Thus Ward is able to address the double edge sword that presents females in stories as “weak” or built upon the “wrath of a woman.” The inclusion of the universality that is associated with Greek mythology allows Ward to shed off the label of blackness from her work. With China, Esch and Katrina all carrying some traits of Medea, it allows the reader to see all aspects of being female from being vulnerable, brave, nurturing and protective. Moreover, Ward insinuates that women should be presented as empowering to one another and through Medea paralleling story Ward articulates her
This paper will discuss the well-published work of, Pomeroy, Sarah B. Goddesses, Whores, Wives, and Slaves: Women in Classical Antiquity. New York: Schocken, 1975. Print. Sarah B. Pomeroy uses this book to educate others about the role women have played throughout ancient history. Pomeroy uses a timeline to go through each role, starting with mythological women, who were called Goddesses.
In many societies today, individuals are led to believe that the concept of women possessing their own strength or independence is abnormal. As a result, women experience the world in a constrained way in comparison to men, even if they are in higher classes of society. However, these extensive aspects of females are contradicted in some ancient Greek literature. In the epic poem, The Odyssey, Homer portrays women as a vital and powerful force through the characters Penelope and Circe, who counter the normality of misogyny in Homer’s time. Penelope’s character displays how some women are able to exceed society’s standards and show strength and cleverness when it is necessary.
Elizabeth gets her revenge by her husband being arrested and for him to have lost all of the peoples respect but she still loves him by telling him that she's pregnant. The final example of a women being more dangerous than hell itself is the character Ann Putnam who due to super natural means has lost many things and people in her life that she soon seeks revenge for. In the Paper, The Crucible quotations and analysis, we see that Mrs.
In spite of the fact that Homer’s Odyssey is an epic story of a man’s gallant journey, women play a huge part throughout. Their unique yet controversial personalities, intentions, and relationships are vital to the development of this epic and adventurous journey of Odysseus. The poem by Homer was written at a time when women had an inferior position in society, yet that didn’t stop them from being any less influential. All of the women throughout the Odyssey possess different qualities, but all of them help to define the role of the ideal woman.
In the epic poem, The Odyssey, by Homer, there are many female characters who play the role of a villain. Calypso, Scylla, Charybdis, and the sirens are among the women with the largest, negative impacts on Odysseus’ journey home. Though some women, such as Athena, Eurycleia, and Penelope, are loyal to Odysseus throughout the poem. With such a wide range of female characters, they all contribute different things throughout the book, whether the impact of their actions is negative or positive. Regardless of the outcomes, Homer has quite a modern view of female representation in his poem.
To begin with, in the Iliad, a woman 's role depends on her beauty and position in the society, making them look more like a “prop”. For instance, Briseis used to be a respected princess and the wife of Mynes. However, her great beauty made herself became a reward between Achilles and other warriors in the Trojan War—she is no longer a dignified queen but a belonging whose role being manipulated by men. Another example is Helen. She was taken away from
Women are depicted as “trophy” to men and nothing more. Throughout the epic a sense of bravado and machoism is played out, giving off a man’s world feeling which women and little or no real reason to be wanted. To understand the epic and the roles in which women played, one may not have to look further than how the book has been put together. First and foremost, the book is being told through the eyes of a man (good luck ladies).
However, these contrasts between their personal thinking built most of valuable points in Odysseus' epic journey, and making a more intense story. To some extent, these women are not foolish at all because at least they are successful at leading people to believe that waiting is meaningful. The whole story happened during the dark centuries of women in Greece, when their value was limited behind men. However The “Odyssey” gives an opportunity to horror their role, also rejecting all erroneous preconceptions about the woman. Penelope -- a typical woman who represents for an image of a devoted wife, a mother of family and she is also an image of how women was treated at Greece.
Known as an epic war poem, The Iliad delves into topics concerning masculinity, heroism, and bravery. Women play a modest but important role that forms the structure of the plot. Helen’s character aids in expanding Menelaus and Paris’ characters. Homer does not delve into the lives of women like he does with the men, speaking to the notion of inferiority between the sexes. Homer displays women as tangible items through male interactions with one another.
Some women were profoundly respected, whether as representatives of effective families, or for their age, intelligence and wisdom. There is no evidence that women' capacities were questioned in the pre-Christian period, and their relationship with wisdom and enchantment was outstanding. Their connections with both nature and the otherworldly were a wellspring of
In “Gender and the Homeric Epic”, an article by Nancy Felson and Laura M. Slatkin, the gender roles of various characters in The Odyssey, an epic poem by Homer, are examined in the constraining and progressive lens Homer takes. The characters of the epic most explicitly analyzed are Odysseus and his wife, Penelope; in this article the authors show the traditional gender roles both adhere to, but also exhibit the ways in which the characters are able to reach across the restraining gender roles, without making this story entirely about gender. Through this article one can see that the constraining nature of gender roles seen in society, is not inherent in the society presented in The Odyssey, which describes an intrinsic fluidity which is seen in a plethora of characters. “Gender and the Homeric Epic” discusses the gender roles conceived throughout Homer’s story through the characters Homer and Penelope. Homer represents the masculine war hero, returning home with what should be glory and happiness.
The earlier gothic works as well as Dracula covered something that is outside the social norm. Female sexuality, something that was unacceptable and under the surface of society, it is exposed in these writings. The earlier readings such as Carmilla, as well as the poem of Christabel question the boundaries. The texts from these literature pieces contain passages of female sexuality and the passages contain phrases that hint towards the social taboos. In the era when women were thought of mere objects these pieces decide to give them a personality or at least a voice that can express desire, a voice that states women have a purpose apart from pleasing men.
Throughout history, women have been second fiddle to men. Females have been degraded, disrespected, and undermined; they’ve been ignored, silenced, and gone unheard. This gender inequality is present even in The Odyssey, though it includes many important female figures. Penelope, Calypso, Circe, and more are all crucial to the plot, and some even responsible for the happy ending, yet when inspected closely female stereotypes emerge. The majority of the women are presented as seductresses, the others as mothers, and almost all as fragile and dependent on men.
In addition to virginal innocence, during her funeral, the girl wore white “fitting for a virgin” to increase the significance of this chastity. Reaching the end of the story, the same innocent girl comes back into view. She “put on [her] white burial dress, [her] white veil, as befits a virgin” and excepts her fate just as women accepted their place in society (Atwood 266). Quite unexpectedly, I have attempted to show this story in a new light. Through the reading of Margaret Atwood’s short biography and her clever “Lusus Naturae,” I found an interesting symbolic connection between the treatment of women and the monster in this story.
