Examples Of Loyalty In The Odyssey

Loyalty is the castle wall that protect relationships from outside forces such as disobedience or deceit. A consequence of defective loyalty is that it can be battered down destroying the relationships it was built to defend. However, the gift of firm loyalty is preserving the relationships so that it can remain safe. In Homer’s epic poem The Odyssey, the Greek culture’s ideal loyalty conveys the concept that disloyalty leads to destruction and loyalty leads to rewards. Through the successes of the characters, society can learn the prime example to follow while the failures of the characters display what actions to not follow.

First, the Greeks exhibit the benefits of loyalty through the faithfulness Penelope and Eumaeus reveal. For twenty

In the end, Penelope is given “a song… in honour of [her]” (Book 23 201-203) created by the gods. She is shown as the ideal wife because of her great loyalty which was highly stressed in Greek culture. The gift of loyalty is made clear because of her perseverance to stay faithful to Odysseus; ignoring the influences of those that want to cause harm to her. She gets to reunite with her loved one though great time has passed which bring joy and healing between them and her story will live on for generations. Society can follow her actions in staying loyal to one’s spouse yielding great rewards that will safeguard the relations between them even though trials and tribulations may cross their path. Similar to Penelope, Eumaeus still feels loyal to Odysseus and he still “feel[s] some modesty about naming him...so [he] calls him [his] master, though [Odysseus] is absent.”

Stranded on Helios’ island Odysseus’ men decide to “cut out the noblest of [Helios’] cattle for sacrifice” (868-869) even though Odysseus tells them it is forbidden. After seven days Zeus kills of his men when he “let[s] fly a bolt against [their] ship.” (948) They were driven by their sense of hunger and because of their faulty loyalty, they disobeyed Odysseus sealing their own fate. Odysseus’ men showcase the opposite of what Greek culture values because they are not loyal to Odysseus even though it is stressed in their way of life. Society can see the unhealthy relationship between an unloyal soldier and leader causing them all hardships and obstacles. Because of their disloyalty, they face righteous punishment that informs those in Greek society the consequences that come with defective loyalty. The actions of Odysseus’ men sets a guide on how to not make the same mistakes displayed by their disloyalty. When Odysseus returns to his home he confronts Melanthe and he tells her that “the sins of the [maids] in this palace don’t escape… notice.” (Book 19 95) They slept with the Suitors and aided them when catching Penelope secretly unraveling her loom so Odysseus kills all of the unloyal maids after killing all the suitors. The unideal relationship of a servant to master is displayed to society so they will not follow in the footsteps of his maids. The maids think that their