Why we all should be tricksters in this life

I find it interesting that Homer would have two protagonists with different characteristics.  Looking at the Iliad and the hero in that story Achilles, and the Hero in the Odyssey, Odysseus, we find two heroes that are very different in nature.  

Achilles as pointed out in the handout we received (“Homer, Odysseus and the Odyssey”)  is “renowned for his strength and skill in battle” He is a passionate hero who often shows “anger, sulking, pride and rashness.”

Odysseus on the other hand is “known for his cool intelligence and wit… a person who uses slyness and cunning to gain the upper hand in a conflict.”

Taking these two characters and their characteristics into consideration, I find it interesting to look at the outcome of the two.  Achilles, the passionate warrior, inevitably dies in battle, and Odysseus, essentially a “trickster” ends up back with his women Penelope.

Now I do not believe Homer was trying to say that if you are a trickster, that things will work out for you better than the passionate warrior.  But that is the message that I received while analyzing the two heroes.

Now applying this to everyday life, do we find out that maybe the “tricksters” of society have the upper hand in life, compared to the warriors?  Does wit overpower physical prowess?  I would submit that in most cases in life the trickster is better off than the warrior. 

And that is why we should all be tricksters.