the odyssey - modern scholarship Flashcards
odysseus
W.A. Camps - one of the distinctive features of Odysseus is “the capacity to inspire affection and regard as husband, man, and king.”
Seth Schein- “By turns a comic character, a tragic hero, a stoic sage, and a villain, Odysseus could never.. be pinned down.”
Penelope
Jasper Griffin - “By her self-command and guile, Penelope shows herself to be like him; the true wife for the hero of the Odyssey.”
Morrison - first word to P - Gynai- women and wife
Telemachus
Nicole Smith- Telemachus is “weak and powerless in the beginning, only to have him slay one of his tormentors in the end.”
Jasper Griffin- “in the process of achieving adult status, asserting himself for the first time both with the suitors and with his mother.”
characters
Jasper Griffin- Homer doesn’t only portray noble characters, but tells the stories of farmers, servants etc with care and attention.
W.A. Camps- There are a wide variety of characters in the Odyssey, matched by the diversity of locations.
Phaeacians
Jasper Griffin- The Phaeacians are transitional characters between mythical fantasy worlds and the mortal realm of Ithaca.
Suitors
C.M. Bowra - The suitors are the opposite of the heroic ideal, “a degenerate corruption of heroes.”
James Morrison - “The suitors are terrible guests and clearly violate the code of xenia.”
disguise
Peter Jones- By disguising himself in Ithaca, Odysseus further delays the fulfilling ‘homecoming’ he might have wanted.
James Morrison - “There are costs to revealing your name, choosing to conceal it might have benefits.” - link to Polyphemus
Andrew Parks- “Athene’s disguise as Mentes introduces the motif of ‘disguised identity followed by significant revelation.’”
revenge/ justice
Loney- vengeance (tisis) is reciprocal, like xenia.
Julie Stanton - The deaths of the suitors are sanctioned by the gods - Athene even helps kills them.
Julie Stanton- The purpose of revenge is not just to express personal anger, but to restore honour and maintain social order.
nostos
Jenkyns - Odysseus’ physical journey is also a symbolic journey from isolation back to his community.
Barbara Graziosi- Homer wants us to realise above all interests Odysseus’ desire is to get home to Ithaca.
women
Doherty- Odysseus holds ‘internal audiences’ with female characters, a device within epic poetry usually reserved for males.
Emily Wilson- ‘the odyssey traces deep male fears about female power’ ‘ shows the terrible damage done to women’
xenia
Murnaghan- Odysseus restores order by reactivating xenia.
Edith Hall - Xenia structures the entire epic.
