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Themes in the Odyssey

Roark Wilson, Richard Castle
  • Author
    Roark Wilson

    Roark Wilson is an aspiring young teacher with a Bachelor of Arts from Sewanee: The University of the South and a Master of Studies in eighteenth-century literature from the University of Oxford. He has acted as an informal tutor for two years and a saber fencing coach for seven.

  • Instructor
    Richard Castle
Learn the themes in rhe Odyssey by Homer. Identify its themes about hospitality, loyalty, and vengeance. See examples of hospitality in the Odyssey. Updated: 12/07/2021

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the main theme of The Odyssey?

The most important theme in the Odyssey is that of hospitality or, as the Greeks called it, xenia. This translates to something akin to "guest-friendship." Hospitality is portrayed as a moral imperative throughout the epic, with a failure to provide hospitality or an attempt to take advantage of hospitality often inspiring divine punishment.

What is the story odyssey about?

The Odyssey follows the story of Odysseus, kind of Ithaca, as he tries to return home after the Trojan War. He is delayed for over twenty years due to a combination of forces both manmade and divine.

What odyssey means?

"Odyssey" eventually came to refer to a long and arduous journey. This reflects on the long and arduous journey undergone by Odysseus, the main character in Homer's epic poem the Odyssey.

The Odyssey is one of the two classical Greek epics composed by the poet Homer. In many ways, it serves as a sequel to the preceding Iliad. Homer's Odyssey follows Odysseus' attempts to return home after the decade-long Trojan War despite the anger of Poseidon and other forces that delay that his homecoming by a decade. While parts of the epic focus on the plights of his wife and his son's attempt to locate him, Odysseus dominates the majority of the narrative. Fittingly, "odyssey" has come to mean a long, arduous journey marked by many changes in fortune.

What is the Significance of the Theme of the Odyssey?

The Odyssey is a strangely modern-seeming story, complete with a complicating, novelistic character and many different branching themes. Because the Odyssey differs so dramatically from its predecessor the Iliad, understanding the thematic emphases will lead to a more holistic understanding of both the epic and its central character.

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Introduction to The Odyssey

The Odyssey is a Greek epic poem attributed to the Greek poet Homer during the late eighth century BCE. An epic tells the tale of a hero and his heroic deeds.

The Odyssey follows its hero and protagonist Odysseus as he fights to get home after the Trojan War, a war that lasted an entire decade. Not only did the war last ten years, but so did Odysseus' journey. Odysseus must battle terrifying monsters and escape from some dicey situations, but he does eventually make it back to his home of Ithaca.

As we will discuss, there are several themes at work within The Odyssey. In literature, a theme is a main idea of a work, and it can be stated directly or indirectly, such as a subtle underlying meaning. In this epic poem, there are three major themes: hospitality, loyalty, and vengeance.

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  • 0:58 Theme: Hospitality
  • 2:56 Theme: Loyalty
  • 4:10 Theme: Vengeance
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The three most important themes in the Odyssey are hospitality, loyalty, and vengeance. Each of these were important cultural standards held by the Ancient Greeks, oftentimes backed by divine law.

Hospitality in the Odyssey

Out of all of the themes in the Odyssey, hospitality takes center stage. Hospitality was considered an important virtue—particularly inhospitable individuals, or individuals who took advantage of another's hospitality, could expect to be punished by the gods. This particular moral obligation toward hospitality was referred to as xenia by the Greeks, meaning "guest-friendship." The Odyssey opens with a scene in which hospitality is simultaneously offered and abused. Penelope, the wife of Odysseus and queen of Ithaca, has been approached by a variety of suitors who seek her hand in marriage. As her husband Odysseus has been gone for twenty years, all are convinced that he is dead and that it is time for Penelope to remarry. Penelope is convinced that Odysseus is alive but nevertheless is forced to accede to external pressures and allow the suitors entry. She proves a very hospitable host, feeding and lodging the suitors while she subtly deflects their interests. The suitors, on the other hand, abuse her hospitality—they eat egregious amounts, are rude to their host, and get into fights that destroy Penelope's possessions. Penelope could potentially turn the suitors away, but to do so at first would be inhospitable, and to do so later would be dangerous. This scene alone showcases how important hospitality is within the work—the moral characters actively disadvantage themselves in order to extend hospitality to others.

While there are many other moments of hospitality in the work—consider the multiple occasions where Odysseus or Telemachus (Odysseus' son) are met with open arms, such as with the amicable Phaecians—there are two instances in which hospitality is corrupted or proves dangerous. The most obvious example is Odysseus' encounter with Polyphemus the cyclops. Polyphemus traps Odysseus and the other sailors in his cave-dwelling, then proceeds to batter and devour some of the sailors. This direct breach of hospitality demands punishment. As a part of Odysseus' escape, Polyphemus is blinded. Another example of twisted hospitality is offered by Circe, a witch who turns Odysseus' men into pigs. After her magic fails to transform Odysseus (thanks to gifts from the god Hermes) she becomes a genuine and delightful host. In fact, her hospitality is dangerously good—it tempts Odysseus into staying on her island and delaying his return home for a year.


An image of Circe, a powerful witch known for turning her visitors into swine.

Circe simultaneously defines good and bad hospitality within the Odyssey, as she becomes a genuine host when her magic fails.

Loyalty in the Odyssey

Loyalty is another theme that permeates the Odyssey. It most commonly occurs in relation to loyalty to Odysseus—Penelope steadfastly waiting for him, for example. Similarly, Odysseus' servants Eumaeus and Eurycleia have maintained loyalty to Odysseus throughout the years even though it caused them a good deal of grief from the suitors. When Odysseus returns to his kingdom of Ithaca in disguise, Eurycleia (his old nurse) was the first individual to recognize him due to a birthmark. Eumaeus offered Odysseus hospitality even before he recognized him, and afterward helped Odysseus in his martial pursuits to drive the suitors out. Argos, Odysseus' old hunting dog, also acts as a paragon of loyalty: despite being beaten out of Odysseus' hall by the suitors and surviving at the edge of starvation, he waited two decades for Odysseus to return.

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"Just think of all the hospitality we enjoyed
at the hands of other men before we made it home,
and god save us from such hard treks in years to come.
Quick, unhitch their team. And bring them in,
strangers, guests, to share our flowing feast." -Book IV

These lines come from Menelaus, speaking to the young Telemachus. It perfectly encapsulates the principle of xenia that the Greeks held so dear. As Menelaus was treated well in need, so now will he extend his hospitality to others.

"No winning words about death to me, shining Odysseus!
By god, I'd rather slave on earth for another man—
some dirt-poor tenant farmer who scrapes to keep alive—
than rule down here over all the breathless dead." -Book XI

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Homer's Odyssey is an epic poem that follows the attempts of Odysseus, king of Ithaca, to return home after the long Trojan War. The Odyssey takes place after the events of Homer's Iliad, and the themes in the Odyssey actively comment upon and reflect those in the Iliad. The three central themes of the Odyssey are Hospitality, Loyalty, and Vengeance.

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Theme: Hospitality

Maybe to a modern reader, hospitality doesn't seem like a stellar theme to build a literary work around. After all, you may ask: What great revelations are going to come from not vacuuming before your friends come over? Well, hospitality was actually very important in Greek society. How you treated visitors to your home, whether strangers or friends, said a great deal about your morals.

Let's look at an example of hospitality in the story. It's been ten years since the Trojan War ended, and everyone (except Penelope, who is Odysseus' wife) believes that Odysseus must be dead since he has still not returned home. Suitors descend on Penelope's home attempting to win her hand. Regardless of her feelings toward them and her belief that Odysseus will return to her, she demonstrates hospitality by allowing the suitors to stay in her home and do whatever they want. To do anything less, even to the worst house guests, would be against her moral code. Also, the suitors are much more powerful than she and her son.

Many people in The Odyssey help Odysseus during his journey home. The Phaeacians, who sail Odysseus home to Ithaca and take good care of him, were well known in Greek mythology for being very hospitable people. Odysseus also receives help from Circe, a sorceress, although at first she does turn his men into pigs. His own servants, when he appears as a strange beggar at the end of the story, offer Odysseus food and comfort because those who are hospitable and kind to guests receive great rewards from the gods.

Others, however, are not so helpful. In the end, the suitors are punished for being terrible guests and awful people. Polyphemus, the cyclops Odysseus runs into, offers no hospitality and even pokes fun at the gods who support it, and Odysseus ultimately blinds him. So within The Odyssey, hospitality is important enough that those who don't practice it are punished.

Theme: Loyalty

Loyalty, as in devotion to helping those close to you, is also a major theme in The Odyssey. Perhaps the most well-known example of loyalty is Penelope and her devotion to her husband Odysseus. Even though her husband has been gone for twenty years, she refuses to marry any of the young, attractive, wealthy suitors who ask for her hand. She believes in her heart that her husband is still alive, and her loyalty is rewarded when Odysseus unveils his disguise and shouts that he has arrived home.

Video Transcript

Introduction to The Odyssey

The Odyssey is a Greek epic poem attributed to the Greek poet Homer during the late eighth century BCE. An epic tells the tale of a hero and his heroic deeds.

The Odyssey follows its hero and protagonist Odysseus as he fights to get home after the Trojan War, a war that lasted an entire decade. Not only did the war last ten years, but so did Odysseus' journey. Odysseus must battle terrifying monsters and escape from some dicey situations, but he does eventually make it back to his home of Ithaca.

As we will discuss, there are several themes at work within The Odyssey. In literature, a theme is a main idea of a work, and it can be stated directly or indirectly, such as a subtle underlying meaning. In this epic poem, there are three major themes: hospitality, loyalty, and vengeance.

Theme: Hospitality

Maybe to a modern reader, hospitality doesn't seem like a stellar theme to build a literary work around. After all, you may ask: What great revelations are going to come from not vacuuming before your friends come over? Well, hospitality was actually very important in Greek society. How you treated visitors to your home, whether strangers or friends, said a great deal about your morals.

Let's look at an example of hospitality in the story. It's been ten years since the Trojan War ended, and everyone (except Penelope, who is Odysseus' wife) believes that Odysseus must be dead since he has still not returned home. Suitors descend on Penelope's home attempting to win her hand. Regardless of her feelings toward them and her belief that Odysseus will return to her, she demonstrates hospitality by allowing the suitors to stay in her home and do whatever they want. To do anything less, even to the worst house guests, would be against her moral code. Also, the suitors are much more powerful than she and her son.

Many people in The Odyssey help Odysseus during his journey home. The Phaeacians, who sail Odysseus home to Ithaca and take good care of him, were well known in Greek mythology for being very hospitable people. Odysseus also receives help from Circe, a sorceress, although at first she does turn his men into pigs. His own servants, when he appears as a strange beggar at the end of the story, offer Odysseus food and comfort because those who are hospitable and kind to guests receive great rewards from the gods.

Others, however, are not so helpful. In the end, the suitors are punished for being terrible guests and awful people. Polyphemus, the cyclops Odysseus runs into, offers no hospitality and even pokes fun at the gods who support it, and Odysseus ultimately blinds him. So within The Odyssey, hospitality is important enough that those who don't practice it are punished.

Theme: Loyalty

Loyalty, as in devotion to helping those close to you, is also a major theme in The Odyssey. Perhaps the most well-known example of loyalty is Penelope and her devotion to her husband Odysseus. Even though her husband has been gone for twenty years, she refuses to marry any of the young, attractive, wealthy suitors who ask for her hand. She believes in her heart that her husband is still alive, and her loyalty is rewarded when Odysseus unveils his disguise and shouts that he has arrived home.

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