Odysseus Defines an Epic Hero Essay - 950 Words

Odysseus Defines an Epic Hero On a website posted by teachers at Harker Heights High, an epic hero is someone who embodies the values of a particular society. He is superhuman. An epic hero is braver, stronger, and cleverer than an ordinary person. He is on a quest for something of great value to him or his people. The villains that try to keep the hero from his quest are usually uglier, more evil, and more cunning than anyone we know in ordinary life. The epic hero is often of mixed divine and human birth and so possesses human weaknesses. And finally, the divine world often interferes with the human world in the heros quest. In the Odyssey, by Homer and translated by Robert Fitzgerald, Odysseus embodies everything that is†¦show more content†¦This episode shows Odysseus slightly immature nature. Odysseus and his crews imprisonment with the Cyclops, Polyphemos, show signs of his epic hero characteristics, bravery and trickery, but at the same time signs of his immature and foolish side, his huma n weaknesses. Odysseus takes out the eye of the Cyclops saving the lives of himself and his remaining crew. But later, after getting free and setting sail, Odysseus taunts Polyphemos proudly stating who he is and that he was the one who took out his eye. Polyphemos then gets his father, Poseidon, god of the sea, to invoke rage in the sea causing his journey home to be set off course and prolonged once again. Odysseus journey to Hades, the land of the dead, shows a symbolic death for Odysseus and a later rebirth. Here he meets with Teiresias who warns him of his later journeys and cautions him of his eventual return home to Ithaka where there is great danger and chaos for him. After this event Odysseus is more inclined to return home; He takes all of the advise and wisdom he has been given and realizes that he can not act foolishly as he had done before if he wants to return home alive or anytime in the near future. After his symbolic death in Hades, Odysseus has a symbolic reb irth when he washes ashore on the island of the Phaiakians, where he is naked and lost, as he was the day he was born. This rebirth is the beginning of Odysseus journey toShow MoreRelatedEpic Passages of The Epic of Gilgamesh and Homers Odyssey921 Words   |  4 PagesThe definition of a hero has evolved over time through both written word and human experiences, so what is a hero? In the two epic passages The Epic of Gilgamesh and Homers Odyssey, heroism appears to be a clear distinction with the literature, and has the same basic framework as today’s definition of a hero. Historically, in the texts, heroes such as Gilgamesh and Odysseus are protagonists viewed and credited with great bravery and most certainly heroism. Nearly all of the heroic figuresRead MoreEpic Heroes : The Characteristics Of Odysseus1105 Words   |  5 Pageshim because he a hero. An epic hero is an ancient mythological character that endeavors quests, and gets admired by his people from the great ach ievements. Commonly, epic heroes would share similar characteristics which define them as one. Characteristics of epic heroes can be compared between different famous epics. Odysseus fits the criteria of an epic hero because he embodies the cultural values of perseverance, courage, and being loyal to his family and crew. Initially, Odysseus undergoes tasksRead Morean analysis of the qualifications of an Epic Hero887 Words   |  4 PagesAn epic hero is someone who goes down in history as being brave, courageous, and obviously heroic. They don’t have to be asked to save the day, and often times, they aren’t even saving their own people. There are several epic poems that come to mind when thinking about European culture and where it came from. These stories are held as sacred to many different people, and will always be studied whenever the topic of government or culture comes up. In these poems, or stories, there is always a heroRead MoreThe Epic Hero : Harry Potter1229 Words   |  5 PagesLiu 1 Sunny Liu English II Ms.Vyse 4/11/16 Hero cycle How do you define a hero? Some may define a hero with the ability to fly, or run fast; to others a hero may be saving someone who is in dangers; others may define a hero as one who is able to help another in various ways. Harry Potter is a orphan boy who find out he is a wizard and goes to a magic school, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. While he is at Hogwarts, he develops his supernatural qualities, goes on a journey, and defeatsRead MoreEpic Hero in Homers The Odyssey Essay951 Words   |  4 PagesEpic Hero in Homers The Odyssey With its larger-than-life plot twists, The Odyssey is a classic representation of an epic in literature. With that understood, it is no surprise that the main character of the story helps to define an epic hero. A character must express certain virtues to be considered such. Strength, courage, and nobility are almost prerequisites. Cleverness is an added bonus. Odysseus possesses many characteristics and virtues that make him a true representation of an epic heroRead MoreThe Odyssey And Sundiat An Epic Of Old Mali1328 Words   |  6 Pagesof a hero or heroine. (Google). Destiny is defined as something that is to happen or has happened to a particular person or thing; lot or fortune. The predetermined, usually inevitable or irresistible, course of events. (Google). Finally A journey is defined as an act of traveling from one place to another. (Google). While analyzing these two great epics I came across many similarities between the two main characters. In both epics The Odyssey and Sundiata: An Epic of Old Mali Odysseus and SundiataRead MoreAchilles and Odyssey Compare and Contrast Essay1625 Words   |  7 PagesAchilles and Odysseus What are the main characteristics of a larger-than-life epic hero? An epic hero is a brave and powerful warrior who is motivated to fight both internal and external conflicts to achieve glory and ranks above a normal man. In Homer’s epic poems The Iliad and The Odyssey, Achilles and Odysseus are the well-known heroes. Achilles fights Hektor outside the walls of Troy because Hektor killed his best friend, Patroclus. After fighting in the Trojan War, Odysseus takes on aRead MoreThe Epic Of Epic : An Epic1126 Words   |  5 Pagescontent, briefly identify and define the significance of FIVE of the following names, titles, terms, etc. Complete sentences are not necessary. When appropriate, include examples. 4 points each. Epic: An epic is a form of narrative that revolves heavily around the idea of a hero becoming changed by his journey. They include long narratives by important characters, as well as create the idea that the events in the story actually happened or were a part of history. Epic heroes are considered as betterRead MoreOdysseus : The Characteristics Of A Homeric Hero1720 Words   |  7 PagesA Homeric epic hero is considered to be above a normal human being. The traits of a typical epic hero are strength, loyalty, courage, and intelligence. In fact, the Macmillan Dictionary for Students defines a hero as one who is admired and looked up to for valor, achievements, and noble qualities (483). Odysseus fulfills all of the requirements for an epic hero and more. He demonstrates his ability to be an articulate speaker, and his poise aids him on his journey. His endless curiosity has gottenRead MoreA Stereotypical Epic Hero848 Words   |  4 Pageschallenges, and ultimately achieves a set goal† are all expectations of a stereotypical epic hero (Lombard). Throughout literature, many notable men earned the title of an epic hero, but women remained overlooked and unappreciated. The wife of the great conquer of the Trojan War, Penelope, endures many trials and tribulations as she cares to the kingdom, all the while her husband is presumably deceased. Odysseus faces a tremendously life-changing journey, as he fights the gods for a way home. The entire

Video Games And The Gaming Industry Essay - 1543 Words

Since the arcade craze of the 1980s, the gaming industry has grown tremendously. Companies, such as Nintendo, Bethesda, and Rovio, develop game after game, and due to gaming’s rising popularity, their games are made more accessible, with consoles in homes and apps on smart phones. Accompanying this surge in gaming, the idea of the stereotypical gamer has come to life. Most often, people who oppose video games do so on the notion that the average gamer is overweight, living in his grandmother’s basement, only getting out of his heavily worn gaming chair to use his bathroom, and only leaving his house to be first in line at the midnight release of a new game. Even if this concept proves true, gamers may have the upper hand on non-gamers. As companies produce games and new consoles reach homes, research is being performed and substantial evidence is amounting, both showing that video games have the potential to benefit players physically, mentally, and socially. Although most video games are meant to be played seated, the common gamer is not causing a drastic decline in their physical health, just because he decides to play Mario rather than go on a walk; factoring in time to play a game or two into the week has proved beneficial to a person’s physical health. Motor skills, a main area of improvement, are necessary to not only play successfully, but to function efficiently in everyday life. Video games focus on these skills, specifically on sensorimotor capabilities andShow MoreRelatedVideo Games And Its Impact On The Gaming Industry916 Words   |  4 Pagescaused me to stop playing games and look for alternative forms of entertainment. I have found that a gaming computer instead of a gaming console is the practical alternative. I persuade gamers to stop pouring their money into these gaming consoles, instead purchase or build a gaming computer. I will discuss how a gaming computer is a better purchase than a gaming console because o f improved graphics, financial gain, upgrade compatibility, versatile controller options, game selections, learning opportunitiesRead MoreThe Impact Of Video Games On The Gaming Industry2500 Words   |  10 Pageshistory of video games begins from 1971 year, when Nutting association released 1500 machines with Spacewar video game. At the beginning it was too difficult to control the game process and playing machines had huge dimensions. But by the time with new technologies they become more compact and easier to play. According to the information given by Herman et all (2002), the period between the years of 1978-1981 is called ‘golden age’ of video game industry. In this period the arcade games ‘Football’Read MoreThe History Of Video Gaming1218 Words   |  5 PagesThe history of video gaming goes back to the 1940’s when academics began designing simple games, simulations and artificial intelligence programs for computer science research. The firs t video game was invented in 1947 by Thomas T. Goldsmith Jr. and Esti Ray Mann in the United States (James n.d.). Mainstream popularity of this industry only occurred four decades ago, in the 1970’s, with gaming beginning to revolutionize in all forms. Many university graduates and businesses were becoming intriguedRead MoreFive Forces Analysis of the Video Game Industry943 Words   |  4 PagesAnalysis of the Video Game Industry The video game industry is the economic sector involved with the development, marketing and sale of video and computer games. It includes video game consoles, game software, handheld devices, mobile games and online games. The video gaming industry has been growing exponentially in recent years with Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo competing for the higher profits in the market. This essay will analyze each of the five forces acting on the industry: threat of newRead MoreVideo Game Industry Analysis Essay1698 Words   |  7 PagesIndustry background The video game industry (formally referred to as interactive entertainment) is the economic sector involved with the development, marketing and sale of video and computer games. It includes video game consoles, game software, handheld devices, mobile games and online games. The video gaming industry has been growing exponentially in recent years. The growth is expected to leap-frog in the future. Following chart shows the projected market share by 2010 of different segmentRead MoreSocial Media And Its Effect On Society1081 Words   |  5 Pagesforms of content such as text, audio, video, animations, etc. making it attractive to consumers for engagement. YouTube for instance has more than 300 million users worldwide and out of those around 150 million users access YouTube at least once in a week. Facebook on the other side sees around 3.5 billion content getting posted on it every week. The use of social media platforms by potential buyers of any product is phenomenal. 1.1 Video Game Industry Video games can be divided into several categoriesRead MoreVideo Gaming Technology Can Be Beneficial Essay1741 Words   |  7 PagesVideo Gaming Technology can be Beneficial Student’s Name Institutional affiliation Video Gaming As a concerned parent, one would easily feel coaxed to venture into analyzing every aspect of the child s welfare from a day-to-day perspective. There is a common concern over what the kids play around with as well as the impacts created upon the receiver. Similarly, the use of video gaming presents a common challenge as to whether the games are of benefit or not in the educational systemRead MoreVideo Games And Its Impact On The Global Media Market1655 Words   |  7 Pagescomputers, video gaming systems, and even cell phones. Having spread to all these electronics, playing video games has never been easier. The International gaming industry was valued at $45 billion in 2007 and $69 billion in 2012. Making it the fastest growing industry in the global media market.(Video Game Industry.) According to the Entertainment Software Association the United States has the largest video game market in the world. Over 59% of Americans actively play video games. This accountsRead MoreIs Sexism A Big Problem?1655 Words   |  7 Pagesthe middle of a really intense, stressful, and energetic game where it s you against four other people. You are all alone and struggling to survive and as you re getting shot at all you hear is some ignorant teenage boy from the other team say â€Å"you won t win... get back into the kitchen and make me a sandwich.† Now I know you might be wondering where this is heading, but this is one of the few examples that women, when playing video games, have to deal with. What many do not realize, is how sexistRead MoreVideo Games And The Video Game Industry1290 Words   |  6 Pagesportion of the gaming demographic, but the industry hasn’t done much to make them feel welcome. During the last decade, the mainstream video game industry has se emed to operate under the same apparent assumptions: girls don’t play big action games, boys like the sexualization of girls in video games and won’t play as a female character unless she is heavily sexualized, and that girls play video games for the attention of boys. These assumptions are what allows the gaming industry to continue to focus

Arabic Mythology free essay sample

Like any other culture, ancient Arabs believed in demons, devils and the like, or at least they had stories about these things whether or not they believed those stories were true. Like everybody else they had their own mythology. Some of these stories are not really famous even for native speakers, like the story of how the rooster lost its ability to fly, or the legend which states that a very long time ago everything was able to talk; And some other stories are well-known (at least for those who DO read) like the ogres and poetry Genies. Arabs have a long-forgotten term which says â€Å"when everythingQ was talking† to describe something that happened a long time ago, especially in the pre-historic era. The root of this term is that ancient Arabs believed that everything -everything including animals and rocks- had the ability to talk at one point in history. And a lot of Arabian legends took place at that part of history. We will write a custom essay sample on Arabic Mythology or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page One example of this is the story of how did the rooster lost its ability to fly. The story goes like that: the rooster and the crow were drinking together until they finished all the drinks they had. So the crow told the rooster that he would bring more drinks and food if he gave him his wings and the rooster agreed. Needless to say, the crow never returned them and that is why the rooster crows every morning. He is calling the crow at the same time he took his wings. Most of the paranormal Arabian stories take place in the desert with a single hero. There are just so many Arabian stories about encounters with paranormal creatures in the desert. Some of them are friendly like poetry demons or genies and some are not like ogres. Also there are some stories about heroes like â€Å"Ta-ab-ba-ta_Sha-run†, a real man who became a legend because of all the stories that were made up about him. He was described as â€Å"The fastest man when he run, and the strongest when he fights. His spear when thrown is like winter’s wind†¦etc† and he had so many encounters with demons and ogres in the desert. One of these encounters gave him his name when he fought an ogre bare-handed and killed it in â€Å"Raha-Bitan†. Then he carried it to his people under his armpit so they gave him his name which means â€Å"the one who carry evil ender his armpit. † Unfortunately he was a thief in a lot of stories. When talking about pre-Islamic Arabs you can consider the demons and the Genies to be the same. Genies were famous as excellent poets, and Arabs believed that every human poet had a Genie friend who inspires him with verses, even if he didn’t know about it. The genie is called â€Å"Ra-Ei, this word is driven from the verb ‘to see’ and ‘realizing what is behind the seen’. And from a noun mean seeing the future – or predicting it – ether in real life or a dream that turns true. When you talk about a poet and his genie you say that the poet is the Genie’s â€Å"Elf† and the genie is the poet’s â€Å"Ra-Ei†. Elf is a word driven from â€Å"Elfah† which means a close relationship or feeling comfortable with a person or a thing that you get used to. Also some say that the Genie is born with you and you are stuck together forever, while others said that you do not born with a Genie but you can have one later. People said that the Genies come from a valley named â€Å"Abqar/Abkar† and their master is setting under â€Å"the poetry tree†, the root for all rhythms and verses in the world. It is said that you will become a poet if you sleep in that valley for one night and you will meet your genie. All poetry Genies belong there even if they didn’t actually live there. A genie doesn’t necessarily need to be physically near his human friend to inspire him with verses so some Genies decide to stay there. Some famous poets claimed that they know their Genie and gave him a name, and some of them said that they met their Genie personally. Like ‘Abu-Nawas’ and ‘Al-Faraz-daq’ who both claimed that the head Genie is their â€Å"Ra-Ei†. Nowadays, we know that almost all mythologies are wrong, but that is not a reason to forget them because the value of mythology does not lay in its veracity but in its role as a part of history and culture.

The Outsiders Greaser Character Description free essay sample

The Greaser Gang Ponyboy Curtis The youngest Curtis brother, 14 years old. He is the narrator of the story. Ponyboy is very smart and interested in culture and movies, different from his other brothers. Ponyboy gets good grades and due to that he doesn’t get along with Darryl (Darry) his older brother because Darry wants to push Ponyboy to be good in school unlike him and his other brother Soda. He loves his brother Sodapop more than he even loved his own mom and dad. He is the only member of the gang who is smart and is a good student. Sodapop Curtis – The middle Curtis brother, 16 years old. He gets along with Ponyboy and Darry. He is very sweet, smiley and â€Å"happy-go-lucky† and always is there to break up fights between Darry and Ponyboy. He is a very bad student and recently has dropped out of school. However Soda is very handsome, in Ponyboy’s words: â€Å"movie-star handsome†. We will write a custom essay sample on The Outsiders Greaser Character Description or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page He has a girlfriend called Sandy that he wants to marry. He is waiting until Ponyboy gets out of school and Sandy graduates so they can get married. Soda works at the gas station and he is also waiting to get a better job before he gets married. Darryl Curtis – The oldest of the Curtis brothers, 20 years old. He has been caring for his brothers since their parents died in a car crash so he now took the â€Å"Parent Role† in Sodapop and Ponyboy’s life. He is six-feet-two, a broad-shouldered and muscular. Darryl is always expecting more from Ponyboy than he is from Sodapop because he knows that Ponyboy has more potential. He has dark-brown hair and Blue-Greenish eyes. He has a tough/cool attitude and Ponyboy sometimes thinks he too uptight. Johnny – Not a Curtis brother, he is another gang member. 16 years old. His full name is Johnny Cade. He doesnt have brothers and he is abused and neglected by parents at home. He is very shy and is considered the â€Å"mascot† of the gang. The gang is kind of like his family, they are the ones that provide him the love and affection that he doesn’t get at home. He is very vulnerable , one of the reasons might be because he was previously jumped by 4 Socs and now he is very afraid of everything; quoting Ponyboy: â€Å"afraid of his own shadow†. Even though Ponyboy is the youngest greaser the gang treats Johnny as if it were him. He is smaller than the rest of the gang and he has jet-black hair and a very tanned face. He also has big black eyes that often show suspicion or nervous. Two-Bit – Another Gang member, he is 18, the oldest gang member that isn’t a Curtis. His real name is Keith Mathews and he is about 6 feet tall. He had a greyish tone of eyes and is always smiling with a wide grin. He has extremely long side burns compares to other gang members. He took life in a way that he didn’t worry because for him it was all a joke. He is mostly famous for shoplifting and his black-handled switchblade. He liked fights, blondes and incredibly: school; It was probably because he also didn’t take it seriously. He was also a very funny guy and he always wanted to be the last to have a say, thus the nickname: Two-Bit. Steve –Steve is 17 years old, another gang member. His full name is Steve Randle. He is Soda’s best friend. He and Soda are co-workers in the gas station. Steve knows everything about cars and he is intelligent. He is tall and skinny/lean but he can also be tough. He dislikes Ponyboy a lot and thinks that he is very annoying because he thinks of Ponyboy as the one who is always dragged in everything the gang does and he might think of Ponyboy as â€Å"competition† for Soda’s friendship. Dally – Dallas Winston (Dally) is the toughest guy on the gang. His appearance resembles an ferocious/dangerous animal. Quoting Ponyboy: â€Å"He has an elfish face with high cheekbones and pointed chin. {†¦} Small, sharp animal teeth and ears like a lynx. {†¦} His hair was so blonde that it seemed white. {†¦} His eyes were blue, blazing ice, cold with hatred {†¦}†. Dally was arrested at the age of 10, so growing up for him might have been really tough. He often got drunk, rode in rodeos, lied, cheated, stole, jumped small kids so it is obvious that he had a very bad status/reputation. Even though he committed lots of crimes we was actually quite smart and very respected by the others members of the gang. Ponyboy didn’t like him very much because of his attitude.