Homer's The Odyssey and Ovid's The Metamorphoses Give Insight into Ancient Greece and Rome

Ancient stories and myths often include the happenings of day to day life. Events in literary stories are often influenced by the thinking of the times. By examining the activity as well as the character's reaction to the action, one gains insight into the sociological perspective of the era. Antediluvian epics, such as Homer's "The Odyssey" and Ovid's "The Metamorphoses," contain information which reflects the antiquated world's way of life.

Understanding the cultural differences in the ancient world and current times help the reader have a rich understanding of the text as well as the history that shaped the current world. As the world is a cumulative conglomerate of what has been, it is important to study and understand the thinking of the times in order to fully grasp the context of the author's work. For example, the ancient Greek civilization suffered a great fire which occurred sometime during the last part of the millennium. Destroying many palaces, the fire cost the ancient Greece a great deal of wealth as well as sociological advancement. Along with the Greeks losing their developed system of writing, the entire culture also lost their literacy. This period, the Dark Age of Greece, ended with Homer's epic poems: "The Iliad" and "The Odyssey" as the writings helped Greece regain its ability to live as a literate nation (Ancient 105).

With Greece's emergence from the Dark Age, the civilization looked to Homer's writings as an educational history from which a new culture was based. The surviving tablets share historical details and cultural beliefs which had been lost. An example of revived beliefs which emerge are the Greek concepts of the gods. The Grecian theology believed in gods which explain the "disorder of the world" (106). Almost as if suggesting man's actions have no direct consequences, the ancient Greek culture appears to trace every action to the whims of one of the gods.

In "The Odyssey," Odysseus refers to Aiolos as "the wind kind dear to the gods" (Homer 332). Hoping for assistance in his upcoming journey home, Odysseus asks Aiolos for help controlling the winds. Aiolos initially helps Odysseus by bagging the winds, but when the crew releases the winds in a mini mutiny, Aiolos refuses to help Odysseus again, insisting he would not "help a man the blessed gods detest--out! Your voyage here was cursed by the heavens" (334). Since the text does not address the actions of Odysseus disobedient crew, the reader is forced to consider a notion "that is difficult for the modern reader to take seriously" (Ancient 106). While the majority of the western world embraces religious freedom, it is rare to find a current society of people who believe in a God or gods that control every detail of life on their emotional impulses.

When Odysseus' men encounter Kirke, she transforms them into swine. Hermes, the son of Zeus and "ambassador of the Gods," befriends Odysseus as he plans to pay a visit to Kirke with the intentions of besting her and rescuing his crew (Think quest 1). Kirke attempts to enchant Odysseus, and fails in her endeavor. As suggested by Hermes, Odysseus "entered Kirke's flawless bed of love" after her botched attempt to charm him (Homer 341). Odysseus climbing into bed with a bewitching woman who has deformed his crew is a testament to the strong belief in the Greek's theology. Although requesting an oath from Kirke, Odysseus obeys Hermes instructions. With the growing trend of incorporating free will into religious beliefs, a contemporary man may find himself questioning the need to have sex with an enemy.

As history shows the world to be a force which continually builds upon itself, literature reflects the cumulative growth over centuries. "Roman civilization is often grouped into

Although the Roman culture was influenced by the Greek, there are many distinct differences in the ways the gods are portrayed. "The gods represented distinctly the practical needs of daily life, as felt by the Roman community to which they belonged" (Roman 1). For example, even the mighty Jove, also often referred to as Jupiter, is praised for the rain which is required for crops to grow and animals to thrive. However, much like Grecian theology, Roman religious views also focused on the "complex interrelations between gods and humans" (1). "The classical antiquity with ancient Greece, a civilization that inspired much of the culture of ancient Rome" (Wikipedia 1). The ancient Roman culture and Roman literature was influenced by the Grecian writings of Homer. graffiti, brothels, paintings, and sculptures found in Pompeii and Herculaneum suggest that the Romans had a very sex-saturated culture" (1). Ovid's "Metamorphoses" blends an example of the intricacy involved between the gods and humans as well as the sexual mores in Jove's relationship with Io. Jove addresses Io as "O virgin," and tells her, "Your guardian is a god-- and I am not a common deity: for I am he who hold within his hand the heavens' scepter: I am he who hurls the roaming thunderbolts. So do not flee!" (Ovid 1142). Io flees as Jove speaks, but the god "stopped her flight; he raped chaste Io" (1143). While modern day thinking in the western world finds Jove's behavior unacceptable, the reader must understand the culture of the times to avoid judgment based on one's own theological or moral beliefs.

Appreciating the cultural distinctions in the ancient world and current times will help the reader have a richer comprehension of the text as well as how the past shaped the present world. As humanity is a collective conglomerate of days gone by, it is essential to analyze and comprehend the philosophy of the times in order to completely take in the perspective of the author's masterpiece. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ancient_Rome&oldid=138642183>. http://www.crystalinks.com/romemythology.html>

Works Cited

"Ancient Greece and the Formation of the Western Mind." The Norton Anthology of World Literature. 2^nd ed. Vol. A. Ed. Lawall, Sarah. New York: Norton, 2002. 105-113.

"Ancient Rome." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 16 Jun 2007, 22:40 UTC. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 17 Jun 2007 Homer. "The Iliad." The Norton Anthology of World Literature. 2^nd ed. Vol. A. Ed. Lawall, Sarah. New York: Norton, 2002. 120-225.

Homer. "The Odyssey." The Norton Anthology of World Literature. 2^nd ed. Vol. A. Ed. Lawall, Sarah. New York: Norton, 2002. 225-530.

Ovid. "Metamorphoses." The Norton Anthology of World Literature. 2^nd ed. Vol. A. Ed. Lawall, Sarah. New York: Norton, 2002. 1138-1182.

"People and Places of the Odyssey." ThinkQuest Help. 15 Jun 2007. ThinkQuest Foundation.

"Roman Mythology." Ellis Crystal's Metaphysical and Science Website. 17 Jun 2007.