Essay about Portrayal of Women in Homer's Odyssey

Throughout the epic poem “Odyssey” we see many great characters who all bring a different feel to the story. “Odyssey” is a story that has a male main character and many male side characters, but it also has several female characters found in it. Each one of these females have an important role within the story and it would not be the same without them. Athena, Penelope, and Eucycleia are a few examples of female characters.

As the request is made of his own mother she simply abides to her son’s wishes, “She bathed now, put on some fresh clothes,” (Homer l 17.60). All throughout the Odyssey Penelope shows her strength to ward off suitors and she manages to live without her husband for years. Remaining faithful the entire time to her husband Odysseus she discloses to her maid, “Eurynome, don’t try to coax me, care for me as you do, to bathe myself, refresh my face with oils. Whatever glow I had died long ago… the gods of Olympus snuffed it out that day my husband sailed away in the hollow ships,” (Homer ll 18.201-206) presenting to the reader that she lost all desire for anyone else when Odysseus’ left for war. This further substantiates the Greek view of how women should remain loyal at all times forsaking others. Lastly Penelope is rewarded for her lasting devotion to her husband with his return. In these characters and their specific roles in the Odyssey the Greeks’ insisted upon their women to accept such roles in their culture of certain hypocrisy when compared to that of their female counterpart. Without Athena’s support Odysseus would have never reached Ithaca and Telemachus would not have been pushed into becoming a man. Without Penelope’s loyalty, devotion, and support Odysseus’ efforts in his journey home would have held little merit of reward. What is most important to note is the male character of Odysseus plays the most prominent role in the epic but

In keeping with the idea that female characters play a supporting role in the story of a male protagonist, Homer makes a point to focus on Odysseus’ wife. Penelope is the model of

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.

While traditional readers of Homer’s, The Odyssey, view Odysseus as a hero, they often reduce Penelope to Odysseus’s helpless wife, but Penelope is more than just a damsel-in-distress. Penelope proves to be Odysseus’s heroic equal, as through her resilient, witty and strategic actions she ensures Odysseus fighting advantages over the suitors.

In the Odyssey Telemachus has varying relationships with his mother, Penelope, the suitors, and his nurse, Eurycleia; a mother and son but also head of household and subordinate member of the household, a young boy and superior men, and a son and mother but also a master and servant. In the poem, Telemachus must find out what became of his father, Odysseus, who never returned home from the Trojan war. Meanwhile suitors from various places try to force his mother, Penelope, into marriage while they deplete all of Odysseus’ resources and destroy his house. With all of these complicated situations, Telemachus must take on a variety of different roles depending on who he’s interacting with. Based on the text, Telemachus has superior, strained, and complex relationships with his mother, the suitors, and Eurycleia.

The Odyssey, written by Homer, tells the story of Odysseus after the Trojan War. It not only includes an insight on the adventures and return of Odysseus, but it also includes the stories of Telemakhos and Penelope. Telemakhos is the courageous son of Odysseus who goes on a quest in search for information about his father’s whereabouts. Penelope is an extremely clever woman who could match Odysseus in his wit. Penelope is able manipulate the suitors that have come to pursue her in Odysseus’s absence. Though Penelope often spends many nights weeping over the absence of her husband, it seems as if she never loses faith in her husband, and she truly believes that he will return to her and punish the suitors that have taken over their

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?"

     Another female who is portrayed in a very positive light is Odysseus’ and Telemachos’ old nurse, Eurykleia. Eurykleia is repeatedly shown to be noble and extraordinarily devoted. Laertes, Odysseus’ father, in fact, favored her as much as his own wife. Also, Homer says that she loves Telemachos more than any other servant does. These traits are admirable and again show the female as virtuous. Like Penelope, Eurykleia is described as “shining among women”; a trait which, while not exactly virtuous, is positive. Homer also gives Eurykleia traits which are stereotypically male. She is commanding and can keep the other servants in line: “she spoke, and they listened well to her, and obeyed…” ( XX, 157). Eurykleia plays a minor role, but still contributes to the favorable view of women in the Odyssey.

In their attempt to acquire power, Penelope and Circe are put into situations where their only recourse is to use sexuality or cunningness in order to survive, communicating Homer’s moral that women have no social status. When Odysseus is presumed dead, his wife Penelope has to use

Prompt: Compare and contrast the role of women as portrayed in The Odyssey. Consider how they are loyal, strong—or weak, hospitable, etc.

The Homeric simile, The Odyssey , tells the tale of Odysseus’s extended journey home with the help of women and challenging obstacles to overcome. Telemachus and the aiding Athena devise a plan to bring Odysseus home and have him reunited with his. Women are portrayed negatively in the Odyssey because they play roles in helping, serving, and aiding men as their only purpose in life. Throughout The Odyssey the goddess, Athena, schemes with Odysseus and aids him on his long, strenuous journey home after 20 years of absence from Ithaca.

Homer’s epic poem “The Odyssey” tells of the Greek hero Odysseus’s journeys in order to get back home. It also tells of the struggles of his son, Telemachus, at the hands of the men who want to court his mother, Penelope. Much of the book is comprised of hearing about Penelope’s struggle with these “suitors” who persistently push her to choose one of them to marry. Though Odysseus had been gone for more than 20 years and everyone assumed he was dead, Penelope remained faithful to her husband and dutifully resisted the suitors. Therefore, I am convinced that Penelope was a superb example of faithfulness that every woman (and man) can look at to see how one should act while married.

Also, in the specific time period The Odyssey was written women were considered material possessions, meant to be kept out of sight and in the home, but Penelope is the exception: “…her beauty, as great as it is, is almost eclipsed by a sort of impressiveness, mingled of skill, wisdom, and character. She is ‘the bright of women,’ but her constant epithets are ‘exceeding wise,’ and ‘self-controlled’; a word which conveys… a sort of power held in reserve” (Mackail). The same power Mackail mentions can be described as the same power that allows Penelope to reprimand 150 Suitors with only two maids by her side. Even today, women are not considered beings of power and strength, and with a lead female character as potent as Penelope, The Odyssey must have been fascinating to women in ancient Greece. In addition, Penelope is so highly respected by her husband, Odysseus, that he defends her when Calypso tries to belittle her. “‘And yet I claim to be by no means inferior by looks or figure, for sure it would be most

After Odysseus becomes enraged when Penelope asks the maid to make his bed outside, she realizes that he knows the secret that only Odysseus and her share. She embraces him and praises his homecoming. Once again, Penelope is wise and patient in her decision-making. The suitors pursued her, overtook her home and aggressively pushed her to remarry as she was supposed to. If Penelope would have given in, The Odyssey would not have ended with Odysseus returning to a loyal home. Through cunning, independence and loyalty, Penelope is able to create a positive image as a woman. Chaucer’s Wife of Bath has similar independence and cunning, but she makes her name as a domineering lady that chooses who she wants, and when she wants them.