Question

How does odysseus regard his wife penelope?

Answer 1

Odysseus is one of the few husbands who is told to have been loving and respectful to his wife. At the time he was wooing her, Helen was also on the market, yet he liked Penelope better because she was strong and smart, like him: when the suitors came to her after Odysseus had been gone so long, she came up the plan of telling them she would choose a suitor once her shroud was finished, but every night, after working all day on it, she would undo her work, putting of her choice. He has the chance for immortality and love (sex) with Circe, but turns it down in order to get home. Perhaps the best example is when Odysseus first takes her to be his wife and is driving home, when her father, Laertes, stops them and tells Penelope he wishes her to stay with him, and not go far away. Since Odysseus is the man, it is actually his choice, but, completely uncharacteristic of men in mythology, he allows Penelope to choose whether they stay with her father, or go to live in Odysseus' home.