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Karis Edwards

Mrs. Weaver

LNG 311

10 December 2010

Odysseus’s and the Percy’s legacy

There are often many characteristics that are used to describe heroes

throughout literature. Classical Mythological heroes may be described as something

a little different then what we would expect, whether it is their motivation to journey

onto a treacherous quest ahead of them, their qualities that set them apart from

regular heroes, or their impact on the culture of their people in the time frame they

live in. Two men categorized under this title we call epic heroes are Odysseus, king

of Itaca and Perceus (Percy), son of Poseidon. Both of these men travel on a

dangerous journey that could mean the ending of the lives of them and all beloved

to them if uncompleted. Each man also has a set of qualities that aid them through

the troublesome obstacles blocking them from successfully completing a task

acquired to them and culture that is greatly impacted by the decisions and paths

they take to return their lives back to normal. These men have incredible stories,

which is why they are viewed as great and protected by the gods of Olympus.

The intention to continue with a beginning goal is something humans can

easily leave behind. A person has the motivations that drive them to finish, they

have a need to complete something and have that special moment of realizing a
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purpose in life. For Odysseus, he was called away from his life as a wealthy king and

a loving husband to journey onto the distant world of war and death to which he

was unfamiliar with. Before he left, he told his wife, the queen of Itaca, Penelope he

would return to Itaca and that he would protect his country and all whom he loved,

because he knew if he failed all would be lost. Knowing this was all at risk, he

ignored temptation of Calypso’s offer of glorious immortality (something all warriors

would give anything for)as long as he stayed with her forever, and offer he kindly

refused . He abandoned the tempting thought of quitting to rescue those most

cherished, no longer having to put himself at a deadly risk everyday while Poseidon

cursed him to a life of sadness or to watch his loyal crew be killed one by one a gory

death right before his very eyes. He was given onto him on this world of devastation

and regret but this never did break his aging spirit. The thought of even seeing his

beautiful wife was much more honoring to him than any mere reward. This is what

carried him to return home and restore his prosperous kingdom Itaca after 20 long,

miserable years adrift at sea. Percy is quite similar; he was also taken to this world

of bloodshed that he never believed to have existed amongst the humans nearly

3000 years after Odysseus. He was tried with many temptations such as the Lotus

flower given to him and his friends by the Lotus eaters in the Lotus Hotel and Casino

in Las Vegas. He heard his father’s wise words and resisted the fruit the cocktail

women were giving him, ultimately saving his mission from potential obstruction by

allowing the little time they had to return the lightning bolt to Zeus to be back into

his control. He made a promise also, to save his mother and Earth from the wrath of

a war of the gods with powers so destructive and dangerous that an entire race of
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humans were at stake. Neither of these tasks were easy for these men but they

never lost the everlasting desire complete their quest and dearly hoped that after

fulfilling this request they’re lives world be back to normal, or somewhat similar to

that. This is what set them apart from mortals, the qualities that helped them along

the way.

Both Odysseus and Percy show their personality and beliefs through their

actions. These magnificent heroes were awarded these skills through arduous trials

and life altering decisions. Bravery, strength, wisdom and courage were some of the

untouchable traits given by the gods. These abilities gave them an incredible

advantage over all enemies. Odysseus shows these strengths through incredulous

battle and demonstrates his wisdom as he deceives the Cyclops into freeing him

and his crew. Although were lost, he knew that the Cyclops would fall victim to the

state constructed by the crew of his remaining men. Taking a wooden stake made

by head and thrusting it into the eye of a 50 foot creature to which no one was

familiar with took more that bravery, it took an unmeasureable amount of courage.

With this he freed all of those strong men and fled back to the ship, taunting the

poor Cyclops, who was ironically a son of Poseidon. Percy is similar in many ways to

this, as he faced surprising obstacles such as beheading the hideous Medusa in

order to receive an orb to escape the underworld after he rescues his mother. He

freed his loyal friends Annabeth and Grover from deaths grip to continue his

journey, but also because he was building close relationships with each one, a trait

humans always experienced. Percy had a slight advantage overall, being the son of
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Poseidon. He was a feared , rare demigod. Being known as one of the 3 great gods

was an honor bestowed onto him at birth. This gave him strengths and abilities

unimaginable to the average mortal such as control over water and great wisdom.

However, his skills were not earned but rather given to him from his father through

advice and spoken word in tough times. Odysseus was taught these traits at a

young and helpless age to defend what he believes in and fight for that purpose, as

his father knew he would someday become the great king of Itaca. Each Percy and

Odysseus were born to great and powerful men, high in power and viewed by all as

a caution. However, each was also born into different cultures, and this lead to the

impact of their actions in their history.

The culture of Odysseus and Percy were different in uncountable ways. Percy

and Odysseus were not born in different time periods, but rather in different

millenniums. Odysseus was born into an ancient time of prosperity and wealth as

the king of a marvelous kingdom, Itaca. Itaca was a neutral country, often staying

out of wars between other countries. People of Itaca believe in promises, gods, and

most importantly the influence Athena had over the world. She is known as the

goddess of war and single handily accompanied Odysseus before, during, and after

the Trojan war. Percy on the other hand was born into a modern America and

acquired many advantages toward travel and technology that Odysseus did not

acquire in his lifetime. Mythological gods were not taken as seriously as they should

have been, often people joked about their existence. Nether less, once Percy we

dragged into this world away from his home by the sudden attack from a furie
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secretly disguised as a teacher to steal the lightning bolt from Percy, he reluctantly

believed all gods existed and felt a need to please them to save those close to him.

Even though these men re different in ways, each impacted their society a great

deal. That is exactly why they are written down as some of the greatest heroes in

history.

Are heroes are given something remarkable to contribute to the world in

which they dwell in. Not all however are gods; Odysseus was a full human with traits

that made him seem godly in many ways. Percy was only a demi-god, not so rare in

the world he discovers. He was not born knowing this fact but as each of these men

begins his journeys they except and even mold their attributes to help them on

their mission. This is important to the history of the world because without these

men humans would have no idea what the meaning of a hero is. People would not

have inspirations, goals, or an idea of what life is to come after death. That is the

reason why many have looked up to the gods for help and advice, to see what they

can become themselves and find the purpose of their own lives as Odysseus and

Percy did.