As one of the few gods to be married of the Greek Pantheon she is frequently unfaithful to her husband. Hephaestus is one of the most even-tempered and humorless of the Hellenic Deities. Of her many lovers Aphrodite preferred Ares, the volatile god of war as she was attracted to his violent nature according to the narrative embedded in the Odyssey. She is one of a few characters who played a major part in the original cause of the Trojan War itself: not only did she offer Helen of Troy to Paris, but the abduction was accomplished when Paris, seeing Helen for the first time, was inflamed with desire to have her—which is Aphrodite's realm. In the novel The Golden Ass, Lucius Apuleius written in the second century A.D , Aphrodite poses as a secondary character in the Tale of Eros and Psyche.
Psyche was the major reason behind Orual’s actions because Orual was jealous that everyone noticed Psyche and never acknowledged her, and this would ultimately lead to the sacrificing of Psyche to the mountain god, Ungit. It is evident that Lewis portrays Psyche as a believably perfect person because she is very noble throughout Till We Have Faces(Abromaitis, 4246). These traits are shown when Psyche is referred to as a “goddess” by Redival, when she tries to nurse the Fox, a Greek slave purchased by the King to teach Redival, Orual, and Psyche various things, and when she met with Orual to plan the Fox’s escape. The first time Psyche shows her noble character was when Redival made fun of Psyche by saying, “Why don’t you honour the goddess?” to Orual. She said that quote in reference to Psyche’s action of kissing a woman’s baby when the woman claimed it would make her baby beautiful.
This uncertainty indicates his weak connection to Odysseus. He further complains about his “hopeless” situation with the Suitors. Athena advises him on ways in which to conquer them, before vanishing and revealing herself as a goddess. “In Telemachus’ heart she [implants] spirit and daring and [brings] the image of his father to his mind even more strongly than before….”(11). With this new-found confidence, he intervenes when Penelope asks Phemius, the minstrel, not to sing of Odysseus.
And last, the language of different scenarios, i.e. battles vs. joyous occasions, lends itself to glorifying deadly and gruesome struggles. Homer has a unique way of devising the plot, giving mixed signals and paradoxes, but it all just gives to the realism of this amazing piece of literature. Odysseus’ faithfulness for his wife is questionable. In the first book, you find that he is sleeping with a woman named Kalypso, a sea nymph.
(Aeschylus 116). Intelligence and cleverness, while celebrated in a man, are threatening characteristics in a woman. In the palace of Argos, Clytaemnestra has been having an open affair with Aegisthus. The chorus, who acts as the voice of the common man, and therefore the voice of morality, condemn her for this affair even though it is common practice for men in ancient Greece to have many extramarital affairs themselves. In this way Aeschylus overlooks the double standards placed upon the women of the time period, but he also, perhaps unwittingly, sets up Clytaemnestra as the antagonist of the plays.
But you are more intemperate in your blood Than Venus or those pampered animals That rage in savage sensuality”ll.55-60; “But fare thee well, most foul, most fair; farewell Thou pure impiety and impious purity” ll.101f) He calls her a “rotten orange”(l.31), as if she was bad on the inside but not on the outside and says that she would know “the heat of a luxurious bed”. (l. 40) Even Hero’s father Leonato believes that she is not a maiden any longer and therefore he even wishes that Hero were not his own daughter. He believes his daughter has deceived him (“Why ever wast though lovely in my eyes? Why had I not with charitable hand Took a beggar’s issue at my gates, Who, smirched thus, and mir´d with infamy, I might have said ‘No part of it is mine;” ll. 129-133).
The attitude in Atwood’s Siren Song by Margret Atwood is captured by an image of the sirens described as “picturesque and mythical.” Atwood draws her readers in by having the sirens use their sex appeal to lure in men and force them to “leap overboard in squadrons.” She then goes on and gives the readers the assumption that the sirens are bored with their beauty, and are almost sickened with the same routine and outcome. “Shall I tell you the secret, and if I do will you get me out of this bird suit?” that implies that the sirens are bored. We see that the song is “irresistible and anyone who has heard it is dead or can’t remember it.” This makes us as readers more interested. The sirens trick men with their beautiful song, and lure them into their deadly
Film Review: The Female Characters of Othello Othello is a tragic story about jealousy, manipulation and deceit. Othello, a highly esteemed general in the service of Venice decides to promote Cassio to the position of personal Lieutenant over Iago, his rather ambitious friend, so Iago, hurt by Othello’s choice, and blinded with jealousy begins an evil and malicious campaign against the hero. This adaptation of Shakespeare’s classic, directed by Oliver Parker, cuts out much of the Shakespearian language and instead houses (in my opinion far too many) establishing shots and long dramatic pauses. Branagh and Fishburne both deliver excellent performances in this version of the Shakespeare classic; Branagh playing Iago better than other adaptations of the character in film or on stage that I’ve seen. Fishburne, ironically the first black Othello in film-history, also delivers a powerful performance, possibly one of his best, as the Moor of Venice.
Odysseus does himself no favours by blinding Poseidon’s son the Cyclops and subsequently uses his powers for evil rather than good. He wants revenge and takes his anger out on the man who hurt his son. He makes the sea so dangerous and almost impossible for Odysseus to continue his journey home. The Goddess Calypso’s role in the Odyssey was to show Odysseus’ loyalty and devotion to his wife, Penelope. Odysseus was stranded on the island of Ogygia with the beautiful nymph, but only gave into her against his will.
The only instance where a female takes on more of the characteristics of the male gods, is Hera, Zues’s wife and Queen of the gods. She is very powerful, but the greeks did not see her as a favorable god, because she caused so many problems simply with her jealousy, and in the end even she yielded to her husband, the male in their relationship. A fantastic example of this is in another passage from the Iliad where Hephasteus tries to calm his mother so that she will not be struck down by his