Comparison Between Penelope and Odysseus

Donesha Baker

April 12, 2012

ENG 2423 9: 25

A Comparison between Penelope and Odysseus

        Penelope was the wife of the great Odysseus. Penelope and Odysseus had their differences with each other. The two of them only had one son together and his name was Telemachus. When their son was born Odysseus left for the Trojan War. However, Penelope was then viewed as a symbol of connubial fidelity. Fidelity means to be faithful or loyal in a marriage.

        Penelope started to get tired of waiting for her husband to return home from war, so she started to ask Artemis to kill her. Therefore, she came to a conclusion that whoever could string Odysseus bow and shoot an arrow through twelve axe shafts may have her hand.  On the other hand, Penelope does not know that her husband is back home, but the suitors do. The suitors go for the test and try to string the bow and all of them were not successful at it. Odysseus decided to wear a disguise and go for the test to string the bow. However, Odysseus was successful at during. When he removed the disguise she was in total shock that her husband had returned home from the war.

        Odysseus was the king of Ithaca and a hero. He was the key factor in the Trojan War. However, he tried his best to avoid it. He was gone from home for a very long time. He was gone for so long that his mother died waiting for him to return. On his journey home from the Trojan War he and his men went through a lot. Odysseus and his men were captured by the Cyclops. They managed to escape by sticking a wooden stick in his eye and that blinded him.

        Odysseus was given a gift during this time from the god of winds. Odysseus begged Aeolus for help numerous times. He and his crew visited Circe and she turned half of his men into swine. However, Circe became attracted to Odysseus after he gave her a drug called moly. They stayed on the island with her for a year. While traveling he met his mom spirit. In conclusion, when he returned home he acted as if he was a beggar. He seen the suitor’s rowdy behavior and planned their death. Odysseus killed the suitor’s with the help of Athena, Telemachus, Eumaeus, and Philoteus. After this incident the goddess Athena made peace with citizens and Odysseus. However, there was a big difference between Odysseus and Penelope because Odysseus was a hero and Penelope was not.