Penelope. In conclusion, Odysseus showed great heroism for his comrades by putting himself in the line of danger many times. This type of heroism is not seen today in people who are willing to sacrifice themselves to save others. From facing the lotus plants to fighting the Cyclops, Odysseus becomes more than the hero who came up with the idea of the Trojan horse.