Odysseus, son of Laertes, king of Ithaca is not what most would call a hero, he cheats, he steals, and he lies, none of which happen to be ideal qualities. There is no denying that Odysseus has done more than most men, but has he done it with decency, integrity, or honor? Now, is Odysseus a villain? Of course not, but does not being a villain automatically make him a hero? Heroes are supposed to be rational, faithful, and honest, whereas Odysseus is disrespectful, unfaithful, and rash, those traits are not what we look for in our heroes.


Odysseus has respect for no one but himself. He values his life more than that of his crew, a crew that looked to him for guidance. Despite the fact that the crew was willing to die for Odysseus, he calls them “ mutinous fools”, simply because they were hungry and choose to eat some sheep after fighting on the island of Cicones. After his crewmembers died in service to him, he mocks them; even in their death, he shows them no respect. Not only does he show no respect for his willing crew he refuses to pay homage to the gods. Odysseus only calls upon the gods when he desperately needs their help, like when he knew the crew was finally seeing him for the man he really was and disobeyed a direct order not to butcher the Sun god’s cattle. Only then does he say, “ I washed my hands there, and made supplication to the gods who own Olympus,” but it was already too late. Athena helps Odysseus on numerous occasions yet he never thanks her, not even once. Athena is not the only one whom Odysseus shows no respect for, the great god of the sea Poseidon, who should be honored by all sailors is repeatedly insulted by Odysseus’ inability to respect anyone.


Odysseus is unable to remain true to himself or his wife, Penelope. Penelope spent twenty years waiting for Odysseus to return home. She never once gives up hope or falls to the temptation of other men despite the fact that dozens of them were living with her. She clearly states that she loves Odysseus and her heart could be given to no other: “Forgive me, don’t be angry. I could not welcome you with love on sight! I armed myself long ago against the frauds of men. You make my stiff heart know that I am yours.” Penelope never once considered cheating on Odysseus so why couldn’t Odysseus pay her the same courtesy. Don’t married people promise to be faithful, no matter what? Odysseus cheats on his wife more than once; it was not a simple lapse in judgment. He spends five long years on the Island of Calypso and another five with Circe. During this time, did he bother to think of Penelope and how hurt she would feel? Of course he did, he just didn’t care. Odysseus clearly believes that he is above the rules that most people in society chose to obey.

Odysseus is a clear example of how being hotheaded can lead you into a sticky situation. Odysseus tends to make rash decisions and often finds it impossible to control his impulses. He often does things based purely on a feeling. He realizes and readily admits that opinions other than his own make complete sense yet he refuses to acknowledge them and ends up dragging others into danger Odysseus himself says “My men came pressing round me pleading: ‘Why not take these cheeses, and make a run for it? We’ll drive the kids and lambs aboard. We say put out again on good salt water.’ Yet, I refused. I wished to see the cave man, what he had to offer—no pretty sight, it turned out for my friends.” Six of Odysseus’ men are eaten because of his ridiculous folly. Odysseus rashness comes into play again when the ship rolls past the Sirens and Odysseus demands that he listens to their song. His pride clouds his mind and he wants the fame of being the only man to have survived the Sirens’ song, he never once considers what might have happened had he failed. He didn’t consider failing at all because he never stopped to think about his decision, he rashly makes a choice and is forced to suffer the consequences.

Odysseus has his shortcomings and then he has more shortcomings. It would take more than a few good deeds to make Odysseus a worthy role model. If people nowadays went around slaying dozens of men, accidentally killing dozens more and cheating on our spouses would we be hailed as heroes? There is an almost one hundred percent guarantee that we would be either sentenced to a term in prison or put in an asylum. So, what gives Odysseus the right to consider himself a hero, a god among men? Odysseus is an example of a reverse Robin Hood. Robin stole from the rich and gave to the poor; Odysseus steals from society and gives to himself. Odysseus stole more than just material things he took lives. Odysseus isn’t a hero and he never will be.