The Odyssey is an epic story that has been a significant piece of literature since it was first written and will remain so for ages to come. One of the reasons it has been so is because of the hero, Odysseus. Odysseus is one of the first Greek mythic heroes renowned for his brain as well as his muscle, thus his popular title of the "Schemer". Indeed he is a man with an inquiring mind, and he is also a man with outstanding prowess and bravery. He is also a top-notch athlete, which only adds more to this seemingly unbeatable character. Odysseus seemed insuperable because not only his great strength and brains, but also his connections with the Gods; in this essay, it"ll be shown how all these great traits of Odysseus makes him the most powerful hero ever to be written.
Strength is something Odysseus knows he has, and knows its limits. In the story, Odysseus used his brain and strength as one. This is shown with the Cyclops on their great island. "Fortunately, however, further thinking pushed my hands from my weapon, for if I had killed him, then Death would soon have come for us as well. Who besides the mighty Cyclops could move the rock that sealed the entrance to the cave?" (82). If Odysseus had been pig headed and under estimated the boulder weight and size, and gone with killing the Cyclops, he would of starved or died in the cave. He knew that only the Cyclops could move the boulder, so he forced the Cyclops to open the boulder blinded so they could escape without a large assault and risk death. That took strength in the mind to admit to his friends that he could not move the boulder and even himself needed the Cyclops's help. At many times Odysseus loved to take the hard road, but was sometimes guided not to. When Odysseus and crew were at the house of Circe, she told him what dangers there were going to be one his journey. She told him that there were two paths to take, each with its own difficulties.
After reading these essays, one's views on life can definitely change. ... According to Carleton Coon, an American Anthropologist, before A.D. 1500, there was one pure race of dark brown skin, then as subgroups traveled, mutations reduced pigmentation for different groups" survival (Coon, Racial Odysse 204). ...
