Women of The Odyssey
Throughout The Odyssey a vast amount of sexism is present. Many women in Ancient Greece were expected to put the needs of their husbands first and enroll themselves to be houswives for the rest of their lives. Oppression, lack of privilege and submission were all present as a Greek woman in Ancient Greece. The vile women in Homer’s book had to hypnotize men by using their sexual wishes and desires. Homer produced a poem that defined western literature for thousands of years. Females are frowned upon by the men because they think that women are vulnerable and weak. The women in The Odyssey were shown to be untrustworthy. Homer says, “ Her lady Calypso clung to him in her sea-hollowed caves- a nymph, immortal and most beautiful, who craved him for her own,” (Pg.5). Women are illustrated as unable to do men’s job and they are seen as weak and futile. The women in the poem, like …show more content…
Women are also shown as symbols of beauty rather than being shown as hard workers and women that do not need to depend on men. There is always that extra help, a man to provide for the woman and take care of her. Homer clearly did not think women were capable of being independent and taking care of themselves. In Homer’s idea of a true woman, was that women should stay home and work on making food for the husband and provide a safe haven for their children. The Odyssey is a 300 page poem with a lot of meaning and success, but Homer was not a feminist and failed to include the true power of women in his story. The many stories that Homer provides in The Odyssey prove that in his mind, women were unable to be at the level that men were on. The timeless poem shows the harsh roles that were forced upon women and what they had to endure
Throughout The Odyssey a vast amount of sexism is present. Many women in Ancient Greece were expected to put the needs of their husbands first and enroll themselves to be houswives for the rest of their lives. Oppression, lack of privilege and submission were all present as a Greek woman in Ancient Greece. The vile women in Homer’s book had to hypnotize men by using their sexual wishes and desires. Homer produced a poem that defined western literature for thousands of years. Females are frowned upon by the men because they think that women are vulnerable and weak. The women in The Odyssey were shown to be untrustworthy. Homer says, “ Her lady Calypso clung to him in her sea-hollowed caves- a nymph, immortal and most beautiful, who craved him for her own,” (Pg.5). Women are illustrated as unable to do men’s job and they are seen as weak and futile. The women in the poem, like …show more content…
Women are also shown as symbols of beauty rather than being shown as hard workers and women that do not need to depend on men. There is always that extra help, a man to provide for the woman and take care of her. Homer clearly did not think women were capable of being independent and taking care of themselves. In Homer’s idea of a true woman, was that women should stay home and work on making food for the husband and provide a safe haven for their children. The Odyssey is a 300 page poem with a lot of meaning and success, but Homer was not a feminist and failed to include the true power of women in his story. The many stories that Homer provides in The Odyssey prove that in his mind, women were unable to be at the level that men were on. The timeless poem shows the harsh roles that were forced upon women and what they had to endure