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hospitality in homer's odyssey
signs of hospitality in the odyssey by homer
signs of hospitality in the odyssey by homer
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Odyssey Essay “Xenia is the ancient Greek concept of hospitality, the generosity and courtesy shown to those who are far from home and/or associates of the person bestowing guest-friendship.” This concept includes the guest reciprocating the generosity and kindness to the host. In Homer’s The Odyssey the concept of Xenia is prominently shown throughout the story and used to both help and hinder the characters’ journeys. In most cases, the hospitality displayed between the characters mutually benefits both host and guest. There are times in the book where too much hospitality is shown and other times when the hospitality is lacking. In addition, the main character of the story, Odysseus, cleverly uses the hospitality shown to him throughout …show more content…
While in Pylos, he stays with Nestor and Menelaos. They welcome him as a friend. This is how the ancient Greeks believed all people should act when a stranger graced their doorstep.. Nestor, an old friend of Odysseus, gives Telemachus information regarding Odysseus. When Telemachus then travels on to Sparta, he receives a warm welcome from the king and queen and learns that his father, Odysseus, is still alive. This gives Telemachus hope. Another example later in the story that finally results in Odysseus’ arrival home is the generosity and hospitality that the Phaeacians extend to him. After Odysseus tells the Phaeacians his story they sympathize with him and show him kindness. He is washed and given a new ship to continue sailing …show more content…
As Telemachus states when he finds someone standing at the door of his home, “Greetings, stranger! Here in our house you’ll find a royal welcome. Have supper first, then tell us what you need.” (81) Throughout The Odyssey by Homer the Ancient Greek idea of Xenia is shown. This hospitality is both helpful and hindersome to the story’s characters. Many times, the level of hospitality and its reciprocity affects the outcome of the characters’ adventures. But in the end, the main character, Odysseus, uses it masterfully to make his way back to Ithaca and reclaim his
Through Telemachus, Odyssues’ son, the reader sees Odysseus’ utter dependence upon the gods’ aid. During Telemachus’ journey, all those th...
The Odyssey, with its various examples of good and bad hospitality, offers the reader a look into the world of the Greeks, and the importance of the cultural element that hospitality played in their daily lives. The importance of hospitality goes beyond being a gracious host; there is a threat of violence if a host or guest does not fulfill their responsibilities. Throughout the novel, bad hospitality is punished with bad “karma” and good hospitality brings rewards to the people who demonstrate it. For example, Telemachus was highly respected because he follows the common greek archetype of being hospitable. Polyphemus, on the other hand, was not respected but instead seen as rude and inconsiderate because he was not hospitable. Hospitality
Hospitality or Xenia (Greek for guest-friendship) is a prevalent theme used throughout the Odyssey and helps the readers understand more about Greek culture in the Bronze Age. However in that time it was more like Philoxenia (Extending hospitality to one far from his home). Homer used hospitality to define his characters and shows how it affects them. He introduces their cunning personality traits and ignorance through hospitality. He demonstrates how it affects the gods, and odysseus’s journey, and uses literary elements to do so.
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.
Understanding a story requires more than just reading words and matching them with a general definition. One needs the ability to comprehend the themes by carefully reading between the lines. The concept of xenia is displayed numerous times throughout The Odyssey. Xenia is a type of hospitality that many of the Greeks found necessary to abide by. As Carly said in her description of xenia, it "describes guest-friendship as a sort of custom of the home." In order to fully grasp the idea of the book, one must understand this Greek hospitality and the significance it served to many Greeks during this era. If there were an absence of xenia, The Odyssey would not have any cultural depth to it; instead, it would be a book solely about a war hero who experiences few obstacles on his way home. The main characters of The Odyssey followed the unwritten code of xenos, even if it was not self-beneficiary. Them being
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.
Xenia, or the concept of hospitality, is the main theme present in the Odyssey. In the poem, Odysseus is trying to get back to his wife and son, Penelope and Telemachus. However, his trip takes nearly twenty years as he comes into contact with many obstacles on his way. As he travels, the people he encounters are almost always willing to help him. One example of hospitality can be seen through the actions of King Alkinoos, who provided Odysseus with a place to eat and rest. King Alkinoos did this out of pure kindness and did not demand anything from Odysseus except for the story of his long voyage. When Odysseus wants to continue on his journey home, King Alkinoos provides him with a ship, food, and ot...
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...
Hospitality in the Iliad gives us an insight in ancient greece and was a major characteristic of their culture. In the Iliad there are many instances of the applications of hospitality in the lives of the people back then. We use the Iliad as a tool to look into their culture because this would have been passed down orally for generations as some of the only literature they had. SO their worldviews and values would be apparent in these precious tales.
In the Odyssey, the tradition of hospitality is shown being broke in several ways. When a person in Ancient Greece received a guest, they were to treat them with the highest respect and they should offer them gifts. The host was expected to give the guest a place to bathe, something to eat, and if they were of importance they should make a sacrifice. This tradition was not followed by the Cyclops Polyphemus and the suitors in Ithaca. When Odysseus and his men arrived in the cave of Polyphemus, they were hardly treated with proper hospitality. Not only did Polyphemus eat some of Odysseus’ men, but he also blocked the only entrance to the cave with a giant boulder. Odysseus was offended by the treatment and warned the Cyclops that Zeus will punish him. Polyphemus ignored the warning and was eventually outsmarted by Odysseus for his escape.
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.
The Odyssey serves as a great example of an ideal that the ancient Greeks valued, the sense of hospitality towards others. Odysseus and his men were “beholden for [the Cyclops’] help, or any gifts [he] give[s]-as custom is to honor strangers” (194-196). Not knowing of the Cyclopean nature, Odysseus pursued for hospitality as it is a Greek practice to greet strangers with gifts. To the Greeks, hospitality was a divine right, whether it was from the fear of Gods or just a simple duty as a human being. The Lotus-Eaters seemed to be a welcoming people, “only offering the sweet Lotus to [Odysseus’] friends” (79). The Lotus-Eaters kindly offered the strangers food without knowing their intentions. The Lotus-Eaters were willing to share their sweet flower, which ended up to be a plant, with their guests. The Greek’s idea of hospitality was a reception to welcome their visitor.
Homer’s Iliad is ripe with a variety of social structures. The passage where Diomedes meets Glaucus in battle shows the reader how a variety of these structures interact, and how the Argives value them in relation to each other. There are times when the characters fight for glory, there are times when they strive to earn riches, but above all else, they respect xenia. Xenia is the ancient Greek concept of hospitality, and it is evoked any time a guest visits a host. The Achaeans respect it above all else, and failure to adhere to its strict customs could lead to the forfeiture of countless souls. By the end of the story, xenia has overpowered money, battle, and glory, cementing its place as the most powerful force in all of Homer’s Ancient
The relationship between Odysseus and Telemakhos is a blind love. That is because they never really got to know each other because Odysseus has been gone for most of Telemakhos’ life. One example of this blind love is when Odysseus hears about how the suitors are mistreating and stealing from Telemakhos. Odysseus gets so irate that he was then even more determined than ever, to return to his family. Telemakhos also exhibits the same kind of blind love towards his father. Even though people have told him that his father was dead, he never believed it. He felt that his father was alive and was willing to sacrifice his life to prove it. Telemakhos was inexperienced at directing a boat, but he was willing to try because he felt something inside of him that gave him the strength to go on. Thus, this relationship between Odysseus and Telemakhos gave both of them the courage to overcome the hardships ahead of them.
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.