Odysseus and Achilles are very similar in some of their heroic ways, however, they are also drastically different. They both endure personal losses and they are both tested by the Gods. Some of the heroic traits they share include their sense of duty, their courage, their bravery, as well as their compassion. Both of these men as leaders in their heroic journeys. The trials they both face lead them through several trails, and through these trials they both become true heroes.
Odysseus, as well as sharing many qualities with him, is very different from Achilles. When Odysseus is faced with his trials he uses more caution than Achilles. He is so concerned with the safety of his men and making it home, that he makes sure to think out a plan in order to ensure he would make it past the monsters he faced. Achilles is also concerned with the safety of his men, but he is not as clever as Odysseus. Achilles is a more impulsive man than Odysseus. He doesn’t consider any of the things that could go wrong, he is simply driven by his want for revenge.
Odysseus is always watching out for the safety and return of his men. He makes sure to warn them every step of the way. A noble quality about Odysseus is his determination to save and protect his men. Odysseus pleads, “‘Eurylochus, I am one against all- the upper hand is yours. But swear me a binding oath, all here, that if we come on a heard of cattle or fine flock of sheep, not one man among us-bind in his reckless ways-will slaughter an ox or ram” (Fagles 280). This makes him heroic because he is pleading that the men will follow in his direction so they are not harmed. He knows if they slaughter the animals they will be killed, and he is doing everything he can in order to prevent this from happening.
I think Odysseus is the better hero out of the two because he is concerned with making strategic choices. He stops to think about every decision he takes any action, he knows that this is the smart thing to do. I think this heroic characteristic is what makes him so cunning. He is extremely persistent and he is motivated by the right reasons unlike Achilles. The only thing Achilles thinks about before he acts is his motivation for revenge. I think this makes him the weaker hero.
robbselit 