Who is Odysseus, the protagonist of the Homeric Epic, The Odyssey? From the Illiad, Odysseus is known as the brave and cunning soldier who helped topple the Trojan empire. Yet, in the Odyssey, Odysseus is shown to be a more vulnerable, and thus, more reliable character. Through two specific relat...

Heroes and Heroism Heroes...Heroism. When I hear these two words, I begin asking myself with so many questions. What is a hero? Does one need to be like Rizal to be a hero or like Achilles of The Iliad to be a hero? Does one need to fight a war before becoming a hero? What makes Princess Diana a...

In the Iliad women are items of exchange and markers of status for the men who possess them (Chryseis and Briseis, whom Agamemnon and Achilles argue over in Book I) obstacles that the male hero has to overcome or resist to fulfill his heroic destiny (Andromache's entreaties to Hector in Book VI). ...