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The impact of the odyssey
Literary analysis on the odyssey
The odyssey in todays world
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More handpicked essays just for you.
The impact of the odyssey
Literary analysis on the odyssey
The odyssey in todays world
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
In the odyssey, Penelope is very loyal. She waited for Odysseus for a long twenty years. She would only chose a suitor to take his place only after she knew Odysseus was dead. Somehow she new Odysseus would come back, alive and well.
Penelope and Penny are both Strong Independent Women and deep thinkers. Penelope spent twenty years alone with her son when Odysseus left and she had to be loyal the entire time. In addition, Penelope had to think about everything very thoroughly during the time when Odysseus was away. For example, she thought of the great idea of weaving a loom and when it was finished she would
Good morning Ms. Rummel, my sole purpose today is to convince you of Penelope’s complete innocence. In the book the Penelopiad by Margaret Atwood, the tale of the Odyssey was retold through the eyes of Penelope, Odysseus’s wife. Towards the end of the book, when Odysseus returns to his home, Ithaca, he orders for Penelope’s twelve handmaidens to be hung, as a punishment for sleeping with the suitors during the twenty years when he was away. Many people believe that Penelope caused the murder of the twelve maids; however, if you pay close attention to the book and its subtext, there are many other people besides Penelope that have a larger claim to the responsibility of the maids’ murder. Through thoroughly analyzed evidence from the book itself,
If Penelope were to be the one to sleep with a suitor I assure you she’d be killed among the other maids like in book 22. But of course, that wasn't the case and in book 23 lines 417-422, Penelope tells Odysseus, “Think what difficulty the gods gave: they denied us life together in our prime and flowering years, kept us from crossing into age together. Forgive me, don't be angry. I could not welcome you with love on sight”. Penelopes questioning if Odysseus was actually who he claimed he was, was the epitome of her character.
Penelope connects her actions to fate in the hopes that Odysseus, like his father Laertes, has not yet met his “deadly” and final fate. In addition to the Fates, she also references the myth of Arachne. She tells the men courting her, “my suitors, now that King Odysseus is no more, go slowly, keen as you are to marry me, until / I can finish off this web … / so my weaving won’t all fray and come to nothing” (Homer 19. 157-160). Penelope refers to herself with mythical proportions, in terms of fate and Arachne, all of whom use textile skills to shape lives.
Yes, Penelope struggles greatly with a very important decision throughout the course of the story. In the background of the main plot, Penelope struggles with a very important decision throughout the time Odysseus remains lost at sea. After many years without Odysseus’ return, the prospect of a new marriage inclines itself onto Penelope. The sons of the noblest families come to live with Penelope in order to court her for marriage.
In the journal article “Rewriting The Odyssey in the Twenty-First Century”. The idea of Penelope taking control into her own hands, in a time when women did not stand up for themselves but rather were emotionally constricted is shown. Penelope’s demeanor is of a woman that does not let society rule what she can or cannot do, and because of this thinking she is able to have an advantage over other women and of men who are the ones in charge of any decision-making (Suzuki). Penelope is the second female character that is not a god that is able to maintain authority of her own in The Odyssey. This is ultimately Homer’s way of expressing his views towards the male societies of his time and their
In the Odyssey Penelope tries hard to embrace all the things women are given in life. She can do anything about the fact that Odysseus has been gone for almost twenty years, that her son does not know his own father and who he is supposed to take after, and that her home is almost in ruins because of all the suitors refusing to leave the house and trashing the house. Penelope is forced to choose a suitor, remarry and probably have more kids too. Penelope is not allowed to say if she wants that or not. We, as readers, can tell she is putting things off for as long as she can, but what if her alone was not enough.
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.
Everyone falls in love in their lifetime. Whether that’s with another person, their career, their hobbies, it happens to everyone. In The Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus, and his wife Penelope are the main couple. Odysseus does not truly love Penelope because he does not have loyalty to her, respect her, or trust her. Odysseus indicates no loyalty in regards to Penelope.
She references something they would only know to make sure it is actually her husband. This proves that she is smart. In the Odyssey, the main characters portray the ideal male and female roles in their society. Men are supposed to be strong and respectable like Odysseus, and women are expected to be loyal and strong like Penelope.
Penelope’s power does not only derive from her position in her household, it also derives from her character. Her worth is measured by her action and choices and what others thinks of her. She is praised by men and placed on a level of status only equaled to men. The obvious role she played was to help her husband and his return, but the more complex one is her impact on the society and its rules that Homer depicted. Penelope was in the epic a woman who was wielding power in a misogynistic society, and she had to bend and break rules to gain and justify the authority she had over
Despite the uncertainty of whether her husband and son were dead or alive (Homer 151), she continues to display strength and independence while patiently awaiting their return. Penelope is a beautiful example of an ancient Greek woman who upheld the traditions and values of woman during her time period. Despite the absence of her family, she continued to maintain and uphold her family name – bringing dignity and honor to her family. Each household duty that she completed was part of a larger goal, maintaining the value and meaning of their family name. While each one of these duties she accomplished might have appeared small in comparison to the achievements that the rest of her family obtained in native lands, she never lost faith.
In an epic poem, The Odyssey, by Homer, Odysseus struggles to come back home while his wife, Penelope, faces barbarous suitors who plague her house to court her for the marriage in order to claim the kingship of Ithaca. With an absence of the man of the household and a son who is not old enough to rule over the country and handle the domestic complications, Penelope endeavors to keep the household orderly and civilized. In order to prevent further chaos in the household, Penelope maintains her role as the Queen of Ithaca and Odysseus’s wife through her loyalty and cunning. For a woman who does not know when her man will return home, Penelope is extremely strong to keep hope and wait for her husband; thus, her unwavering loyalty to her husband
World Literature Paper – Role of Athena and Penelope in The Odyssey Homer’s, The Odyssey is an epic which was written many years ago. At that time, in Ancient Greek society, the dominant role was played by men and the women were considered and given an inferior position. But The Odyssey was often considered a women’s epic because women played an important role. Women in The Odyssey are portrayed as powerful, wise and controlling because they ensure that the illusion of male success will go on - they speak as men through women.