Penelope Lively

Penelope the Executioner By who would send such a weightless being to judge my life? My thoughts are deep and my memory long; - “Penelope’s Stubbornness” by Louise Gluck There are countless interpretations of Penelope from the Odyssey. Most commonly, she is a representative for marital fidelity and chasteness. Margaret Atwood’s novel, The Penelopiad, brings several more readings of Penelope into the mix of all the other different versions of Penelope. Atwood’s writing offers countless ways…

believe that The Odyssey is the second epic to The Iliad because The Odyssey occurs after the war. The Odyssey is about a man named Odysseus who is on his way home from the Trojan war with his men. His loving wife Penelope and his son Telemachus wait for Odysseus’s return. While waiting, Penelope endured being irritated by many suitors hoping to take Odysseus’s place. Odysseus’s travel to his home, Ithaca, is filled with mythical beings and Gods in his path. This epic story has an abundance of…

Odysseus was0 impressed by her beauty and he admitted that she was even prettier than his wife Penelope: Then the resourceful Odysseus said to her reply: “Revered goddess, don’t be angry about this. I myself well know that the clever Penelope is less to look upon than you in attractiveness and physique. For she is mortal, and you are an immortal and will never grow old.…

The epic revolves around the journeys of the hero Odysseus and the lands that he passes on his journey back to Ithaca. He is faced with many perilous stops on his return to his home of Ithaca. The gods determine the fate of Odysseus as he makes advances towards his home. One of the ordeals that he is dealt, is being trapped on the nymph Calypsos island. This is the outcome of Odysseus and his men outraging the goddess Athena, so she unleashes the seas upon them killing all but Odysseus. Earlier…

In Homer’s The Odyssey, Odysseus is a celebrated king and hero who is tragically lost at sea for 20 years, tirelessly defeating every obstacle him and his crew stumble upon in attempt to get back home to his wife and son in his kingdom of Ithaca. Although Odysseus faces many temptations along his journey, he doesn’t stray from his goal to return home, by always keeping his family in mind. Despite being written centuries ago, this novel holds strong connections to modern day, and our education…

The story of Oedipus the King incorporates a variety of characters such as kings, servants, messengers, gods and supernatural creatures yet it lacks female characters. The only predominant woman in the story of Oedipus the king is Jokasta. What makes Jokasta special is that she is known to be Oedipus’ wife and mother. Jokasta‘s role in the story has a huge impact on Oedipus life because the destiny of Oedipus is biased on Jokasta’s position in the story. Many see Jokasta as a faithful marital…

A hero is an individual who is admired for his or hers brave acts or for their fine individual qualities. The Odyssey and The Epic of Gilgamesh’s main protagonists are heroes. However, one of the main characters falls short from being a true hero, making him unworthy of the title. The Epic of Gilgamesh begins with a long exaltation about Gilgamesh—the epic’s main protagonist—¬hero attributes. The author uses direct exposition describe Gilgamesh, as a hero and a godlike character. He does this…

In the epic poem, The Odyssey, people have both helped and tortured Odysseus ever since the Trojan War was over. Odysseus has been stuck traveling from place to place just to get home to Ithaca to see his family again. There were three main parties who hindered his journey home: Calypso, Poseidon, and the suitors. Throughout Odysseus’ journey home he experienced isolation by the hand of Calypso on Ogygía and wasn’t allowed to return home until one of the gods stepped in and did something. He…

Telemachus’ father, has not returned home from the war in Troy for twenty years. Poseidon, the god of the sea, leaves him trapped on a island in the middle of the sea. During his absence his palace on Ithaca has been overrun by suitors for his wife, Penelope, and his son Telemachus is too immature to kick them out. Athena, the goddess of wisdom, disguised as Mentes urges Telemachus to go on a journey to visit the great kings of Pylos and Sparta. The journey is necessary for Telemachus to become…

For centuries we humans have been telling and retelling stories so the generation to come would be aware and entertained by them. However, the majority of stories isn’t always told the same way. For instance, famous Greek myths and gods such as Thor have been retold in different ways. Now other than Thor, the poem “The Odyssey” by Homer has been retold in numerous of ways, too. For instance, the writers of O Brother, Where Art Thou, adapted the poem “The Odyssey.” Although the movie doesn’t…