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Three examples of greek hospitality in "the odyssey.
Various relationships between gods and humans in mythology
Three examples of greek hospitality in "the odyssey.
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The Odyssey Essay Meme Zarzyski Greek Hospitality is represented multiple times in The Odyssey. In The Odyssey there is a law that men should show hospitality to any guests, but sometimes they do not. A few times they do show hospitality is when Odysseus goes to Alkinoos’ castle, when he goes to the home of Eumaeus, a trusty swineherd, and one time he does not see hospitality, is when he finds himself in the home of the cyclopes Polyphemus. Odysseus gets many forms of hospitality in Phaeacia. When Odysseus meets princess Nausikaa, she offers to bring him back to her kingdom and have her father help him. She takes him back to the kingdom and tells him to wait until he goes to the castle. Then Athena, disguised as a child, leads him, in a
“What goes around comes around”,this great saying means that kindness is key. In the Odyssey by Homer, one important theme states how hospitality and kindness are always the best policy. Temptations and Obstacles represents a glimpse of allegory in life. Friendship is also a great thing in life because it's about support through tough and good times. Always feel generous with your kindness and support like Odysseus did on his journey.
Odysseus tries to gain the pity of Nausicaa by suggesting that he thinks she resembles a goddess and says that her ‘beauty, grace and stature’ remind him of Artemis, he does this to gain Nausicaa’s trust by making her think he genuinely admires her and by mentioning Artemis specifically he shows that he is familiar with the gods therefore making her more likely to listen to him as being close the gods was a heroic trait. Odysseus also states that the person who gets to marry Nausicaa is ‘most blessed’ which implies that Odysseus himself wants to marry Nausicaa, which is a possibility if Nausicaa helps Odysseus get to her father’s castle which she will do if she wants to marry him, which in turn will give Odysseus an opportunity to return to
The Role of Phaeacia in the Odyssey The episode with Phaeacia begins where Odysseus has been away from his home for twenty years, and is longing to return to Ithaca and Penelope. This book is very important and involves certain tests for Odysseus to come across. At the beginning of this book, we are told that the princess, Nausicaa, is described as “tall and beautiful as a goddess.” Alcinous as good as offers Odysseus his daughter for marriage to him by saying he would be lucky to have Odysseus n his family. This is a test for Odysseus because he has to decide whether to stay here on this magical island, but he refuses to be tempted, and still chooses to try and return to Ithaca.
In this day and age, helping a stranger from their troubles without knowing anything about that person is a risk many people do not take. And for people who do show hospitality to strangers, their actions are little more than being friendly to the guest. However, in Homer’s time period, giving stranger’s hospitality was something most Greeks did. In ancient Greece, there were set hospitality laws where both guests and hosts had obligations. Therefore, in Homer’s Odyssey, one of the major themes of this epic was hospitality and the guest-host relationship. Robert Fagles, translator of the Odyssey, and Bernard Knox, introduction and notes writer, wrote in the introduction, “If there is one stable moral criterion in the world of the Odyssey, it
Growing up I was fascinated with Greek mythology. I found the bits and pieces of myth and lore highly entertaining but I seldom received anything of weight from them. Since then I have had only brief forays into the Greek world which makes The Odyssey fairly easy to pull new elements of Greek culture from. Throughout all of Homer’s epic, hospitality is mentioned again and again, highlighting two important aspects of their society. The first is how important hospitality is to them in the first place and second is their fear of retribution from the gods. This fear is pervasive and is even shown clearly by the importance of hospitality.
In most cultures, guests are generally treated with respect from their hosts. There are customs that both the guest and host must follow. These customs fall under the category of house etiquette. We can see one such example of the house etiquette of Ancient Greek culture in Book 1 of Homer’s Odyssey, when Athena visits Odysseus’s palace and is greeted by his son, Telemakhos. Athena enters the room carrying her spear on her left hand and Telemakhos takes it to put on a rack, yet we are not told why Athena carries her spear on her left hand or why Telemakhos has to take it away. This is similar to how most people view rules of etiquette. They don’t know why they follow these rules, but they do so because that is what the rest of society tells them to do. But what is the purpose of etiquette and why do
Far removed from our individualistic society today is the ancient Greece portrayed in The Odyssey, by Homer, where hospitality and good will are the way of things. As decreed by Zeus himself, those who wish the favor of the Gods must welcome foreign and domestic with hospitality. A man was supposed to offer the best of his food, his home, and his knowledge before ever asking for his guest’s name or why he was there. There is a sense that those of high status are the main givers of hospitality, but they are not the only ones commanded to offer hospitality. Homer emphasizes hospitality from everyone during Telemachus’ and Odysseus’ journeys, using a man’s xenos, host/guest relationships, with his guest to infer his integrity and character. If a man isn’t pure, then he doesn’t show hospitality and Homer makes sure that man is put in his proper place through the vengeance of those he has wronged.
Odysseus returns home to Ithaca after Nausicaa, King Alcinous, and Queen Arete gave him their hospitality. At first, Odysseus does not recognize that he is home in Ithaca, because he has been away so long. Athena came to Odysseus disguised as a young shepherd. Athena directs Odysseus to the swineherd, Eumaeus. Eumaeus tells the old man about how many people have come to Ithaca just to lie about Odysseus’ homecoming. He explains, “Old man, no traveler who comes here with news will get Odysseus’ wife and son to believe his story. Nevertheless, tramps in want of a lodging keep coming with their mouths full of lies, and not a word of truth;everyone who finds his way to Ithaca goes to my mistress and tells her falsehoods” (147). Eumaeus feels bad for Penelope. He is loyal to her by showing that he does not want people lie to her and give her false hope of Odysseus’ homecoming. Eumaeus informs Odysseus about the wooing and insolence the suitors have been creating to Odysseus’ household. Eumaeus starts to lose hope that Odysseus will come home after having hope for such a long time. But, Odysseus swears that indeed his master will return. Eumaeus tries to change the subject, “Do not keep on reminding me of all of this: it always pains me when anyone speaks about my honored master. As for your oath we will let it alone, but I only wish he may come” (148). Eumaeus has been loyal to
Humbly, he is “on the ground, in the ashes by the fire”(VII,190). He does not intrude into to their home and forcibly take gifts as he did on the Cyclops island. He accepts the care given to him from the Phaeacians and does not ask for more than he is given. Odysseus takes accountability of his actions when King Alcinous blames his daughter for bringing stranger into their home, Odysseus tells King Alcinous to not take “fault with a flawless daughter now, not for my sake, please”(VII,342-343). He is grateful for her help in giving him hospitality. After King Alcinous assures Odysseus he will get home, Odysseus prays,“May the king fulfill his promise one and all! Then his fame would ring through the fertile earth and never die”(VII,380-382). He is appreciative of the help so Odysseus calls to Zeus for good things for Alcinous. Not thinking of himself and wishing positive impacts on others is a sign of maturity.
“I often gave to vagabonds, whoever they might be, who came in need.” (Homer, 351) Hospitality was evident in Homer’s time period and eventually was seen as an institution in the Greek culture. A guest-host relationship, known as Xenia, takes place throughout The Odyssey whether it’s to gain relationships or to avoid punishments from the gods. It is a major theme and is apparent in every book of The Odyssey. Hospitable characters who use xenia are what keep this novel going. Xenia affects the plot in many ways and influences characters actions and choices throughout the novel.
Hospitality In The Odyssey by Homer, hospitality plays a very important role. There are certain rules of hospitality needed, such as inviting a stranger into your home, not asking them their name before they have dined at your table, and sometimes even gift offerings. If these rules of hospitality are not carried out, the consequences are very severe. Hospitality is to be given to all by all. Being a good host is very important in The Odyssey, even to the gods. It is a sign of respect for all no matter where they are from or how poor they appear to be. This means that as soon as you see a stranger, you invite them into your home to sit at your table just as king Nestor did. "As soon as they saw the strangers, all came crowding down, waving them on in welcome, urging them to
Xenia, the ancient Greek concept of hospitality, was one of the foremost forces in Homer’s Iliad. The Achaeans respect it above nearly all else, and failure to adhere to its strict customs could lead to the forfeiture of countless souls.
Hospitality in the greek is Xenia which was the guest to host friendship and obligations of the host and guest. The giving of gifts was usually done between guests and hosts. They really strived for a symbiotic give and take relationship in which the host does most of the leg work but a honorable and good guest would give so gift or reward in return. The only time when the host could really reject or throw out a guest was when a guest violated xenia terribly to the point where Zeus would give the order to seek justice for an act of such magnitude. For example when Paris is a guest in the King of Sparta Menelaus’ house as a guest and then steals his beautiful daughter from him and runs away. The theft of a princess is a major offense and would definitely deserve some repercussions it says many times in the Iliad of how the gods disapprove of this act.
Hospitality today is nothing like it was in Ancient Greece. Today, good hospitality is being friendly and respectful to a guest. In Ancient Greece, hospitality was something people had to do, or face the wrath of Zeus. Zeus’s law of hospitality is that any stranger that comes to your home, the host must be willing to feed, entertain, and maybe offer them a bath and anything else they might be in need of without question until those things had been given, and also give them a parting gift. The guest, in turn, would not be a burden in any way. In The Odyssey, most people follow the rules of hospitality, but there are others who do not. The Greek concept of xenia shows the serious priority the Greeks place on the laws of the gods.
Whatever the reason for hospitality, be it a socially acceptable norm due to the circumstances of the times, or for the sake of protection against gods or invaders, hospitality plays a very important role in the two stories The Odyssey and Tristan and Isolde. It portrays the vital aspect in ancient Greek culture, as well as the importance of random acts of kindness.