In The Odyssey, Homer puts strong emphasis on the different roles of women through the characters. Homer uses mature women to show how strong women can still be weak, and he uses sexually active women to show the double standard between men and women. Women are portrayed to be nothing but housewife’s and used for sex, yet there is still emphasis that they need men around in order to be strong and kept together. Women are seen as nothing more than housewives and for sex and are seen as nothing more than an object.
“The Odyssey,” written by Greek poet Homer is an epic tale depicting the brutally enduring quest home of the Greek hero, Odysseus. Within this heroic story, women play a very large and pivotal role in Odysseus’s trip home from the Trojan War. In his attempt to get back to his wife, Penelope, Odysseus’s progress is constantly hindered by the intervention of women who will do anything in order to either convince the heroic figure to stay with them or have him killed. The intentions of the women in the epic are all very different but one of the most prominent roles lies in the seductresses and the alluring women who will deeply influence Odysseus. Most importantly, Penelope plays a large role in portraying the importance of women’s roles in the story.
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.
Meanwhile, Penelope is in Ithaka busy dealing with the suitors who vie for her hand in marriage, tending to her loom, and directing her serving maids at work. In Homer’s epic poem, women, and goddesses are treated differently than men and gods when it comes to their freedom, expectations, and image. One common occurrence in this epic poem is unequal freedom for women,
Athena is a major character throughout the book of The Odyssey and is known as the goddess of wisdom and battle. Throughout the course of the book, it is evident that Athena has a weak spot for the main character, Odysseus. Odysseus is trying to return home after the Trojan War, as the other Greek hero’s have already done, however he faces multiple challenges a long the way. Fortunately, for Odysseus, Athena was there to guide him through a few of these troubling situations.
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
Here, Odysseus tells Athena that she is all he has left and through her immortal powers, she is the only god still on his side who can help him in his time of need. Therefore, through Athena’s encouraging words, she is able to make Odysseus feel uplifted and more useful, especially as Odysseus is, at this point, very hopeless and miserably
In The Odyssey, by Homer, Athena influences the lives of Odysseus and his family. In Greek mythology, gods challenge and control mortals. Gods also provide support to mortals and thus, mortals depend and act on behalf of the gods and their decisions. Athena, daughter of Zeus, is the goddess of wisdom, and both Telemachus and Odysseus benefit from her power. Athena possesses the ability to disguise herself and others, and this skill allows her to give advice and guidance.
Women are weak, helpless, and have no real purpose other than to serve men and take care of children. . . or so they were perceived in history. In the Odyssey, one can see that Homer’s portrayal of women challenges the depiction of women during that time period. Throughout the book, many women intervened in Odysseus’ journey home to Ithaca, for better or for worse. One will see Penelope, Athena, Circe, and other women impact Odysseus’ expedition home.
Athena uses her role as the puppeteer to allow the entire epic to slowly unfold. Without Athena there would be no epic about Odysseus returning home from the brutal Trojan War for the reader to enjoy and the term “odyssey” would not be used to describe a long journey. Athena is the key to the entire story; consequently The Odyssey is her story. The Odyssey is Athena’s story because she plays the role of the puppeteer that causes the events to take place.
Mothers: Mothers in the Odyssey, are determined figures. They are seen as the suppliers of compassion and distress, instead of genuine “supporters” of their children and spouses. Throughout the Odyssey, some of the females need backing and direction as they are weak, fragile, feeble and delicate. Without a tough male figure to guide them, these females seem to be sad and lost. Mothers in the Odyssey depend highly on their son’s devotion to them.
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
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.
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.
Athena is known as the goddess of war. Odysseus was aided by her ideas on how to regain power through her tactical skills. The fact that the goddess warrior was on his side through the journey home, reclaiming his land, and killing the suitors was a huge advantage. Athena is very intelligent in how she strategizes and won wars in the past. Some may argue that Odysseus is the real hero but there were many times throughout The Odyssey where he needed Athena’s protection and input of logical ideas.
