The Odyssey: Basic Societal Structure Then and Now The majority of the story focuses on Ithaca without

t its noble king, Odysseus. It is important to see how the city functions with the absence of its king, whether the caliber of the city increases or decreases. Since Odysseus is absent, the decisions which would have normally been presented to the king are instead sent to the elders of the city. The elders consisted of mainly the high-ranking nobility of the city. Telemachus presented to them his case to get rid of the suitors who diseased his house and who tried to win his mothers hand in marriage under the assumption that Odysseus was dead. The drive and desire for nobility was the driving force that influenced the suitors decisions to invade Odysseus home. Under the assumption that Odysseus was dead, the suitors competed with one another to win Penelopes hand in marriage in order to become the next king of Ithaca. The council would all vote on the outcome and the decisions were made upon the majority vote of the elders. The majority vote declared the decision and it was not argued unless the citizens countered the decision with violence. In todays society, the law dictates what we can and cannot do as well as the punishments that reside alongside the law. If the people feel that their governing is unfair, they have the ability to vote for their next representative. Law and order dictates our society today just as it did during the Dark Greek Age, but trial and error among several thousand years has determined the best type of government for each place on earth. The Odyssey also provides a clear view to what the religious life was like. During the Mycenaean Age, which is when the story takes place, religious activity was boundless. All Greek citizens had a high opinion of the gods and many of them would die of fear if they felt that they had done anything to displease them. One of the main gods in the story was the goddess Athena. Athena was the daughter of Zeus and a consistent supporter of Odysseus and his quest to reunite with his family in Ithaca. Athena does not determine the future for humans, she intervenes just enough to help Odysseus and his quests. For example, she intervenes just enough during the battle with the suitors by offering Odysseus motivation to help him turn the tide, then she disappears into the background and allows the humans to dictate their own victory or demise. The gods had different reasons for hating or loving their human underlings, some people would offer sacrifices to the gods in exchange for their blessing while others would ignore the gods and in return would gain a bad fortune. Some of the gods despised certain humans such as Poseidon who kept Odysseus from having a successful trip on the sea for blinding his son. Gods were the oversight for all human activity and the humans lived to please their gods. In todays society, there are many different gods and many different religions. We are unsure what religion is actually true and we follow faith because of this. In the

story they were given a clear and visible sight of their gods and they knew exactly what to do to please them. The social ordering consisted of the hierarchy as followed: gods, men, women, and slaves. The gods were the number one because they had the ability to dictate a humans life. Men were physically and mentally unprecedented and showed honor and greatness in everything. During war, men valiant soldiers and during peace time, they were great lovers and athletes. These men would take part in physically challenging games such as the ones in the Olympics today. Other men were great hunters, singers, and storytellers which normally made them the center of attention. Women, on the other hand, had much less of an interesting life. They managed the household with chores, managed the slaves, and would take part in different activities such as cooking or weaving. In the event of a husbands death, the widow was forced to marry again or to go back to her father. The man who she married was determined by either her or her father. This is the reason behind the suitors determination to marry a woman who so seemingly only loved Odysseus. Below the women were the slaves; slaves consisted of women and men who were servants to the elite in areas such as farming, cooking, or hygienic purposes. In the story, many servants are slaves to Odysseus home and were responsible for things such as bathing the men, cleaning or cooking, as well as keeping guard of valuables. In todays society, men and women are somewhat equal. Both men and women work and both are given most of the same rights. Unfortunately, women are still treated at a lower caliber even in todays world. There is the so-called glass ceiling which takes place in the corporate world which is a metaphor for the pay difference between men and women. Women are paid less on average than their male counterpart but it is relieving to see the amount of change that has occurred in the past one hundred years involving womens rights. Just as womens rights have improved, so have other rights such as the outlaw of slavery. This is also saddening because of how long it took the world to change its views on human rights. The philosophy that the Greeks followed was largely visible throughout the book. The Greeks promoted strong characteristic traits such as honor, fortitude, valor, and aristocracy. Odysseus as a character exhibited many of the traits that the Greeks thought would make the perfect man. The honor of his battles was evident as well as the valor he displayed in his adventures along with the aristocracy that he had as king of Ithaca. The kings that Telemachus met along his travels also exhibited many of these traits such as the hospitality that they presented to him and his traveling partners. These kings would invite any and every stranger into their home for a large feast without even asking them who they were or what they were doing. This is important to the story because it shows how everyday life was throughout the Greek Dark Age time period. It shows the characteristic traits of the nobility as well as the average citizens, both of which exhibit extraordinary hospitality and compassion to their fellow

man. Today, hospitality is rare among strangers. Strangers are seen as one in the house of another as an intruder as opposed to one in the house of another as a visitor or guest. An intruder is a person who is unwelcome while a guest is a stranger who is welcomed in open arms; this is the difference between the two societies. The military is an important aspect of Greece and it is largely present in the combative past of the country and in the book itself. The hero in the Odyssey was an important soldier in the Greek army and in the Battle of Troy. These military leaders were responsible for both victory and defeat which means they were either praised or condemned based on their military history. These military heroes believed that the gods had a great presence and influence during their battles and would often offer many sacrifices to indulge them. The military heroes often possessed many important character traits such as cunning wit and extreme intellect as well as the obvious physical strength. Odysseus was responsible for the downfall of Troy after scouting out the city, joining forces with Helen of Troy, as well as the ingenious plan of the wooden horse. For this military accomplishment, he was praised among all of Greece. Greece also exhibited many of their military feuds on the open ocean; therefore, many of the Greek soldiers were experienced sailors. Military is still and always will be an important aspect of every country. The military in the United States is somewhat similar to that of the military in Greece during the past. War heroes exhibit many of the important character traits today as they once did in the past and they are still considered heroes among the entire world for their triumphs in bravery and courage. Military action takes place for different reasons, however. It is likely for the United States to take action if injustice is being done or if our nations interests are compromised. It is important to realize the differences as well as the similarities between Greece over a thousand years ago as compared to the United States in its present day just to see how far a nation has progressed but also how far back it drags. One may wonder how long military feuds will stretch; will there ever be peace on Earth? This is a question that has been asked many times over thousands of years.

The Odyssey is a fictional story but also gives insight to the way of life during the Greek Dark Ages. The characters in the story are fictional examples of Greek heroes who exhibit character traits which were seen to be ideal for a Greek citizen. The kings were nobility who intimidated but also were admired by the citizens of Greece. The citizens were everyday people, like today, who lived for their families and to respect the gods and their fellow man. The social settings during this time period were very similar but also quite the opposite of today. Reading The Odyssey gives a clear view to the military structure, the morality of the citizens, the social settings, as well as the political and religious life during the Dark Greek Age.

It is important to read literature from this time period because of the rarity of historical sources from that day and age, fictional stories written during this time period give us an idea of what life was like back then.