Suitors Flashcards
(45 cards)
Who are the five main characters for this theme?
Antinous
Eurymachus
Amphinomus
Ctessipus
Leodes
Who is Antinous?
- The most arrogant of Penelope’s suitors.
- He leads the campaign to have Telemachus killed.
- He’s never portrayed sympathetically, he’s the first to die when Odysseus returns.
Who is Eurymachus?
- Acts as a leader of the suitors due to his charisma
- Noted to be most likely to win Penelope’s hand
- Decetiful, and discovers Penelope’s plot with the loom because he is having an affair with Melantho, one of her maids.
- Attempts to avoid punishment by Odysseus by blaming everything on Antinous
Who is Amphinomus?
- The only decent man seeking Penelope’s hand in marriage
- Sometimes speaks up for Odysseus and Telemachus, but he is killed like the rest of the suitors.
Who is Ctessipus?
- The suitor who throws a heifer’s foot at Odysseus when he’s disguised as a beggar
Who is Leodes?
- The sacrificial priest to the suitors
- He hates the evil deeds of the suitors
- When Odysseus is killing the suitors, he begs for mercy, saying that he tried to stop the others, and now they were paying for not listening to him.
- Odysseus hears him out, but says that as a priest, he must have prayed for Odysseus to not come home, so he kills him anyway
Scholarship:
From the very…
From the very beginning, Homer wishes us to take it for granted that the suitors are doomed men
- W. Allen
Scholarship:
The fear of…
The fear of death leads them to actions which render their death justifiable in the eyes of the Ithacans as well as the reader
- W. Allen
Scholarship:
Since the epic…
the epic gods are basically very moral and can be portrayed as helping men only in their righteous deeds
- W. Allen
Scholarship:
By considering who…
By considering who laughs and how frequently, I find in most scenes that laughter… usually indicates some sort of weakness of character
- M. Colakis
What scholars can be used for this theme and what are their ideas?
W. Allen
- Suitors are doomed from the start
- The suitor’s actions make their deaths justifiable
- The gods help Odysseus which justifies his killing of the suitors
M. Colakis
- Laughter indicates weakness
W. Allen on the suitors at the beginning:
From the very beginning, Homer wishes us to take it for granted that the suitors are doomed men
W. Allen on the suitor’s actions:
The fear of death leads them to actions which render their death justifiable in the eyes of the Ithacans as well as the reader
- potential disagree as some Ithacans were unhappy and tried to fight
W. Allen on the gods and odysseus:
Since the epic gods are basically very moral and can be portrayed as helping men only in their righteous deeds, Homer throughout sees to it that Odysseus’ cause is just
M. Colakis on the significance of laughter:
By considering who laughs and how frequently, I find in most scenes that laughter… usually indicates some sort of weakness of character
Book 1 suitor events:
The suitors are causing Telemachus distress over their feasting and overindulgence
They demonstrate very bad Xenia
They’re not used to Telemachus exerting authority on them
Suitor’s quotes for Book 1:
‘They are eating me out of house and home. And they will very soon destroy me too’
‘It amazed them that Telemachus should adopt this tone’
Scholarship for 1:
‘From the very beginning, Homer wishes us to take it for granted that the suitors are doomed men’
W. Allen
‘Xenia was an essential functioning of ancient society, in the Odyssey it is a way of judging societies and individuals’
Goldhill
Book 2:
Antinous blames Penelope for the suitor’s indulgences
Book 2 significance:
- Through the Suitor’s actions, we can see a more cunning side of Penelope than was previously present (e.g with her crying at the mention of Odysseus)
- This gives her character more depth and making her appear more connected to her husband
Book 4:
The suitors plot to kill Telemachus when he comes back from his journey
Book 4 scholarship:
‘The fear of death leads them to actions which render their death justifiable in the eyes of the Ithacans as well as the reader’
W. Allen
Book 4 significance:
- Shows how far the suitors are willing to go
- This act heightens their moral corruption and justifies their eventual punishment due to violation of xenia
Book 13:
Odysseus starts to plan his revenge
