...Through The Odyssey, the theme of hospitality is extremely important. In Grecian culture, being is a good host is highly valued and expected by guests. Hospitality was one of Zeus’s ground rules of ancient society. It is a crime against Zeus to commit an offense against a host or guest. Hospitality is an honorable characteristic. It was believed that not being hospitable would result in punishment from the gods. Throughout the Odyssey, three distinct events show the importance of hospitality during the Homer era. The first is Odysseus and the Phaeacian’s who are honorable hosts. The next is the suitors occupying Odysseus’s house, who are shown as horrible guests. Lastly, Odysseus is the guest of Polyphemus, who is an awful host. By comparing and contrasting these three events, one can show the importance of hospitality. The fear of Zeus compels the characters...
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...Ann Mercado Professor M. Surratt English 2301-N1 November 15,2013 Roman and Greek Hospitality: In today’s society, we do not open our locked doors to strangers and we do not pick up hitchhikers. We warn our children not to talk to strangers or open the door to strangers. We teach our children that strangers can be dangerous. This was not the case in ancient Greek and Roman times. Hospitality was expected, as it would save lives. The Roman and ancient Greeks had certain rules, expectations and customs as part of their culture. Xenia, meaning the relationship between host and guest was a term that the ancient Greeks used to refer to hospitality. Hospitium, was what the ancient Romans used too describe hospitality it meant the divine right of the guest to receive hospitality and the devein responsibility for a host to provide hospitality. Hospitality towards a stranger or a traveler was an important element in the ancient Greek and Roman culture. The Odyssey and the Aeneid best demonstrate 1) why hospitality is so important, 2) what do the gods have to do with hospitality, and 3) what was expected from the host as well as the guest. There are many reasons why hospitality was so important in those times. It was for shelter, food, protection and most importantly it was a matter of life or death. One example would be Odysseus’s long traveling in the Odyssey. Traveling back then was not as advanced as it is today. The method of traveling was done by boat or on foot....
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...Fate and free will is one theme that really stands out to me. There are many things that happen to Odysseus in the Odyssey that is based on destiny and mostly through the whole book he is robbed of his free will. One example of destiny was when Odysseus and his crew were on the ship and he was the only survivor. Another example would be of free will, when Odysseus was imprisoned by the giants and not let free. Destiny prevailed and helped Odysseus escape from the giants and gain his freedom. Last example would be of Fate when Odysseus returned home and shot his arrow and killed all the suitors for the hand of his wife. Tradition and custom is another theme that is heavily used in the Odyssey. It’s a great connection to ancient greek culture...
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...Critical Analysis: The Odyssey | One of the major themes in this epic The Odyssey is loyalty and perseverance. King Odysseus has been away from his land of Ithaca, wife Penelope and son Telemachus for twenty years. Ten of those years were spent with his faithful crew fighting in the Trojan War and the other ten years was spent trying to return home. Penelope didn’t lose faith in her husband after a rowdy and disrespectful crowd of suitors came and uprooted the palace. Penelope has a cunning that indicates she is a good mate for her wily husband. Antinous complains of it at the assembly in Book 2. The queen has a clever tactic as she worked on a weaving for three years, a shroud for the eventual funeral of her father in law in. Clearly buys her times to fool the young suitors. Her tactics eventually fail her after her malicious servants tell the suitors what the queen has been doing. I have to commend Odysseus for his perseverance on trying to get home to Ithaca and to his family. During Books nine thru twelve is where he did most of his wandering at sea thanks to Poseidon. In these books elapsed a little over seven years of his journey. I believe those year was the longest test of Odysseus loyalty and perseverance to return home to Penelope. Odysseus has to have two affairs just to continue his journey to Penelope. While thinking about his family constantly, he still remains very loyal to his men when the goddess- enchantress Circe turns them into animals....
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...Do you believe that there is one most important theme of the Odyssey? I’m going to be explaining why I believe that perseverance is the most important theme of the story. Perseverance is basically being determined to achieve something no matter how difficult it is. Based on this theme, the audience should learn is if you want to achieve something don’t let big challenges stop you from having it. Ulysses stopped at nothing to get back home to Penelope, wife, and Telemachus, son. He had battled through creatures, goddesses, and a witch and he was still determined to make it back before the suitors took his kingdom away from him. Ulysses fought through a war for 10 years and had no choice but to put his men through tragedy. In order...
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...The Gods of Hospitality in Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey In Homer’s the Iliad and the Odyssey, much is made of hospitality as a recurring theme. In Ancient Greece the gods demand it. The nature and extent to which society today follows in that tradition has changed in form only, but not in substance. Food, shelter and protection of strangers from cultural norms of today, as the people of Ancient Greece were more inclined to take in strangers worn weary by travel. In the Iliad, the reader sees that in times of war, hospitality is provided to even the enemy. Housing strangers in one’s home was very common then, as many weary travelers trod by foot or sailed by boat to reach far-off destinations, making stops along the way. Moreover, since the Greeks believed the gods walked the earth amongst them, then turning down a travelers request, could mean rejecting a god masked from view. The Greeks took no chances in this regard; and with only a few exceptions, Homer’s literary characters comply with this religious doctrine and cultural norm. Hospitality in Ancient Greece, as portrayed by Homer, accounts, in part, for their longstanding world dominance and aligns itself in many ways with the Christianity enjoyed by many peace-loving nations of today. The guest-host relationship in both The Iliad and The Odyssey remain constant, the differences between the two dependent only on the differing circumstances posed by each tale (Biggs, Joseph, Schrodt & Dustan, n.d.) Today, America’s...
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...The epic poem, The Odyssey by Homer, shows how ancient Greeks relied on strangers and others to be well treated when visiting. Throughout The Odyssey, Odysseus had to travel to get home, but in doing so, they had to get help by others. Odysseus would arrive to get help and the host would show Xenia. Xenia is a translation of hospitality, where the host has to give food and something to drink, and it was not polite for the guest to be question before he/she is treated. The extreme value of Xenia to the ancient Greeks is a recurrent theme in The Odyssey, as shown through the examples of Telemachus with Mentes, Alcinous with Odysseus, and Penelope with the beggar. The first example is when Telemachus offers his home to Mentes. It shows how...
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...Philosophies (Women)- Women play either a motherly role or that of a seductress. They are weakened along with being lost without a guide and a support. An example would be Penelope, wife of Odysseus since she is a mother, but while Odysseus is gone, and when suitors come along, in a way she tempts them in terms of power (of the role of king) and as a woman, but she actually never gives in to any of the men. The purpose of women was mainly to lament the losses for their men and also persuading for their safety. Criticism- Homer had written the Odyssey with a bit of over-the-top reiteration, along with the missing component of a sense of unity. However, even when Odysseus wasn’t on a scene, the lines of the story still indicate that he is...
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...Odysseus’ Journey: A Path to Redemption In Homer's The Odyssey, the protagonist Odysseus sets off on a 10 year journey to reclaim his throne as king of Ithaca after the Trojan War. Throughout his journey, Odysseus constantly struggles with temptation. Odysseus faces the challenge of overcoming his weaknesses to obtain redemption from the gods. Odysseus' chances of returning home are compromised by his flaws and those of his crew; however, Odysseus possesses the necessary virtues and qualities needed to reclaim his throne. One flaw that dooms Odysseus is hubris. When Odysseus and his crew become trapped in the Cyclops’s cave, Odysseus uses his intelligence and cleverness to escape. After the escape, Odysseus brags and reveals his real name to Polyphemus, yelling from his ship “…if any man…should ask you who blinded you, shamed you so—say Odysseus…he gouged out your eye” (Homer 9.558). Polyphemus is enraged and curses Odysseus' name to Poseidon, praying that his father will delay Odysseus’ return. Poseidon curses Odysseus and his men by causing storms and winds to prevent him and his crew from returning home. If Odysseus didn’t let his pride influence him in this instance, he may have returned to Ithaca earlier and saved the lives of many of his men. Another example of Odysseus’ pride compromising the success of the journey was when the crew was facing the Sirens. The Sirens are dangerous sea enchantresses that lead sailors to their deaths through song. Instead of putting...
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...In the novel, The Odyssey, Homer reveals and illustrates the centrality of xenia in Greek culture by writing countless events of characters that show strong and poor hospitality including the encounters between Eumaeus and Odysseus, Menelaus and Telemachus, and the suitors and Penelope. He stresses the importance and normality for People to treat others this way as it reflects upon their own character as a host. Eumaeus...
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...The Odyssey was written by homer as an ode detailing the adventures that Odysseus went through until he was able to return to his home in Ithaca. The labors and hardships that Odysseus went through were after the Greek had emerged victorious in their battle at Troy. However, there were some gods who were displeased with a proclamation that Odysseus had made and due to that he was made to wonder in the seas for ten years before he returned to Ithaca (Foley, 10). The recollection of those tribulations are written and document by Homer who was a Greek scholar and poet and throughout the years there have been constant questions about whether the story was true or fabricated. However, the story remains one of the best-written documentaries on the...
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...The Odyssey, written by the poet Homer, examines the theme of xenia and the importance of following cultural norms throughout the texts. Xenia demonstrates the way guests and travelers should be treated when they arrive at a host’s house or land, including and not limited to feeding the guests, providing them with entertainment, and giving a sacrifice to the gods. Essentially, it is a form of politesse and hospitality imposed as a social norm for travelers and hosts in Greek mythology. Violations of xenia are severe for they signal a disregard for social norms and a disregard for the well-being of others (i.e. in this case, those of the travelers). Polyphemus, a son of Poseidon, was a cyclops in the Odyssey, known to demonstrate poor xenia...
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...About halfway into Homer’s Odyssey, Odysseus and his crew continue their decades long journey back to Ithaca, facing many obstacles along the way. A reoccurring theme in this epic is deceit and temptation, factors that often Odysseus endures, but not all of his crew are so lucky. By analyzing this passage, there is evidence that temptation, especially from a woman, is dangerous, further delaying Odysseus’ journey home. There are underlying themes of the relationship of animals and humans as well. The passage starts off with the theme of temptation. Despite being oblivious of who was weaving in the house, the crew suggested, “whether it's a goddess or a woman, let's call her out now.” (Line 245). More often than not, Odysseus’ crew has succumbed...
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...Father-Son Relationship in The Odyssey The Odyssey introduces the theme of father-son relationships to exemplify how influential fathers were at the time. Fathers act as role models to their sons and can determine their actions even if there is a physical and psychological space and difference between them, like Odysseus and Telemachus. The reader is able to gain greater insight into the nature of ancient Greek society by analysing these father-son relationships for their complexities and circumstances of their familial ties. With each father-son relationship shown, Homer offers a unique perspective about the roles that were available to both father and son. Book 1-4 Throughout the Telemachia, we learn that Telemachus has been forced to grow up without the influence of his father and has been directly affected by Odysseus’ absence. When he confides in Athena under the guise of Mentor, he proclaims that he does not have solid proof that he is in fact Odysseus’s son and doubts that he is still alive. However, the dialogue between both Athena and Telemachus initiates Telemachus’ spiritual development. So, when the pre-economy of Odysseus and Telemachus re-uniting is fulfilled – Telemachus will be in the position to assist his father in killing the suitors and to restore the natural order in the Ithacan society. Telemachus first asserts his male privilege by ordering Penelope from the public rooms of the palace, indicating to the suitors of his intention to assert his claim...
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...Comparison of Odysseus and Athena as liars Deception, or the act of deceiving or defrauding, is a prominent theme in the Odyssey. Though inherently dishonest, deception can be used to gain information and knowledge. Different characters (and people) use it different ways. This essay will establish that, whereas Odysseus uses deception to help him progress from Nobody back to Odysseus, king of Ithaca, Athena does so to keep her identity secret when she disguises herself. Odysseus ensures his security and protects his identity while deceiving Polyphemus, thus displaying his true cleverness. Odysseus tells Polyphemus that “Nobody is his name,” (9,365) he uses this clever deception so the other Cyclopes do not go after him after he escapes. Also, if Polyphemos knew who Odysseus really was then Polyphemos would've treated him differently. Odysseus wouldn't had received the hospitality that he did. By being his witty self, Polyphemos stated “I will eat you last” because he liked his cleverness which was actually his decievence. Odysseus is in sense a nobody, no one cared if he was king of Ithaca. This was his lowest point as he started to lie more in order to reconstruct his identity. In order to restore his identity, he had to continue with his lies, with that he began his Cretan lies. These Cretan lies deceived Athena, Eumaois, and Penelope. Odysseus used his first Cretan lie to Athena, who was disguised as a Shepard boy, ........ He takes pains to establish a sound character:...
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