The Male Gaze in the Odyssey: Penelope and Clytemnestra
Perceptions and Consequences of Loyalty
Angie Meneses & Juliana Romeo
About
In this pressbook entry, we want to critique how males view female characters in the Odyssey. In our research, we came across an article comparing Penelope and Clytemnestra, who are the wives of two powerful men. The article further highlighted that the male characters and gods often have control over the female bodies and the way in which the females are portrayed in the poem. We wanted to further explore this comparison and also bring in how gender roles are perpetuated in the poem, as we discussed in past workshops. Penelope, who is alone while her husband Odysseus is on a grand journey back to Troy, is left to fend for herself against the swarms of suitors who seek to take her as their wife. Clytemnestra, Agamemnon’s wife, is tragically killed by her son for sleeping with another suitor. The two women aren't directly compared, but as readers, we get the impression that Penelope is the ideal wife for waiting for Odysseus whereas Clytemnestra is evil and cunning for betraying her husband. However, these portrayals and descriptions are too simplistic and represent the male gaze. For our pressbook, we wanted to research these characters more to better understand why they did or did not wait for their husbands and compare how they are described in the Odyssey.
We created three charts to create a counternarrative for Penelope and Clytemnestra. The first chart highlights how male characters describe the two women in the Odyssey. The second chart showcases quotes where male characters perpetuate stereotypes of females by reducing the woman to their appearances and judging their actions based on what they expect from women. The third provides a counternarrative from a female perspective that analyzes the quotes and identifies the double standards that the women are subjected to. While Odysseus and Agamemnon were not faithful to their wives during their journeys away from home, Penelope and Clytemnestra are expected to remain loyal to their husbands-- even if they do not know whether they are alive. We hope that these charts push our audience to question the characters of the Odyssey and consider how gender plays a role in how characters treat and perceive one another.
Descriptions through the Male Gaze
Adjectives used to describe each woman in the Odyssey:
Penelope
Wise
Beautiful
Desirable
Loyal
Clytemnestra
Deceitful
Shameful
Evil
Quotes from the Odyssey
Penelope
"But your wife will not kill you, Odysseus. The wise
Penelope is much too sensible
to do such things. " Book 11, Line 443
"Then wise Penelope
came from her bedroom, looking like a goddess, like Artemis or golden Aphrodite,
and flung her arms around her darling son,
and wept. " Book 17, Line 35
"The suitors weakened at the knees; desire bewitched them, and they longed to lie with her." Book 18, Line 211
Clytemnestra
"There is no more disgusting act than when a wife betrays a man like that. That woman formed a plot to murder me! Her husband! When I got back home, I thought I would be welcomed, at least by my slaves and children. She has such an evil mind that she has poured down shame on her own head and on all other women, even good ones" Book 11, Line 428
"While we fought and labored at Troy, this layabout sat safe in Argos,
seducing Clytemnestra, noble wife
of Agamemnon. For a while, she scorned
his foul suggestions, since her heart was good....
But finally Fate forced the queen to yield." Book 3, Line 264
Reimagined Passages: A Woman's Perspective
Penelope
In these quotes, Penelope is portrayed as a wise and loyal woman who is bestowed to her husband, Odysseus. She is praised for her beauty as the suitors compete for her love and affection. Yet, Penelope's desires are never considered. Does she want to marry a suitor? Does she want to stay with Odysseus? Is she grieving because she misses her husband? To the suitors, she is solely seen as a symbol of power since she is the wife of Odysseus. As a mother, she is only protected by her son, Telemachus. In the counternarrative below, we depict Penelope as a woman who dearly misses her husband. There is a sharp contrast between the lively suitors who seek to win Penelope and the disheartened Penelope. Additionally, there is a sense of embarrassment that she experiences because she questions whether her husband still loves her. While male characters admire her for her beauty and loyalty, this counternarrative highlights that Penelope no longer views herself as beautiful. She has spent so much time worrying about Odysseus that she has lost her sense of self. The ending highlights that Penelope recognizes that she relies on Odysseus and that her loyalty prevents her from obtaining happiness. She wonders that even if he returns, she will still continue to feel this way. While she longs for Odysseus, she may be experiencing deeper mental health issues that can not simply be fixed by the return of her husband.
Clytemnestra
Agamemnon and Odysseus discuss Clytemnestra’s betrayal and describe her as a cunning and evil woman who has committed the worst possible act. This description paints Clytemnestra as a cold and horrible woman for acting on her desire to be with another man and Agamemnon even notes that her act has brought shame upon her and all women- good and bad. While the characters describe their contempt for Clytemnestra and the type of woman she represents-- those who would act on their desire and lie with another man-- the men here fail to acknowledge what drove Clytemnestra to this act. Agamemnon killed Clytemnestra's first husband in order to marry her and later sacrificed their daughter. Clytemnestra is then expected to wait ten years for him to return from war. Below we wrote a short counternarrative that delves into what led her to this decision. This contradicts Agamemnon's description of her as an evil and shameful woman and instead presents her from a more understanding point of view as opposed to the male gaze that we see above.
The wise Penelope, they call her wise,
or perhaps a fool.
Ten years and not a trace of Odysseus,
where could he be?
A renowned hero like himself is surely not alone,
where does he lay at night? Alone?
Surely not.
And yet here sits Penelope gazing out her window
longing for the man who is in another's arms.
The sensible Penelope with her radiant beauty
and cold bed whilst suitors
line the halls feasting and drinking, filling their stomachs,
Penelope's heart fills with sorrow.
She no longer recognizes herself, for her radiance dulls with every passing year.
The lovely Penelope,
heartachingly loyal lies
wide awake and paralyzed wonders
will she ever feel complete?
Clytemnestra betrayed Agamemnon, yes, but as her husband shamed her first, is her revenge not justice?
He tore their beautiful daughter from her arms,
to sacrifice the child.
It is no surprise that she would fall for another,
with Agamemnon far from home,fighting for the honor and respect
that he had long lost from
his own wife.
And so ten long years elapsed
whilst the embittered Clytemnestra grew tired,
tired of the sorrow seeping from her chest,
tired of the longing for her first husband and child
stolen by cruel Agamemnon
who wickedly took what she loved most.
As her fury blossomed, so did the desire for Aegisthus who helped soothe her aching soul.
As they lay, they planned Agamemnon's demise,
plotting for the curtains to close upon his life as they had for poor Iphigenia and for her beloved, Tantalus.