Xenia in the Odyssey

Many years after the end of the Trojan War, Odysseus still hasn’t returned home to Ithaka. Many believe that he is dead, but the author lets us know that he is being held as a sex captive on the goddess Kalypso’s island. Kalypso has no plans of letting him go to return home either.

Offering a hot beverage, food, the safety of your home, or entertainment are all examples of presenting good xenia to guests. xenia is commonly used to portray hospitality or a guest/host relationship. xenia, is important in Ancient Greek society. Zeus is the God of travelers, in addition to being the king of the Gods. This forces for the host to feel obliged to treat their guests with much hospitality, and vice versa with guests, serving with high responsibility. Zeus would severely punish those who break the fine rules of xenia and hospitality. In the epic,“The Odyssey” by Homer, there are multiple examples of good and bad xenia. The group of 108 men who slouch around Penelope show poor xenia and are eventually stricken with their bitter death. Conversely, Eumaios presented great xenia when taking Odysseus in, even while he was disguised as a beggar. Xenia is a prevalent theme in the book and holds a central place in The Odyssey.

The idea of xenia, the ancient Greek’s way of hospitality, appeared many times in the Odyssey but was not always followed and was broken by both the guests and the hosts in some of the situations. Although xenia was sometimes broken it was still important in the Odyssey because it explains certain aspects of the story such as , the reason why the suitors stayed in the house of Odysseus and why Odysseus and his crew were able to stay with many different people over the years such as Circe and briefly Lord Alcinous. In the Odyssey an example of good xenia was shown when Telemachus said “Greetings stranger. You are welcome here. After you’ve had dinner, you can tell us what you need.

Xenia is the generosity and hospitality the Greek give to their guest when people come over to their home. Hospitality plays a major role in Greek society. In American society, today hospitality is not a priority. The most we do is let guest in to sit and offer maybe food and water. In the Odyssey Homer shows in Greek culture that hospitality is very important several times in the text and should treat everyone as royalty.

The concept of guest hospitality is extremely important in ancient Greece. Hospitality, or Xenia, is so essential in Greek society that Zeus, in addition to being the king of the Gods, is also the God of travelers (Wikipedia). This created an obligation for the host to be hospitable to their guests, and conversely, the guests had their own responsibilities as well. If either the host or the guest was to break any rule set by Xenia, there would be severe penalties dealt by Zeus and also by society (Wikipedia). In The Odyssey, Xenia is a theme which is shown repeatedly throughout the book: Nestor and Menelaos take in Telemakhos warmly as a guest and Eumaios plays an excellent host to Odysseus, while Odysseus is disguised as a wandering

In the Odyssey, Xenia is also shown to be one of the hallmarks of a civilised society, allowing us to judge the societies that Odysseus visits by their attitudes to xenia. For example, the Cyclopes are well informed about Xenia, yet disregard it because they have no fear of the God’s retribution. This tells us that the Cyclopes live in a formidable and amoral society. Even the Gods are shown to respect Xenia rules, for example in Book 5 when Calypso gives hospitality to Hermes. Good xenia is shown to have good repercussions for both the guest and the host: for example, Odysseus’ stay on the island of Calypso, where he is met with exceptional hospitality. Odysseus received this hospitality well and continued to please Calypso. Only at the end did he ever try to refuse her hospitality and leave, and even this caused no serious problems. Here we have an example of the guest-host relationship working well. Calypso is provided with a companion, even if it was not permanent, and Odysseus was provided with shelter, provisions, and protection for his men. In the end it proves to be a beneficial situation for them both.

The Greeks have been known for their hospitality and politeness, especially when treating guests- whether strangers or not. This is demonstrated near the beginning of the Odyssey when Telemachus went to Pylos to visit Nestor. Nestor, not knowing who he was taking into his home as guests, treated them with great honor and respect. "Now is the time," he said, "for a few questions, now that our young guests have enjoyed their dinner. Who are you, strangers? Where are you sailing from, and where to, down the highways of sea water (p 299)?" If ever Greeks were to serve themselves before their guests or even a little better than them, then they were breaking the most basic of all Greek customs,

The epic poem The Odyssey, by Homer, shows all of the gods thought of xenia as an extreme life moral that everyone should live by. Xenia in The Odyssey was very important to all of the people and the greek gods due to the fact no one knew if a stranger to them was a god to the greeks. Xenia in The Odyssey means to have guest friendship to a stranger and there should be respect both ways, however anyone that didn’t follow the rules of Xenia would be punished and anyone who followed it would be congratulated in a way. Xenia is the moral in the odyssey that was mostly empathized. The extreme value of xenia to the ancient greeks is a recurrent theme in The Odyssey, as shown through The suitors, Circe, and The beggar.

Homer values the characteristic of hospitality because the characters who do not demonstrate this characteristic typically suffer fatal or near-fatal injuries. In the Odyssey, Penelope (Odysseus’ wife) was hosting an event to make one of the suitors (potential marriage partners) her new husband because she had given up hope that Odysseus would not return home. The men who were at her house would just eat and drink, and showed no hospitality (21.70-78). In the Odyssey, Odysseus had attended this event disguised, and became aware of Penelope’s discourteous guests. Odysseus then goes on a “rampage” and slaughters all of the guests except for a few men who Telemachus (Odysseus’ son) swore their loyalty (22.16-529). Additionally, in chapter 21, Antinoös was the first to be killed because of his abrupt and rude manners, and distinctly

Germany is allowing open borders to the refuges of Syria, an estimate of 800,000 people in 2015 alone, as an amazing display of hospitality, or as the Greeks call it, xenia. Xenia is an important feature in The Odyssey, an epic poem written by Homer in the 8th century B.C. Homer effectively uses xenia as a way to show that the gods need to be respected. He emphasizes the need for respect by showing what will happen if xenia is broken. If one breaks xenia, the gods will punish the offenders by striking them down or cursing them, as shown in the Cyclops and The Cattle of the Sun God.

The hospitality that Telemachos and Penelope show Odysseus when he returns home, even though they do not know who he really is yet another example of xenia. This hospitality helps in his winning his home back from the suitors. Telemachos welcomes Odysseus into the house, and gives him permission to beg the suitors of money. Despite knowing this, said suitors harass him when he asks for coins. In response to this, Telemachos says “, There will be no pleasure in this feast, at all since vile things will be uppermost. Now the hallowed prince Telemachos spoken […] I drive away no man.“ Telemachos’s defense of Odysseus, even in guise of a vagabond, shows great grace on his part, and show great hospitality, on top of undermining the suitors, thus giving them less power. After the suitors have gone home, Penelope summons her maidservant, saying “, Eurynome, bring up a chair, and put a fleece on it, so that the stranger can be seated, and tell me his story, and listen to what I have to say. (Homer.18.97-99)” This statement shows that Penelope is intending t make a beggar as comfortable as she, and set aside time specifically to

Everyone loves to receive gifts. For some it makes them feel special or important. In the Odyssey gift giving can be seen as sign of respect. Xenia, an important aspect to Homeric society, can be described as the guest-host relationship. It was of importance in Homeric society because it was something that could make or break the relationship you have with someone. Throughout the Odyssey xenia influences those who Odysseus comes into contact with impacting the plot of the story. Focusing on the theme of gifts and gift giving throughout the Odyssey I will support Odysseus assertion that gift giving was connected to respect with three specific examples.

Xenia is an obligatory, socially- regulated hospitality shown to suppliants and strangers by god-fearing hosts. This notion can be broken into two aspects: conduct and food and libations. When welcomed in to a residence, hosts are expected to treat a guest respectfully and amicably- this then transitions to the food and libations portion of xenia. This facet revolves less on entertainment, but rather is symbolic of a host opening their home as a place for a suppliant to rest and find asylum from the woes of travel. It is the recipient’s responsibility to treat the host with respect, as they are visitors. I assert that xenia has a direct effect on a relationship and its ensuing trajectory because respect is the foundation of xenia; these effects can be seen throughout The Iliad and The Odyssey, particularly in the interactions of

Xenia is the ancient Greek concept of hospitality, the generosity shown to those who are far from home. Xenia is an important theme in the Odyssey – it is shown in the numerous characters, whether royal or monstrous, that Telemachus and Odysseus encounter, and could be shown as willingly given and wanted hospitality, unwanted/overwhelming, or unwillingly given; these encounters can also show lack of hospitality. This essay will discuss what xenia was to the ancient Greeks, and how this virtue was portrayed in the Odyssey.

The final aspect of positive hospitality that is shown in the Odyssey, is by Eumaus, the old swineherd of Odysseus. Eumaus uses his very appropriate upbringing (he was kidnapped royalty) in order to provide help to Odysseys (in disguise as a beggar) all the help and wealth he can afford to share, in his meager setting. Odysseus used