Penelope in The Odyssey Essay - 1103 Words

Penelope: In the opening chapters of The Odyssey Penelope is angry, frustrated, and helpless. She misses her husband, Odysseus. She worries about the safety of her son, Telemakhos. Her house is overrun with arrogant men who are making love to her servants and eating her out of house and home, all the while saying that they are courting her. She doesnt want to marry any of them, and their rude behavior can hardly be called proper courtship. She has wealth and position; she has beauty and intelligence; most of all she has loyalty to her husband. But against this corrupt horde who gather in her courtyard shooting dice, throwing the discus, killing her husbands cattle for their feasts, and drinking his wine, she is powerless. After the†¦show more content†¦He is both brutal and sensitive, bold and shy. Loyalty: Loyalty is most apparent in Penelopes resisting of the suitors, but it is a trait essential to all the characters in Odysseus family. For twenty years Odysseus never stops wanting to return home. Telemakhos will not send his mother back to her father and force her to choose another husband. Instead, he sets out to find news of his father. The servants Eurykleia and Eumaios are also important exemplars of loyalty. Athenas devotion to Odysseus is another. Intelligence: The ability to solve problems is vital to an epic hero. Odysseus, as James Joyce put it, invented the first tank when he devised the Trojan horse. Penelopes ruse of unweaving the shroud shows her intelligence. Odysseus quick wit and invention of believable lies, helping him to conceal his identity and assess situations, are much admired by Athena. The Odyssey and The Pearl: Loyalty Loyalty to another person or to a cause may be an admirable trait, but it can lead to either positive or negative consequences. In Homers epic The Odyssey and John Steinbecks novel The Pearl there are characters that show great examples of this trait. Penelope in The Odyssey and Juana in The Pearl are the most obvious, although there are many. Penelope stayed loyal to Odysseus while he was on his twenty-year journey and Juana stayed by her husband through his time ofShow MoreRelatedEssay on Role of Penelope in Homers Odyssey788 Words   |  4 PagesThe Role of Penelope in Homers Odyssey The character of Penelope in Homers Odyssey has served as an archetype of femininity proper. Her physical attributes, while comely by even the most demanding standards, are veiled. Her intellectual attributes are veiled too. She seems more often than not to wear a veil of tears (for her man) or a veil of silence (for her own wishes), or ineptitude (in her dealings with her son). She is certainly no Helen. She is not flaunting or whore-ish. She is notRead More Character of Penelope in Homers Odyssey Essay1374 Words   |  6 PagesThe Character of Penelope in The Odyssey My lady, there is no man in the wide world who could find fault with you. 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