Throughout the entire novel Penelope is being bombarded by the twelve maids, which are haunting her in the after life. The way that the twelve maids haunt Penelope leads to the question, how responsible is Penelope for the death of the maids? When we envision Penelope we see a faithful, loyal, kind, and loving wife to Odysseus. However, is there something more cynical behind this reputation she has made for herself? In the third chapter Penelope tells of her childhood, and wants us to believe she's a victim. In reality she is the daughter of a Naiad, or rather a water nymph, and most of the time those who wanted to impose harm to her attempted to throw water, which is her element, so their harm was unsuccessful. Now in the fourth chapter we hear of the maids terrible childhoods, which consisted of child labor without any regulation. As children of servants they are made servants from the moment they were able to do work, and if they were sleeping on the job they'd be kicked until they got up. No one was ever there to comfort them when they had been knocked down. When comparing childhoods it seems that the maids had it worse, because they were unable to protect themselves. It is clear when comparing the maids' lives to the life of Penelope that Penelope is no victim. Penelope lived a life of luxury as the wife of Odysseus, while the maids lived like no bodies their entire lives. Now that we have established that Penelope is not a victim the next question is, is Penelope guilty in this situation? Also, if she is guilty, what makes her guilty? When the maids first interrupt Penelope the first thing they say is, "we are the maids, the ones you killed the ones you failed" (pg 5). This statement right off the bat is extremely profound and shocking, but it does quickly reveal how the maids feel about Penelope. In the trial at the end of the book the maids' points are undermined, since after all they are slaves and they have to do everything through their master. Then the judge brings to light that the slaves were raped, and the only witness they had to this was Penelope. When Penelope is asked about the situation she claims she was asleep and all she knew were their claims after the fact. Then she made it seem like she believed the maids and she felt terrible about how they were treated by the suitors, which begs the question, why didn't she stop Odysseus from killing them for "sleeping with the suitors''? After careful consideration of all the evidence provided in the book I believe it is reasonable to say that Penelope is guilty for the death of the twelve maids. Now, Penelope did not have much power in this patriarchal society; however, since it was her husband who wanted to kill them she could have talked to him. Rather it seems that Penelope remained as a bystander as she watched the maids being hung. Their blood now will rest on her hands for all of eternity, because she chose to remain quiet when she knew the situation was unjust.
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From the beginning the human race has been chasing after how to make our lives longer. From the 1800s when life expectancy was between thirty and forty years of age to today ,with our advanced technologies, most people can expect to live over seventy-five years. Yet we still strive to find a way to live forever, which is evident by the research going into cryogenically freezing bodies. Yet Circe, who was immortal, chose to become mortal for love. Many people would question this decision of her's, and wonder why she wouldn't want to live forever. However, Circe had been around for centuries and understood the benefits of mortality. Circe's centuries of life were not the best of conditions, because she became an outcast among the gods due to her powers. The gods believed that her powers were too dangerous and also became angry with her for helping humans, which led to her exile on the island. She lived such a terrible life on the island and it quickly became a sanctuary for the nymphs, who were escaping the awful gods. Even with all of the nymphs on the island with her Circe felt alone and empty, because she had an empty place in her heart for a lover. Yet, the only people she fell in love with were humans, which brought upon the problem of mortality. Since Circe was immortal she could live forever and see the world from beginning to end, but her lovers were mortal and had a finite time on earth. After her love life with Odysseus fell through she fell in love with another man, and he was the one that led her to give up her divinity and her immortality. Once she finally gave up immortality there was a sense of relief she had. No longer did she have to bear the pain of being fascinated with these mortal humans, and loving them so dearly, yet knowing she will live to see the day they pass away and live for eternity without them. Circe understood the benefit of mortality, because once the mortals passed they no longer dealt with their pain of heartbreak. After reading the story of Circe, I think the decision of whether immortality or mortality is better, is extremely clear. Mortality is better, because if you never die the burdens of the lives you watch pile up, and it becomes an isolated life. No one deserves to live the terrible isolated, abandoned life that Circe lived. She understood that for her giving up her divinity was the best decision to make.
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November 2021
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