Penelope (mythology)
Penelope is a prominent figure in Greek mythology, known primarily as the faithful wife of Odysseus, the legendary hero of Homer's epic poem, The Odyssey. Her story unfolds during the protracted absence of Odysseus, who was away for twenty years due to the Trojan War and his subsequent adventures. As suitors flocked to Ithaca, believing Odysseus to be dead, Penelope ingeniously fended off their advances while remaining loyal to her husband. She famously devised a ruse of weaving and unraveling a funeral shroud to delay her decision to remarry, symbolizing her patience and fidelity.
Penelope's character has been interpreted as an embodiment of ideal womanhood and virtue, inspiring various artistic representations throughout history, including paintings, sculptures, and an opera. While her portrayal as the perfect wife is most widely recognized, alternative versions of her story exist, depicting her in a less favorable light. Overall, Penelope's enduring legacy highlights themes of loyalty, cleverness, and the complexities of love and fidelity in ancient Greek culture.
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Penelope (mythology)
In Greek mythology, Penelope was the wife of Odysseus. The most widely known version of her story appears in The Odyssey, which was written by ancient Greek poet Homer between the ninth and eighth centuries BCE. When Odysseus left to fight in the Trojan War, Penelope watched over her husband's kingdom and used clever tricks to deflect the many suitors who wanted to marry her. In the end, Odysseus was gone for twenty years, but Penelope remained faithful to her husband during that time. For this reason, many scholars view her as a symbol of fidelity and patience. Penelope has been depicted in numerous artworks over time, including paintings, sculptures, and even an opera.
Background
According to Greek mythology, Penelope was born to Icarius, a Spartan prince, and Periboea, a nature deity called a nymph. In one myth, Icarius and Periboea gave Penelope a different name when she was born. Later they threw her into the sea, where some sea birds called "penelopes" rescued her and brought her back to shore. Her parents then called her Penelope. In another version of the myth, Periboea, upon giving birth to a daughter, hid the infant girl away because she knew Icarius had wanted a son. When Icarius found the baby girl, he cast her into the sea to drown. However, sea birds rescued her and returned her to shore. Icarius then named her Penelope after the sea birds, and she became his favorite child.
When she came of age, Penelope married Odysseus and moved to Ithaca, the kingdom over which Odysseus ruled. Penelope and Odysseus loved each other very much. They had a son together, whom they named Telemachus. When Telemachus was still a baby, Odysseus was called to fight in the Trojan War. Although he did not want to leave his beloved wife and infant son, he had to fulfill his duties. The Trojan War ended up lasting ten years. During that time, Penelope oversaw her husband's kingdom and prevented it from falling into others' hands.
Overview
Penelope's story in Homer's The Odyssey takes place between the end of the Trojan War and Odysseus's return to Ithaca. After the war, all the Greek leaders left Troy and sailed home to their respective cities. During Odysseus's journey home to Ithaca, however, he encountered numerous obstacles that he had to overcome. As a result, it took him an additional ten years to sail home.
Odysseus took so long to return that many people believed he had died, and they thought Penelope should remarry. More than a hundred suitors from all over Greece came to woo Penelope and convince her to remarry. Penelope, however, held out hope that Odysseus was still alive. For several years, Penelope did her best to deflect the suitors. Many refused to leave the palace until she chose one of them as a husband. Eventually, Penelope told the suitors that she would not consider marrying anyone until she had finished weaving a funeral shroud for her father-in-law, Laertes, who was very old. Penelope then spent day after day weaving the shroud and night after night unraveling her work. Her clever deception lasted for several years until, one day, one of her servants discovered her secret and shared it with the suitors. Angered, the suitors demanded that Penelope finish the shroud and choose a husband.
Meanwhile, Odysseus finally landed on the shores of Ithaca and heard about the events unfolding at his palace. Disguised as a beggar, Odysseus met with Penelope, who did not recognize him, and told her that he recently had seen Odysseus and that her husband would be returning soon. Filled with hope, Penelope announced to the suitors that she planned to hold an archery contest. She told the men that whoever managed to string Odysseus's bow and fire an arrow through a row of twelve axe handles would be her new husband. Penelope knew that no one but her husband would be able to win the competition.
All the men tried and failed to string the bow. Odysseus, still disguised as the beggar, easily won the archery contest. He then removed his disguise and, with the help of Telemachus, killed all the suitors. Penelope, still not convinced that the man before her was really her husband, used one last clever trick to confirm his identity. She asked Odysseus to move their bed. Odysseus, however, explained that their bed could not be moved because one of the bedposts was a living tree still rooted in the ground. This was a secret that only Penelope and Odysseus shared. Having passed the test, Odysseus finally reunited with his wife.
In The Odyssey, Homer paints a picture of Penelope as the patient, dutiful, faithful wife. Scholars have long debated how much of The Odyssey is based on actual events and people. Many believe that Penelope is a character of Homer's creation intended to serve as the symbol of a perfect wife. For this reason, she has come to represent fidelity and feminine virtue.
A few other endings of the story were recorded, and not all portray Penelope to be as perfect as Homer describes her. In one version, one of the suitors seduces her, and when Odysseus finds out, he forces Penelope to return to her father. In another version, Odysseus discovers that Penelope was unfaithful to him with one of the suitors, and he kills her. In a third version, a young man named Telegonus, whom Odysseus fathered with the witch Circe, accidentally kills Odysseus. Telegonus then marries Penelope, and Circe makes the couple immortal. With Telegonus, Penelope gives birth to a son named Italus.
Numerous artists have depicted Penelope in artworks dating back to ancient times. She has been portrayed on ancient Greek vases. Some artists have immortalized her in sculpture. Others have depicted her in paintings. For example, John William Waterhouse's 1912 painting Penelope and the Suitors features Penelope weaving the shroud for her father-in-law while numerous suitors compete for her attention. In 1907, Gabriel Fauré composed an opera about Penelope titled Pénélope. However, Homer's depiction of Penelope in The Odyssey remains the most famous.
Bibliography
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