Hospitality in The Odyssey

        In many ancient cultures, especially with the Greeks, hospitality and gift giving were each a very important custom. It not only was a gracious gesture, but hosts and hostesses believed it pleased the gods and built connections between families and cities. 

In The Odyssey, it is interesting to read about what Homer does with this theme throughout the poem. There are plenty of examples of greek hospitality and gift giving, and it is interesting to compare the different examples of hospitality being revered and respected with the examples when hospitality is disrespected. 

Early on, we see that the suitors are terrible guests, and would be any Greek host or hostess’ worst nightmare. They basically show up uninvited, and eat Penelope and Telemachus out of house and home. It is interesting to take into consideration what Mike Coyle said in his blog, that perhaps the suitors were just being... well, suitors, because they thought the king was as good as dead, but I still think that if they were trying to win Penelope over, the way to have done it would at least be to have been a good guest in the home of a grieving “widow”. 

There are plenty of other examples of hospitality in The Odyssey, but none as embarrassing as that of the suitors. There is an example, however, where we see a family’s hospitable nature gets the best of them. This occurs in the poem when Odysseus finally escapes Ogygia, where he was the miserable guest-slash-prisoner of the deceiving goddess Calypso. Odysseus becomes the guest of honor in the home of the Phaecians, where over dinner he retells his story of his epic journey thus far. The Phaecians serve as amazing hosts, but in the end pay the price for it; by helping Odysseus on his way back home to Ithaca, the gods who are holding a grudge against Odysseus punish the Phaecians.

Soon after, we see how the act of gift giving and being hospitable can also get the best of those on the receiving end who are greedy. Two specific instances of this are found in the poem. The first occurs when Aeolus gives Odysseus’ men a bag they think is a gift, but since they think it is a treasure and want to know what is inside, they open it only to find that inside the bag is gusts of wind which send them backwards in their journey home. The second is when the men reach the land of the sun, Thrinacia. They are beached there for a month, and Odysseus’ men, again, against the host’s rules, slaughter and eat forbidden cattle. This not only proves that their greed led them to be disrespectful guests, but it also allows Zeus to punish the men once more. 

Odysseus, now alone, finally reaches Ithaca, but disguised as an old man. The tables are turned as now he must be a guest in Eumaus’ home and in his own home. How humbling it must have been for Odysseus to be a guest in his own home, and to have his feet washed by his own nurse. 

Overall, I think the prevalence of the theme of hospitality and gift giving reflect’s the poet’s ideas towards these customs.