The Punishment Of Odysseus In Homer's The Odyssey

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Imagine a king lost at sea for twenty years with no way to reach his kingdom. In Homer’s The Odyssey, an epic hero, Odysseus, undergoes many situations and adventures. Toward the end of the book, after finally arriving to his home of Ithaca, Odysseus is exposed to those who infringe his island. Odysseus now has to consider decisions on how to punish these people who have created such a dilemma at his castle. Odysseus’ deportment at the end of the book is unjustifiable; his punishments do not fit the crimes, he acts like a hypocrite, and he does not have good judgement.
In The Odyssey, Odysseus’ punishments are excessive. One of the first decisions Odysseus has to make is to determine how to punish Antinous and Melanthius. Odysseus chooses to shoot the head suitor, Antinous, right through his throat, leaving him to bleed continuously to death. It does not come to Odysseus’ mind that these humans that he is treating cruelly are people of his own. In similarity, Melanthius is a low suitor who spits …show more content…
The way Odysseus treats the poor women who are acting disloyal to him is totally unacceptable. Odysseus commands them to clean and clear the bodies of the dead suitors. Another example is when Odysseus orders Telemachus and the herdsmen to end the women’s lives. Telemachus and the herdsmen hang the women by their necks. Though the women had affairs with suitors, they do not deserve to be called, “you sluts--the suitors’ whores!” (22.490). For socializing with those who betray Odysseus, the women do not deserve a rasping punishment. The women did not mean crime. They just want a partner, and who is there to love when you're “trapped” around one another. Odysseus is being hypocritical. When Odysseus and his men are on Circe’s Island, he has an affair with Circe for one full year before leaving. Odysseus has no right to serve such punishments when he also did such a thing. We do not picture leaders to be
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