Women's Role In The Odyssey Essay

743 Words2 Pages

The Odyssey is Homer’s second great epic after the Iliad and it tells the adventures, or misadventures, of a great mythical hero named Odysseus during his trip home after the Trojan War, his wife Penelope and his son, Telemachos who wait for him at home on Ithaca. The epic of Odysseus is more than just an entertaining tale about gods, monsters, and people, but it was some kind of cultural paradigm that showed human relationships. The poem gives a varied depiction of peacetime civilization of Achaean. The Odyssey gives an opportunity to understand what is proper or improper in relationships between the gods and men, father and son, servant and master, guest and host, and man and woman. Women's role is vital role in the development of this epic. …show more content…

The goddesses play very demanding, controlling roles in "The Odyssey". By far, the most powerful is Athena, as she makes things happen during the entire story. The role of the goddess is one of a supernatural being, but more importantly one in a position to pity and help mortals. Athena, the goddess of wisdom, is the most obvious example of the role. As she is the Goddess of war and battle, so she understands Odysseus and the struggle he has been through which is probably why she loves him so.. Athena is a Goddess that is confident, practical, intelligent, and very crafty. She is a master of disguise, which is very important in Odysseus' world. Athena embodies strength, bravery, and justice. She is a strong leader and a very clever decision maker. She tries the help Odysseus in the most difficult situations, some would argue that she did all the heavy lifting while he cried about his story being told The reader understands, that she is the major reason that Odysseus was able to return home safely. Athena demonstrated the most intelligence and valor out of all the characters in "The Odyssey". Another goddess Calypso is also very powerful and she manages to hold Odysseus captive for many

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