Warning: Use of undefined constant referer - assumed 'referer' (this will throw an Error in a future version of PHP) in /usr/home/essaywo/public_html/essays on line 102

Warning: Use of undefined constant host - assumed 'host' (this will throw an Error in a future version of PHP) in /usr/home/essaywo/public_html/essays on line 105

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /usr/home/essaywo/public_html/essays:102) in /usr/home/essaywo/public_html/essays on line 106

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /usr/home/essaywo/public_html/essays:102) in /usr/home/essaywo/public_html/essays on line 109
The Role Of Women In The Odyss - Online Term Paper

The Role Of Women In The Odyss

Homer wrote the classic epic The Odyssey more than 2,500 years ago. At that time in ancient Greek society, as well as in the whole of the ancient world, the dominant role was played by men. Society was organized, directed, and controlled by men, and it was accepted that women occupied a subservient and inferior position. Women, of course, were valued, but were expected to possess certain traits and perform certain tasks that men demanded of them. Does Homer’s writing in The Odyssey support or refute the common belief of his time regarding women? Homer endorsed the dominating belief of his time concerning women by treating the female characters unequally and differently compared ...

Want to read the rest of this paper?
Join Essayworld today to view this entire essay
and over 50,000 other term papers

and lands Odysseus visited that were inhabited by mortals were dominated by men.
In The Odyssey women are unequal, treated differently, and are considered inferior to men. Throughout the epic women are not given an appropriate amount of respect by men. The male characters of The Odyssey expect certain traits and characteristics of women that they do not expect of themselves. Men expect that the women in The Odyssey be loyal to them, and not be adulterous or seductive. When Odysseus returns to Ithaca in disguise, he expects Penelope to be faithful and loyal to him. It is doubtful that Odysseus would have stayed with Penelope if he had found her to be unfaithful and adulterous when he was gone. This was while Odysseus had slept with Circe and stayed with her on her island for one year and then slept with Calypso numerous times on the island of Ogygia. What makes this even worse is that Penelope would have had justification to be unfaithful to Odysseus and remarry. As far as ...

Get instant access to over 50,000 essays.
Write better papers. Get better grades.

Already a member? Login

CITE THIS PAGE:

APA
MLA
Chicago
Turabian

The Role Of Women In The Odyss. (2008, December 10). Retrieved April 16, 2024, from http://www.essayworld.com/essays/The-Role-Of-Women-In-Odyss/94434

"The Role Of Women In The Odyss." Essayworld.com. Essayworld.com, 10 Dec. 2008. Web. 16 Apr. 2024. <http://www.essayworld.com/essays/The-Role-Of-Women-In-Odyss/94434>

"The Role Of Women In The Odyss." Essayworld.com. December 10, 2008. Accessed April 16, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/The-Role-Of-Women-In-Odyss/94434.

JOIN NOW

Join today and get instant access to this and 50,000+ other essays

PAPER DETAILS

Added: 12/10/2008 09:31:47 PM
Category: Book Reports
Type: Premium Paper
Words: 1230
Pages: 5

Save |

Report

SHARE THIS PAPER

SAVED ESSAYS

Save and find your favorite essays easier