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penelope loyalty to odysseus
similarities between odysseus and penelope in homer's the odyssey
penelope loyalty to odysseus
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In the book The Odyssey, some of the characters are downright dirty, they lie, cheat and steal just to get their way. One of these characters is the main character Odysseus. Odysseus is the King of one of the parts of Greece called Ithaca, so when he heard that his fellow Grecians were going to besiege the city of Troy, naturally, he left his baby son and wife in charge of Ithaca and left to Troy with his army. But on his way home victorious Odysseus’s ships were blown off course by a storm. He then had to find his way back to Ithaca, but along the way he met a lot of women, and he was not always as loyal to his wife as his wife was to him. So, overall, Odysseus is very disloyal to Penelope (his wife) and does not deserve her loyalty.
Odysseus is very disloyal to Penelope. For an example, he has sex with Calypso when he really had no reason to, he also stayed with Calypso for a very long time, and never even tried to get off of her island. Odysseus’s disloyalty is pretty obvious when he and Calypso “[Withdraw] into the cavern’s deep recesses, / long in each other’s arms they lost themselves in love”
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“The robes and hammered gold and a haul of other gifts / you lords of our island council brought out guest / all lie packed in his polished sea-chest now. Come, / each of us add a sumptuous tripod, add a cauldron!” (Odyssey 13. 11-14) As can be seen, it is not like Odysseus is refusing the gifts and telling the Phaeacians that he just wants to get home, he’s just going with the flow. He also wastes a ton of time telling them the whole story of his journey. It is easy to see why Odysseus did tell them his story, probably to get them to feel more sorry for him, but how he just totally dragged it out, telling every insignificant detail he could possibly remember, that just didn't help
Throughout the ten years of The Odyssey, Odysseus was determined to come home to his wife and son in Ithaca. During this journey he met two beautiful women, Calypso and Circe. Odysseus was forced to stay with Calypso, and was seduced by Circe. Both the nymph and sorceress were depicted as beautiful in Homer’s The Odyssey. However Odysseus chose to stay with his wife and take the difficult journey back to Ithaca. This illustrated his devotion for Penelope. Another primary evidence that supports how he loved his wife was that Calypso offered him immortality in exchange for his company. Odysseus chose to live a mortal life with a mere human over an eternal life with a beautiful nymph. Although Odysseus had an affair with Calypso, it can be understood that he was forced to do so, as the nymph would not allow his leave. Even during the seven years in Ogygia, Odysseus relentlessly searched for a way to escape in order to be reunited with his wife. Penelope also proved her faith to Odysseus, as she delayed her suitors advances back in Ithaca. The characteristic which makes Odysseus the most respectful and loving hero is his loyalty to his wife Penelope. His love for his human wife transcends the temptations of an alluring sorceress and a beautiful
Firstly, Penelope who plays Odysseus’s wife is alone tending to her city Ithica until her husband returns. Meanwhile Odysseus is out fighting in the Trojan War and against many of the Greek God’s who are trying to make his trip back home as eventful and hard as possible; “…work out his journey home so Odysseus can return” (Homer 276). While King Odysseus is away Penelope is to deal with a bunch of suitors who are eating and trashing out Ithica, “…if those suitors have truly paid in blood for all their reckless outrage” (559). In order for Penelope to keep peace until Odysseus returns she has to come up with a clever plan to keep the suitors from completely taking over. For almost 2 years Penelope was able to keep the suitors from getting out of hand by saying she will find someone to marry and replace Odysseus after she is d...
Penelope refused to take another man in Odysseus’s place, as she continued to love and respect him in his absence. She was too appalled by any of the suitors to decide between them. Without a final decision, the suitors continued to vie for her hand in marriage and kept using and destroying Odysseus’s possessions and property. Athena, in her disguise, pointed out the flaw in the suitors’ actions to Telemakhos: “‘How arrogant they seem,// these gluttons, making free in your house!// A sensible man would blush to be among them.’” (Book I, pg 8, 272-274) She acknowledged their wrongdoings and pointed out how awful they truly were. The suitors became one of Odysseus’s main challenges in the novel, as he needed to rightfully return to Penelope. Their greed and desire for Penelope’s hand in marriage necessitated Odysseus’s return to Ithaca. To enact his revenge upon the suitors, Odysseus had to kill them all. This changed Odysseus’s fate, as he was forced to sneak home and kill one hundred men by himself; however, before that was able to happen, Odysseus had to sail a ship home with the help of a
In appeasing Calypso when she becomes angered by Odysseus’ willingness to leave, he defends Penelope (his wife) in a meaningful way, but declares that, “Nevertheless I long – I pine, all my days – /to travel home and see the dawn of my return.” Nowhere in that statement does he state that he misses his wife or only son, simply that he misses his home, Ithaca (Homer 159). Another instance of Odysseus disloyalty to his family is in his time with Circe. When he approaches her and she wants to sleep with him, he first requires her to swear an oath to not harm or plot against him and his men, after which he describes, “…and when she’d finished/ then, at last, I mounted Circe’s gorgeous bed…” The key phrase here is “at last”. This displays Odysseus’ eagerness to sleep with a woman that is not his chosen bride (Homer 240-41, Lns. 373-86). A final instance of Odysseus’ devotion gone wrong is also with Circe. Odysseus dallies with on her island for a year, at which point his men decide it is time to leave and they urge their captain on (Homer 245). Note how, even if it was somewhat expected of men at that time, Odysseus seems far too willing to perform sexual intercourse with women who are not his wife. These instances of Odysseus’ misplaced devotion illustrate how he could not maintain his concentration on what mattered to the highest degree, for as he himself put it, “No finer, greater gift in the world than that… / when a man and a woman possess their home, two minds, / two hearts work as one. Despair to their enemies, / a joy to all their friends. Their own best claim to glory.” (Homer
The relationship between Odysseus and his wife Penelope is one of loyalty, love, and faith. Both characters are driven by these characteristics. Odysseus displays his loyalty in his constant battle to get home to his wife. This love helps him persevere through the many hardships that he encounters on his journey home. Odysseus spent 20 years trying to return to his home in Ithaca after the end of the Trojan War. Along the way he manages to offend both gods and mortals, but through his intelligence, and the guidance of Athena, he manages to finally return home. There he discovers that his home has been overrun by suitors attempting to win Penelope’s hand in marriage. The suitors believed that Odysseus was dead. Odysseus and his son, Telemachus,
Odysseus portrays his selfishness right as the book begins and this shows how truly incompetent of an individual he is. One form of selfishness Odysseys shows is adultery. He is unfaithful to Penelope many times throughout the book. He reveals this trait specifically when he is with Kalypso on Ogygia and with Kirke on Aiaia. Odysseus shows his selfishness when he steps foot on Kalypso’s island because he chooses to stay with her for seven years. He did not care about the crew’s feelings on the matter, since all’s he cared about was himself. By the time the seven years were up, the crew members finally realized they had to make Odysseus leave. These actions also make a liar out of Odysseus because he said he wanted to return home more than anything, yet he did not even make the slightest attempt to leave. On Aiaia, Odysseus was forced to sleep with Kirke to save his men from staying swine, but he still committed adultery. No matter what the reason, adultery is a choice that can be controlled. An additional negative quality Odysseus obtains is being self absorbed. This trait is seen when Odysseus traveled to the Land of the Dead. He shows his selfish qualities in this example because he travels there initially for his own benefit. Odysseus also has attendances to t...
In that regard, it was no wonder Odysseus’s is such an atrocious leader. A great example of Odysseus being disloyal is on Calypso’s Island. “…He lay with her each night, for she compelled him.” (892) This quote shows how Odysseus is disloyal to his grieving wife, and sleeps with a goddess daily. A leader cannot expect loyalty when the leader is notorious for being unloyal. “Now Circe, ‘loveliest of all immortals,’ persuades Odysseus to stay with her.” (903) This is another quote that shows Odysseus cheating on his wife, while his wife is at home is at home distraught over her missing husband. A great leader leads by example. By that philosophy, it should not be expected of Odysseus’s men to be loyal to him, when Odysseus cannot stay faithful to his own wife. Consequently, Odysseus is also extremely selfish, on top of being incredibly
In The Odyssey women are unequal, treated differently, and are considered inferior to men. Throughout the epic women are not given an appropriate amount of respect by men. The male characters of The Odyssey expect certain traits and characteristics of women that they do not expect of themselves. Men expect that the women in The Odyssey be loyal to them, and not be adulterous or seductive. When Odysseus returns to Ithaca in disguise, he expects Penelope to be faithful and loyal to him. It is doubtful that Odysseus would have stayed with Penelope if he had found her to be unfaithful and adulterous when he was gone. This was while Odysseus had slept with Circe and stayed with her on her island for one year and then slept with Calypso numerous times on the island of Ogygia. What makes this even worse is that Penelope would have had justification to be unfaithful to Odysseus and remarry. As far as Penelope, and almost everyone else on Ithaca, was concerned Odysseus was dead. Penelope had a strong need for a husband, a companion, a strong man to rule Ithaca in Odysseus' place, and a male presence to help ra...
Penelope serves as his motivation and aids in his characterization as a loving husband as well as a vicious, ruthless warrior. Back in Ogygia, he explicitly states in his farewell to Calypso that he longs for his wife: “ ‘My lady goddess, there is no cause for anger. My quiet Penelope-how well I know-would seem a shade before your majesty, death and old age being unknown to you, while she must die. Yes it is true, each day I long for home, long for the sight of home’ ”(V. 224-229). He refers to Penelope as “my quiet Penelope,” meaning she is most beholden to him and is his. Though he degrades Penelope by saying she is less beautiful than Calypso, he has a great love for Penelope, that brings out Odysseus’s true feelings. Even though
_The Odyssey_ is believed to have been written by Homer and is infused with loyalty throughout the entire epic story. Odysseus is the most faithful, loving, and loyal husband, to Penelope, that any woman could dream of. Odysseus, in the beginning of his description of the trials and tribulations that he has endured, pledged his eternal loyalty to his ever-faithful wife Penelope. ?We are mortal weary and sick at heart/? [if only] now may I see once more/ my hall, my lands, my people before I die!? (Homer 7:233-240). Thought Odysseus did lie with the goddess his loyalty to Penelope held true. The ?Enchantress in her beauty? (Homer 7:274) enslaved the grand Odysseus to her will; yet Odysseus ?in [his] heart [he] never gave consent.? (Homer 7:276) The goddess offered Odysseus a choice, the ?promise [that he] should be/ immortal, [and] youthful, all the days to come? (Homer 7:275-276) or to continue his long continuous voyage to his queen Penelope. Because Odysseus chose to return to his devoted Penelope instead of gaining immortal life he has provided...
While the relationship between Odysseus and Telemakhos is a blind love, the relationship between Odysseus and Penelope is a love between two people who just want to be together. Odysseus shows his love towards Penelope throughout the Odyssey. In spite of the fact that Odysseus has been gone for twenty years, he never forgets his wife back in Ithaca. One example of how much he wanted to go home was when he went to the island of the Lotus-Eaters. He could have stayed on the island of the Lotus-Eaters where everything he ever wanted was there, but the thing he wanted the most was to be with his wife. Penelope likewise displays this kind of love towards Odysseus.
Often times in life we search for a companion, someone to share our love and life with. Odysseus and Penelope's lasting relationship is an obvious representation of love in the Odyssey. Although Odysseus is gone for twenty years he never forgets his faithful wife in Ithaca. This love helps him persevere through the many hardships that he encounters on his journey home. Penelope also exemplifies this same kind of love for Odysseus. At home in Ithaca, she stays loyal to Odysseus by unraveling his shroud and delaying her marriage to the suitors that are courting her. She always keeps the hope that her love, Odysseus, will return. Odysseus and Penelope's marriage clearly illustrates the theme of love.
Loyalty is one moral value that is evident throughout the poem. No character embodies loyalty more than Penelope who remains loyal and true to Odysseus throughout his absence, refusing to give in to the suitors' proposal of marriage and not engaging in any extramarital affair. She constantly praises Odysseus with glowing words,1 and although it may get quite annoying to the reader, she is constantly weeping for Odysseus. Penelope's loyalty to her husband is contrasted vividly in the poem with the story of Clytemnestra's betrayal of her husband. Agamemnon is perpetually wailing and lamenting about his betrayal and death in the underworld. When the slain suitors tell him how they died, he cries out that Odysseus is fortunate because he had won himself a loyal wife.2 The moral theme of loyalty is also clear when Odysseus punishes Melanthios and the serving maids gruesomely for being disloyal.3 On the other hand, Eumaios and Philoitios are praised and rewarded for remaining loyal to Odysseus. Loyalty will always be rewarded- Odysseus comes back to Penelope and the loyal oxherd and swineherd are rewarded while the disloyal are punished.
Odysseus and Penelope have a strong love towards one-another. Odysseus would not give up on fighting for eventually getting back to both Penelope and Ithaca. They are a married couple which is what makes them so much more attached and loyal to each other. Penelope has had many opportunities to re-marry after her husband left for 20 years. Odysseus also let down the opportunity on living an immortal life with a beautiful woman in order to make it back to his true love. An example of Penelope’s loyalty to Odysseus is that she rejects the many suitors that approach her for marriage because she believes that Odysseus is still alive somewhere and she remains loyal to their marriage. Before Odysseus left for the Trojan War, he told Penelope that if he did not return by the time their son, Telemachus, could grow a full beard, she must remarry at her own will. Penelope remains loyal to her marriage with Odysseus, even though Telemachus had grown a beard. QUOTE!! Odysseus’s’ loyalty...
Penelope is the daughter of Icarius and lives in Ithaca. She is representing women who are faithful to their husband no matter the situation. She is characterized as the intelligent and faithful wife of her husband Odysseus. Over twenty years when her husband had gone to war, she remained loyal and had faith that her husband will return. To conclude, Loyalty, as defined in the Odyssey, seems to be dedication to Penelope, having faith of her husband’s return and victory. However, in Book I, Penelope is in a dangerous situation with her son, Telemachus, when the suitors start attacking her house to take over her husband’s kingdom while he is away.