Essay On Mortal Women In The Odyssey

Penelope’s character displays how some women are able to exceed society’s standards and show strength and cleverness when it is necessary. For the many years that Odysseus has been away, Penelope is able

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 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. Although Homer shows that women are valued for their beauty, he also makes a point that they also must be

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. However, Penelope still loves Odysseus and remains loyal to him by stalling the marriage. She still continues to persist in being hopeful and refuses to believe that Odysseus will never return to her, so she creates several excuses to help her evade marriage for as long as possible. She presents tasks to keep the

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.

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.

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. These women influenced the conditions of the journey by guiding Odysseus in different directions, and aiding him crucially. Their authority showed the idea behind an old proverb, which states, “Behind every great man there’s a great woman”. Throughout The Odyssey, the women exemplified their power during the course of Odysseus’ journey.

Women are greatly judged by their looks throughout the book. They believe that a woman is successful if any of her direct family have an important position (e.g. King, God) or is a heroic figure. Even though Athena and Calypso are very different, one evident similarity, is their ability to influence and control men. Athena greatly interferes in Telemachus’ and Odysseus’ lives by utilizing her intellect. Her power, influence and control on men can either be seen as a positivity or as a negativity. Her interference lead Calypso to let go of Odysseus, or he might’ve stayed there forever. On the other hand, had she not interfered so much, Odysseus might have been able to get back home much

The Odyssey by Homer tells the story of Odysseus, the king of Ithaca’s treacherous journey home after the Trojan War. Throughout the novel, Odysseus faces and narrowly escapes many perils along with the help of his patron Goddess, Athena. Athena, the goddess of wisdom and craft, serves as a patron goddess to not only Odysseus, but also his family who share his skill in trickery and wisdom. The similar talent in wisdom, deceit, and weaving shared by Odysseus and Penelope allows for a harmonious relationship. Attributes such as deceit and craft are typically considered feminine, and thus Athena, the goddess of these characteristics, is female. Odysseys inherit these feminine traits from Autolycus,

Calypso was not thrilled when she learned that her captive was to be released from his seven-year imprisonment upon her island. She aired her grievances very clearly after Hermes informed her of Zeus’ command of freedom for Odysseus. After seven years, it seems that her attachment to him is warranted; however, she also intended on keeping him as her slave for all of eternity. Despite her bipolar, volatile attitude, she contains her emotions and decides to help Odysseus return home, and genuinely seems to present him with good will and her blessing. Despite her goddess stature and ability to have reasonable sway upon fate, she sees Odysseus off saying, “I will never plot some new intrigue to harm you.” (Homer 158). It appears that she keeps her word.

Imagine this, you are a powerful women living in ancient Greece, immediately you are viewed as sneaky, because you are a dominant and controlling leader. In the Odyssey, by Homer, written in 800 bc, Odysseus is retelling the story of his journey after the battle of Troy. While on his journey, Odysseus and his men have various encounters with powerful goddesses and monsters. In the Odyssey, the characters believe that all women are evil, which reflects the belief of the ancient Greeks that most women cannot be trusted.

Homer demonstrates how women in The Odyssey possess power over men. In the epic poem, is it seen how queen Arête has the upper hand over her husband and is the one in charge of making decisions. When Odysseus talked with Nausikaa about a way to get back home, she responded with:

Antigone and Penelope are both known as significant women during the ancient Greek time period. Antigone is considered to be a strong-willed woman who is deemed a noble heroine in the book titled Antigone, one of The Three Theban Plays written by Sophocles. Similarly, Penelope, in the Odyssey written by Homer, is considered to be a strong, independent woman who is a loyal mother and wife. Penelope sets an ideal womanly example during ancient Greek time period. While both of these women are known for they individual strengths and fearlessness, they are both motivated to proceed in different manners. Antigone and Penelope demonstrate levels of strength which challenge and uphold the social norms of feminine roles during their time period.

During a time where males had complete hegemony over society, its customs, its people and its conventions, several women in the epic The Odyssey became notable through their actions that defied what it meant to be a woman in ancient Greece. As the wife of the renowned hero Odysseus, Penelope demonstrated a level of sagacity that rivaled that of her husband’s through the subtle deception of others. Similarly, the powerful magic wielding nymph Kalypso also revealed the outstanding intellect that enabled her to secure an iron rule over her own island. Although seeming to be radically different, these two individuals both utilized their wits extensively throughout the epic, differing only in the traits that

We must give credit to how we live our lives to some of the stories of Grecian gods. Of the many stories we don’t look much at how women or men were treated. When you do you also just let yourself look around and see how Olympians and humans treated each other. Many stories have stories within them. These stories connect over many events and many histories of many nations.