Understated: The Roles of the Ancient Woman in Homer’s Odyssey
As women in modern day society we are no longer held captive to ancient stereotypical views on a female’s structure in society. Opposingly, throughout history, in Ancient civilizations women were thought after as being inferior to man in both sex and societal standing. Women were often dejected, forced into roles to which they were born to fill, “their place” in society (Budin 123). Archetypical Mothers, daughters, sisters and the conniving seductress; these women were raised with a constant complexion of inferiority to which they must face day to day in the mirror. Though Greeks were not normally thought of as “subjectors” of women (Murray), they did; however, seriously understate the roles of such women in society. Though severely understated, the women of Ancient Greece were silently powerful and searingly complex. Hand in hand in the role of symbolic control with man, women secretly propelled the male of our species forward where stimulus was otherwise inadequately represented.
Homer’s Greek Epic The Odyssey is by far saturated with male empowerment, telling the tale of a great warrior’s journey to find his way home from the depths of the seas and battle; however, he also places a feeling of equality and power upon female characters throughout the plot, giving them the harnesses to dominate most of the plot’s action (Rosenberg 76). By examining the roles of one of the major female characters , Athena, in The Odyssey; one can see a strong female presence that plays an integral part in the quest, shaping and silently forming veins from the very arms of Odysseus’s existence, driving him both symbolically and literally, shaping the very path the Epic will adopt (Rosenberg 76). Bridging the expanse between good and evil, right and wrong the dominating female presence of Athena in The Odyssey silently weaved the web of fate for Odysseus, leading him down the path of righteousness and inevitably leading to his historical infamy. Through research and by first examining Athena as a goddess, and her archetype and by examining specific examples within the text I plan to prove that: The archetypal and symbolic roles of the dominant female character of Athena in the Odyssey not only unequivocally determines the path in which the epic will follow, it also directly affects the character of Odysseus and the many choices he must make throughout.
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