Roles Of Women In The Odyssey

After Odysseus “dies”, Penelope is forced to remarry because women were supposed to be wives and listen to the head of the household. She takes action to delay her forced remarriage by weaving a loom, but was caught in the act and did not succeed in canceling the wedding: “They rush the marriage on, and I spin out my wiles./ […] So by day I'd weave at my great and growing web-/ by night, by the light of torches set beside me,/ I would unravel all I'd done. Three whole years/ I deceived them blind, seduced them with this scheme./ Then, when the wheeling seasons brought the fourth year on/ and the months waned and the long days came round once more,/ the suitors caught me in the act and denounced me harshly./ So I finished it off. Against my will. They forced me./ And now I cannot escape a marriage, nor can I contrive/ a deft way out” (19.152-177). Penelope was mourning her husband and did not want to be married to anyone but him, and drastically fooled her suitors for almost four years before the maids relayed that she had been unweaving her loom by night. Here, Penelope is not given the choice of remarriage, she is forced to remarry because of her beauty, status, and lack of a man to take care of her, which was normal in these times but is completely outrageous nowadays. Although Penelope was Telemachus’ mother, it made no difference in how she was treated by him and it was made clear his status of superiority over the household: “So, mother,/ go back to your quarters. Tend to your own tasks,/ the distaff and the loom, and keep the women,/ working hard as well. As for giving orders,/ men will see to that, but I most of all:/ I hold the reins of power in this house”

The Odyssey by Homer is one of the two major Ancient Greek epic poems. This epic poem was mainly about Odysseus and his journey home to his family and loved ones in Ithaca. In "The Odyssey," Homer demonstrates the dominant roles played by men, while women occupied a more submissive position to their husbands /masters. Greek society was organized and directed by men who played the most important roles. Of course, women were as valuable, but their roles were not as powerful as men. In fact, they would only participate in activities that were approved of men. Homer used these themes in "The Odyssey" to differentiate between the two genders. However, gender roles were depicted in the poem by one of the main characters' Penelope, in which she plays a very important role. She provides the motivation for her husband Odysseus's to return to Ithaca. She is also the center of the plot involving the suitors and the fate of Telemachus and Ithaca itself. The characterization of Penelope in the poem shows the expected role of women in Ancient Greece. Even in the household that she is supposed to be in charge, she lacks power. Her values are shown in her faithfulness to her husband even though he been gone for 20 years, and in the end, she is seen as a prize to be won. Even though women were considered valuable, they were not given important roles or any decision making power.

"Young men, my suitors now that the great Odysseus has perished, wait, though you are eager to marry me, until I finish this web, so that my weaving will not be useless and wasted”(Homer 2). Penelope tells the suitors that she must complete her weaving so that she might protect herself from what might happen, what will inevitably happen, when Penelope chooses one of the suitors taking residency in her home to marry her so that Ithaca will have a king. Each day she weaves so that the men can see her work and progress and it takes her ten years. The men don’t know what she is really doing. At night when everyone is asleep she goes to her weaving and tears our chunks of the work she had done that day, not a lot to notice but enough to slow down the suitors until Odysseus gets back. Due to the instability of being leaderless, some of odysseus's subjects had become rowdy. “Melanthios recklessly lashed out with his heel to the hip, but failed to knock him out of the pathway, for Odysseus stood it, unshaken, while he pondered within him whether to go for him with his cudgel, and take the life from him or pick him up like a jug and break his head on the ground. Yet still he stood it, and kept it all inside him” (Homer 17).Traditionally men are depicted as being strong and hard and the alpha of many households or, like in The Odyssey and many other stories, a

Throughout history, gender equality has been a recurring issue. In different cultures across the world there has been an imbalance between the roles of men and women in society. Women, in particular, have had a difficult time being treated with the same respect and privileges as men. In society today gender equality as become less of an issue because women have fought hard to be where they are today. Starting from early civilization, men have held the power within government and society, while women have been seen as housewives. This can be seen through many literary works, which tells a lot about the time in which the work was written. Many authors represent the time period they live in through the ideas in their works. In “Assemblywomen”, Aristophanes shows that in that time period, the role women played in society was that of the housewife. They were thought of as the person who should be taking care of housework and the men were the ones who were in charge of the government. In “Vagabond” the author, Colette, shows the struggles that women faced trying to live on their own in a society where the men have been the ultimate breadwinners. Through Plato’s “Republic”, he shows a different viewpoint on the role that women should play in society.

In the span of our history, women have always been outcasted as “something else,” to put lightly. Cultures tend to see women in different lights, usually ending up being the assumption that all women are home goers and weak, and not as strong and willed as their male counterparts. Not to say many women do not follow this assumption. Nonetheless, women can be perceived in many more lights than only one simple assumption. The Odyssey views women as strong, but ruthless and snake-like. Wonder Woman views women as strong, but weak and useless as well. Both these pieces of literature show women in the many limelights society has seen over the years. Both The Odyssey and Wonder Woman show women in different ways, together as strong, and separate in their own ways.

Women have always played key roles in literature, from the strong heroine to the damsel in distress. Common in works published before the 21st century, and even after, women are written as the caregivers, and the homemakers for their husbands. Literary women will often play the submissive role in society and in their marriages. These women react differently to their role; some remain submissive, some are rebellious, some are breaking free, and some go down as a result of their submission.

In “The Odyssey” there are many influential women, all of whom help Odysseus throughout his journey home. Three of the most influential women are Athena, Circe, and his wife Penelope. Each of these women has large roles in Odysseus’ journey, but only one holds the most power over Odysseus. For instance, Athena, the Goddess of wisdom, skills, and warfare may hold a significant amount of power over Odysseus, but not the most.

In which is seen when Athene enters the ornate chamber in order to inspire Nausikaa to wash clothes, “In this likeness the gray-eyed Athene spoke to her: Nausikaa, how could your mother have a child so careless? The shining clothes are lying away uncared for, while your marriage is not far off. When you should be in your glory for clothes to wear, and provide too for those who attend you.” (102,103) In this quote Athene points our Nausikaa’s lack of respect to conform to these roles by not washing clothes. This shows that women in Ancient Greece were expected to not slack in their role of household duties but to be on top of

The quest for Odysseus to return home as told in the Odyssey by Homer is one consisting of various obstacles including the Lotus-eaters, Sirens, and man-eating Cyclopes. Women in the Homeric era were held to strict social conduct and only perceived to satisfy the physical needs of men as mothers and as lovers, which makes the large role they play in the Odyssey even more profound. The sexes were sharply separated: men and women had very few opportunities for mutual self-esteem and affection.

Her maids feed them til they can eat no more, they drink until they pass out, and they laugh and sing the night away until the cycle is repeated the next day. Penelope has been putting off the marriage to one of the dreadful suitors by entertaining them so often, so she can stall until the homecoming of Odysseus. She spends twenty years as a supposed widow, who longs the presence of Odysseus. Although she uses her wits to trick the suitors into not pushing marriage with her, until the day Odysseus really did return home. In her society she has no choice in marrying or not, it’s a must, but she has great power throughout her home that goes unnoticed.

Among the three women, Dido’s story may add the most fuel to the stereotypically, ‘emotional women do drastic things’ fire. Though the fact is only known in book IV, Aeneas and Dido engaged in a great love affair, somewhat to people’s dismay as many citizens felt the two had succumbed to lust and begun neglecting their duties as rulers. Jupiter has made sure Aeneas knows his true destiny and that he must set sail for Italy immediately. Aeneas’ attempt to sail away in secret is thwarted and Dido learns of his plans and confronts him, “Yet if the virtuous gods have power, I hope that you will drain the cup of suffering among the reefs, and call out Dido’s name again and again. Absent, I’ll follow you with dark fires, and when icy death has

She is a figure of passion and unpredictability which are qualities which contrast with Aeneas’s control and order. Aeneas’s traits are ones that can be associated with Rome and Augustus; ideal qualities for Romans and Roman leaders. While Dido is a great leader, she lets her emotions out of control and sacrifices her power for love. Aeneas on the other hand, sacrifices love for leadership and his duty; “Meanwhile Aeneas the True longed to allay her grief and dispel her sufferings with kind words. Yet he remained obedient to the divine command, and with many a sigh, for he was shaken to the depths by the strength of his love, returned to his ships”. This is represented by him leaving Dido to follow the prophecy. Dido represents sacrifice and passion as well as the furor which one must not possess in order to become a great Roman

From the beginning of the story, Aeneid, Dido was characterized as an independent women. She was a competent ruler of Carthage, a city she founded on the coast of North Africa. We learn, in her determination that she will never marry again and to preserve the memory of her dead husband, Sychaeus. Unfortunately, her independence eventually turns into dependents after Venus forces Dido to fall in love with Aeneas. Dido realizes that she will risk everything by falling for Aeneas, however, throughout this process it will be almost like a madness or a disease to fall out of love with Aeneas.

The roles of women in literature have been analyzed and discussed throughout history. Many early literary works are centered on male heroism, with women playing only minor accessory roles as wives, lovers, or seductresses. Under closer examination, one will note that female characters have much more complex roles than these. This essay will discuss the different roles of female characters in three historical works: John Gardner’s Grendel, Homer’s The Iliad, and Beowulf. In Grendel, female characters take on the roles of hostesses and peacemakers, while in The Iliad and Beowulf they also have political influence. These female characters reshape the themes of heroism and monstrosity by influencing the male characters in both stories. These varying

She possesses control, passion and determination. Dido made tremendous risks and sacrifices in order to pursue her love for Aeneas and that suggests power in it of itself. Virgil reveals Dido as Aeneas’ equal and counterpart “rule this people [Carthage] side by side with equal authority” (1088, 12.137-139). However, while many see Aeneas as the epitome of the classic male hero, Dido is a true hero. Dido, queen of Carthage “ached with longing that her heart’s blood fled, a wound or inward fire” (1085, 12.1-3) commits suicide, which is a bold act of courage and serves as a testament to her tragic yet romantic