The Odyssey

Although during the time period in Ancient Greece which The Odyssey was written, women were viewed as far lesser or inferior to men, the female characters in The Odyssey played critical and vital roles in the epic and ultimately its success. Although The Odyssey is an epic poem that revolves around a man’s journey back to his home, women pose as some of the main characters. The females in the epic were not portrayed as the usual timid and submissive wife to the superior male sex or serve meaningless minor roles. They had authority and control. To an extent, the women were arguably wiser and even more manipulative than some of the male characters in The Odyssey.

The goddesses, much like some of the human females, also played large and authoritative roles. With power far greater than any man, goddesses had the force to influence men and women to their liking. From the capability to take forms of different humans to captivating a man for several years, the goddesses were nothing short of cunning and demanding. This led to many of the complications faced between different humans and even the different goddesses in The Odyssey.

Athena, the goddess of wisdom and war, plays one of the leading roles in the epic. Athena was also the daughter of the most powerful Zeus. Athena served as a protector, mentor, and guide to both Odysseus and his son, Telemachus. Athena also attempts to comfort Odysseus' wife, Penelope. Athena even goes as far as to appear in Penelope’s dreams to reassure and give her hope of her husband’s return. This ensures Penelope will stay faithful to Odysseus and her marriage until he comes back.

Although Athena’s efforts raised the question of why it was of great importance to guide Odysseus home, the Judgement of Paris p...

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...s, would be pale beside you. She’s only human, and you are a goddess, eternally young. Still, I want to go back” (Homer 390). Calypso, a goddess of notably paramount beauty, is still not capable of swaying Odysseus decision to leave by offering him immortality.

On the other hand, Athena’s wisdom and meticulous planning overpowers the strength of beauty in impacting other characters. Athena portrays a very distinct position in terms of the female characters in The Odyssey. She is neither a wife, lover, or seductress but only a goddess by name. Athena rarely uses her beauty as a sort of power to be manipulative. However, she consistently use her wisdom and art of war to provide support to Odysseus and Telemachus. Athena single-handedly devised the entire plot to her liking by influencing nearly all of the characters in The Odyssey including the father of gods, Zeus.