The Guest-host relationship in Homer's Odyssey In The Odyssey , Homer uses guest-host relationships as an ethical norm against which behavior is measured. When the ritual is preformed correctly by guest-host, good results ensue. In contrast, the violations of this ethical norm results in misfortune. This idea was taken very seriously by people of that time and it can be found throughout the story. A great example of a guest host relationship where both the guest and the host behave properly is the relationship between Telemachos and King Menelaos. As a guest Telemachos treats his host with respect and dignity. He address menelaos as "my lord" to give reverence to his kindness and to be polite. Telemachos is very complimentary to his host by saying "Zeus must have such a place" when referring to menelaos' house. He does this to let him know that he will be a good guest and that he is a proper gentleman. Menelaos shows that he to can be a good host and gives Telemachos food and shelter even when there is a wedding going on. He says "go and take out their horses, and bring the men in to share our feast". This shows that menelaos must be a good guest especially to give them shelter during a wedding. Menelaos also does not pressure Telemachos into answering any questions before he eats and enjoys the festivities; nor does he give any indication that he wants Telemachos to leave. He says "stay here in my mansion for ten or twelve days and then I will give you a good send off and a handsome gift, three horses and a chariot: I will give you a fine chalice too, that when you pour your drop to the immortal gods you may think of me all your days". This statement shows that not only does he wish Telemachos to stay but that he is a very generous man indeed. Due to kindness of both men good things are bound to ensue. For Telemachos the good outcome he receives is the accurate news of his fathers whereabouts. For Menelaos the good outcome is that whenever he may need help Telemachos is always there for him. Another example in which there is a good host and a good guest is the relationship between Odysseus and Eumaios, the swine herd. Despite Odysseus' appearance as a beggar, since he is in disguise, Eumaios treats him with the same respect as he would any person. He takes him into his home and tells him to "eat away" and to enjoy himself. Also Eumaios "laid a bed for him near the fire, a heap of sheepskins, and their Odysseus lay down". This is a good indication that the swineherd is a good host. Odysseus returns this kindness by saying "I pray Zeus may bless you as I do, for the honour you have done" as a way to show his thankfulness and his gratitude. He also shares his stories of the past as a way to amuse his host. Odysseus continues by regarding Eumaios as "my friend" as a way to let him know he is very appreciative. When Telemachos enters Odysseus, the beggar, offers his seat at the table, but Telemachos being the good guest that he is refuses the seat. Thus Telemachos can be considered again as another good guest. Their rewards are that Odysseus finds out about the suitors and that Eumaios is a faithful person to him. Odysseus also gains a warrior in the battle against the suitors. Eumaios' reward is that his life is spared by Odysseus. Odysseus also says "I will find wives for both of you, and give you land and well built houses close to myself; and you shall be friends and brothers of my son Telemachos". This is a great honor especially for a swineherd. Finally, even Telemachos is rewarded for his kindness; he is made aware of the beggar's true identity as being his father and their conquer over the suitors. However not all guest-host relationships are ones in which the guest and the host act properly. For instance, the relationship between Odysseus and Polyphemos, the cyclops. When Odysseus first arrives at the cave of Polyphemos it says he "walked briskly to the cave, but found him not at home...so we entered". This action is not a good way to be a guest because he comes in uninvited. He even goes a little further he says "we lit a fire and...helped ourselves to as many cheeses as we wanted to eat". This is another way he is a bad guest because he takes what he wants even without it being offered to him. Upon Polyphemos' return he to shows he can be a bad host because "he picked up a great huge stone and placed it in the doorway" which made escape almost impossible. He continues his streak of meanness by eating some of Odysseus' men. It says he "devoured them like a mountain lion, bowels and flesh and marrow- bones and left nothing". Odysseus get angry and devises a plan which will allow him to escape. He then takes a wooden rod and "thrust the sharp point into his eye and leaned hard on it from above and turned it round and round". This is the punishment Polyphemos receives for his being a bad host. However Odysseus also receives a punishment for entering into Polyphemos' house without permission and being a bad guest. His punishment is the great loss of men which he receives, his quick evacuation of the island, and the anger he brings to Poseidon; which causes him to have the suitors come to his house and reek havoc in his kingdom. The final example of a guest-host relationship in which both the guest and host act unaccordingly is Odysseus and the suitors. Odysseus reaches his home and finds his house in shambles. The suitors continuously refer to Odysseus as a "nuisance" and at one point one of them decides to show his anger. "Then picking up the footstool, he threw it, and hit him full in the back under the right shoulder". This is not the actions of a good host so something bad is bound to happen. However this does not enter into the minds of the suitor and they continue with their verbal and physical bashing. They continue to badger Penelopeia with there empty promises so she will choose another husband and the suitors will gain control of the kingdom. Since it is not polite to marry a man's wife while he is away; this to is another situation in which a good guest or host does not get into. This arouses Odysseus anger and he makes a plan to rid himself of the suitors. He establishes a contest with a bow which he uses to divert the suitors attention and he begin his slaughter. He shots a arrow at Aninoos which "struck him in the throat, and the point ran threw the soft neck". He even goes as far as to remove the "cods" of one of the traitors of his house. This action seems justified to the reader and for the most part it is. However, this is still something a bad guest does and therefore a little punishment must ensue. After all the suitors are dead he tells Penelopeia "to be careful" because "as soon as the sun rises, everyone will hear about the men I have killed". When the families of the slain men hear of this they are obligated to go and kill Odysseus for what he has done. So as his punishment he must flee to his fathers estate and he must live with the fear of death at all times. In The Odyssey, the guest-host relationship is very important to the safety and well being of the people. Then believe that if one of the two, either the guest or the host, acts improperly something bad was bound to happen. This idea is practiced almost always by the people and they live there life in harmony; however if one of them breaks these guidelines then something bad ensues.
Through his use and experience of the practice, the reader follows his story of maturity. It is evident that, no matter the circumstance (such as the annoyance of the suitors), he is more than willing to exercise Greek hospitality: "Welcome, stranger. You shall be entertained as a guest among us. Afterward, when you have tasted dinner, you shall tell us what your need is" (Book I, lines 122-124). After he greeted this stranger (who was truly Athene in disguise), his servants provided them with a place to wash their hands, food, and drinks. This act may have put Telemachos on great terms with Athene, who helped him on the journey to attempt the discovery of his father 's whereabouts. Without the hospitality, Athene may not have helped Telemachos on his journey. While on his journey, Telemachos experiences Greek hospitality in all of the households that he comes across. Even the hosts of those households were very open to him (and Athene), and made them feel welcomed into their
to help him. The quote also shows us that he's moving into a new house
Here we see that if the Greeks had a guest before asking questions or anything, the guest would be offered supper and in many cases a bath. Telemachus is shocked he had not noticed a visitor and was not at once at his service. When the guest has finished his or...
Within Homer’s The Odyssey hospitality and relationships between the guest and host was a powerful tradition in Ancient Greek times, which built strong relationships and forged alliances. This guest-host relationship is known as xenia, a pinnacle of Greek society, and is a major theme throughout The Odyssey, and influences the plot of the story in very important ways. For many modern readers xenia is difficult to discern in terms of the guest-host relationship and how it is applied without clearly learning it. Fortunately, there are certain essentials of hospitality that are required for a guest to be properly welcomed and received. Additionally, these essential requirements of xenia aid in the development of the plot, particularly near the end of the epic when Odysseus discards his disguise as a guest in his own home and is there to reclaim and restore it.
To start, within the course of The Odyssey, Odysseus displays hubris through many of his actions. The most prominent instance in which Odysseus shows hubris is while he and his men are trying to escape from the Cyclops Polyphemus. They drug the monster until it passes out, and then stab him with a timber in his single eye. Polyphemus, now blinded, removes the gigantic boulder blocking Odysseus’ escape, and waits for the men to move, so he can kill them. The men escape from the cave to their boat by tying themselves under flocks of rams, so they can easily slip by. Odysseus, now proud after beating the giant, starts to yell at Polyphemus, instead of making a silent escape. Odysseus’ men ask him to stop before Polyphemus would “get the range and lob a boulder” (436). But Odysseus shows hubris by saying that if they were to meet again, Odysseus would “take your life” and “hurl you down to hell!” (462; 463). Polyphemus, now extremely angry with Odysseus, prays to his father, Poseidon, to make Odysseus “never see his home” again, and after which, throws a mountain towards the sound of Odysseus’ voice. (470). Because of Odysseus’ hubris after blinding Polyphemus, Poseidon grants the prayer, and it takes Odysseus 20 years to return home, at the cost of the lives of all his men.
The Lord told him he was welcomed to come in. The Lord steps up and makes a deal with Sir Gawain; however the deal was the lord goes hunting and Sir Gawain will exchange his winnings. The first day the lord goes hunting for heard, the Lord’s wife sneaks in trying to seduce him; however, he declines but she steals a kiss. Sir Gawain then presents the Lord with a kiss. The second day the Lord goes hunting again for wild boar, but the same morning the Lord’s wife sneaks in and gives him two kisses. Later that day, Sir Gawain presents him with two kisses. The third day the Lord hunts a fox; however, the Lord’s wife presents Sir Gawain with three kisses also offering him a ring and a green sash, Sir Gawain declines the ring because it was to much value aside from the sash that he declined but them accepted as the Lord’s wife explained that he would be uninjured if he wore the
The story is based around Odysseus’s journey around an unknown world. He develops the most guest-host relationships in the story based on the fact that on many occasions he must ask strangers for provisions in order for his journey to continue. “A grave housekeeper brought in the bread and served it to him adding many good things to it, generous with her provisions.”(Homer, Book 7) These provisions were needed in order for his journey home to continue. The housekeeper presented it in the act...
This shows the value of hospitality. Telemachus allows the gross, ugly beggar into his house to ask food and expect nothing in return.
Feasts can lead to social hierarchy and creation of political power through asymmetrical reciprocity. The giving of a gift is more than a simple act of generosity. First and foremost, gifts are about relationships between the gift-giver and the gift-receiver. The foundation of gift giving is reciprocity, more like an obligation. The essence of the custom is that the receiver has to give a gift of commensal value, representing same level of friendship with which the gift was given to him/her at the first place. The gift-giving creates a relationship of superiority over the gift-receiver until such a time when the gift can be reciprocated. So we could say that another reason for Humayun to give a feast back to Shah Tahmasp was to create a symmetrical relationship. In feasts, the gift of food is taken into the body through consumption and therefore the hospitality cannot be immediately returned, creating a delay between acts of reciprocity if it can be reciprocated at all. Also unlike durable valuables, the food consumed cannot be re-circulated (or reinvested) in other gift exchange relationships.The host of the feast receives social recognition by creating this relationship and also important to understand is that this cordiality concentrated on distribution and consumption of food and drinks, is a practise which like the gift-exchanges assisted in creating and reproducing social relations. This is why feasts are often viewed as mechanisms of social solidarity that serve to establish a sense of
power than many men do. For instance she is able to convince Zeus, ruler of
sit." (III, 38) After you have invited them into your home, you must invite them to dine at your table. Only after they have dined, you have the permission to ask for their names, like King Menelaus did, "'Help yourselves to food, and welcome! Once you've dined we'll ask you who you are.'" (IV, 68-69) Many times before dining "...women had washed them, rubbed them down with oil and drawn warm fleece and shirts around their shoulders..." (IV, 56-57) If the host enjoyed the company of the guests, many times they will honor them with gifts.
Just in time is a key strategy companies use to increase efficiency and decrease waste by receiving goods only as they are needed in the production process thereby reducing inventory cost. ‘With the JIT manufacturing system, materials are purchased in small quantities delivered frequently just before they are needed for production’. It is a proven system of producing product effiently while keeping cost low and this is seen in two very successful companies such as Dell and Toyota. Toyota follow the ‘Kanban’ system which means they are able to change quickly in relation to demand without
...a, escaping Calypso and the island of Ogygia, and Telemachus from Ithaca to Pylos and Sparta in search of his lost father. While The Odyssey tells of the courage both men demonstrate during their respective travels, their quests are the results of the intentions and desires of gods. Odysseus is trapped in exile on Ogygia by the will of Poseidon, whose anger Odysseus attracts when he blinds the Cyclops Polyphemus, son of Poseidon, and by the love of Calypso, who wishes to make Odysseus her husband. He is released from Ogygia and permitted to return to Ithaca only by the command of Zeus, as delivered by Hermes. Telemachus, rather than being trapped physically, was detained emotionally, feeling helpless to repel the suitors wooing Penelope. Only through the motivation of the goddess Athena did Telemachus find the will and courage to embark in search of Odysseus.
The job description is needed, because it explains how and why a position is performed. It involves the task and or requirements of the current position. The job description usually has a job title, explanation of the tasks, and machinery involved, and in some instances reveals information about the working conditions, as well physical environment, social environment, and conditions of employment. The job evaluations are needed and works sort of like inventory. An evaluation process is based on job analysis that reveals the worth or value of a particular position. The job evaluation for some organizations determines salaries for the created positions, which plays a pivotal role in most companies. The job specifications are a detailed description of job duties and task. A complete description of a job, gives candidates an opportunity to understand what it entitles to be successful with that company. Job analysis refers (Haque Talukder, 2014) to a process of analyzing, collecting, and explaining the contents of the job in order to provide the criteria for a job description and data for recruitment, training, job evaluation, and performance
PAL. Wife and Husband for the standing Dish, and Mistris and Gallant for the Desert.