The Heroes of Old and New: Odysseus and Sally Ride

With intelligence, courage, determination, and other heroic qualities, who wouldn’t want to have a hero, or much less be one? That’s right- no one! We all have heroes in our lives, and we probably have all taken them for granted at one point. But have you ever asked yourself, “What would I do without heroes in my life?” It’s definitely a question to consider because honestly, life without heroes would be difficult. Who else would’ve been there for the kingdom of Ithaca to save the people from the suitors, if Odysseus wasn’t? Would we know about the sights of space if it wasn’t for Sally Ride? Who knows! Heroes have always been here on Earth, and they will continue to walk among us.

For a guy who survived a twenty year long journey to and from the Trojan War, and still had the willingness to kill off all of the suitors, we can conclude that Odysseus was an epic hero for his time in the ancient B.C. Even though Odysseus was a brave king, he was really just like you and me; a human! As you know, not just anyone can be a hero though; you have to try! Odysseus possessed the heroic qualities of intelligence, determination, and bravery. He didn’t just decide to have these qualities either because he was King; he showed them through his actions. Intelligence was one of many qualities that Odysseus displayed, and he earned it by doing many creative acts. For example, when he and his men were trapped in, Polyphemus’, cave; Odysseus came up with a cunning plan. He coaxed the Cyclopes into getting drunk, which created a simple way to escape. How intelligent! Not only was Odysseus intelligent, he was determined and brave as well! He was determined because he wanted to get home from his long journey to his family, and this is heroic because he proved that he was a faithful father and husband to his family. Odysseus was brave for many reasons. From fighting and killing off tons of suitors, all the way to stabbing Polyphemus, the Cyclopes, in the eye, Odysseus was an extremely brave soul! This is heroic because he saved his own life along with several of his fellow men. Not to mention, he also saved his whole kingdom of Ithaca. You see, there were heroes in every era of time, and there still are! You also don’t have to have big muscles either to be a hero; Sally Ride, the first American woman in space didn’t!

Even though there were courageous heroes all the way back in B.C. with Odysseus, that doesn’t mean that heroes still don’t walk among us. Believe me-they do! One of my greatest heroes of our very own modern time is the fearful Sally Ride. This determined and willing lady was the first American woman in space! Although she didn’t have the immense muscles like Odysseus, or even like Superman or the Incredible Hulk, she did prove to be a hero! Ride taught us that you don’t have to be a strong man with super powers to be a hero; you just have to be the best person you can be! Sally Ride was fearful for many inspiring reasons. To kick it off, she was the first American woman to ever go up in space! Ride didn’t know what was up there, and she was heroic because she proved that women are brave too! Not only was she fearful, but Sally Ride was also determined. Out of a huge plethora of potential astronauts, she was the one to be chosen. She was the one person that was going to have the chance of a lifetime. She was going to make her goal and go up into space, and she was determined that it was going to happen. This was an act of heroism because anyone that works hard to accomplish their goal is indeed a hero. Lastly, the fearful and determined Sally Ride was also a hero because of her willingness. This inspiring woman risked her own life to educate the people here on Earth to learn about space. She was willing enough to do this, and we probably wouldn’t know all of the things we do now about space if it wasn’t for her! This is why Sally Ride is a hero, and heroes aren’t here on Earth for any reason; they’re here to make an impact on our lives, and a good one!

Like I said before, what would we do in a world without heroes? Well, we would be hopeless! Our society will always need heroes for three reasons: to educate us, save us and improve our lives. Without Sally Ride, we wouldn’t have been educated about the sights of space. Same thing with teachers; we wouldn’t know anything if it wasn’t for them! And, yes, even though you might not like all of your teachers, they are still our heroes. Our society needs heroes also because they can even save our lives! Like in the story of The Odyssey, Odysseus saved many lives; he saved several of his men by concocting an intelligent plan to escape the dangerous cave of Polyphemus, the Cyclopes. He gave Polyphemus some heavy wine to make him drunk and stabbed him in the eye with a wooden tree log he found in the cave. Odysseus and his men rode out on the bellies of sheep that were in the cave, and they escaped without being noticed. Not to mention, when he arrived back from the Trojan War, he saved his whole kingdom of Ithaca by killing all of the suitors who had invaded when Odysseus was away. Last, heroes improve our lives, and they make us become better people! Sally Ride proved that anyone and everyone can make their dreams come true, and she is an inspiration to all people. To sum it up, this is why our society needs heroes.

With the help of heroes, we can conclude that we will always need them in order to live a successful life. It’s a good thing that we will always have them too because they help us in every aspect of our lives! Not to mention, these inspiring people have walked among for years; I mean look at Odysseus all the way back in B.C.! To add to that, we also have modern day heroes like the fearful Sally Ride. Both way, heroes are great people, and it will always be important to have them walk with us here on Earth.