...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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...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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...Food, Drink and Hospitality: The Homeric Shift Within Homer’s famous epic entitled The Odyssey, there is heavy reliance on the motifs of food, drink and universal hospitality. Throughout the book, Homer uses food and drink to exemplify negative qualities such as over indulgence and gluttony. By means of characters such as the Phaeacian royalty, The Suitors, and Polyphemus, Homer creates the notion of consequence in relation to hospitality. However, when regarding the relationship between food, drink and hospitality in the fourteenth book, the dynamic is shifted from a centrally negative aspect to a particularly heart warming and symbolic reunion between the withered protagonist and his trusted servant. To understand why the fourteenth...
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...Throughout the Odyssey the theme of hospitality is shown through many different characters in a good way which helps Odysseus on his journey home. During Odysseus’ journey home he encounters many characters that show him great hospitality which helps him get home and kill the suitors. On one of his stops a character named Circe turned all of his crew into pigs, but when she sees Odysseus she turns them back into humans. She also feeds and gives them a place to rest for a year. When Odysseus and his men were about to leave she told them that they should go to the land of the Hades, she also tells them they will face many obstacles on their voyage and ways to defeat them. This is the first showing of hospitality Odysseus receives on his venture...
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...Hospitality in the Greek culture is very apparent in readings due to Greek Gods and less so in readings from the American culture because of no enforcement. In Homer’s The Odyssey, translated by W.H.D. Rouse, Eteoneus asks Menelaos if Telemachus and Peisistratus Nestoridês should be allowed in Menelaos’ hall or sent off for entertainment otherwhere. Eteoneus’ question sparks Menelaos’ quick response, “How often have we eaten the food of a stranger, you and I, in other parts of the world, on our long journey home, praying that Zeus might somewhere give us rest and peace at last. Go and take out their horses, and bring the men in to share our feast (Homer 44).” The questioning reaction of Eteoneus is one more common in the American culture, very different from the hospitality in Greek...
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...In “The Odyssey” Polyphemus’s barbaric qualities and inhospitality was written by Homer mostly to represent the extreme cultural differences between the Greeks, including their gods, and the Cyclopes. A part of the writing which represents this well is is when Odysseus asks Polyphemus to extend his hospitality to him and his crew threatening the wrath of Zeus. Polyphemus then states that Cyclopes are stronger than Zeus and smashes two of Odysseus’s men brains out and eats them (IX. 318). This extreme lack of hospitality would rarely, if ever, occur in Greece, where people believed not providing hospitality to a stranger would result in punishment from the gods. Also, the fact that Polyphemus beat Odysseus’s men out with no provocation or reason...
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...Throughout the nine books of the Odyssey, we see both Odyyseus and Telemachus travel to new lands and be greeted by different kings and host that help or hinder their ultimate goal. I would like to compare the different ways Host treated their guest and reveal the different kinds of hospitality present in the novel. One example of good hospitality we are going to examine is the way Odysseus is treated once he stumbles upon the Princess Nausicaa and her handmaids of the Kingdom of the Phaeacians. Although at first they fled in terror of the unknown man, the princess and her handmaids give him olive oil to bathe with and clothes to wear. She than tells Odysseus to follow her horses to her fathers kingdom and to speak to him about an escort to his homeland....
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...The custom of hospitality derives from the fear of a stranger who has a possibility of being a god since the story takes place in the society, where the god walk among humans. Thus, people have no choice but to treat the strangers with utmost respect and care, and assure that their needs are being satisfied so that the hosts do not offend anyone. Homer highlights the seriousness of hospitality with the comportments of the suitors after seeing how Antinous slanders and attacks Odysseus who is disguised as a beggar. Antinous warns the beggar that he will skin him alive if he does not eat and live in peace. Upon hearing the threats, the suitors, who once act as savages in another man’s house, become concerned with the wellness of the beggar. They...
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...Hospitality In The Odyssey. Hospitality is very important in the epic poem The Odyssey written by Homer. If people do not show hospitality, they will be punished, although they might be rewarded for showing respect to elders. In The Odyssey written by Homer the epic poem exposes many instances of hospitality. Some instances are when Odysseus comes home as the beggar encountering the suitors. Next suitors enter the Penelope’s home, and wrecking her home and cattle. Another instance Polyphemus does not respect Odysseus and his many by rapidly asking them questions. If people do not show hospitality they might be punished. One character that was punished for not showing hospitality is the Cyclops. The epic states “ ‘Strangers,’ he said, ‘who...
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...Xenia is the Greek word for hospitality. It is the law that requires both hosts and guests to be polite and respect each other. To be a good guest, one should provide his own stories, or bring trade or gift to the host. On the other hand, a good host has much more things to do than a good guest. He should bathe the guest, give him clothing, food, as well as guest present, and also transportation and protection. Gods might also disguise themselves into human beings to test the hospitality of a host. Xenia is an essential and highly expected quality for both guests and hosts according to Homer. In The Odyssey, he provides several examples: the suitors and Polyphemus (the Cyclops), Telemachus, Nestor, and Menelaus, as well as Calypso and Circe....
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...Savannah Cook Western Lit 13 October 2016 Hospitality Xenia is defined as the Greek relationship between two people from different regions. Hospitality in Homer’s time was essential because in this day and time, methods of travel were less convenient. The communication and technology during this time period was far less advanced than the modern times to come. With the less progressive communication avenues along with longer travel times, more nights were spent away from home in other locations. The most common forms of transportation of this day were boat or on foot which obviously took longer than today’s modern transportation. In addition to this, travelers were not able to afford to stay in hotels or inns every night therefore it was...
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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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...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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...How Xenia is Key in The Odyssey In the epic poem, The Odyssey, Homer shows how the Ancient Greeks relied on each other for hospitality which was known as Xenia. Xenia is an Ancient Greek Value and it made the Greeks allow strangers into their homes for food and a place to sleep. The Greeks were also not allowed to ask questions because Xenia was based on showing generosity to anyone who showed up to your door. This was because it could be a god disguised as a civilian, and usually the homeowners were supposed to give the stranger a gift when they arrived at their door for this reason as well. When someone did not follow the rules of Xenia, they were disciplined; like the suitors getting killed, and the Cyclops getting his eye poked out by Odysseus....
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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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