Penelope in The Odyssey
Penelope seems to have quite an insignificant role in the Odyssey – sure, she is Odysseus’ wife, but she also happens to be (in my opinion) the most looked-over female character. Athena, instead, has the importance in the story that one would assume the wife of Odysseus would earn. Athena accompanies both Odysseus and Telemachus in their respective journeys, even being the one to prompt Telemachus to inquire about his father in the first place – in all her years of waiting for her husbands return, why didn’t Penelope do the same?
However, one could also argue that Penelope made a stronger person than Odysseus. While Odysseus succumbed to the seduction of almost every woman in sight along his journey, Penelope stayed loyal and truthful to him throughout the 20 years he was gone – even though she had suitors waiting at her knees at every moment. Not only did she deny them, she actively tricked them throughout the 20 years.
Two Tricksters
Athena and Odysseus play the most obvious role of tricksters in the Odyssey . The chapter “Two Tricksters” equates them in a sense – both goddess and man conspiring together without hierarchy playing any role. We see this unity between them that – once again – Penelope does not get with her husband, even though really she is as much of a trickster as they are.
The role of Women
Women seem to have an important (and unconventional) role in such an old text – they earn titles of goddesses, have powers and control, and are not outwardly portrayed as lesser to men. However, the more you look deeper into each individual female character, the more the role of misogyny in the Odyssey becomes clear. The women in the Odyssey are, in fact, chained by their roles in relation to men. While it seems like Penelope had the option of choosing any suitor she liked, in reality she would have been labeled a whore if she decided to sleep around (unlike Odysseus), and would have faced scrutiny upon his return (Odysseus’ first impulse upon returning to Ithaca was to confirm Penelope’s loyalty). Athena seems like a powerful goddess, but she reports everything back to Zeus and needs his blessing to do what she wants to do (like save Odysseus). Calypso is judged by the gods for sleeping with many men, while the gods themselves sleep with all. The Odyssey plays with this fine line of female empowerment and confinement.
Hospitality between Eumaeus and (beggar) Odysseus
“Any other man who feels the need of sleep should go lie down… but let us, you and I, sit in my cottage over food and wine, and take some joy in hearing how much pain we each have suffered.”
EUMAEUS, TO ODYSSEUS
As Odysseus enters Ithaca again, Athena instructs him to disguise himself as a beggar and approach Eumaeus, a friendly swineherd who’s master he once was. As the beggar and Eumaeus become acquainted, we see Odysseus treated with a different kind of hospitality than his other travels. While every other host did in fact treat Odysseus with kindness and respect, this seems to be one of the only times Odysseus is regarded with pure friendship, even before he revealed his true identity. For once Odysseus’ host was not trying to please the gods (or the gods’ favourite human), he genuinely just enjoyed Odysseus’ company.