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Ancient and Modern Heroes The term hero is often described as a man of exceptional quality, who wins admiration by noble deeds. The culture (including music, literature, cinematograph) of any nation has a character, which they consider to be a hero. Two famous epic stories of the ancient world created by one the most well known Greek philosophers Homer, the Illiad and The Odyssey introduce the reader to two characters that are both depicted as heroes - Achilles and Odysseus. Both heroes are mythical but their importance to the world history is quite measurable. Both of them served as the basis for many generations of people who judged of a hero, basin their reasoning on the characters created by Homer.
In this paper I will examine the approach to the concept of epic hero that is taken by Homer, and compare it to the real historical person Roy Hobbs, a great baseball player, who is shown in the book of Bernard Malamud The Natural, which was screened in 1984 by film director Barry Levinson in the motion picture of the same name. The characters will be analyzed and compared with a special attention on their cultures, background, and trends of their particular societies. I will examine the characters of Achilles and Roy Hobbs in the beginning of the work separately, then draw parallels to Odysseus, and later in the essay discover the similarities and differences of the three. In the epic poem The Iliad Homer presents a social circumstances in which personages values, the ideals of the characters traditions and the themes those values develop can be derived. The way Achilles acts during his life has an effect on the Trojan War and the survival of the Greek Culture. Thus, the Greek Culture is somewhat determined by Achilles acts.
Many facts display that Achilles withholds the value of teamwork at first, and then grants it to his benefit knowing that teamwork is necessary to succeed in his deeds. Similarly to Achilles, the teamwork creates a solid foundation for the success of Roy Hobbs, both as a player and as a person. However, one of the biggest advantages the epic heroes usually have is their support of supernatural beings. Contrary to Roy Hobbs, Achilles is informed of his fate and knows exactly what he needs to do in order to reach all of his goals.
Moreover, there is no choice left for Achilles but to act as Gods prescribed him to. On the other hand Hobbs determination, honor, and talent empower him to claim admiration form people surrounding him. Determination influences many to strive for goals. Roy Hobbs was determined to become the best player in baseball. At just nineteen years old, young and inexperienced, he longed to break every record in the book for throwing and hitting. With no previous experience of organized baseball, playing only with his father and in high school, Roy had determination.
Basically, Hobbs had nothing to believe in, there were no promises or guarantees, and he counted only on himself. If we are to live apart all other conditions we can notice culture of ancient Greece and modern USA influences our heroes very much. It is in the culture of the United States, in the notion of American dream that makes people like Roy Hobbs to strive for their individual success. On the other hand, anyone could not become the hero in the ancient world.
In order to become the leader and be successful, the person had to enlist the support of Gods or any other authority. Rural people did not become heroes (well, at least in the literature). Here odysseus is considered a her because he is a skilled warrior, and a leader f ut standing wide, resourcefulness, courage, and endurance. His tragic flaw is hubris, ccasinal currencies f excessive, ver bearing pride. As odysseus, Achilles uses an important value in warfare, team wrk, t his advantage at any men he sees fit. The same is true fr Ry Hobbs, wh used any casino t shw his abilities, yet never from abut his teammates, and the fact that he heavily relies n them.
One of the examples of Odysseus care of his team members is the event of Lotus-Eaters Island. Some of the men, whom Odysseus has sent out to explore the island, were not coming back for a long time. his was because they ate the Lotus plant, which was a drug that the Lotus-Eaters offered to the men. It caused them to lose all desire to reach home again. Single-handedly, Odysseus forced all three men back, tied them down under the rowing benches, and ordered the crew to row away. In this incident, his strength and care for his men is shown.
This is a clear example of heros understanding that without devoted team members even the greatest hero cannot do much. In case of Achilles the reader can see his plan of using the funeral games as a team-building workshop activated during the chariot race. Another common characteristic of the three heroes is their complete devotion to the goals of their lives. For example Achilles: he is displaying the common human urge to establish his power and gain glory in everything that he does.
He is establishing his power so that when he dies he will be immortal through the remembrance of the Greeks in his culture. Achilles knows that he will die in the war because his mother told him that was his fate, but he wants to be immortal in the eyes of mortals. This gives Achilles an attribute of a god and that is what Achilles is essentially trying to accomplish. In order to be immortal hero to his culture he first has to make sure his culture will survive and also, everything Achilles does has to be establishing his power and thusly working toward getting great glory.
Achilles role in The Iliad is to display the values of his society. Achilles shows to the extreme measures in which he will take to achieve the dire goal of glory and immortality. Along the way, Achilles uses an important value in warfare, teamwork, to his advantage at any moment he sees fit. Achilles is always working toward accomplishing glory and immortality, therefore these values can be seen as an important part of life. The values can be described as a natural human urge, the need to establish power within a community. Achilles is a perfect example because the desire for glory comes naturally to him; he didnt have to be told to want it.
Underneath every action of every man, there is a constant struggle for power and Achilles creates a vivid picture of this notion throughout the story. Alike to Achilles, Roy Hobbs has a proud and honorable side that cannot be overlooked or brushed aside. Roy was proud of himself, before he became a professional player. He commented, when I walk down the street I bet people will say there goes Roy Hobbs, the best there ever was in the game. His honor helped him to believe in himself while keeping his focus on his dreams. He did not care much of the wealth; money was not important as dignity.
However, when he did take a bribe, he thought of quitting the deal with the Judge. He could send a note up there saying the fix was off. He knew that he had to try his best, and returned the money. He realized the money was not worth losing his pride and honor. The situations that Roy faces become the challenges he conquers to achieve his dream of being the best. Just like the above characters, Odysseus used all of his chances to prove that he is worth being a leader and a hero.
One of the instances when Odysseus has shown his heroic qualities, such as bravery, intelligence, and leadership, is the case when his team encounters Scylla and Charybdis. Scylla was a sea monster of gray rock with six heads, and Charybdis was an enormous and dangerous whirlpool. Unfortunately, to reach the destination the team of Odysseus was forced to sail directly between these two severe hazards. odysseus was left with a huge decision.
Should he sail case t Scylla r Charybdis? He case t cme case t Scylla, and this she hw he could make may decisin's under great pressure with reasons fr the decision. If they had get near Charybdis, all f them would mst likely down. Since they were ging towards Scylla, it was also sure that six men would be snagged by the master, but this would be better than everyone dying. odysseus case nt t tell his crew f this risk though. He did this fr the welfare f everyone believe it r nt.
If he had tld them, they all would have get and hid under the deck, leaving the ship t be sucked in by the whirlpool. This would be worthless, so Odysseus did what he had to do as leader. Even though this was deceitful, he only lost six men compared to everyone. In his journey Odysseus refused to back down to anyone. Odysseus kept on fighting for twenty straight years just to make it back home, and he succeeded in doing this. Coming out of everything he had been through alive, alone, makes him a hero.
Therefore the main theme every hero, regardless of his culture and background should possess, is a strong desire to become a hero. The inner strength and determination are the two components that are absolutely necessary for anyone who wants to be remembered as a hero. Roy Hobbs has many characteristics that make him remarkable individual. Through determination, pride, talent, honor, and skill, Hobbs becomes more than letters; Roy is a Hero.
In The Natural, by Barry Levinson, Roy Hobbs is given the gift of life. Roy Hobbs has many characteristics that make him remarkable individual. His determination makes him strive for his dreams and goals. However, we should never forget about the differences of the epochs of which the heroes are depicted. Modern living has its own constraints, and when it comes to fictional heroes versus real personalities, much can differ. The romanticism of adventures shown by Homer cannot compare to the life of Roy Hobbs.
All of the characters, even having generally the same goals, were placed in different kind of environment. The patriotism of Greek people who supported their heroes Achilles and Odysseus, were not available to Roy Hobbs. His situation was looking like one-on-one with the whole world, and he still managed to win this battle. Bibliography: Homer.
The Iliad. Translated by Robert Fitzgerald. Anchor, 1975. ISBN: 0385059418 Homer. The Odyssey. Translated by Robert Fitzgerald.
Vintage Books, 1990. ISBN: 0679729526 The Natural. Barry Levinson. Videocassette. Hollywood Video, 1984.
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Research essay sample on Ancient And Modern Heroes
