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The Odyssey is a classic story which has been recreated and rewritten into many different versions throughout history. It was not until 2800 years after Homer wrote the original that the story was ever told from a female perspective. The perspective from which The Odyssey is written has significant impact on the portrayal of the character Penelope and the theme of control as well as how effective the text is. This paper will compare the similarities between Butler and Popes versions of The Odyssey written from the male perspective and then contrast the differences from Atwood’s version written from the female perspective. In addition it will consider what perspective, male or female is more effective and why. The discussion on these two perspectives leads to a further understanding of the risks and the advantages of intertexuality.
The Odyssey has been rewritten several times from the male perspective and each version paints the character of Penelope in a similar way. When written with a patriarchal view Penelope is seen as the faithful wife who is “waiting for her husband’s return, and adhering to the rules of the patriarchal world (Neethling 116). Butler and Pope’s versions of The Odyssey are no acceptation to this rule; these versions
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characterize Penelope as the helpless wife waiting for her husband to return and who appears unaware of what is happening in her own house. This portrayal of Penelope is arguable a result of Penelope not having a voice in the story, the readers only see Penelope through the male perceptive. This portrayal of Penelope is evident when Euryclea wakes Penelope up and explains that Odysseus has finally returned, however, Penelope does not believe it at first. Butler explains Penelope’s unbelief through her words to Euryclea, “you must be mad. The gods sometimes sends some very sensible people out of their minds” (Butler 12). Penelope appears unaware of her husband’s presence in the house disguised as a beggar and only believes Euryclea after she reveals all the details she knows. This portrayal of Penelope being unknowing of her husband’s return continues when Odysseus reveals himself to her and she hesitates to embrace him, bringing Telemachus to state, “To softness lost, to spousal love unknown. / The gods have formed that rigid heart of stone” (Pope 11). Here Telemachus is criticizing his mother for not believing his father Odysseus and suggesting that she has become cold hearted towards him. Because he never stops to consider how she might feel about his father’s return or why she might be guarded, she appears as the cold-hearted skeptical wife. Furthermore, due to the lack of a voice in these versions from the male perspective Penelope seem helpless in the task of getting rid of the suitors; she’s simply portrayed as a weeping wife distraught by the aggressive suitor’s behaviors. When Atwood wrote this story from the female perspective a very different portrayal of Penelope is painted. Atwood gives Penelope her own voice and allows her to tell her side of the story by using interior monologues, memories and past feelings (Neethling 126). In this version Penelope is aware of what is happening around her and is very resourceful. Atwood highlights that because Penelope knows her place in the patriarchy society she down plays her own cleverness and resourcefulness in order to protect her husband. This is evident when Odysseus plans his return as a beggar in order to slay the suitors with Telemachus, leaving Penelope out of the plan. In Atwood’s version rather than being the unaware wife readers learn the possibility that she knew the beggar was Odysseus the whole time, “as soon as saw that barrel chest and those short legs I had a deep suspicion, which became a certainty when I heard he’d broken the neck of a belligerent fellow panhandler” (136). Atwood goes on to explain that Penelope lets Odysseus keep his secret to protect his pride as it would “be a foolish wife who would claim to recognize him” when he takes pride in his ability to disguise himself (137). Atwood’s female perspective on Penelope further shows her cleverness and resourcefulness, as Penelope makes plans of her own when he recognizes her husband. Penelope sets up the maid Euryclea to recognize Odysseus by asking her to help the beggar wash up. Atwood writes, “Grumbling, she set to work, not suspecting the booby trap I’d placed ready for her. Soon she found the long scar familiar” (140). These examples show that when the story is told from the female perspective Penelope is clever and resourceful playing the situation and the people around her. Similarly, when considering the difference in the male and female viewpoints of The Odyssey it was easy to recognize the theme of control and more importantly who is in control.
Both Butler and Pope’s version of the text highlight the control that different male characters have at different times throughout the story. At first in book one it appears that the suitors are in control as they use Odysseus house and its recourses for their own pleasure and gain. Pope writes, “The bold intrusion of the suitor-train; / Who crowd his palace, and with lawless power / His herds and flocks in fistful rites devour” (3). The suitors have come to peruse a marriage to Penelope but both she and Telemachus seem powerless to get rid of
them. However, Telemachus tries to gain control at this point by ordering his mother around and declaring himself master of his father’s house. For example, when Penelope enters weeping and asking Phemius not to play the sad song as it reminds her of Odysseus, Telemachus says to her, “Go, then, within the house and busy yourself with daily duties, your loom, your distaff, and the ordering of your servants; for speech is a man’s matter, and mine above all others- for it is I who am master here” (Butler, p. 9). In Pope’s versions Telemachus says to Penelope, “There rule, from palace-cares remote and free; / that care to man belongs, and most to me” (8). This is another example of how because of the patriarchal society that is present both in the story and at the times when Butler and Pope’s versions were written, Telemachus feels that it is his rightful place to be in control over the house in his father’s absents. Continuing in the male point of view the power shifts in book twenty-three from the suitors to Odyssey, as he returns in disguise to deceive and slay all the suitors. The suitors are unaware of Odysseys presence leaving them powerless and defenseless of his attack on them. In one attack Odyssey manages to slay all the suitors and regain full control of his house and family. The theme of control and who is in controls shifts significantly when the story is told from Penelope’s point of view. Atwood gives Penelope a voice and readers learn that Penelope does have control over herself and her situation. The suitors may think they are in control but when told from the female perceptive Penelope is deceiving and misleading them. Penelope uses her maids to spy on the suitors through flirting and keeping them company. They report information back to Penelope, which helps Penelope mange the suitors. Penelope also controls the suitor’s increasingly aggressive behaviour by misleading them to believe she will pick a husband after she has completed the shroud for her father in-law but not informing them that she has no intention of finishing it. Atwood highlights, “Not only does Penelope lead them on with false promises, she weaves a shroud that she unravels at night, delaying her marriage decision until its complete” (xiv). However, it is important to note that Penelope does lose control over this plan when the suitors discover her lie, which leads them to rape her maids, “The plan came to grief. Several of the girls were unfortunately raped, others were seduced, or were hard pressed and decided that it was better to give in than to resist” (115). Additional, Penelope is in control simply because she is smart enough to understand the power that she holds. Atwood explains that in order for Telemachus to gain full control Penelope would have to go back to her father’s house but she would be taking her gold and silver with her which leaves with Telemachus with little. As well in order for the suitors to stop coming around Penelope would need to marry one of them, which would put him in control over the house not Telemachus. Penelope recognizes that only her death would give Telemachus full control of his father’s house but he would never consider murder because “even a badly behaved mother’s life is sacred” (109-111). Penelope knows that until her death or Odysseus return she still maintains some if not most control of herself and her situation. These examples showcase that when the story is told from the female perspective rather than the male the theme of control is impacted differently leading to a new understanding. The above highlights that when a story is told from multiple perspectives, in this case the male and female perspectives, we learn the significant impact on not only the portrayal of characters and themes but also the effectiveness of the text. When looking at the character of Penelope, Atwood’s version is more effective in understanding her and her place in the story. Atwood manages to not only give Penelope her own voice in the story but maintains accuracies of how the other characters such as Telemachus and Odysseus are portrayed in male perspective versions. For example, in Atwood’s version Telemachus still orders his mother around and still tries to get rid of the suitors, only now we see how Penelope reacts. This added information has a powerful impact to understanding Penelope, we now know that she doesn’t just take her son ordering her lightly but rather lets her son feel as if he is in control while planning and maintaining control. Neethling points out, “Often in literature women play a role or a function as a type-character, rather than being portrayed as a flawed individual with strengths and weaknesses” (128). This statement holds true when comparing the male and female perspectives of Penelope. In Butler and Pope’s version her role or purpose is to be the faithful wife waiting for her husband’s return. This version of Penelope is arguable makes Penelope’s standards of being a wife unattainable to readers. In Atwood’s version Penelope recognizes this saying, “And what did I amount to, once the official version gained ground? A edifying legend. A stick used to beat other women of.” (2). This example makes it clear that a story carries the ability to effect social ideology. When reading only the male perspective reader could see the ‘perfect’ wife presented from the male point of view and accept or try to live up to that image. However, when readers read the story from both perspectives they will see a faithful wife who also has many flaws. Atwood’s version of the story was more effective in understanding Penelope has readers were able to see her strengths and her flaws as well as understand the reasons behind her choices. Atwood provides some explanation as to why Penelope who is clever, smart and resourceful is portrayed as the helpless and weeping wife from the male point of view. When Penelope hides the fact that she knows the beggar is her husband in order to protect his pride, Atwood provides a justification for Penelope’s choice to protect her husband. In Atwood’s version Penelope justifies Odysseus leaving her out because she thinks that Odysseus believes that she would have not been able to control her excitement in seeing him thus giving him away. This explanation adds to many different interpretations of Penelope. It could be suggested that she is an understanding wife just putting her husband first. A feminist point of view might consider this situation as a power differentially between Odysseus and Penelope. Due to the patriarchy society at the time it could be argued he didn’t trust her or value her opinion enough to let her in on the plan. This shows how intertexuality can help strength and challenge the theme and meaning of the original story. As intertexuality has a significant impact on the effectiveness of a text as well as helping to strengthen and challenge the original text it is arguable that there are both risks and advantages to hearing multiple perspectives on a single story. There is a risk that the original story’s themes and meaning gets lost or changed when it is told from a different perspective. In this case it would become a whole new story rather than a new version of the same story. A risk of not reading versions from multiple perspectives could include coming to a conclusion without fully considering all sides of the story. This would be similar to a judge convicting someone without hearing both sides to the story. The advantages would be similar to the ones presented in this paper in that readers can gain greater insight not only to a character but also to the story’s themes and meanings. For The Odyssey the advantage of understanding the story from multiple perspectives is learning that Odysseus is not the only hero of this story. It is evident that the inertextual differences between the male and female perspectives have significant impact on portrayal of Penelope and the theme of control as well as on the effectiveness of the text. From the male point of view Penelope is painted as the faithful wife whose purpose in the story is waiting for her husband to return. However, from the female point of view Penelope is seen as clever and resourceful, she’s not just waiting for her husband’s return but rather she actively takes control of his house. Atwood’s versions of the story proved more effective in understanding the character of Penelope, her actions and why she is portrayed so differently.
At Odysseus’ house Penelope and Telemachus are dealing with president suitors that wish to wed Penelope, however no matter how much Telemachus tries to get rid of them, “You should be ashamed yourselves...I beg you by Zeus, by Themis too...leave me alone to pine away in anguish.” (p.95 70-75), Telemachus is pretty desperate to get rid of the suitors because they are intruding on his house and making a mess. Penelope has become sullen since her husband has been missing for
In the Odyssey, written by, Homer Penelope seems, at first, to be portrayed as someone constantly weeping for her husband, while being oblivious to the struggles of her kingdom. However, the story actually portrays her as someone who is in control of her surroundings. Penelope is torn at the thought of not seeing her husband again. Back when Penelope was alive it was not proper for a lady to be with more than one man and Penelope knew this. She did not wish to be with more than one man, so she used her weeping to distract her suitors so she would not be looked at with disgrace in her century. After twenty years Penelope is given strength, while pretending to be oblivious, in a categorical way Penelope demonstrates her
Lillian Doherty, Siren Songs: Gender, Audiences, and Narrators in the Odyssey (Ann Arbor 1995), esp. chapter 1.
Atwood’s “The Penelopiad”, explores the evolving characterisation of key characters such as Penelope and Odysseus through her postmodernist reimagination of Homer’s classical “The Odyssey”. Through the exploration of the characters, the reader is provided an insight into the context of Atwood’s writing. Her characterisation of Penelope and Odysseus are shaped from our understanding of the characters within “The Odyssey” and allows us to draw comparison between the predominant culture and society of the Homer and Atwood’s writing.
In order to achieve this, the characters in the Penelopiad, particularly Penelope, are given “new outlook and voice” through the influence of contemporary attitudes (Irshad & Banerji 35). As such, Atwood is able to subvert the masculine focus while working within the Homeric source material. This includes frequent inclusion of asides in the text. Penelope, and the Twelve Maids, can then express their feelings, hidden in the original, in “imaginary space outside cultural constraints” (Khalid & Tabassum 19). This allows for women in Homeric culture to be finally “heard” as well as seen in the narrative (Nunes 238). As a result, the conventional faithful wife is replaced with a “woman with conflicting desires and impulses” (Neethling 127). This can be considered a challenge of one of the major cultural values of the text. Penelope’s fidelity allows her to become the “epic archetype of marital excellence” in the Odyssey (Skinner 47). Atwood challenges the foundation of this idea through deeper exploration of Penelope’s psyche. Homer must use “metaphor, simile, speech, and epithet” to construct Penelope, while Atwood can utilise “interior monologues” and “introspection” (Neethling 126). Due to this, Atwood’s Penelope can reject the idea that a woman can fully adhere to this expectation. Through narrative perspective, Atwood challenges the idea of the ever-faithful wife without any change in the plot of the
For the Greeks, Homer's Odyssey was much more than just an entertaining tale of gods, monsters, and men, it served as cultural paradigm from which every important role and relationship could be defined. This book, much more so than its counter part The Iliad, gives an eclectic view of the Achean's peacetime civilization. Through Odyssey, we gain an understanding of what is proper or improper in relationships between father and son, god and mortal, servant and master, guest and host, and--importantly--man and woman. Women play a vital role in the movement of this narrative. Unlike in The Iliad, where they are chiefly prizes to be won, bereft of identity, the women of Odyssey are unique in their personality, intentions, and relationship towards men. Yet, despite the fact that no two women in this epic are alike, each--through her vices or virtues-- helps to delineate the role of the ideal woman. Below, we will show the importance of Circe, Calypso, Nausicaa, Clytaemestra, and Penelope in terms of the movement of the narrative and in defining social roles for the Ancient Greeks.
...ow Greek civilization was founded by women; they were the ones who gave birth to the heroes. Similarly, The Odyssey is a story created by women. The plot revolves around the actions of women. Athena orchestrates all the events. The seductresses, such as Circe, the sirens, and Calypso, attempt to stop Odysseus from reaching home. The helpmeets, such as Nausicaa, Arete, and Athena, aid Odysseus in his homecoming. The wise and virtuous Penelope is the object of Odysseus’ quest. Unlike Helen who forsakes her husband, Penelope remains faithful. Unlike Clytemnestra who assassinates her husband, Penelope patiently waits for Odysseus. She becomes a model of female patience and of female intelligence. Her craftiness is the only one which can match up to Odysseus’. The Odyssey presents a wide array of women and demonstrates the influence that women have in the life of a hero.
Women play an influential role in The Odyssey. Women appear throughout the story, as goddesses, wives, princesses, or servants. The women in “The Odyssey” dictate the direction of the epic. Homer the blind creator may have contrived the story with the aim to depict a story of a male heroism; but the story if looked at from a different angles shows the power women have over men. The Sirens and women that posses the power of seduction when ever they are encountered take the men off their course, and lead many to their death. The power women in the Epic pose can be seen from the goddess all to the wives. From The nymph Calypso who enslaves Odysseus for many years posses all the way back to Penelope who many argue is of equal importance to
A main purpose of women in the poem is to define the characters of Odysseus and Penelope. Women's seductive natures serve as a test of character for Odysseus. His choice to leave the sexual pleasures of Kirke and Calypso is proof of his virtue and desirability as a husband. The same depiction causes the virtuous Penelope to stand out in the large pool of vileness as a desirable wife. The contradictions also have a significant affect on the poem and the reader.
One important characteristic that Penelope and Odysseus share is their loyalty to each other. Odysseus failed to return home seven years after the Trojan war. Because he is assumed dead, 108 wealthy noblemen and princes invade his palace and refuse to leave until Penelope has married one of them. By marrying her, the suitors hope to gain control over Odysseus’s wealth and power. However, Penelope remains faithful to Odysseus. But, as a woman, she is powerless to remove the suitors from the palace. And without a man in the household, she is subject to her father’s decisions. However, despite his wish for her to remarry, Penelope clings to the hope of Odysseus’s return and remains faithful to him. She waits and gathers information by asking strangers who arrive in Ithaca about Odysseus. She goes through the stories of their encounter point by point, and asks about every detail while tears stream down her eyes. Although the suitors promise her a secure future, Penelope continues to wait for Odysseus. Without Odysseus, she does not believe that she will ever be happy again.
This essay explores the role of women in Homer's Odyssey, James Joyce's Ulysses (1922) and Derrick Walcott's Omeros (1990), epics written in very different historical periods. Common to all three epics are women as the transforming figure in a man's life, both in the capacity of a harlot and as wife.
Greek women, as depicted in their history and literature, endure many hardships and struggle to establish a meaningful status in their society. In the Odyssey, Penelope’s only role in the epic is to support Odysseus and remain loyal to him. She is at home and struggles to keep her family intact while Odysseus is away trying to return to his native land. The cultural role of women is depicted as being supportive of men and nothing more. Yet what women in ancient Greece did long ago was far more impressive than what men did.
In the era of Homer, women played a very specific role in society, and even in literature. Women of this time were basically put in a box, and expected to never step out of line. If they did go against the arbitration of men, then they would face serious consequences. However, female characters play a huge role in both aiding, and delaying, Odysseus’s journey home. I will proceed to analyze, and interpret, the actions and intentions of every major female character in The Odyssey.
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,
In conclusion, the “Odyssey” is one of the greatest literary works ever known and this literary analysis should help the reader to understand the important components of the novel such as theme, characters, relationships, symbols, motifs, literary devices, and tone.