Summary Of The Circe Episode In Book 10 Of Homer's Odyssey

The Circe episode in book 10 of Homer’s Odyssey provides a good example for how a structuralist and a functionalist reading of myths results in a better understanding of the values and ideas prevalent in Greek society. A structuralist reading throws into stark relief the differences between humans and non-humans, whereas a functionalist reading legitimizes the social values and cultural norms in Greek society.

Originally formulated by Claude Levi-Strauss, structuralists suggest that binary pairs of opposites are used to structure our basic understanding of the world. Their principle argument is that human thought is structured around binary thinking, which often has a biological or cultural importance. A structuralist reading of the Circe episode emphasizes the binary opposition between humans and non-humans. Odysseus’ men, who are turned into animals, and Odysseus, who remains human by escaping Circe’s spell, demonstrate certain truths about what it means to be human according to

Although seemingly human, she is a witch in disguise, a goddess who possesses magic abilities to transform humans into animals. She is therefore more powerful than Odysseus’ men, who are mortal humans. Furthermore, in this episode, Hermes, who is also a god, plays the role of Odysseus’ protector against the evil of Circe. In order to remain human and not be turned into a pig, Odysseus requires eating a magic plant called Moly. Without Hermes’ help, Odysseus is just a “poor man” (p268) like his men because this plant “is hard for mortal men to dig it up, but gods are able to do everything” (p269). With the intervention of a god, however, Odysseus is able to drink Circe’s potion without falling victim to its spell and to save his men. The god-like ability Odysseus acquires thanks to Hermes illustrates the power of gods, who are non-human, in interfering with human