Women's Role In The Odyssey

The story of the Odyssey had several male protagonist. The female characters of Circe, Penelope and Athena played important roles in the stories. By looking at their traits, their actions, and their actions, and their part in the story, it is evident that they were essential to the plot of the stories and the development of the character Odysseus.

Circe is a magical goddess who welcomes Eurylochus and other shipmates to her home in Aeaea. She is very charming, yet deceitful. She turns the shipmates into pigs, which sends Eurylochus running back to the ship for help from Odysseus. As they return to the home of Circe, she shows interest in making Odysseus her lover. Odysseus is very committed to his crew and tricks Circe to return the men back to humans. Odysseus and his men do stay with Circe for awhile and she is very happy for them to be in her home. When the time arrives for the men to continue their journey home, Circe warns them to be cautious of the Sirens as they travel. Their singing can be deadly and Circe …show more content…
She has been living her life the last twenty years single, waiting on her husbands return. There have been many suitors wanting to be Penelope's new husband, but she is not interested. She has promised to marry someone new only when she has loomed her father in law's burial shroud, which she looms and unravels each night. This works for several years until her maidens reveal her secret. She still loves Odysseus and doesn't want to remarry, but decides to end the suitors requests for marriage and hold an archery contest, the winner becoming her new husband. The suitors are not doing well in the contest until Odysseus disguised as a beggar takes his turn and wins. Penelope does not recognize him in his disguise. She later discovers it is Odysseus when he reveals the secret that their bed is built around a tree and cannot be moved, no one knew this secret but the two of them. The two are now