Heroic Behavioral Codes Of Women In The Odyssey By Homer

In the first section of Odyssey, mortal women are presented to us as controlled by the stereotypes and expectations of the culture of the day, and it is only within that context that we can consider the examples Homer provides of women to be admired or despised. He provides us with clear contrasts, between Penelope and Eurycleia on the one hand, and Helen and Clytemnaestra on the other.

The cultural role of women in the Odyssey In Homer’s Odyssey the cultural relevance of a preferred woman’s role in society generally stands out in the roles of the female characters of Athena and Penelope simultaneously rejecting the negatively viewed characteristics of Calypso and Circe. The entire structure of Ancient Greek culture boasts its men in more superior roles than that of women. Greek society was largely built upon an idea that good women were only around to faithfully serve and support their husband and that it was very important not to stray from those essential traits. Athena is a very involved character from the beginning of the book when she wants to help Odysseus get back home to Ithaca. However, as fate would put it

Nelson Mandela said, “I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear” (Brainyquote.com). This means that courage is shown by someone who conquers fear, like how Odysseus in The Odyssey shows courage by facing many obstacles with his crew on their journey back to Ithaca. Odysseus from The Odyssey, by Homer, shows courage throughout his journey. Odysseus is the protagonist from The Odyssey, who was determined to return to Ithaca after the Trojan War.

      Penelope and Helen are the real human women who can steal men's hearts with their own feminine ways and they never let their man go.  Helen stole the heart of Paris and later married Menelaus-the love that Paris had for Helen began the long Trojan War.  Even with her shaded past, Helen is able to live her life as a proper adjusted middle-class matron.  Penelope and Odysseus were only together for a few years before he was sent off to war and, while he was gone for over twenty years, his love for her lasted.  Penelope is the symbol of marital fidelity, of trust, honor  and devotion.

The Odyssey, by Homer, was written with the Greek mindset that women were supposed to be submissive. If the woman in question was not submissive enough, she was depicted as cruel, selfish, a monster, or a whore. This is true for both mortal women, such as Penelope, and immortal goddesses, such as Calypso. Mortal women were expected to be good faithful wives who listened to everything the head of the household said, while goddesses were expected to follow the gods every order and were called sexist slurs if they ever got involved with a mortal man.

Women in The Odyssey desire power and equal opportunities, but strict gender roles do not allow them to achieve equality. An example of this is Queen Penelope. Her husband, King Odysseus, has been gone for 20 years and missing for 10 of those, and she's completely helpless against the suitors who have overrun her house. The intention of these suitors being is to marry Penelope (against her will) and take over the thrown. In book two Telemachus calls a meeting of all these men to share his exasperation and anger over the fact that all the suitors have been taking his cattle, wrecking his home, and longing after his mother against her will. Nobody spoke up, except for Antinous. He was a sly man who had discovered Penelope’s secret, and decided

Odysseus embodies courage in that he has the ability to something that maybe considered frightening to another. Odysseus’s boldness comes at full force first when he fights along his men in the Trojan War, then it makes another appearance in the second act when he fights against a man eating Cyclops. Another great display of courage he portrays is when he takes his men into battle he leads them in strong fighting with them and not just standing idly by while each of them are picked off. Odysseus lead his men into battle, fought a Cyclops, and fought in the Trojan War, he was not frightened, but strong against his many ordeals.

For this informative report I will attempt to point out the roles women and how they are viewed in ancient Greece. I will then show how these views are present in Homer’s "The Odyssey." How are women, goddess or mortal, conveyed in "The Odyssey?"

Does Homer exhibit gender bias in the Odyssey?  Is the nature of woman as depicted in the Odyssey in any way revealing? Upon examining the text of the Odyssey for differential treatment on men and women, it becomes necessary to distinguish between three possible conclusions.  One, differences in treatment reflect the underlying Homeric thesis that  women are "different but equal in nature,"  Two, different treatment  of men and women in the text reflect a thesis that women are "different and unequal in nature" -- arguments about misogyny fall in here but a host of other interpretive possibilities are possible too. Three, the different treatment reflects simple ignorance. How much do we attribute what we discover to male authorship -- or

Homer wrote the classic epic The Odyssey more than 2,500 years ago. At that time in ancient Greek society, as well as in the whole of the ancient world, the dominant role was played by men. Society was organized, directed, and controlled by men, and it was accepted that women occupied a subservient and inferior position. Women, of course, were valued, but were expected to possess certain traits and perform certain tasks that men demanded of them. Does Homer's writing in The Odyssey support or refute the common belief of his time regarding women? Homer endorsed the dominating belief of his time concerning women by treating the female characters unequally and differently compared to the male characters in

Women form an important part of the folk epic, written by Homer, The Odyssey. Within the story there are three basic types of women: the goddess, the seductress, and the good hostess/wife. Each role adds a different element and is essential to the telling of the story.

Women are important to the plot and overall theme of the Odyssey. In fact, without many of the women there would not be a complex plot to this epic poem. In the narrative and in Greek society women played a variety of roles, as mothers, herons, and many other strong roles yet, they were treated as less significant, and were made to be loyal and submissive to men. The women were required to wait on and sulk for love, as Penelope did for 20 years. In Greek society, the women had very little authority but the little control that they did have was sort of a sexual power, which at times they could use to outwit the men. Obvious examples of this sexual power would be Circe and Calypso. Calypso and Circe however, are not the

aThe Odyssey: The Limited Role of Women The Odyssey, by Home, recounts Odyseseus’ long journey home after fighting in the Trojan War. While Odysseus and his men are cast from island to island, his wife and son, Penelope and Telemechus, must deal with suitors overrunning the palace in Ithica. Ancient Greece was an entirely patriarchal society, where a woman’s value was based only on her looks and fertility. All throughout the story, Homer perpetuates the stereotypes that defined a woman in that time. He portrays women as powerful and evil, weak and pure, or a mix of the two.

The Iliad and Odyssey present different ideals of women, and the goddesses, who are presented as ideal women, differ between the two epics. The difference in roles is largely dependent on power, and relations to men, as well as sexual desirability and activity.

The Odyssey, is an epic poem created by Homer before the written word. Because it is translated into many languages, the poem has thousands of different versions. One thing that always shines through is that most of the women are strong for the society of there time Homer was a feminist for his time by giving Penelope her clever mind, Circe her magical powers, and Calypso’s godly power. What is a feminist? As Maria Laurino says “Contemporary American feminism has primarily come to mean championing women’s autonomy and challenging the privileging of male over female.”