The Role Of Feminism In Homer's Odyssey

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Ancient Greece was a man’s domain; women possessed little to no rights in comparison to their male counterparts. Unable to vote, own land, inherit, or have a say in marriage, “a woman’s place was in the home and her purpose in life was the rearing of children” (Cartwright). Astounding inequality was clearly evident in literary works written during that time; however, Homer, a prevalent storyteller and author in ancient Greece, “paints a quite different picture of women” (Jones). The Odyssey, a popular work by Homer, possesses core feminist values, yet by today’s standards, it would not be considered genuinely feminist. Homer exhibited feminist qualities through the characters Penelope, Athena, and Calypso.
First, Penelope, Odysseus’ wife, …show more content…

When Odysseus left for the Trojan War, Penelope did not expect him to be gone for 20 years, and she, among others in Ithaca, believed Odysseus to be dead. Due to this belief that Odysseus was dead, she was forced to choose from a crowd of suitors for a new husband because of the ancient patriarchal hierarchy. Penelope, not wanting to marry one of the brutish suitors, devised a plan to delay the impending wedding by utilizing a skill that was meant to oppress her. She told the suitors that she was weaving a shroud for her father-in-law, Laertes, and when she finished, the wedding could proceed. “There she was all day long, working away at the great web; but at night she used to unravel it by torchlight. . .for three years she deluded the nation, and they believed her,” until one of Penelope’s maids discovered her deceit and told the suitors (Homer 24). Weaving was taught to women in ancient societies as a way to denounce their abilities into just staying in their home and taking care of the family, but Penelope used this skill in a way that was not oppressive but rather empowering. Her tactic can suggest Homer’s disagreement with the idea that a woman’s place is strictly in the house because he made a character defy the stereotypical female role. Furthermore, Penelope devised plans and tests for the

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