Ancient and Modern Hero’s Characteristics and Journey

The major steps of a hero have been around for thousands of years, starting around the time of Homer, who wrote The Iliad and The Odyssey. Most stories with a hero follow the same general steps shown in Homer’s Odyssey. The steps of a hero start with the hero in his main world and eventually they find a mentor, in the end of their journey they use everything they learn to find or defeat anything they were after. The hero also has many of the similar traits found in the Odyssey, traits such as wisdom, selflessness, courage, and self sacrifice. Harry Potter is one of these stories that follow the steps of the hero also found in The Odyssey, a book written more the two thousand years ago.

            In the beginning of the famous book series known as Harry Potter, the main character, Harry Potter, begins in his hometown in England and he is called to the wizard world by a character named Hagrid. In the Odyssey, Odysseus had just left the Trojan War and tries to make his way back home, but enters a “world” of gods. Odysseus also faces challenges of trying to get home. Harry also faces challenges of defeating and fending off dark forces. Harry also faces death many times trough his journey, he faces it in every one of the seven books as he tries to stop the Dark Lord Voldomort. Odysseus also faces death when he is fighting. The stories may change with the concepts and the plots, but the general journey the hero goes on is the same.

            Traits of the hero have also remained the same for more than two thousand years. Both Harry Potter and Odysseus are wise in there worlds. The hero’s also put others ahead of themselves. In the end of the series Harry sacrifices himself to save the wizard world. In The Odyssey, a different kind of sacrifice occurs; the sacrifice of animals is to the gods to keep them happy and not interrupting with his journey. Most heroes from Homer’s time until now have all had the same traits from selfishness, sacrifices, and wisdom.

            The first epic poem was written by Homer more than two thousand years ago named The Odyssey. The main character, Odysseus has traits such as wisdom, selflessness, sacrifices, and much more. He also follows steps in his journey to wherever he is going. Some of these steps are leaving the ordinary world that the hero knows; the hero also faces challenges on his journey. The hero also faces eleven more general steps in his journey. Stories such as Harry Potter still follow these traits and steps more than two thousand years after Homer wrote The Odyssey.