Tuesday, October 18, 2016

Jason Vs. Perseus?

Who is more heroic: Jason or Perseus? Please sight at least one example from our class text, the Myth and You text, and use the "heroic code" terminology to defend your claims. Complete this response by 2:30p.m. on Tuesday, October 25th.

23 comments:

Anonymous said...

I believe Perseus is more of a hero. They both do heroic deeds and complete their quest in the end, but I feel Perseus was more heroic. They both have their own reasons for going about their quest, but Perseus' is completely selfless, seeking the head of Medusa for someone else. He also doesn't stab people in the back quite as much as Jason does in his quest for the golden fleece. In the end he's just a more honorable and heroic person.

Anonymous said...

I think that Perseus upheld the title of "Hero" more than Jason did. Jason was selfish and retrieved the Golden Fleece just so that he could be the ruler of the Kingdom. In addition, Jason's "weapon" for his task was the power of invisibility, so he got the easy end of the stick. Whereas Perseus traveled to cut off Medusa's head as a wedding gift for his mother and Polydectes, the leader of the tribe. Selflessness drove him to slay Medusa with a sword and a shield. Though both Perseus and Jason's stories were heroic, Perseus' story was more heroic because of his loving, selfless intentions for his family compared to Jason's intentions of taking his cousin's thrown.

Anonymous said...

I think Perseus was more heroic because he killed Medusa, who was not the best person. He could have been killed but he took the chance for his mother. The reason why I don't believe Jason was more heroic is because Jason captured the golden fleece for a reward, to become ruler of the kingdom. He also uses people along the way to help himself find the fleece. The best hero's do there acts to help others, not to help themselves.

Anonymous said...

I believe that Perseus was more heroic than Jason. Jason did what he did for personal gain, (which was to be king of a land). However, Perseus killed Medusa not for personal gain, but for the gain of possible future victims, (also to give it as a wedding gift). Perseus went alone, because he did not want to put others at risk. However, Jason involved other people and endangered them. Jason lied to his possibly to-be wife and caused her to do some horrible things. Jason was a good hero to an extent, but Perseus was more of a man than Jason could ever be.

Anonymous said...

Personally I think that Perseus was more of a hero. He killed Medusa, but he did it for his mother rather than for himself. The only help he had was from the gods, whereas Jason used others for his own personal gain. Perseus was more of a hero because he was more selfless and kind than Jason was.

Anonymous said...

Perseus because what he does is for someone else, he gains from it, but that isn't he main motivation. He initially does this to prove his worth to the king but then he rescues Andromeda for a sea monster because he feels that it is best. Unlike Jason who's main motive was always to better his living rather then that of those around, he allowed for suffering even when he knew he could prevent it.

Anonymous said...

I think that Jason is more "Heroic" than Perseus Jason assembles the biggest team of demigods on the Argo. Perseus yes killed medusa but Jason did go through meany "trails" that lead up to bringing the task of bringing fleece back to Athens were there was a fire breathing dragon there. Jason went through meany tasks any I think he deserves the title hero plus in the myth Jason was a normal human while Perseus killed a monster that turned others to stone.

Anonymous said...

By far, Perseus is much more heroic. At first, Perseus wasn’t a very good geust to King Acrisius wedding because he did not bring a wedding gift. The King took advantage of Perseus and told him that he could make it up to him if he brought Medusa’s head back to his palace. Perseus was guilty of hubris in this instance because he agreed to go get Medusa’s head despite rumors that she could turn people to stone. Many didn’t think he could do it, but when he came back from Medusa’s island with her head and saved his mother and the town from the terrible King, he turned out to be a true hero. Unlike Jason, who was also guilty of hubris, but turned back on his word to Medea and betrayed the people who helped him gain fame and take back his throne.

Anonymous said...

I would say Perseus is more of the hero here because he acts more honorably than Jason. Jason tends to stab people in the back as Liam had pointed out. Also Perseus goes and kills Medusa for a selfless reason. But it could be argued that Jason is more of a Hero because he went through more trails than Perseus had.

Anonymous said...

I would say that Jason is the more heroic one becasue he leads the Argonauts on the quest for the golden fleece and endures many more trials than Perseus did. Perseus I think isn't as heroic becasue the only reason he went to kill Medusa was becasue he didn't have a gift for a wedding so instead of getting something basic he went and got Medusa's head in a selfish manner to make sure he would impress Polydectes.

Anonymous said...

Perseus is much more of a hero than Jason. Jason exploits the people around him for his own personal pursuit of becoming king. Perseus on the other hand, journeys to kill Medusa on his own and doesn't exploit others for his gain. Although both heroes are flawed, Perseus demonstrates that he is a more of a hero in the traditional sense, than Jason.

Anonymous said...

I would argue that Perseus is more of a hero. He doesn't have so much hubris, but confidence. Jason has hubris and is overconfident in his abilities at times, even though he does do heroic things. Also like Angelo pointed out, Perseus' reasons and intentions seem purer than Jason's were, which were pretty much all in self interest.

Bailey said...

Perseus is definitely more of an embodiment of the word "hero" because he commits acts that are selfless. He fights to stop Polydectes from forcibly marrying Danae, even if it meant risking his life to bring back the head of Medusa, and faced the women who shared one eye. Jason on the other hand, is considered less of a hero, because he demands the throne back from Pelias, and he goes on a bunch of quests and completes tasks just so he can take the throne back.

Anonymous said...

I have a hard time giving either of them the title of "hero" even though both are classic Greek examples and fulfill multiple elements of the heroic code but they just aren't good people. Arguments could be made in way of excuse for Perseus; he is young, Athena may not give him the whole story, he's eager to please etc. But Jason uses his status to manipulate people and abuses his power time and time again. Perhaps this is why he is Hera's chosen one. Being a hero boils down to honor, I think. Putting aside the inherent misogyny of the time that makes the story of Andromeda so off putting, Perseus has far more honor than Jason ever did. Though Medusa may not have deserved to be killed, depending on the interpretation, he didn't know this. He was just doing as he was told by an all powerful being. Jason, on the other hand, takes advantage of Medea's sympathy for him and screwing her over.

Anonymous said...

To be honest, Perseus deserves the title of "hero". After looking at the heroic code, Perseus demonstrates the heroic part and not hubris. He is honorable, loyal to his quest (no distractions), he wants to please the gods, and he doesn't give into greed. In contrast, Jason violates a lot of the heroic code. He is selfish, disloyal, and does this quest to show his pride. Although he obtains the Golden Fleece, Jason doesn't honor the people involved afterward. He leaves his wife, Medea, for another bride, he doesn't go searching for his lost men, and he focuses on his reward in the end. Thus, Jason is a victim of hubris. Both Perseus and Jason found favor with deities but Perseus wanted to please them and honor them when he killed Medusa whereas Jason just relied on his own strength to obtain the Golden Fleece. Overall, Perseus is the rightful owner to the title of "hero".

Anonymous said...

Perseus to me seems to be way more of a hero than Jason purely because he kills Medusa and that saves many lives simply because she can't kill anyone else. Jason just gets the throne I feel like that is not nearly as heroic, compared to killing Medusa. As far as the heroic code goes, I think that Perseus has a warrior like element to him that makes him a hero, he doesn't get overly scared because of the challenge he faces. I get the vibe that Jason is less of a hero because he is overly prideful as a king.

Anonymous said...

In the theater of Greek myths, many heroes and adventures play parts in the grand act that is mythology. When examining Jason and Perseus, one greatly outweighs the other. Perseus' story and triumphs are those of a true hero. He is spurred into action by his love for family and morals, and completes an honest and difficult quest for the above reasons. Whereas Jason's motivation is purely selfish and self motivated, and ultimately leads to his arrogance in triumph, being a prideful king. For these reasons, when applied to the criteria of the heroes code, place Perseus miles ahead of Jason. It is one thing to act as a hero, it is another entirely to be one.

Anonymous said...

I think that Perseus is a lot more heroic than Jason because he saved more lives and did a lot more good things than Jason ever did lately. Not to say Jason is a completely bad person or didn't do any heroic things but Perseus was more of a heroic than Jason recently. Jason mainly just got the throne. Perseus killed Medusa which is something that is just pretty hard to top

Anonymous said...

I think that Perseus was more heroic than Jason because his motives were unselfish, He did what he did for hi family. Going into it he had pure intentions. Jason's motives were selfish.

Anonymous said...

Perseus was more heroic. He chose to go on this quest because of the evil motives of a king. The quest involved killing the evil Medusa and bringing her head back to him instead of being a selfish thief who steals the golden fleece all the while getting many of the men on the Argo killed in the process. It seems that the myth of Perseus is one of the most heroic myths of all.

Anonymous said...

Perseus by far is the bravest character. Perseus went in against Medusa armed only with a sword and shield, and a pair of winged shoes. Jason went into with an army of warriors to retrieve a blanket. Also, Perseus uses intelligence and wit while Jason just uses brute force and strength.

Anonymous said...

Perseus is more heroic because he does his task to save his family and redeem himself. Jason does his task in order to gain his throne. Jason also left the girl who had helped him and loved him. Perseus didn't wrong as many people as Jason did during his quest.

Anonymous said...

I believe Perseus posses more heroic qualities than Jason. If we look at Perseus's motive for going on a quest where he could likely die it was to aid his mother while Jason on the other hand was motivated because he would become a ruler of a kingdom. Perseus also, killed an evil monster, one who had killed many innocent people. Jason on the other hand was a bit of a monster in some ways. He betrayed people to get his kingdom and this trickery is not nearly as selfless or kindhearted as Perseus's task. In the end though both of them definitely can be considered heroes Perseus takes the cake for his selfless acts that benefited many.