...inside her that spoke of gender equality and rights. Similarly, “Siren Song” by Margaret Atwood battles to revise the idea that men are more powerful compared to women through the story of a Siren. In Margaret Atwood’s “Siren Song,” Homer’s portrayal of the Sirens in The Odyssey is critiqued in order to remove the detrimental effects of an androcentric perception. The Odyssey points at an authority in power that men have compared to women. In the epic poem, Odysseus prepares his crew as they sail towards the Sirens’ island, avoiding the tempting songs by blocking their ears with...
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...time, the roles of both men and women have changed slightly, but in a lot of cases they still remain the same. In the Odyssey one can see there are unquestionably different expectations for men versus women during this time period. To this day, there is little information on Homer himself. Even though there is not much information about the author himself, it is known that “The epic poem Odyssey focuses on the Greek character Odysseus and his ten year journey from Troy to Ithaca after the fall of Troy (Trojan war).”("Odyssey by Ancient Greek Poet Homer.") This story takes place directly after the Trojan War. The society is still recovering from the war and tragedy. Although gender expectations are true in the early years that the Odyssey...
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...The Odyssey Haleigh Pavy O’ Brother where art thou is a great representation of the Odyssey. It shows great representation of the characters and mood and also of each other. It turns a fiction epic to a real life story. The Odyssey is a epic about how this king named Odysseus went over seas to the Trojan War. He was there for ten years, on his journey back he got cursed by a cyclops, he got all his men killed and he got stuck on circes island for seven years. Then after twenty years of being gone he finally returns home to suitors, impersonators, and he returns disguised as a beggar. O’ Brother where art thou is about how three escaped prisoners go off to find “treasure”. Everette who represents Odysseus really just wants to get home with...
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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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...Both Homer's epic The Odyssey and Margaret Atwood's poem "Siren Song" underscore the enchanting but deadly temptations of the alluring mythical sirens. While both poems incorporate first-person points of view, their perspectives, as well as their tones, differ drastically. The former, making use of aggressive diction and the latter, making use of persuasive diction, show difference of objectified and humanized women. While both demonstrate similarities, they also have radical differences. "Siren Song" and The Odyssey both are told from a first-person point of view but their perspectives of male and female is just one of the many differences between the two works.In the former, Margaret writes, "This is the one song that everyone would like...
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...adventures are one of the oldest and most celebrated works of literature. These adventures paint pictures of larger-than-life heroes, terrifying battle scenes, and heroic triumphs. Most epics served the purpose of transmitting culture and history, as well as entertaining readers. Among classical epics are the well-known Epic of Gilgamesh, The Iliad, and The Odyssey. However, is the epic adventure a dying breed of literature? Is it possible that epic stories have sustained the test of time and evolved over the centuries? The Lord of the Rings trilogy, including The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King, is one of the greatest examples of a modern day epic. What do The Iliad, The Odyssey, The Epic of Gilgamesh, and The Lord of the Rings all have in common? They all share typical characteristics of epic adventures in some form or another. Though the motives and reasons may differ, the theme of journeying is common to all epic adventures. In The Epic of Gilgamesh, King Gilgamesh sets out on a perilous adventure with his closest friend Enkidu in order to find enduring fame and glory. In The Odyssey, the main character Odysseus embarks on a 10 year-long journey through trials and tests to find his way back home to his wife and son. Epic hero Achilles, of The Iliad, sets out to fight in the legendary Trojan War. Similarly, Frodo Baggins, unassuming hero of The Lord of the Rings, sets out from his home and place of comfort to destroy the evil artifact, The...
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...Odyssey The Iliad and the Odyssey are two of the world masterpieces that have survived the times . Admired through the ages as the ultimate epics Homer 's Iliad and the Odyssey , was venerated by the ancient Greeks themselves as the cornerstone of their civilization (Nagy , Online . The two epics are the portrayal of early Greek civilization with the spotlight focused on heroism and the heroes ' struggles and triumph Early Greece likewise was depicted in the two epics as a people who believed in the power of the immortals which was clearly shown in how br the gods and goddesses ran the lives of the characters The Iliad and Odyssey are both colorful and dramatic . Not only was Homer able to use vivid s of the different war episodes but he was also successful in portraying supernatural beings that Odysseus met during his journey back home . These styles of Homer likewise characterized the people during the time that the epics were written A very diverse Greek culture was shown in the Iliad and the Odyssey Just like what was previously mentioned , people in ancient Greece revered their heroes . The people then consider men or women who were endowed with superhuman abilities which were believed to have come from the gods and the goddess as their heroes . These heroes likewise embodied the character of the Greek people as a whole . Homer used the different characters in the two epic to give a picture of how society and the people was during the earlier times Achilles was regarded...
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...Women in Greek culture during Homer’s time were considered; to be subservient and docile while the men were considered to be strong and powerful. However, the role and personality of Athena, the goddess of wisdom, in the epic The Odyssey is not the image of a weak woman. Athena is just as strong and as powerful as men in protecting and guiding Odysseus and Telemachus throughout the epic. The paragon of the Greek woman back in Homer’s time was someone who was weak willed, subservient, and overtly emotional. Penelope, the wife of Odysseus is a suitable example as she is docile and a damsel in distress type figure. During the long absence of her husband, Penelope is trapped with the suitors, forever chasing after her. While she despises the suitors in her house, she has no control over her...
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...In the epic Odysseus, readers see that men and women play very different roles in the Greek culture. Women can have very powerful roles that range from goddesses to queens. Many times in this epic, women display that they have control over men, and they can influence a man to do anything they want. But, men have different views on different classes of women, and they value high class women more than lower women. When a man and woman marry, the woman is expected to be loyal to him when he is away. The same act is expected of the men, however, showing that both genders are important in the Greek culture. Women are shown to be either very powerful or very mistreated depending on social class, whereas men are shown to be powerful, free warriors....
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...Structures in Greco-Roman Mythology: The Power and the Powerless of Women Introduction Greco-Roman mythology is rich in names, characters, and events. Dozens of gods, goddesses, and mortal women and men participate in a variety of activities that reflect or exemplify behaviors and power relations in Greek and Roman societies. A wealth of literature was written about the relationships between mortals and immortals in Greco-Roman mythology. Much was written and said about the place humans occupy in the complex mythical hierarchies. However, the role and place of women remain the topic of the hot literary debate. In Greco-Roman mythology, the image of woman is always accompanied by the image of slave. Slavery connotations reflect the basic norms of patriarchy that dominated Greek and Roman societies. Like slaves, women were often excluded from the public life and were destined to carry the burden of male discrimination on their shoulders. It would be fair to say, that in Greco-Roman mythology, women (both mortal and immortal) reflect and exemplify the two radical sides of femininity – female subordination and submissiveness to male power, and female rage and monstrousness as a rebel against the existing power and social order in their society. Greco-Roman mythology is an excellent source of knowledge about power relations between men and women. Greek and Roman myths provide abundant information about the place women occupied in their society and the methods they used to rebel against...
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...Loyalty in The Odyssey Many human cultures assign values as well as worthiness to the existence of loyalty. As a Classical culture known for its emphasis of loyalty at home as well as abroad, the faithfulness of ancient Greeks in their relationships is exemplified in many Classical texts, such as Homer’s The Odyssey. In both ancient Greece as well as in The Odyssey, loyalty was the social norm because of the egalitarian nature of the city-state as well as because of the typical ancient Greek family structure. Not only because of social expectations as well as traditions was loyalty expected, but there was also an added pressure by one’s religious conviction such that it was believed that if the guests were in any way or manner mistreated, then the ancient Greek deities would punish the offender(s). There are several passages in Homer’s Classical text The Odyssey which illustrate these aspects of ancient Greek loyalty. In illustration of the faithfulness between Odysseus as well as his crew, there is a passage that notes loyalty in the crew-leader relationship: He saw the town as well as learned the minds of many distant men, as well as weathered many bitter nights as well as days his deep heart at sea, while he fought only to save his life, to bring his shipmates home. But not by will or valor could he save them, for their own recklessness destroyed them all- children as well as fools they killed as well as feasted on the cattle of Lord Helios, the Sun… (651). It would initially...
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...The Odyssey has been a major part of English Literature. Therefore, there have been several adaptations made to it, including multiple movies. There are two major movies that represent the Odyssey luminously. Ulysses (1954) and The Odyssey (1997) are two of the most major adaptation to the remarkable Odyssey by Homer. Ulysses (1954) was directed by Mario Camerini, and the Odyssey (1997) was directed by Andrey Konchalovskiy. INCLUDE THESIS The Odyssey )1997) starts off with Odysseus running to the birth of Telemachus, while Agamemnon and Menelaus visit him. They visit him to tell him about the kidnapping of Helen, which leads to the Trojan War. When Odysseus is leaving there are two major things that happen first, of all his mother makes him...
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...The traits that set Odysseus apart from other prototypically Greek heroes is his intelligence, wit, selfishness, and reliance on others. While Odysseus is considered by everyone to be a hero, his intelligence and wit, not his physical power as a warrior are what largely sets him apart from others, like Achilles. His intelligence and wit allow him to survive situations that could have gone badly if he had not fully thought out his “game plan.” For example, the use of the Trojan Horse in The Iliad was Odysseus’ idea. And it was a brilliant one. Had he not thought of it, the outcome of the war most likely would have been quite different. Unlike someone like Achilles, Odysseus really is not a “superhuman.” He does not have super physical strength, and instead relies on his intelligence to win....
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....Homer’s life is a shadow in the mists of ancient history. All that we know for certain about him is that he composed two of the greatest epics in world literature, The Iliad and The Odyssey, as well as several hymns to the gods. The content, ideals, and style of his epics formed the basis of Greek education in the classical age of Socrates, Plato, Sophocles, and Aristotle and influenced the course of western literature for centuries to come. .......The Iliad and The Odyssey stand as two of the greatest works ever composed. They have influenced writers throughout the ages for the beauty and power of their imagery, for their character development, for the universality of their themes, and for their extraordinary stories. They take their place alongside the Bible, Sophocles’ Oedipus the Rex, Dante’s The Divine Comedy, Cervantes’ Don Quixote, Shakespeare’s Hamlet, and Tolstoy’s War and Peace as among the most popular and most highly praised literary works in history. Remarkably, Homer had no authors to imitate, no prototypical literature to guide him, for literature—indeed, civilization itself—was still in its infancy when he composed his works. He was the world's first great writer, a model for others to imitate. .......Scholars conjecture from scraps of evidence that Homer was a blind poet who may have been born on the island of Chios (also spelled in English as Khios) in the Aegean Sea; in Smyrna, a seaport in western Turkey; in Colophon, near Ephesus, Turkey; on Rhodes, an...
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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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