The Odyssey by Homer: Books 9 and 10
Odysseus is his own worst enemy; is not a victim of circumstance, rather he is a victim of his own pride and ego. In books 9 and 10, one can see how Odysseus’ pride and ego got the best of him.
In Book 9, Odysseus’ relentless pride costs him the lives of two of his men, when he and his crew end up on the land of the Cyclopes. While on the land of the Cyclopes, Odysseus and his men blind the Cyclops and take his precious sheep and slaughter them for a feast. One might say that Odysseus was just being the cunning hero that he is; defeating the wretched monster, while saving the rest of his men from harm. However, it could also be said that Odysseus brought this whole ordeal on himself. Odysseus could have listened to his men and stolen the goods from the cyclops’ cave and make a hasty retreat to their ship, but he didn’t. He decided to stay and risk the Cyclops coming back, which costed him the lives of 2 of his men. His boastful ways also make a reappearance towards the end of book 9.
“Cyclops, if anyone, any mortal man, asks you how you hit your eye put out, tell him that Odysseus the marauder did it, Son of Laertes, whose home is on Ithaca,” says Odysseus. After this declaration by Odysseus, the Cyclops is astonished and immediately calls on his father Poseidon for revenge. From this quotation, one can see how much pride Odysseus takes in blinding the Cyclops. Odysseus didn’t have to reveal his identity to and incessantly taunt Polyphemus, but he did. Odysseus could have just left without doing this, but he wanted to proclaim his triumph and dominance. This was also the case in Book 10.
In Book 10, after his crew opens the bag of winds and get sent all the way back to Aeolia, Aeolus tells Odysseus that he was “cursed by the gods.” Seeing that it was his crew members that opened the bag due to their own feelings of jealousy and suspicion, one might say that, in this case, Odysseus was not at fault. However, I beg to differ. Odysseus’ crew members were by his side through his highs and lows, some were lost along the way, and the rest risked their lives following behind him throughout his treacherous journey. They deserve nothing but transparency from Odysseus. Odysseus isn’t one to shy away from lying and misleading those around him for his own personal gain, so his hesitance to disclose the true nature regarding the bag from Aeolus would definitely spark the interests of his loyal crew. Odysseus should have been honest with his crew and he should have safeguarded the bag with his life. Aeolus was kind and believed in Odysseus enough to share such a special gift with him, but this didn’t seem to make an impression on him.