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Women's portrayal in odyssey
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The role of women in homer's odyssey
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Page after page, Homer's "The Odyssey," written in the time era of 750 BC, tells the story of love, sacrifice, courage, and a long journey ahead of one man. Odysseus, King of Ithaca, has since completely his quest of conquering Troy and is now on his way back home after being gone for over 20 years. With help from the other gods, Odysseus slowly but surely finds his way back to where he belongs. In the poem, The Odyssey, Homer is not depicting Odysseus' journey, but rather, the effects of loyalty.
One of the major themes in the Odyssey is the idea of loyalty and the way it is portrayed in each of the characters in the poem. Penelope is positive example of loyalty, as she waited twenty years for the love of her life to return home from battle. During that time she remained faithful, even among the impatient suitors that were waiting for her. “By day I'd weave at my great and growing web-by night, by the night of the torches set besides me, I would unravel all I'd done (Homer 167 ).” Through the amount of schemes that she plotted against the suitors
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The reader is lead to believe that Penelope would stop at nothing if it meant she could have her husband home sooner. She remains faithful to her husband, even when she is clearly told by her own son "of strong, enduring Odysseus, dead or alive, he's heard no news (Homer 122).” Till death do us apart, is taken seriously in the poem and from the reader's standpoint is a breath of fresh air because that is something we don’t see everyday. Because of the loyalty she portrayed by never abandoning Odysseus and their love, she has proven to the reader to be an undeniably loyal figure. In the novel, The Road, McCarthy
In the story The Odyssey, Odysseus showed many traits. I believe the most important trait he showed was loyalty. He showed it in multiple situations. Odysseus showed loyalty when dealing with the sirens, the louts eaters, and the cyclops.
“The Odyssey” is an epic written by Homer between 750 and 650 B.C. It is the tale of the main hero’s, Odysseus’s, journey home to Ithaca from Troy. It takes place after the Trojan War and is the sequel to “The Iliad.” Odysseus and his men set sail from Troy and come across the lair of the lotus eaters. After escaping, they run into the cyclops,
_The Odyssey_ is believed to have been written by Homer and is infused with loyalty throughout the entire epic story. Odysseus is the most faithful, loving, and loyal husband, to Penelope, that any woman could dream of. Odysseus, in the beginning of his description of the trials and tribulations that he has endured, pledged his eternal loyalty to his ever-faithful wife Penelope. ?We are mortal weary and sick at heart/? [if only] now may I see once more/ my hall, my lands, my people before I die!? (Homer 7:233-240). Thought Odysseus did lie with the goddess his loyalty to Penelope held true. The ?Enchantress in her beauty? (Homer 7:274) enslaved the grand Odysseus to her will; yet Odysseus ?in [his] heart [he] never gave consent.? (Homer 7:276) The goddess offered Odysseus a choice, the ?promise [that he] should be/ immortal, [and] youthful, all the days to come? (Homer 7:275-276) or to continue his long continuous voyage to his queen Penelope. Because Odysseus chose to return to his devoted Penelope instead of gaining immortal life he has provided...
A very obvious example of loyalty is, Penelope. She is faithful to Odysseus for over 20 years and does not give up for long time. Even when the suitors came to her house and ate her food and overstayed their welcome she did not budge and still stayed faithful to Odysseus for the whole time he was gone. She told the suitors that when she finished her tapestry she would choose who she wants to marry, but every night she would undo a piece of the tapestry just so it would take longer and it would give Odysseus more time to come back just so she would not have to choose one of the suitors.
Loyalty, as defined in the Odyssey seems to be the constant devotion to someone, the hopefully longing of their return and victory. Homer seems to value loyalty over many of the other human traits, as Eumaeus gets not only Homer’s famous “you” but his own book as well. The swineherd is not the only character that Homer uses to show loyalty, Penelope and Telemachus show unyielding faithfulness to Odysseus throughout the epic poem; as do many other characters even gods. Homer demonstrates the value he places on loyalty through the use of these characters with their devotion to Odysseus. Through the use of these characters Homer shows the value of loyalty by their loyalty to Odysseus.
The ancient Greeks have brought upon numerous ideas, inventions, and stories to the world. Greek mythology influences modern day literature and life. The Odyssey is an epic poem written by Homer, which tells the story of Odysseus's journey home after the Trojan War. Odysseus does not achieve his goal of reaching home so easily; monsters and gods come in his way and hinder him. The Odyssey expresses Greek values of hospitality from the customs of Ithaca, humility from Odysseus’s reform, and loyalty from Odysseus’s family.
While the relationship between Odysseus and Telemakhos is a blind love, the relationship between Odysseus and Penelope is a love between two people who just want to be together. Odysseus shows his love towards Penelope throughout the Odyssey. In spite of the fact that Odysseus has been gone for twenty years, he never forgets his wife back in Ithaca. One example of how much he wanted to go home was when he went to the island of the Lotus-Eaters. He could have stayed on the island of the Lotus-Eaters where everything he ever wanted was there, but the thing he wanted the most was to be with his wife. Penelope likewise displays this kind of love towards Odysseus.
The weaving and unweaving of the shroud and the testing of the bed are two examples of the way Penelope thinks. She does what is thought to be her duty to her husband to resist the suitors and remain faithful and loyal to her husband. Homer reveals the feminine psyche of Penelope, a loving and faithful wife to Odysseus. She was loyal to Odysseus the entire time he was away on his journey, and even when it appeared that he would not return she still had faith that he would. Penelope resisted the advances of the suitors because she loved Odysseus and could not see herself with another when he could still be alive.
Often times in life we search for a companion, someone to share our love and life with. Odysseus and Penelope's lasting relationship is an obvious representation of love in the Odyssey. Although Odysseus is gone for twenty years he never forgets his faithful wife in Ithaca. This love helps him persevere through the many hardships that he encounters on his journey home. Penelope also exemplifies this same kind of love for Odysseus. At home in Ithaca, she stays loyal to Odysseus by unraveling his shroud and delaying her marriage to the suitors that are courting her. She always keeps the hope that her love, Odysseus, will return. Odysseus and Penelope's marriage clearly illustrates the theme of love.
The epic poem called The Odyssey, which was written by the poet Homer, is one of the many classical stories from Ancient Greek culture. It tells the story of Odysseus, King of Ithaca, and his journey back home from the war with Troy, which had occurred in Homer’s other epic Greek poem, The Illiad. Odysseus faces many trials and quests in his journey home and to take back his kingdom from the suitors, such as meeting the witch Circe, blinding a Cyclops named Polyphemus, dealing with Poseidon, and staying with the goddess Calypso. The poem has many themes that are relevant to it. One such theme is the factor of redemption. Redemption is usually a typical subject in any kind of religion, like the Greek religion and Christian religion. The story of Odysseus has an underlying message of him receiving redemption from the Greek gods. The Odyssey is a tale of redemption because it deals with Odysseus being forgiven by the gods after having to go through many trials and wrongs to rightfully claim back his wife and the throne of Ithaca.
Throughout the long twenty years of his absence, Penelope earns the title of the ideal wife. And she is, in many ways. She keeps the household and raises her son to be a fine young man, exhibits xenia to all who come to her home and works diligently at her weaving, quiet, serious and constant. Above all other things, she is chaste, loyal and virtuous, despite the presence of 108 suitors vying for her hand in marriage. Although it is certainly true that Penelope does embody the elements of an ideal wife, it can be argued that she becomes the driving force of Odysseus' journey and a central presence in the plot.
Throughout the story The Odyssey there are many themes that represent major parts of the story. The main theme that stood out to me is love which includes loyalty. “Love is a profoundly tender, passionate affection for another person; a feeling of warm personal attachment or deep affection, as for a parent, child, or friend; or a sexual passion or desire” (dictionary.com). “Loyalty is defined in the Webster's dictionary as faithfulness or devotion to a person, a cause or a duty” (Webster’s dictionary). Through these definitions, it can be expressed that loyalty and love are major themes in Homer's epic, "The Odyssey". Love and loyalty shows relationships that are between two people. The few relationships that represents love and loyalty is between husband and wife Odysseus and Penelope and also between father and son Odysseus and Telemachus. These relationships shows more than just love and loyalty though, their relationships also shows compassion, sympathy and the need to be in each one another’s lives.
The Greek author Homer wrote an epic poem called The Odyssey, about a man named Odysseus. The poem is centered around one man’s journey to come home after a long and violent ten year war. Odysseus and his crew are trying to get to their homeland, Ithaca. They are tired and hungry and will do anything to get home. Little does Odysseus know that greed will make this journey back home take an additional ten years.
Through the many different female personalities in The Odyssey, common themes reside in the role of women. In The Odyssey, character Penelope’s story expresses roles of women. Penelope’s role as Queen of Ithaca is based on choosing a suitor to marry after Odysseus leaves. As the wife of Odysseus, she plays a loyal role, and as the mother of Telemachus, she raises him independently. Also, these roles do not differ significantly from the role of women today.
Penelope becomes a paradigm of an ideal wife in Athenian patriarchal society, according to William J. O'Neal. The heroine of The Odyssey is often seen as a symbol of faithfulness; she is a devoted wife and mother. Penelope is as equally smart and inventive as her husband Odysseus. “The ancient epic depicts her as a meet spouse for the clever hero. She is equally patient and clever and thinks up stratagems to deal with the crisis that comes up in her environment,” states Van Zyl Smith (394). As a married and possibly widowed woman she is forced to lie to save her marriage. She promises suitors that she will choose a husband as soon as the shroud is completed. Penelope works for three years on weaving a shroud for the funeral of her father-in-law,