Hospitality In The Odyssey

In today’s society, most people would consider offering someone a place to sit and asking them if they would like something to drink hospitable. The majority of people could never imagine doing any more than this for a complete stranger. Since the Ancient Greek times to modern day, the value and importance of hospitality has greatly decreased. The Ancient Greeks considered hospitality to be the one of the most if not the most important value that they had. No matter what someone’s social status was, they were required to abide by the rules of hospitality. The value of hospitality is present throughout all of The Odyssey. Homer’s, The Odyssey takes place in Ancient Greece where hospitality was very important and had to be obeyed by both parts

One of the most important Ancient Greek values in The Odyssey was hospitality. Not only did the host have to be hospitable, the guest had to as well. The most basic rule of hospitality is to never turn a guest away and Telemachus exemplifies this value. Telemachus states, “I, for one, I’ll drive no guest away” (Homer 314). Telemachus says this to the suitors despite all of the trouble they’ve caused and the horrible people that they are. This statement sums up the exact meaning behind the guest-host relationship and displays how no matter what the circumstances are, people are required to follow the rules of hospitality. Hospitality was a significant part of the Ancient Greek life. Kalpakgian says, “Hospitality provides for all the essential human needs. The combination of delicious food and drink, convivial conversation and marvelous tales, beautiful music, and dancing, gracious manners and boundless generosity, and fun filled games and contests cheers the heart, uplifts the soul, exhilarates the body, and elevates the mind. Such participation in what Homer calls ‘the sweetness of life’ is the quintessence of civilization” (Kalpakgian 21). When you take on the “host” role in the guest-host

Zeus shows his power when, “... Zeus cracked the sky with a bolt, his blazing sign, and the great man who had borne so much rejoice at last that the son of cunning Cronus flung that omen down for him” (Homer 362). At this moment in time, Odysseus had just shot the arrow through the 12 axes and revealed to the suitors that he was a powerful being. Zeus’ lightning bolt shows that he gives his support and consent in the punishment that is going to come to the suitors. Athena also joined in on the punishment for disobeying the rules of hospitality. From the beginning, Athena wanted to help Odysseus and Telemachus get rid of the suitors. She recognized that they were being bad guests and wanted to do something about it (Homer 3-4). Athena wanted the suitors to have to pay the price for not following the laws of hospitality and she was going to do whatever it took to ensure that it happened. Athena shows up as Mentor and comes to support and help Odysseus in the demise of the suitors. Athena wants the suitors to pay and suffer for the years that they have been bad guests (Homer 370-371). Throughout the book Athena had always been behind Odysseus and wanted to help him get revenge on the suitors. They finally get the chance that they’ve been waiting for to hurt the suitors and show no mercy. The Gods were very tough when