The Greek society focused on in Homer’s The Odyssey seems to be very male-dominated‚ but women are able to undermine the men to gain freedom. The women in The Odyssey are either mothers or daughters‚ they are not independent of their family‚ and their place in society is based on their husband or father’s social status‚ but the smartest women know that they can go behind the men’s back to gain more power. Two of the women that are able to gain individuality from the men’s influence are Penelope and
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Men are the main characters in “The Odyssey”‚ but women are highly influential in the epic as well. With a common theme throughout the poem(s) of: You can always find your way home‚ just don’t give up. In Homer’s epic poem “The Odyssey”‚ there are many women that influence Odysseus but Penelope‚ Circe‚ and Athena mainly control his course. Penelope‚ Odysseus’s wife‚ is an influential background character in “The Odyssey”. Penelope not only stalls for Odysseus with the hope that he will come back
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In the Odyssey‚ temptation is defined as hunger- both literal hunger (temptation for food) and figurative hunger i.e. temptation for luxury‚ ambition‚ wealth‚ women‚ power‚ glory etc. This “hunger”‚ whether literal or figurative keeps Odysseus’s men from reaching their homes and uniting with their families. However‚ longing for family or grief for loved ones drives away “hunger”. Odysseus is the only man among his crew to reach home to Ithaca because his longing for his family and native land surpasses
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Women in The Odyssey After following an epic that revolved so completely around men‚ The Odyssey has quite a lot of female roles. True‚ the ancient Greeks had a better androgynous balance than other civilizations‚ and this is reflected very clearly in The Odyssey. Femininity has not only a bigger role in this epic‚ but it seems as though it is honored with its own unique power. This is shown in characters like Circe and Athena‚ but also subtextually in the many female weavers throughout the
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The Women of the Odyssey Many people regard Homer’s epics as war storiesstories about men; those people often overlook the important roles that women play in the Odyssey. While there are not many female characters in the Odyssey‚ the few that there are‚ play pivotal roles in the story and one can gain a lot of insight by analyzing how those women are portrayed. Homer portrays the females in contradictory ways: the characters of Athena and Eurykleia are given strong‚ admirable roles while Melantho
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If Godly Odysseus Can’t Handle Women‚ How Can I? ENG201 – 0 World Literary Masterpieces I Dr. Elizabeth S. Oldman October 10‚ 2013 Conflict is the cornerstone for every tale‚ epic and anecdote‚ and has been even before written word. Without conflict‚ in essence‚ there is nothing to talk about‚ no interest‚ no engine to drive the characters towards an ending. Said conflict can come from many source; however‚ the most common conflicts
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English 201- H 11 February 2013 The Women of The Odyssey In today’s society women are just as capable of doing things as men. The role of a woman has changed greatly since the times of Ancient Greek. In Homer’s epic‚ The Odyssey‚ we see how each different woman is portrayed. From the roles of‚ the cunning seductress‚ and the faithful obedient wives. Women are the key to everyday life of men‚ children‚ and other women. Throughout this epic‚ most of the women fall under two categories: they are
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In Homer’s The Odyssey‚ women are looked at in two ways; as being the evils in the world and hindering on Odysseus’s homecoming or as being loving and faithful. On his journey home‚ Odysseus weaves his way through many hardships and temptations that are created by the women he meets on his voyage back to Ithaca. Calypso and Nausikaa play a large role in representing temptation while Penelope represents loyalty for she was the only good and loyal woman who waited for Odysseus to return home unlike
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corpses."(Book X‚ Line 297) However‚ these traits and Odysseus’ ability are constantly challenged by the temptation of women. In the Odyssey‚ myriad examples of such temptation reflect the importance of gender and the role of women. Odysseus’ numerous interactions with women make this influence clear. A prime example of the importance of the roles of women in the Odyssey is their roles as seductresses. When Odysseus’ crew arrives on Circe’s island‚ they are attracted to Circe’s house because of the
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Figuratively speaking‚ the Odyssey is a story created and controlled by women‚ and consequently‚ the plot revolves around the actions of women. The women in the poem could be divided up into two major groups: the seductresses‚ such as Circe‚ the sirens‚ and Calypso‚ who attempt to hinder or stop Odysseus from reaching his home‚ and helpers‚ such as Nausicaa‚ Arete‚ and perhaps most importantly Athena‚ who all aid Odysseus in his homecoming. These two sides of “help” and “hinder” are clearly separated
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