Heroes & Odysseus Essay Example for Free

Heroes Odysseus Essay This paper will seek out to explore the way in which Odysseus and Oedipus were created as heroes and how they either missed their mark or did indeed become legendary. Throughout Homer’s chronicle, The Odyssey, are found the feats of cunning, strength, moral fiber and bravery attributed to Odysseus. The tale recounts the days after the fall of Troy, and the meandering journey which took Odysseus back to his homeland – though never truly home. The Odyssey begins with Odysseus stranded on a small forest island – trapped by the goddess Calypso while Oedipus begins with the oracle of Delphi stating that Oedipus will live to kill his father and marry his mother and thereby wrecking his home. It is explained through the text that the gods, save for Neptune have begun to pity Odysseus because of the great suffering he had endured. This suffering is explained to be of â€Å"every kind of blandishment to make him forget his home, so that he is tired of life. † (Book I) Calypso is intent on forcing Odysseus to marry her, but he does not falter to her whim, but still longs for his wife and home. Oedipus on the other hand does fulfill the oracle’s prophesy and no god saves him or pities him his fate. This is brought to the attention of Jove, or Zeus, son of Saturn and most powerful of the gods. The goddess Minerva calls to Jove to end the suffering of Odysseus, to which Jove replies: My child, what are you talking about? How can I forget Ulysses than whom there is no more capable man on earth, nor more liberal in his offerings to the immortal gods that live in heaven? (Book I) It is through the voice of Jove, the king of all the gods and goddesses that the reader is shown the esteem that Odysseus has gained. Jove calls Odysseus the â€Å"[most] capable man on earth†, which intends to illustrate the favor that he has earned from the gods. When it is decided by Minerva and Jove that Odysseus will be allowed to return home, Minerva travels to Ithaca – the home of Odysseus to tell his son to prepare for his father’s return. However the situation on Ithaca has become troubled as many suitors are vying for the hand of the, presumed, widow of the king. During this debate, Telemachus, the son of Odysseus convened the council and spoke of the trouble that had fallen on his house. My grieveance is purely personal, and turns on two great misfortunes which have fallen upon my house. The first of these is the loss of my excellent father, who was chief among all you here present, and was like a father to every one of you [†¦]. (Book II) Here, it is shown that not only was Odysseus capable of pleasing the gods, but also he was a great and fair leader. The council of Ithaca, though his subordinates, where treated as his own children – rather than simply citizens subject to his rule. It is also during this discourse that Telemachus calls for an end of the forced courting of his mother by saying â€Å"we have now no Ulysses to ward off harm from our doors, and I cannot hold my own against them. I shall never all my days be as good a man as he was† (Book II) – which then illustrated the strength and power that the presence of Odysseus commanded. Characters in plays are the designated interlopers between the subconscious of the audience or readers. These characters translate into reality and become a relatable experience because the hero has one tragic flaw that conquers them, ruins them, and brings them humility. This fallible nature is show the imperfections of humanity designed through sin; sin is one of the many idiosyncrasies which mark us as human, that create specific characteristics and through confession or the confession of characters in a play, this nature becomes like a myth in the end there is death or forgiveness. Aristotle’s definition for a tragic hero is one who is not in control of his own fate, but instead is ruled by the gods in one fashion or another. The tragic hero for Aristotle is tragic because of their lack of control or will in the face of their predetermined future and downfall. A great tragic flaw (hamartia) is the hero’s devil may care attitude at the beginning of each story, and then their despondency and stagnation of hope that meets them at the end of the play (Aristotle Ibid. , Book XIII, 1085b 35 1086a 12—14, P. 909]. In drama, ego is the flaw to which the hero succumbs. This is Oedipus’ great error. His ego is a compromise to his fortune. Even in the gods’ world he stands out as unique or special. Heroes begin their stories with aplomb of luck, or ego, or a rosy view of the world, and each play seems to end with destruction. Oedipus is blind at the beginning of the play and then becomes physically blind at the end of the play thus making the ethereal concrete. With Greek drama; the tragedy of the unmistakable truth found in the character’s own self-realization is the typically denouement. The playwright’s tragic heroes have survived in life under false pretences, thus they are doomed to suffer from their one flaw of ego. It is interesting that while ego is Oedipus’ downfall it is Odysseus’ strength for it is ego which allows him to continue trying to find his home even after decades of looking. By the forth book of The Odyssey, Odysseus is still making his way home, and the tales of his exploits are recalled. As Helen, wife of Menelaus, and the cause of the Trojan war spoke of Odysseus, she recalled his cunning and forethought in his dealings with Troy. â€Å"I cannot indeed name every single one of the exploits of Odysseus†, Helen told the men, â€Å"but I can say what he did when he was before Troy. † (Book IV) Helen recounted Odysseus donning a disguise and entering the city dressed as a beggar. Though she saw through the disguise and recognized him, she was unable to question him because â€Å"he was too cunning for me†. (Book IV) It was the plan of Odysseus to gather information on the city, and kill some of the soldiers before returning his army – which, as Helen recalled, he did. This praise of Odysseus was echoed by her husband, Menelaus. After Helen had spoken, Menelaus said â€Å"I have traveled much, and have had much to do with heroes, but I have never seen such another man as Odysseus. What endurance too, and what courage he displayed†. (Book IV) The strength and bravery of Odysseus, as recounted by Menelaus, illustrated the degree to which Odysseus had gained favor among his fellow Grecian kings. In Oedipus there is another case of fate controlling the destiny of man. Due to fate’s interference in the lives of heroes, it must be pondered whether or not they are heroes because they are devoid of choice and by definition a hero chooses their actions, but with fate, their actions are predestined. For Oedipus, his only link to heroism is that in his redemptive attitude . His heroic stance in Greek culture is seen as a protagonist who felt guilt for what he had done and this translates to the audience that if a hero can succumb to evil then they themselves, as less than heroic, are more likely to fall in favor, in the eyes of the gods. Human nature is a nature of reason, not strictly adherent to passion or feelings, and in drama playwrights strive to be exact in their representation of reality. Morality then, becomes the crux of Oedipus Rex. Morality is reason. This is not to say that Plato and other classic Greek writers were ascetic; rather they placed passion, and feelings in their plays but the ethics of humanity are tied into the good of a person because reasonably, being virtuous, or good leads a character to happiness or release at the end of a modern play. The word for this given by Plato is eudemonism, which means blissful. Throughout The Odyssey, many individuals recount the feats of Odysseus. His exploits had gained him favor from man and God alike – something afforded to very few others in history or mythology. It was the total of every aspect of Odysseus’ persona that he gained this favor. Throughout his life he had shown courage, fairness, loyalty, strength and cunning – and it is because of these traits that Odysseus is remembered. As a Greek hero, Oedipus is controlled by fate: His remittance of gouging his eyes shows that he is a strong hero because of his debt payment of sight. For Oedipus the flaw could be contained within the word ego while Odysseus’ heroism is marked by it. Ego in answering the sphinx riddle and unbeknownst to him killing his birth father, marrying his mother, having children; ego accounts for all of Oedipus’s actions, and it is fate which had designed ego and thus was the ultimate ruler of Oedipus and luck for Odysseus but both are considered heroes. Works Cited Aristotle. http://olldownload. libertyfund. org/EBooks/Plato_0407. pdf Sophocles. (1977). The Oedipus Cycle. Harcourt Inc. Florida. Homer. â€Å"The Odyssey†. trans. Samuel Butler. University of Oregon. Date of Access: April 30 2009. URL: http://darkwing. uoregon. edu/~joelja/odyssey. html

Anti-Hemp Legalization :: Hemp Marijuana Drugs Essays

Anti-Hemp Legalization The Marihuana Tax Act of 1937 was the first ban on hemp in the United States. Then in 1942 the government lifted the ban and encouraged farmers to cultivate hemp to help with the war effort. The ban was later put into effect again in 1957. The ban of hemp in America is still in effect by the Controlled Substances Act of 1972. Hemp or cannabis sativa is the same species as marijuana. It is impossible to grow hemp without the tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) rich leaves and seeds. While the leaves and seeds can contain up to 30 percent THC, the hemp stalk and roots contain less than one percent. Therefore the government has kept the plant banned in the country. With the ban, the government keeping the upper hand on the â€Å"War on Drugs† in America, protecting the youth from the illegal substance marijuana, and keeping wealthy corporations in their pockets. Many Drug Enforcement Agency members say â€Å"Advocates for hemp legalization argue that US drug laws could be amended to allow the growing of cannabis for industrial hemp, but keeping marijuana growing illegal. Drug and law enforcement agencies, however, maintain that marijuana growers would be able to hide their cannabis plants among the legal hemp plants and it would be impossible for narcotics agents to distinguish the two† (Domke). The government keeps hemp illegal from fear of easy marijuana access and growing capabilities in the hemp fields. Marijuana could easily be grown in hemp fields because of how much shorter a marijuana plant is compared to a hemp plant. The hemp would canopy the illegal substance making it hard for DEA officials to spot potential marijuana growing. The DEA searches potential marijuana fields from a helicopter, and if you have hemp fields growing, there would be no way for them to see if there were any marijuana plants growing beneath them, making the process of growing marijuana much easier and much larger. If hemp was legal there would be an overwhelming amount of marijuana flooding the streets making the authority’s job of keeping America’s streets drug free. The government’s main goal in keeping hemp illegal is to save the youth of America from corruption and abuse. If hemp were to be legalized, the children in America would be exposed to the drug marijuana at an earlier age then now. Statistics show that marijuana use at a young age can ruin ones life in the long run.

Maslow Hierarchy Speech

Topic: Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Specific Purpose: The purpose is to allow the audience to understand how true happiness, or self-actualization, can be achieved. Introduction Attention Materials: Many times I have wondered what is true happiness. Is there such thing as true happiness? Can it even be attained if there is such a thing? Is it more of fulfilling desires, or satisfying psychological needs? Every person attempts to realize happiness in its fullest essence. It seems like today people are too busy trying to get rich. Nowadays it is believed that happiness lies in that new mansion, or a nice Ferrari.People are mistakingly assuming that wealth will bring to them a personal significance in which they will achieve happiness. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs actually limits the relationship between happiness and material possessions. Abraham Harold Maslow is a humanist psychologist who taught at Brandeis University, Brooklyn College, New School for Social Research and Columbia University. He stressed the importance of focusing on the positive qualities in people, as opposed to treating them as a â€Å"bag of symptoms. † It is believed that happiness, or self-actualization as Abraham Maslow calls it, is more of a mental and psychological thing.If you’re a psychology major you probably heard the term a couple of times, but I’d like to expand a little more about it. Thesis Statement: Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs explains that happiness is achieved through a series of steps. Preview: We will look through the steps suggested by Abraham Maslow in order to achieve true happiness. (First, lets talk about the first step of the hierarchy, the most basic of human needs. ) Body I. Maslow’s Hierarchy consists of five levels. A. Physiological needs, which are basic human needs such as hunger, thirst, and avoidance of pain. . For the most part, physiological needs are obvious – they are the literal requirements for human survival. If these requirements are not met, the human body simply cannot continue to function. 2. Physiological needs are the most prepotent of all the other needs. Therefore, the human that lacks food, love, esteem, or safety would consider the food the most important. B. Safety needs, such as the need for secure housing and protection from weather. 1. With their physical needs relatively satisfied, the individual's safety needs take precedence and dominate behavior. 2.In the absence of physical safety – due to war, natural disaster, or, in cases of family violence, childhood abuse, etc. – people experience post-traumatic stress disorder. 3. This level is more likely to be found in children because they have a greater need to feel safe. C. Love and Belongingness, such as emotional intimacy, friendships, and social connections. 1. After physiological and safety needs are fulfilled, the third layer of human needs are interpersonal and involve feelings of belongingness . 2. People have an emotional need that they need to fulfill, and without this there will be a gap in the persons psychological wellbeing.D. Esteem Needs, such as the need for the respect of one’s peers, status, or approval. 1. All humans have a need to be respected and to have self-esteem and self-respect. 2. People need to engage themselves to gain recognition and have an activity or activities that give the person a sense of contribution, to feel self-valued, be it in a profession or hobby. E. Last, but not least, Self-Actualization, which is the fulfillment of ones individual potential. 1. Since no two people are exactly alike, the drive for self-actualization leads people in different directions. . For some, self-actualization may mean creating works of art; for others, striving on the playing field, in the classroom, or in the corporate setting. 3. Not all of us climb to the top of the hierarchy; we don’t all achieve self-actualization. II. However, our needs may not be ordered in a fixed manner, as Maslow would suggest. A. An artist might go for days with little if any nourishment in order to complete a new work. B. People may limit constrain their social life to focus their energies on seeking status or prestige in their careers. C.Maslow might counter that eventually the emptiness of their emotional lives would motivate them to fill the gap. D. Despite its limitations, Maslow’s model leads us to recognize that human behavior is motivated by higher pursuits as well as satisfaction of basic needs. (Transition: Now what does this all mean? ) III. This means that in order to actually attain happiness, a person must achieve psychological, as well as physical needs to the fullest extent of their capabilities. A. Most of us college students are in the Esteem level. 1. We all have our group of friends that we meet up with after class, or on the weekends. . And we are working on this college degree, which would one day hopefully lead us to a satisfying career. 3. What are we here for? We are here to gain prestige and achieve as much as we can to prove to others and ourselves that we are fulfilling our potential. B. When we get that position we are looking for or have a job that brings status as well as stability to our lives, then we can move on to achieving the highest level of happiness. 1. After you start a family and have a stable career to support your family with, you can begin to look for the next level of the hierarchy. 2.That next level of hierarchy is actually realizing that you are at that level. 3. Looking back at your life realizing that you have all the other levels satisfied brings peace to your mind. 4. Bringing yourself to the highest level you can as a human being, or fulfilling your potential is what brings you that ultimate happiness. 5. Knowing that you did the most you can, as a human being will allow you relax and achieve that happiness. 6. After all, all this work and efforts your putting into school is really just in order to reach a point in life where you are satisfied with what you have done.

Socrates And The Early Athenian Era - 845 Words

Socrates, a well-known philosopher of the early Athenian era, is believed to be one of the wisest and virtuous philosophers of all time. This belief holds true in the encounters of Symposium by Plato, as depicted by Alcibiades during a symposium held by Agathon. Alcibiades, the last to speak at the symposium, derails from the topic of the night, love, and elicits much praise and gratitude for Socrates. Although Alcibiades did not witness the speech given by Socrates on love, he manages to depict how Socrates endeavors through life with notions that are remarkable to that of what Socrates mentions during his oral, from which much insight is inspired as to the values of which Socrates holds. Socrates is reveled as a man who has no greater desire than to gain more knowledge and holds the greatest beauty of all in that of knowledge. During Socrates’ turn during the speeches of love, he examples what the others have said during their turn and does not discord them, but adds on to reveal how he himself views these notions. Socrates starts by stating that although the previous accounts on love were sound, this is not how he views such topics. He goes on to question the members of the symposium on hard concepts mentioned by those before him and manages to unravel that those who desire something then does not have that of which is desired. Socrates does not live with desires for extremes of the spectrum for any topic, but finds an equal medium that allows him to have betterShow MoreRelatedAccusations Against Socrates1014 Words   |  5 PagesAccusations against Socrates Even though the conception that Socrates corrupted the youth and posed a threat to society was a factor, the most direct reason why Socrates was executed was his method to question wise Athenians. 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