Reevaluating Monsters of The Odyssey

Eryn Goudy

The Odyssey is commonly analyzed as being a story showcasing a masculine hero who overcomes temptations as he travels back to Ithaca. Analysis of this text rarely focuses on antagonistic forces and the patriarchal hierarchy of how they are treated, which we see in characters like Calypso, Circe, and Polyphemus. Within the text, Polyphemus is portrayed as a monster, yet his encounter with Odysseus leaves him a scarred PTSD victim meant to illicit some empathetic responses from the audience. Meanwhile, Calypso is written as some dangerous temptress that sought to wrestle Odysseus away from his family for her own selfish desires and nothing more. Similarly, Circe is written as this predatory witch that turns drunken men into pigs and is portrayed as unfeeling and cold to men. In this essay, I plan to look at how Calypso, Circe, and Polyphemus are presented and The Odyssey and use sources about the patriarchal nature of Ancient Greece to analyze the difference in presentation of feminine and masculine antagonistic forces within The Odyssey.

• Eryn Goudy is a senior English major at Lander University with an emphasis on professional writing. Her hobbies include writing, video games, and studying various myths from around the world.