Women in Ancient Greece
The Odyssey paints us a picture of different women with characteristics put together would make the ideal women in ancient Greek society. The ideal Greek woman was chastely, virtuous, a good wife and mother. If you look at the women, you see in Greek art or Greek sculptures you would see most of the women are not skinny like in our generation today. They all have a classic figure and feature. Most paintings portrayed women with dark curly hair witch was very common among Greek women at the time. In most cases woman got married in their teens around the age of 15. The young girls after marriage were expected to run/manage a household, raise children and spend the rest of their time weaving and spinning (which was regarded …show more content…
During the time, her husband was away Clytemnestra takes a lover. When her husband returns from the Trojan War, she murders him. Homer makes us question whether Odysseus will return. The answer to this question is no. during his absence Penelope unlike Clytemnestra is able to hold off the suitors with her witty character and cunning trickery. Ironically, it is her deceitfulness towards the suitors and her ability to be misleading that helps her maintain her dedication to her missing husband. Penelope does not turn away any suppliant. This not only makes her loyal according to Greek custom as well as showing her selflessness during the time the suitors looted her household. The fact that she chooses to weave a death shroud shows her …show more content…
Penelope tests her husband several times to make sure that he was indeed who he said he was. This final testing of Odysseus demonstrated her intelligence. In other circumstances, most women would be overwhelmed with emotion at their husbands return after many years of absence, but not Penelope. She remains in control of her emotions and cooks up a test to prove Odysseus’ identity, beyond any reasonable doubt. All of this makes Penelope the ideal woman. Even in modern society, this is not something that is expected of any woman, this only further proves her brilliance as a woman and as a character in this book.
There are several women other than Penelope that are central to the story for example Circe, Calypso and Nausicaa. The female characters serve more than one function in the book. First, they are obstacles or potential obstacles in Odysseus journey home and secondly they are somewhat mirrored aspects of Penelope.
Odysseus spends seven years on Calypso's island as her prisoner spending every day weeping for his beloved Penelope and still every evening sleeping with
The Odyssey paints us a picture of different women with characteristics put together would make the ideal women in ancient Greek society. The ideal Greek woman was chastely, virtuous, a good wife and mother. If you look at the women, you see in Greek art or Greek sculptures you would see most of the women are not skinny like in our generation today. They all have a classic figure and feature. Most paintings portrayed women with dark curly hair witch was very common among Greek women at the time. In most cases woman got married in their teens around the age of 15. The young girls after marriage were expected to run/manage a household, raise children and spend the rest of their time weaving and spinning (which was regarded …show more content…
During the time, her husband was away Clytemnestra takes a lover. When her husband returns from the Trojan War, she murders him. Homer makes us question whether Odysseus will return. The answer to this question is no. during his absence Penelope unlike Clytemnestra is able to hold off the suitors with her witty character and cunning trickery. Ironically, it is her deceitfulness towards the suitors and her ability to be misleading that helps her maintain her dedication to her missing husband. Penelope does not turn away any suppliant. This not only makes her loyal according to Greek custom as well as showing her selflessness during the time the suitors looted her household. The fact that she chooses to weave a death shroud shows her …show more content…
Penelope tests her husband several times to make sure that he was indeed who he said he was. This final testing of Odysseus demonstrated her intelligence. In other circumstances, most women would be overwhelmed with emotion at their husbands return after many years of absence, but not Penelope. She remains in control of her emotions and cooks up a test to prove Odysseus’ identity, beyond any reasonable doubt. All of this makes Penelope the ideal woman. Even in modern society, this is not something that is expected of any woman, this only further proves her brilliance as a woman and as a character in this book.
There are several women other than Penelope that are central to the story for example Circe, Calypso and Nausicaa. The female characters serve more than one function in the book. First, they are obstacles or potential obstacles in Odysseus journey home and secondly they are somewhat mirrored aspects of Penelope.
Odysseus spends seven years on Calypso's island as her prisoner spending every day weeping for his beloved Penelope and still every evening sleeping with