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Jonathan Edwards

Mrs. Field

LNG 311

09 December 2010

The Big O and P. Jackson

Men and women, human or god face difficult tasks throughout their lives.

These hardships they go through are to allow them to reach peace. In Homer’s work

“The Odyssey”, Odysseus is trying to return home. In Riordan’s work “The Lightning

Thief “, Percy Jackson is trying to return the lightning bolt back to Zeus. Odysseus

and Percy Jackson both have superhuman qualities to help them achieve their goals

in life, Odysseus and Percy have strong connections with the gods for help; however

Odysseus’ worry is to return home to his wife and son, as though Percy’s focus is on

locating the lightning bolt and returning it to Zeus.

Odysseus and Percy’s connections with the gods to allow them assistance on

their journey so that they may reach their goals. In “The Odyssey”, Odysseus finds

himself in a lot of difficult situations. Such as when Odysseus is on an island with his

men who are turned in to animals, and Hermes comes to Odysseus and tells him to

eat of a poisonous plant so the wine won’t turn him into an animal. In “The

Lightning Thief”, Percy Jackson becomes wound when fighting the daughter of

Athena, but his father Poseidon reaches Percy in his thoughts and tells him to go to

the water to heal him. The reasons the gods help Odysseus is because they see he

is not like other humans. He has the ability to strategies and think ahead of others.
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On the other hand Percy’s father Poseidon keeps Percy focused on the tasks at hand

of finding the lightning bolt and his mother. Poseidon reaches Percy in his dreams to

communicate with him. The reason being for the gods to help Odysseus and

Poseidon help Percy is, because Odysseus is an understanding human who knows

humans don’t exist without gods, and Percy is Poseidon’s only son who Poseidon

must help as a duty of being a father even though he is not allowed to see him.

Percy Jackson and Odysseus like all epic heroes have superhuman qualities to

overcome impossible obstacles. In “The Odyssey”, Odysseus uses his keen smarts

to escape Polyphemus by holding onto the belly of the sheep so Polyphemus can’t

feel him. For Percy Jackson, he hears his father’s voice guiding him to use the water

to heal himself. Percy goes to the water and heals his battle wounds by controlling

the water. For Odysseus and Percy these superhuman qualities guide them on their

journeys, and the gods see this and so the gods decide to help Odysseus and Percy.

Fortunately, it is these qualities that prepare Odysseus and Percy to do what they

have to in order to stay alive.

Even though both Percy Jackson and Odysseus are similar epic heroes,

Odysseus’ goal is to return home to his wife and son; while Percy’s is to find the

lightning bolt and return it back to Zeus before it’s too late. In “The Odyssey”,

Odysseus has won the Trojan War and is trying to return home, but reaches many

obstacles one being stuck on Calypso’s island for several years. In “The Lightning

Thief”, Percy is accused of stealing the lightning bolt, and is told if it is not returned

by a certain date, there will be war with the gods and destruction of human life.

Odysseus had been trying to return home to his wife so that she would not be

unfaithful to him before he came back. Many people were saying Odysseus is dead

but had no proof. Percy Jackson’s problem is if he does not return the lightning bolt
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soon all of human kind will die. These heroes have connections but differences also,

Odysseus’ journey is to return back home. Percy Jackson’s journey is to return the

lightning bolt to save human kind as we know it.

In different time periods all cultures, ethnic groups and societies will always

make heroes, but these heroes will vary according to the time period in which they

are made. Some heroes will have intelligence and smart wit like Odysseus, but

some will have superpowers that are extraordinary like Percy Jackson. These heroes

will solve problems and as in later years will grow great wisdom and all become

intelligent and successful.