The Odyssey Group

Question:

biancaxox
biancaxox
Student
High School - 12th Grade

In "The Odyssey,"  what are examples that discuss the unfair and arbitrary nature of divine justice. How and why are these examples unfair?

Obviously (just in case someone didn't catch it) the question has to do with people that are either half-human half-god or godess or a god/goddess in general. 

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Posted by biancaxox on Sunday October 5, 2008 at 12:05 PM and tagged with characters, divine justice, goddesses, gods, plot, the odyssey, themes.

Answers:


  1. jlcannad Teacher
    High School - 12th Grade

    eNotes Editor

    Your biggest example comes from Calypso in book five of the Odyssey.  When Hermes come to inform her that the gods have ordered her to release Odysseus, she makes a long an impassioned plea about the unfair nature of the justice the gods mete out.  She accuses Zeus of sexism, saying that the male gods take human lovers all the time, but when goddess take mortal lovers, the way Dawn took Orion or Demeter slept with Iasion, the gods immediately grew angry.  She definitely feels like the gods do not have justice in mind but instead arbitrarily enforce whichever rules benefit themselves the most.

    Sources:
    http://www.enotes.com/odyssey/book-5-summary-analysis
    http://www.enotes.com/odyssey/character-analysis
    http://www.enotes.com/odyssey/themes

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    Posted by jlcannad on Sunday October 5, 2008 at 12:14 PM