Women of the Odyssey Essay -- Homer Epics Essays

The Women of the Odyssey   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Many people regard Homer’s epics as war stories—stories 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, the Sirens and Circe are depicted in a much more negative way. Penelope—the central female character—is given both negative and positive attributes.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Athena, the grey-eyed goddess of wisdom and battle, has a soft spot for Odysseus and Telemachos. The action begins with a meeting of the gods, where Athena makes a plea on behalf of Odysseus, asking her father, â€Å"Why, Zeus, are you now so harsh with him?† (I, 62). This action, paired with another intervention into a meeting of the gods, shows Athena’s initiative and nerve, two traits which would have been greatly admired by Homer’s audience. Athena also shows cleverness and ingenuity when she disguises herself and others on several occasions: The goddess first appears as Mentes, and then later as Mentor, Telemachos himself, Penelope’s sister, a friend of Nausikaa’s, and various servants. Not only is she a master of disguises, but Athena has an incredible sense of when it is necessary to appear as someone else in order to achieve her goals. While possibly just a product of Athena’s goddess status, her ability to view th e â€Å"big picture† is quite a highly regarded trait. Athena also has the virtue of restraint which she demonstrates when she does not take part in the final battle between Odysseus and Telemachos and the suitors.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In addition to Athena’s abilities and traits, the traits which she herself values give great insight into her own virtues. For example, she considers hospitality to be of great importance. This is shown several times in the Odyssey: first, when she arrives in Ithaka and is received so well by Telemachos, and a second time when she assists Odysseus by gaining the favor of Arete and Nausicaa. Athena is also very concerned with glory, which becomes clear when she sends Telemachos on his voyages with the primary purpose to grow up so that he does â€Å"not go on clinging to [his] child... ...will greatly upset her. She is seen as indecisive in the sense that she never outright refuses to marry any of the suitors and leads them on to an extent (I, 245). Finally, while the audience is certainly sympathetic to Penelope’s grief, it has been twenty years since she has seen Odysseus and ten since she expected him to return. Even Odysseus himself told her that if he did not return, she had his permission to marry again when Telemachos was grown. The fact that she has not done so and has not made any progress towards that end gives her a negative image, consequently affecting the image of all females in the Odyssey.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The contradictory views of women presented by Homer, and the complexities of all main characters in the Odyssey, prove that Homer had a very good sense about human nature. Not all women are virtuous and admirable, but not all women lack positive virtues; and of course, some women cannot fit either extreme. Even the characters he sets up as role models are not perfect. Homer’s works have been so successful throughout history largely for that reason, I believe. Regardless, the Odyssey is a fascinating study of human nature and an exciting story of homecoming.