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The role of penelope in the odyssey
The role of penelope in the odyssey
The role of penelope in the odyssey
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More handpicked essays just for you.
The role of penelope in the odyssey
The role of penelope in the odyssey
The role of penelope in the odyssey
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Penelope, his wife, is greatly affected; as many greedy suitors disrespect her and move into their home to try and win her hand in marriage. Throughout ‘The Odyssey’, the greed and folly of men play a huge part in increasing the difficulty and severity of Odysseus’s situations and ultimately change his fate and the directions of his journey. The greed and folly of men are largely represented by Penelope’s suitors. In the very first book of The Odyssey, the disgusting actions of the suitors were introduced to the readers.
Penelope demonstrates the value of loyalty which was a valued trait for women in Greek culture. She displays her loyalty to Odysseus when “[she] arm[s] [her]self long ago against the frauds of men, impostors who might come.” Penelope is saying that she loved Odysseus despite the many men that tried to marry her. She never gives her heart to any other man and has always been
Penelope is “luring gifts from her suitors”, which is clever enough in itself, not to mention she has “something else in mind”, namely, Odysseus (18.317-9). This not only shows how clever she is and a possible reason for keeping the suitors in the house, but also shows her unfailing loyalty as previously noted. All the while, it is believed that she was only keeping the suitors around because she is indecisive but really she is more clever than she seems. The fact that she got gifts as a sort of repayment for the damage the suitors were inflicting on her household is something that requires a lot of forethought. She must also be a clever manipulator in order to repeatedly convince the suitors to give her presents, even though she did not choose one to marry.
When Odysseus finally returns home, he has Athena disguise him so he can look at how his home has been going without him. Everyone besides his wife, son, and two other of his men have been disloyal to him and there is a group of suitors there who have overstayed their visit trying to get Penelope to be their wife. Odysseus locks the suitors all in one room where the
Everyday women like Penelope were believed to have no purpose in common society other than being confined to a kitchen each day and complete domestic house duties. The name Penelope was deliberately selected as it translates to mean pulling, or spinning which is an allegorical phrase in itself, the first meaning associates her cunning weaving of plots and schemes which proves her to be sly and the secondary referring to cloth which was a part of an everyday life duty for women, producing articles of clothing. Being a hospitable host to guests was also a key function, which is first noticed when she offers help to Odysseus in disguise “Give him a wash and spread a couch for him here, with bedding and coverlets and with shining blankets”. It is argued that Penelope is secretly a spider, weaving her own web of lies getting stuck in her own trap which is hidden from the public as women were not meant to be clever or be known for any kind of crafty intelligence. In contrast to this old way of societies expectations, Atwood utilizes Penelope’s strength in character to warn women not to follow in her footsteps by giving them the advice of “Do not look the other way”, “Tell them (referring to males) what you think”, “Argue with them”, and “make them squirm”, these pieces of wisdom create a stronger emphasis on having equal respect and appreciation for women which also conflicts the differences between Ancient and Modern times and highlights the evolution of society.
Odysseus and Penelope’s relationship is different from the other two in several ways. They are the oldest couple, are more trusting and open with each other, and exhibit more traditional man-and-wife roles. While Odysseus was away, Penelope revealed to be intelligent and cunning. Despite that, Odysseus treated her like a possession. His main fault was pride, shown when he reunited with Penelope as the beggar and boasted
As we gather the ram, bull, and wild boar, Telemachus and I went to say farewell to my dearest Penelope and my two four-year-olds, my bright eyed daughters, Emily and Sophia. As we walked to to our home we saw the household gathered around, along with almost all of Ithaca. I spotted my Penelope with eyes of sorrow. I walked towards her as I realized that she believed that I would face the same fate of my last journey. “My dearest Penelope,” I told her.
In Homer’s Poem, The Odyssey, Penelope is the exceptionally patient and clever spouse of the infamous hero, Odysseus, and the mother of Telemachus. One poignant factor of Penelope’s character is her patience and devotion which is displayed throughout the poem. With her husband absent for a great majority of her life for the later of twenty years and his location unknown, Penelope stays, patiently awaiting Odysseus’ return, all whilst preserving their estate and raising her son by herself. Throughout this time, she had many persistent suitors in pursuit of her, abusing her husband’s absence.
Odysseus has perished far from his country in some outlandish region. But these men will plot evils against you ….It is not right for you to wander and suffer hardships on the barren wide sea.’ ” Penelope has been faithful to Odysseus for over 20 years. This shows loyalty as she waits for him to return. Since she is Odysseus’s wife, she endures the 20 years while persevering the aggressiveness of the suitor who want her hand in marriage.
The mood of Penelope and the Suitors can be described as anarchic, which demonstrates the idea that the suitors are out of control due to the vacancy of the king, Odysseus. The scene of the painting shows Penelope being bombarded by suitors who someday hope to be her husband. While the suitors continue to beg for her attention, Penelope ignores them and remains working on her tapestry instead of resolving her issues with them. She continues to work on her tapestry as if they are not even there. Penelope’s servants also ignore the suitors, as if they were told not to make contact in any way for fear they might do something wrong.
However, for a woman in Homer’s society, who belongs to either her father and her husband, she is the head of the household for 20 years in the absence of Odysseus. She does not preserve peace in the household, but she takes actions to prevent the destruction of ranks of the household by delaying her marriage so that when Odysseus come back home, he can reclaim the kingship, or when Telemachus is old enough, he can take the throne which is rightfully his. In the position where women have no power, she uses her intellectual strength to control the suitors. Penelope promises the suitors that she will choose one of them to marry after she finishes weaving the shroud for Laertes because it is shameful if she does not do anything for her father-in-law. The suitors eagerly comply to her request without knowing what Penelope plans to do.
Seven years stuck on this island, everyday counting the days planning, planning to escape from this miserable place and continue my journey to get home and see my beautiful wife Penelope, Oh Penelope how I miss you. All my men dead, dead because of me. Calypso offering me immortality to stay with her and become her husband. Tempting offer it is
Penelope comes up with a lot of ways to say no to the suitors about having affairs with her. By these actions the reader can infer that Penelope will not have affairs with the suitors because she loves Odysseus and no one
This entails how after all that he asked of her, he lures her in with his sweet words and salutations. Just like that, he gets exactly what he needed: food, shelter and a ride home. Odysseus is in a very vulnerable position, needing help and his first instinct is to trick her into providing for him. This speech Odysseus has made may have come off as disrespectful to his marriage, however, it is all part of the plan to get home to her. Penelope on the other hand, is a silent or hidden hero.
Penelope, Odysseus’ wife, is one of the many characters in this novel who is faithful to Odysseus, which she shows by not marrying anybody else. In Book 2, Penelope tells suitors that she will marry one of them once she finishes weaving the shroud. Every day, she weaves more of it, “and every night she would unweave by torchlight.” (2.114) Because Penelope purposefully never completes the shroud, she never marries any suitors, and that shows her devotion to Odysseus. Likewise, in Book 21, Penelope comes to the storeroom in order to talk to her suitors, telling them that “whoever bends this bow and slips the string on its notch...with him will I go,” (21.71,74). Penelope tricks the suitors into thinking they have a chance of marrying her; she knows that only Odysseus can work the bow and arrow, so none of the suitors will succeed.