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In our modern day, there are plenty of different ways that a person can show hospitality towards a guest whether it be a stranger or friend. Having only lived in the United States, I have found myself to be treated most graciously by my friends, but every so often, I do find myself to be lost in a friend 's house. Every person was taught certain morals as a child that they now use in their adult lives, but for some people, hospitality has been thought to be just letting them come into the house. In the Odyssey, so far, we as the readers have come to see how hospitality can be very well done. Whether it be Telemachus or Odysseus traveling and staying at places, they were served at the finest level even though they were complete strangers. The providers have a dedication to help the stranger because they could possibly hope that the gift of food or money will be passed on. …show more content…
On the other side of that, there are a few instances where hospitality is not exactly shown and Odysseus begins to questions their stay. The first side of hospitality that Homer really likes to show is the Positive and that brings in a few different books such as Telemachus treating Athena with food or Eumaeus ' reception with Odysseus. While there are many great offers of hospitality, the ones of negativity are playing out within the house of Penelope or Polyphemus ' cave. Lastly, within both sides of the hospitality, there are some common elements that define whether it is indeed respectable hospitality and I believe Homer wanted the readers to picture this in the overall
“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.
Hospitality: Greek philoxenia; literally “love of strangers.” Homer might have had such a definition in mind when he introduced the theme of hospitality to his epic poem the Odyssey. A multitude of reasons for the prominent position this theme plays, both in the Odyssey and perhaps in Homer’s own society, are hinted at in the introductory books, often referred to as the Telemachy. Just two of these, namely the hunger for news and the belief in divinity, are illustrated by the words and actions of the hosts Telemakhos and Nestor.
All throughout The Odyssey there are scenes of good and bad, xenia, or hospitality. It can be seen that hospitality is extremely important in the Greek culture, both how someone treats their guests and how the guests treat the host. A closer look chronologically into the good, then bad examples will show how one acts affects the actions that are brought upon them when they either follow or disobey Zeus' Law. Right at the beginning of The Odyssey, the reader is shown the hospitality that Telemachus has. Athena arrives, disguised, and he invites her into his home by saying: "'Greetings, stranger!
The Odyssey and O Brother, Where Art Thou? both contain Homer’s initial implication of the common hospitality throughout ancient Greece. In the movie, one example of this being portrayed is nearing when Ulysses, Pete, and Delmar escape from prison. The men travel to Wash Hogwallop, Pete’s cousin, house to seek refuge. Wash welcomes them into his home immediately, thus showing Homer’s theme of hospitality. He gives them stew and proceeds to talk to Pete about other family members inside his home. One could say that Joel and Ethan Coen, the directors of the movie, purposely incorporate this scene for several reasons, but the main one is to reveal and incorporate the message from The Odyssey. By having Wash so readily take in his cousin, and his cousin’s friends, the two directors wave a red flag, drawing the viewers attention to this theme. This also shows how hospitable King Alcinous was towards Odysseus. Another example of hospitality throughout the movie is found through...
The Greek value of hospitality is exhibited in The Odyssey by Odysseus and Penelope. Odysseus and his hungry men entered an unfamiliar cave, which was home to the Cyclops. Once the Cyclops saw the men he asked why they are there, and in Odysseus's explanation he mentions “It was our luck to come here; here we stand beholden for your help, or any gifts you give-as custom is it to honor strangers” (line 194). Odysseus is tried to convince the cyclops to let him and his men live by using the Greek value of hospitality. He wants the Cyclops to view him as a guest, not food. To Odysseus it was second nature to help out a guest or person in need. While Penelope was speaking to the suitors she noted “Here is a poor man come, a wanderer, driven by want to beg his bread, and everyone in hall gave bits, to cram his bag” (line 1116). She shamed Antinous for not helping the man, because in Ithaca its is accustomed to provide the hungry and poor with food. The fact that Antinous “threw a stool” at Odysseus, and “banged his shoulder” appalled Penelope. The thought of doing such a thing was unheard of to Penelope since hospitality is a part of her way of life along with all other Greeks. The people of Ithaca from The Odyssey a...
For hundreds of years, psychologists have attempted to understand why toddlers selfishly refuse to share. Recently, many experts in the field agree that toddlers are incapable of sharing because of their lack of integral brain development. From birth through early childhood, a child can only recognize his own wants and needs. Around the time a child begins kindergarten, he starts to development his understanding of abstract concepts, such as empathy, and sympathy. However, some believe that humans never rid themselves of that original selfishness. In essence, humans are born selfish and hopefully become compassionate later on. The idea of a natural tendency towards selfishness
The Greek concept of Zenia is illustrated throughout the novel, The Odyssey, by Homer, and demonstrates the critical role of hospitality and generosity in Greek culture. A form of Zenia that is particularly emphasized, is the relationship between a host and their guest. The Greeks aimed to make any stranger, especially those far from home, feel comfortable in their household. Ancient Greek traditions and culture demanded that all guests be given the highest respect and showered with luxuries such as food, wine, clothing, and women. Within the first four books of The Odyssey, Telémakhos, son of the renowned Odysseus, faces a predicament; his father’s whereabouts are unknown and suitors are attempting to force his mother to marry them. Athena,
In The Odyssey, book nine and ten written by Homer, Odysseus constantly embodies the principal characteristics of a hero which are : cleverness, leadership, and selflessness. Thus, this character is regarded as an idol among the other characters and greatly captures the reader’s sympathy for his choices and the fruit to his actions in life. First, Odysseus displays cleverness in Book Nine when he tricks the Cyclops Poluphemus that his name is “nobody” in order to escape the horrors of the cyclop’s cave. He states: “Nobody--so my mother and father call me, all my friends” (Homer, 18). Second, Odysseus is a brave leader of his army especially in book ten when he displays leadership by motivating his comrades in keep trying to sail despite the
“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.
Throughout Greek culture, xenia has been a prominent method for those who are in need. Homer could obviously see the importance of hospitality since he put such emphasis on it in his works. This re-occurring theme has; however, lost some of its relevance through time, but can still be shared through small acts of kindness. The Bible even says to “offer hospitality to one another without complaint” (1 Peter 4:9). Therefore, being generous towards others can help continue on the meaning of being hospitable.
The gods are perhaps the most affected by hospitality in the odyssey, probably due to the fact that they are the reason people were so courteous. As we know, people believed that they needed to be hospitable, For example when Athena first visited Telemachus, he was shocked no one had greeted her and invited her in, telling her how they would feed and entertain her, and then find out what her need is. He sat her on an elaborate chair and himself on a bench without asking for anything in return.
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.
Altogether, hospitality was an important theme for Odysseus, during his adventure back to Ithica. Hospitality also played an important role for Telemachus, and the search for information about the whereabouts of his father. Without this tradition of Greek hospitality, the sequence of events in The Odyssey could have changed drastically. Not only was this Greek custom of hospitality important in The Odyssey, it was also important to Greek citizens. Just the simple tradition of hospitality, whether positive or negative, can explain much about Greek citizens, and how they treat each other.
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.