Odysseus represents his experiences with sea dangers as encounters with the feminine and repeatedly tells of
escaping these dangers when the threatening females eventually befriend him, after he survives or overcomes
them” (Schein 19). Discuss the representation of the “feminine” and womanhood in the Odyssey. Your essay should consider the portrayal of different feminine figures by analyzing at least two figures—one of obstacle and one of help to the hero’s return—the ambiguity of these representations, as well as the ambiguities that imbue the character of Penelope. To what extent do these figures possibly reflect an anthropological depiction of the historical function of womanhood? To what extent do they become mythical? How do descriptions through “the senses” (sight, hearing, touch, and smell) affect a gendered reading of these figures? Finally, does the feminine provide an alternative system of knowledge to male heroic culture? In discussing the section of the Great Wanderings, consider very carefully the level narration of Odysseus and the level of narration of the poet.
Instructions
close-reading and in-depth analysis of the material. Make sure that at least TWO of the episodes you discuss are analyzed in depth (not just “summarized”). Although specific, your discussion should show awareness of the larger context of the poem.
Use Homer. The Odyssey. Trans. R. Fagles. New York: Penguin, 1996 as 1 source, the second source i will send to
you after accepted
on a seperate paper answer the following questions
Analyze two scenes from the books of the Great Wanderings (Books 9-12) One scene should involve a seductress or female monster; the other should involve a welcoming or a hostile population. After your analysis, answer the following questions: What do we learn from the scenes of seduction and monstrosity? What do they say of ancestral human fears, desires, or anxieties? What do they say of xenia? Do you see any thematic connections with scenes of xenia presented in the Telemachy or the xenia performed by the Phaeacians? What connections are you able to identify between this section of the Odyssey (the Great Wanderings) and themes developed in folktales? Do you have any example from your personal readings or from popular culture?
Discuss the second part of the Odyssey (books 13-24) with regard to the three following points: 1) In Book 19, Homer recounts the episode of boar-hunting in connection with Odysseus’s scar. Why is this story significant? If the
whole purpose was to explain the reason for Odysseus’s scar, there would not have been the need to launch into
such a long digression. What else is Homer addressing with regard to Odysseus? Hints: think about tattoos and
scarring, voluntary or involuntary, as ‘inscriptions on the body’ …. 2) Does Penelope correspond to the idealized version of Queen Arete? In what sense is she tied to Odysseus by homophrosyne? 3) How does Homer develop the theme of violence in the second part of the poem? What is significant of this representation?