April 25, 2007
ENG223 students: By Friday, 5/4, please write a comment on this post that addresses the following question:
What, if anything, did you find in The Odyssey that is relevent or interesting to people now, in April of 2007?
April 25, 2007
ENG223 students: By Friday, 5/4, please write a comment on this post that addresses the following question:
What, if anything, did you find in The Odyssey that is relevent or interesting to people now, in April of 2007?
April 27th, 2007 at 9:57 pm
I just have to do this……..forgive me. I wrote it as an answer even before your assignment.
Sarah
Ulises’ Travels
One of the frustrations in working in a Sheltered Immersion first grade is reaching the student that entered your program with no English.
Not even enough to ask you for a drink, or as the kids say here, ” Can I drink water teacher?”
It would seem that times have changed enough, politics and votes clearly cast in haste so that on the small shoulders of the little ones we have decided to let fall the weight of a state that votes for dominant language now, over dominant language later.
Our Unz Initiative passed to throw our work with bilingual classes back to darker ages and now in instantaneous programmatic invention of “new approaches” to put the policy in effect (such as my room) the clutch and grab solutions arrive to take children from zero to 180 language wise in as fast a time as possible.
I suppose the only problem being we forgot to get them in some kind of safe car to do it and sometimes they get pretty clobbered in the event of a wipe-out….but just the same my position is to teach a group of students in English using “Sheltering Language” strategies, the same materials, the same Standards and prepare them to do as well as everyone else .
And in my room about 4 can’t yet express to me too much in English, not if they have a sick stomach, or if someone is manipulating them, or if they need to have extra time on “homeworks” in English without an intermediary. They are in no small way learning at age 6 that they are in a place that allows 6 year olds to sink or swim-no matter how benign I am, how loving, how well I support the experience, the biggest lesson they are learning is language is power, it’s everything.
They know they lack it and this classroom was created to minute by minute reinforce to them they need to try hard and to get, if I can paraphrase King, “Some big English words”. Or if I can borrow from Gaby, “Teacher he don’t have the English but he wants to say that the big kids at the recess took his glasses that the Preencipal gots to him for the Red Ribbon and he needs to be getting the glasses because he was trying to be careful.”
And so Ulises has his shiny new sunglasses (given to celebrate a drug free program in all schools )disappear on the field and with the advocate that is my Gabby La La he has some help to restore another pair. If I am listening very hard and hearing what is needed. A lot depends on the quality of my character. A lot depends on “teacher”. Which earns me the biggest, boldest smile he has…..as I go grumbling down the corridor taking the group to the library and thinking about the journey Ulises is on…the journey I’ve seen many immigrant children take. The journey into American citizenship.
My husband and I have a close friend…a teacher, currently an Assistant Principal at a nearby high school that has the ability to tell the story of the opportunity and the value he places on his journey into American citizenship. He came to the country in high school…attended a year or so of school. Somehow I think in a Frierean way because he was determined to learn and “make it” and focused on survival and success , carrying a unique set of survival and family skills from Mexico, he was able to get his High School diploma. He saw education as the greatest privilege ever given him, almost in Holy terms…and his part in that process one requiring almost super human determination and effort. I suppose his work ethic spoke to the work ethics of my husband who hired him. They have been closer than close ever since, dedicated to school, children, community and the desire to create schools that matter. I met another guy like him working part time at our community pool, but really studying electronics in college and he described a similar story. Through the same High school newcomer teacher at Hueneme High both began to unlock grammar and writing, vocabulary and their new language aided by, as both have stated and shown tremendous amounts of personal fortitude and personal desire to get the power…to possess the ability to enter into the societal mix above the level of field laboring, but willing to labor in any way to achieve their goal of making a good life in this nation. Given a friend, opportunity, given a way to do it, they showed what they could do, and the world is far better for their lives. It’s daunting to meet individuals like this and then look at your own life…you feel so inadequate. Our friend, Oscar, has certainly met many of his goals, college, teaching career working now on PHD, with exemplary work with students just like mine, and into administration where I think it fair to say he isn’t a 9 to 5 kind of guy. He’s a 4 to 9 kind of guy…..AM to PM and his energy and determination are undeniably focused on doing well by being able to use the language of English and the core constructs of our country to achieve a life…he stands for me a kind of iconographic figure of the way I wish it would go…for all the students I am teaching. Ah if only….
If you are lucky enough to find a few minutes within a classroom at years’ start one of the interesting things to do is try to find out why each child bears the name they have…this becomes layered in a bit more complexity in a Sheltered Immersion room as I have some parents fearful of why I ‘m asking what I ‘m asking (with just reason to wonder now a days about the whiteness I carry and what I might be about.)….and also I’m sure it’s rather unusual in that I lack conversational Spanish to contextualize in dialogs at the door. But eventually we are able to get the families sharing who children were named for, what the name means looking it up on our internet, where it connects to literature which is always my part of the dialogs as they continue through the year in school and that connects in part for me into my main mission with children…finding out who you are , really, and who you come from and how you connect to the greatest story ever told…the story of the human race within our “American version”.
The children had 12 names of 18 that related to God this year by the way. I was astonished by this. And they had one name from the Inca for “Princess” and one name that means essentially “lost one”, and that would be my little Ulises named after the Greek who anger the gods and found himself set out on the voyage that seemed to have no ending. I can only hope that for the moment he has set down in my little island and is enjoying the breezes and calypso music…but I do fundamentally worry about the journey he has to take .He will say goodbye one day and journey on….they all do. It is a journey full of obstacles and hidden medusas and currents that can take him farther from home, farther from the shores of safety. And it is the stuff of self discovery.
Watching kids over my career in schools where I spent most of my time as a transition teacher…a teacher helping students go from bilingual education into English at 4th grade…watching the children in my rooms and in the rooms of my husband and colleagues I have had lots of moments of insight into 2nd language acquisition, lots of training, lots of successes and lots of concerns. When I see a little one so happy as Ulises and so charming, working so hard and producing such good copies and such beautiful artwork and silently absorbing all we do with bright intelligent lights beaming out, I’m aware that he is aware the journey is his for the making. I am responsible to him to see that the room works in ways slightly different than just up the road in an area of affluence and English dominance…in my domain I have to unfold how the language develops, the vocabulary to exist in a day to day way, I have to teach where we are, why we are here, what we are about with strategies and patterns that make sense to a 2nd language learner, I have to motivate and encourage, dance the dance of school and Standard , sing us to the end of our days in 1st grade pulling tricks out of my hat to make content visible, to connect our experiences, to real things they know, to figure out bridges and to build them and scaffold meaning onto the head of a pin if necessary….plus we have a room full of each other for support and connection. It’s rather daunting some days.
I read a very funny Halloween book the other day, did you know I have to explain Halloween? I read a book called Witch, Witch Come to my Party….in it a series of lifelike creatures invite each other to a party revealing at the end they are all in masks. Well, what was especially funny was several of the characters reference storybook characters like the unicorn and the “big Bad Wolf” of Little Red Riding Hood fame.
Not a child in my room recognized this wolf as Big, bad as not a single one knew the Red Riding Hood story. And so we had to stop the day, stop the standard of the DI day-oh no- and read a few tales. I could have dropped a pin in the class during the telling of Little Red Riding Hood.
Later at recess I gave out puppets to reenact that fairy tale and several others I told, like the 3 Pigs. And I sat and watched, suffering a growing flu, as they reenacted their “versions” of the stories. I saw what meaning they had gathered and how they put together the “morals.” Gaby and her small group liked a cleaner tale, one in which Little Red bossed the others into submission and had them, ” Get me some wood and get out of that bed or I’ll gets you an axe and chops you up.” But Ulises and his equally silent friend Giovanni acted out an even more wonderful version …they put on wolf puppets really fast, scoring them ahead of the others and growled and devoured with classic beauty. There’s was a part essential to every table group story and though largely unspoken …dangerous and they were always a star. And so I watched as pigs built “bad houses” and Little Red struggled with her role as meek and mild and “innocent” and I laughed outloud to hear Gabby tell her group, “Red is not going to be sos stupid to lets that wolf get her basket or her grandmum okays, we are going to trick that wolf when he gets hisself in our cottages.”
And so it goes…you teach the days away and find yourself in November with an “adopted ” curriculum that forgets to mention a word about the Mayflower, or Native Americans or really Little Red or any of the pieces of dominant culture that weave us together as a people for right or wrong…a curriculum that had a phonics story last week called “A Hut For Zig Bug” which was about short u and a bug that goes out and recycles things into a small box to create a home. Incredibly the follow up comprehension and curricular pieces failed to notice the recycling or the notions of home as created from nothing…so I read Something From Nothing that wonderful story of a child saving pieces of a blanket by having a resourceful family make the pieces into clothing over the life of the child until the child is left with the story and all the blanket has gone (from blanket to pants, to scarf, tie, button))…we are so often left to teach with a story.
It’s harder to do that when you get Zig Bug, but I try. Through this I have an eye on Ulises in his travels into English, watching how he is expressing meaning. He raised his hand in twenty questions three times this week to say “pumpkin”, it was actually not pumpkin at all, but we celebrated his answers so much I forget what it was, so it might as well be pumpkin…He struggles with the phonics, he reads it, but he reads it as if he were me reading the side of the ingredient list for shampoo, a question after every syllable. It kind of comes out like…”What? Are you asking me to figure this out? Why is that bug dragging that around? What is a hut? What does that stamp have to do with the floor? Why does she keep saying hut, mat, Zig…what’s going on?” But that’s unvoiced of course. So I keep smiling at Ulises and Ulises keeps smiling back.
Ulises is a fast learner. He has made good strides with color vocabulary, things in the room, naming of parts (which just reminds me of the poem Naming of Parts) and he has enough language now to protest a seat stolen away on the carpet or ask for “a few minutes”, he knows our routines, he can monitor the jobs and he can give a blank look with the best of them- if a visitor decides to visit from the District Office to see what we are doing and asks, “What are you doing?” He can give the “We don’t know” faster than Gaby can voice the ,”We don’t know she makes us” so at least we are progressing. We can find a scapegoat and that would be me….and that’s a fairly good dominant culture idiom of late. It’s the fault of instruction for sure.
I’m worried of course about turning the years of listening necessary to learn a language into a shortened and speed filled span for Ulises, worried about the bumps in the road, worried that while he is naming colors- peers in other rooms are discussing author intent and making connections like my 6 year old nephew who sagely noted to me recently, “Well, if your class is struggling with English, Aunt Sarah, they probably will have a great deal of trouble acquiring enough language to really appreciate a good story like my new one on Peter Pan. But you know you have to be sure to teach as much science as you can because it’s a world we kids really need to understand and learn both the flora and the fauna.”
So I followed that observation with a story of how I’m hauling in dragonflies , snake skins, getting a bird and he suggested I “get a preying mantis and a walking stick” , and “teach about nocturnal animals and the food chain”. All of which is fair advice. After listening to what he is doing I increased tenfold the content I am doing in the room. And I oriented around science and math again…because I developed an incredible sense of reality in just having a conversation with a six year old that will score very well on the tests that mean everything.
Ulises is on a journey towards his education. The pitfalls that lie in his way are quite different than those for Joseph. Both face the unknown however and we just don’t know which boat will go the distance or indeed if both won’t float very well. For my student, I am aware that language, stepping into a new culture, poverty, school and present day realities are out there in the seas he has to navigate, along with good intentions and beasts of racism and ignorance that are ringing their bells louder everyday . He’s on an incredible journey, a life struggle, one glorious and meaning filled and I hope he has heroic fortitude, a few friends along the way and the ability to learn from mistakes, to try in the face of defeat…but he’s shown that kind of strength to me already .
He seems so small to take on this journey….you think of the writer casting this little Harry Potter into the role of fighting injustice and the dark forces and actually I realize onto the young we have often, at least in our great literature, projected our greatest battles and injustices. My hope is he goes forth from my port in this storm better for the experience, sheltered, immersed in the things that are America, the values of individualism, freedom, wisdom, courage…it is my job to see him able to take his place in the world. And so like the story of old I hope he sails well and finds his path both back to home and out in the wide world.
Journey on little one.
April 28th, 2007 at 12:29 pm
The thing that I found most interesting about The Odyssey was that people interact with people in the poem in funny sorts of ways. The aspect that I enjoyed most about the book was how the gods would interact with one another, or how higher and more empowered people, such as Penelope and Odysseus, would get treated, and treated others. The suitors didn’t really treated Odysseus well when they let him in for food. He got hit with a stool and made him feel like dirt. Sometimes today, in April of 2007, people mistreat others that aren’t or the same stature as them and they downgrade them. Stereotypes play a big role in this, and people are shocked when they see things out of the ordinary. We talked about double standards in class, and how different genders have different roles in society and what is right for them and what isn’t right. That issue is still very prevalent today, and is a hot topic that people debate. Why is it that woman can’t do the same things as men sometimes because society will see them differently. People still like to talk about that and it was a big issue in The Odyssey.
April 28th, 2007 at 1:37 pm
The most interesting thing to me in The Odyssey was the irrelevance of time, and the openness to strangers.
When I was reading The Odyssey, I found it really hard to keep track of time. Not only does Odysseus’ journey take nearly twenty years, but time seems irrelevant to Odysseus. For example, he is always complaining (and crying as always), that he wants to get home. However, at one point in the book he stays an island with his crew for over a year. Not because they’re stuck, but because Odysseus is having a good time. It seems like if Odysseus would just get on with things, his gigantic journey home could have taken fifteen years.
The other interesting thing is how strangers are welcomed by nearly everyone. Whether it’s the idea of a god in disguise, or just helpfulness, nearly person in The Odyssey welcomes stangers to their homes. For example, in one book, Odysseus shows up at some random palace and is invited to stay. On top of that, he feasts and relaxes, before the king even asks him his name. Maybe the world would be a better place if people were more welcoming to others, known and unknown.
April 28th, 2007 at 4:35 pm
The most relevant issue in the Odyssey that relates or is interesting to people today was the whole concept of double standards. It was very prominent in the novel, and it is also very apparent and still existent today. We discussed this extensively in class because many people can relate to it, and it’s also interesting because people today have formed strong opinions on double standards. I agree with the things that Scott and Alec have brought up; superstitions and openness towards strangers. At many of the places that Odysseus found himself ashore, the people were ever so accommodating and open towards him. You probably will not find that anywhere today; although you could still buy such treatment at hotels. It is something that just shows how different the time periods are, and how cultures and beliefs change so dramatically over time. Superstitions and the beliefs in omens and gods that the people in the Odyssey expressed is somewhat relevant to today, because people still worship gods and believe in many little superstitions. All of those sayings about bad luck, such as how walking under a ladder or breaking a mirror will bring bad luck are superstitions and (for the most part completely unrealistic) beliefs that many of us believe in and live by to some extent. So although the Odyssey is written about long-ago-times, some of the issues in the lives of the characters still remain as important things today.
April 29th, 2007 at 8:40 am
All that I really found relevant to today was the discussion about “double standards.” It is interesting to watch the reactions of people when you criticize them for holding different types of people to different standards. The other night I was watching “America’s Funniest Home Videos” and the host made a comment about double-standards. He was talking about how when men get hurt, women laugh, but if a woman gets hurt and men laugh, the women get angry. I thought this was very interesting, as I have much experience in laughing at my mother, and I can’t stress enough how angry she gets. Double-standards affect many people and because of this, these people have labeled them as normal, and do not realize what they are doing.
April 29th, 2007 at 2:55 pm
I thought that people treated people very differently back then they do today. As Odysseus was trying to go home he got help from many strangers along the way. Kings and Queens who had no idea who he was would feed, bath him and shower him with gifts. This is not the way American soceity works today. If a strange man came to my doorstep, I think there is a better chance of me calling the cops than inviting him in to spend the night. It’s sad that everyone has to live with their gaurd up so high up now. People don’t have the same trust and kindness that people back then had.
April 29th, 2007 at 4:42 pm
There are many aspects of The Odyssey that appeal to people today. As we discussed before, some of the double standards applied back then are still applied today, such as the expectations of men and women. There are not only “deep” similarities like the double standards, but simple ones, too. As I said in class, one of my favorite parts was when Odysseus returns home in disguise and his dog recognizes him. I liked that because something like that could happen today, so I could easily imagine it. I homestly have no idea why my other favorite part was “the islanders with their long hair”, but I thought that was very funny. It is interesting how you can relate to a book that was written so long ago.
April 29th, 2007 at 9:29 pm
The Odyssey had some themes that were quite relevant to April 2007. The big one which everyone seems to be touching upon is ‘double standards’: the idea that two different groups can be given different expectations for the same matter. For example, Odysseus goes hog wild with Calypso, and other women he crosses paths with, and that’s socially acceptable. At the same time, however, Penelope is expected to remain loyal to her husband for the duration of his travels. Another theme I found to be the same was the way people were treated. When beggars came for food, the suitors treated them like crap, because they were lacking in social points, and the suitors were higher up on the food chain. In today’s day and age, people are mistreated because of their social points [or lack there of] all the time. Another theme that is similar is the desire to get completely wrapped up in someone else’s business. For example, the gods throughout the book manage to obsess themselves in ‘peasant’ matters, as if they have nothing better to do. When I see magazine covers about Anna Nicole Smith’s baby, and Brittany Spears’ hair, I feel sorry for them because of how the media [and others ] have invaded their lives (This just in: Anna Nicole Smith is dead!) and made every move of theirs public knowledge. One would think that the Gods, kings of social points (WHOA DUDE, EPITHET, LOL!!!), would have better things to do than get caught up in all the drama. Well, that’s my $.02 at least.
April 30th, 2007 at 12:46 pm
The Odessey is still revelent to people living today. The issues in society pointed out in the book to the readers such, the the “double standard” still are in effect. Although, there are no cyclopos’ running around in New York City there still are people who fight others for respect and power. Small events in the book such as, the attack on the suitors toward the ending of the book relates to the saying “do not trust anyone.” Furthermore, there are some people who believe in small sings such as the Omen believed in The Odyssey. People believe in signs such as, if they wake up on the “wrong side of the bed” or if their hair is not obeying what they want to do with it then they are going to have a bad day. Most important the search the character in The Odyssey went through to explore and figure out who his father was, still occurs today. There are many children who go out there, risk their lives, and hope to find something about their parent they never knew to know more about them. Another example is the way the beggars were mistreated and directed to sleep on the floor! The act of degrading people back then still exists today because, it makes some people feel important that they are above another class in the society. This necessity to degrade people proves that people are very insecure and do things they do not wish to do but feel the need to in order to feel superior. Another example is the religous concept of the book that relates to the world today because, mostly everyone believes in a higher power. They believe in small things such as, they should sarcrafice small things in order to please the gods and live a good life. This belief that exists today connects abck to the sacraficing of the animals the people performed on the foreign islands that were visited throughout the story.
April 30th, 2007 at 5:26 pm
In this April of 2007, the students of Greenwich High School should think about what they want to accomplish in life. Like Odysseus, I feel that many teenagers are becoming too sure of them selves and their social status. Odysseus is arrogant when he slays the Cyclops and blinds him in one eye. When Odysseus realizes that he had defeated this monster, he makes it obvious what he had done. The Cyclops calls for his father, Poseidon to wreak revenge on Odysseus’ ship and Odysseus ends up in trouble once more. Inside of Greenwich High School, people gain too much confidence too easily, and it doesn’t translate into the ouside world. It is important for the younger generation to realize that by having a party or becoming, “the man” in your circle of friends doesn’t mean that you have helped those in need or become a world hero.
April 30th, 2007 at 6:24 pm
What I found interesting about the Odyssey is the idea of being lonely at the top. I can relate to Odysseus in that he is a hero of The Trojen War but he is depressed because he is having a lot of trouble getting home. Many teenagers who are considered great students and overachievers are lost in a sea of phoneys and pressure to be the best of the best and end up feeling the frustration that they cannot find anyone else like them. They know that they are going to find others like them after a long and frustrating journey, like how Odysseus knows he will get home after a long and frustrating journey. An overachieving teenager’s life is one big Odyssey.
April 30th, 2007 at 6:40 pm
I don’t want to keep repeating, but I feel that the strongest parallel a reader can make rearding the Odyssey is double standards.
Another parallel is the concept of Hospitality. Ancient Greek felt that they needed to assist others. For example, when the beger arrived at Ithaca, the suitors, reluctantly gave him food. Even today, hospitality is essential. It is true that sadly, in modern society, people don’t care about each other. (especially to strangers). However, it is still something we as a whole know we should be doing. The characters in the Odyssey takes advantage of hospitality. The Suitors crudely take advantage of Ithaca’s long-standing tradition of hospitality
April 30th, 2007 at 6:50 pm
Another parallel I can make with the Odyssey is the concept of Hospitality. In Ancient Greek People were expected to be hospitable to one another. The Suitors reluctantly gave the beggar some food when he arrived in Ithaca. Sadly, today, we do not care for each other’s problems as much as ancient Greece. In The Odyssey, we see that almost everyone relies on hospitality. Odysseus tries to go home, and is accompanied by people from many different towns. And we can certainly see the suitors crudely take advantage of Penelope’s Hospitality. People today have some concept of being hospitable to one another, and we all take advantage of it.
(by the way this is my 9th time writing this post because it does not show up on the list of comments. I hope it works this time)
April 30th, 2007 at 9:51 pm
The Odyssey portrayed themes that exist in todays society in April 2007. One of these themes that is revelvent to our time period is that of Doulbe Standards, as Mr. Wasserman has discussed. In our society, women are often regarded in different terms than men are even though they have equal rights. Even though women are supposed to have equal rights, there are certain things that men can do that women cannont without being socially unacceptable. Such examples include sleeping with a lot of people, if a man did this he would be considered cool yet a women would be considered a slut. In the Odyssey, Odysseus sleeps with Calypso although his wife at home is restricted into getting into any other relationships. This double standard was one of the primary reasons why we have such a huge double standard between women and men today. I also found it revelevent to how the suitors treated Telemachus and Penelope whilst staying in their househould without their premission in the first place. It’s weird how in the Odyssey the suitors are able to stay at Odysseus’s house, unwelcomed, and play a very disrespectful role in society. The suitors also represent people who are disrespectful in our society.
May 1st, 2007 at 5:53 am
Noel (and everyone else),
Be patient if your comment doesn’t appear–sometimes they get sent to me for moderation. Read the Colophon for a possible explanation.
May 1st, 2007 at 5:50 pm
April 2007 and the events that occur in The Odyssey can somewhat be relevant to one another. To be repetitive, the double standards that we have today in our society, also existed during this book. Women are often looked upon as innoncent faithful people who would never get involved with another man if married, or get with more than one person. If a guy were to do this, he would be considered “THE MAN,” and it always gets me frusturated about how unfair our society can be. Another parallel to this book, as Lizzy said, is that everyone at some point in their lifetime, becomes full of themselves, whether its with sports, grades, anything. In The Odyssey, Odysseus becomes cocky and arrogant after poking the Cyclops’s eye out. By the enormous impact our society has on us, it’s tough to accept that even now, we see kids our age constantly being conceited and caring too much about the double standards, which unfortunately exist.
May 1st, 2007 at 5:52 pm
April 2007 and the events that occur in The Odyssey can somewhat be relevant to one another. To be repetitive, the double standards that we have today in our society, also existed during this book. Women are often looked upon as innoncent faithful people who would never get involved with another man if married, or get with more than one person. If a guy were to do this, he would be considered “THE MAN,” and it always gets me frusturated about how unfair our society can be. In The Odyssey, we see this theme appear when Odysseus sleeps with Calypso when stuck on her island, and Penelope is back at the palace with many suitors, but didn’t get involved with any of them. Another parallel to this book, as Lizzy said, is that everyone at some point in their lifetime, becomes full of themselves, whether its with sports, grades, anything. In The Odyssey, Odysseus becomes cocky and arrogant after poking the Cyclops’s eye out. By the enormous impact our society has on us, it’s tough to accept that even now, we see kids our age constantly being conceited and caring too much about the double standards, which unfortunately exist.
May 2nd, 2007 at 9:15 am
The most interesting part of the Odyssey regarding people was everyone’s vulnerability. A huge, macho war-hero could start sobbing in the middle of a poem without being ridiculed for it. Today, everyone feels embarassed when they cry in front of people, especially strange people. I think it is a good thing that back then, people felt allright to cry and admit to their true feelings.
Another interesting element to me was the fear of a higher power by the people. For example, the sacrifices made to the Gods, out of fear that if they don’t do it the Gods will get revenge. This caught my eye because it is relevant today. People fear a higher power, mostly because of religion. Often people only do good things when they are threatened by a religion and afraid of what a higher power may do to them. Or for fear of what the higher power will decide for their afterlife.
May 2nd, 2007 at 9:15 am
As many people have said before me, the events that occur in The Odyssey also occur in 2007. For example all the double standards in the book are almost exactly like today. As Ryan Ho said, men and women are regarded as equal in society, even though most of us know that is not completly true. Men can do many things that women can’t, for example, men are allowed to walk around with no shirt and just be wearing boxers and people think of that as ok, but if a women were to do that, she would be considered a whore. It just seems like Homer really portrayed double standards well by showing that Odyseus could sleep with anyone, but if Penelope slept with a suitor, she would be considered a slut. It’s amazing how some people see these differences as ok in our society today, even though they are clearly unfair.
May 3rd, 2007 at 10:35 am
One of the Greek ideas that is pertinent to today is the thought that everything happens for a reason, and often times the gods are responsible. The Greeks constantly thought that it was the god’s decisions to direct their life. Similarly, some people today believe so strongly in religion that they trust in God to make the right choice for them. This belief is so strong that it reflects almost every action they make in life. The Greek gods could be considered scapegoats or heroes, but either way, they were definitely a big part of daily life.
May 3rd, 2007 at 2:16 pm
The thing that i find relevent is the double standards in which two different groups are treated differently over one topic. Through out the book, Odysseus has relations with women that he encounters. He is with Calypso for about a year and he mentions how he misses his wife while he is on her island but he still continues to be with Calyspo. He also meets up with Circe and basically does the same thing with her too. Meanwhile back at home, Penelope is surrounded by dozens of suitors who want to marry her but she remains loyal to Odysseus. She says after she has finished making they burial shroud for her father-in-law she will chose a suitor to marry but each night she undoes the work she did during the day, thus it is never completed. The double standards are evident in the book and unfortunately in our world today.
May 3rd, 2007 at 5:39 pm
I think that what related the most from the Oddyssey to today is the fact that there are a lot double standards in the book. Just like men back then could have many relationships with women, yet women can’t; today the same views are still there. However, what I thought was probably mosty appealing to the people now a days is the fact that there is a war between Oddysseus and the suitors at the end of the book. Today, many people grow up with violance and learn to accept it and like it. I don’t think many people would care about the parts were Homer kept describing each character for forty lines. What the people want to see is violence. I know this because Mr. Wasserman is always saying that the part about Oddysseus killing all the suitors is cool, and then he laughs afterwards. Then, I heard a couple of people say that the coolest part of the book for them was when Oddysseus took revenge on the suitors and killed them all. Personally, a liked that too. I mean thge suitors were just asking for it when Oddysseus killed all the suitors I said to myself “yeah, you deserved it.” I don’t know why but today violence is what entertains most people.
May 3rd, 2007 at 8:06 pm
I think this question is somewhat repetitive of another blog we’ve done on the Odyssey concerning double standards. Double standards is really the only topic in The Odyssey that stood out to me that connects to todays society, specifically in the high school. Odysseus is able to sleep around without being demoted in society, but Penelope…heaven forbid she cheat on Odysseus. Just like today, guys can hook up with a bunch of girls and are ‘the man’ but if a girl did the same, she would be the school slut. I like studying the idea of double standards and relating the odyssey to today, but i can’t easily think of any other connections.
May 3rd, 2007 at 8:41 pm
What, if anything, did you find in The Odyssey that is relevent or interesting to people now, in April of 2007?
First of all, Sarah Puglision’s post was amazing. I feel that she brings to light an incredible parrallel between the story of the Odyssey and that of life. When I first read her post, I was somewhat confused as to its relevence as well as its meaning. Having thought about it more, i realize that she brings to light a connection that all people must journey in their lives in some form, much like Odyseus. She speaks of her students and their future lives, and consideres the possibilities. I find this fascinating that the Odyssey can remain a prominent theme in todays society. I find that this, more than any one part of the Odyssey is the most important to people now- that people can still find meaning and life patterns in age old stories such as the Odyssey. I find that this is both astounding as well as meaningful, and that today, people like Sarah still find a connections to this story. For her it was by “thinking about the journey Ulises is on…the journey [she has] seen many immigrant children take. The journey into American citizenship.” The Odyssey managed to outlast the culture that created it, and even still, after everthing that has happened in our history, this story can still be seen as both relevant and meaningful. And that I find incredible.
May 3rd, 2007 at 9:03 pm
Unfortunately, I agree with everyone else when it comes to the “double standards” aspect of The Odyssey. Perhaps men may be unfaithful to their significant other, yet they could be forgiven with repentance. However, Penelope, Odysseus’ wife is expected to remain completely faithful Odysseus, even though he has had numerous flings with other beautiful women. Of course, she fulfills this somewhat “requirement” and remains incredibly loyal to her husband.
As I was reading these other blogs, I noticed that Haid hit on a very interesting idea. I was intrigued with the parallel of media to the gods. They were fascinated with the events occurring with the peasants, and they always managed to affect their lives one way or another. Which leads to Mel’s idea of fate. Technically, Mel said, everything happens for a reason, which is essentially fate. This concept still exists in society today, although it may not be as obvious. For example, I have this bizarre thing of knowing whether or not I’m on the right path in life. Every now and then a symbol will be given, which assures me that I’m at the right place, at the right time. It’s bizarre and utterly fascinating.
May 3rd, 2007 at 9:12 pm
I think there were many similarities between the time the Odyssey took place and now, and many are some you don’t really notice until you compare the two.
One similarity, which we discussed in class, was the idea of a double standard in the society. Just like when The odyssey took place, it is more acceptable for a man to get with many women while married, whereas if a woman did the same thing she would be criticized and probably punished.
The main thing we talked about in class with the double standard was the different acceptable things of men and women. One thing that we didn’t really discuss was the fact that Odysseus was able to treat his crew disrespectfully because he was higher in social class. For example, when he knew many members of his ship were going to die, and he didn’t really care about them because they were in a lower social class, so therefore their lives weren’t worth as much. This isn’t very different from today. People who have more money or have better jobs than others seem to look down on people with less money, because that’s what determines their worth.
Another big similarity, just throwing this out there, travel. It takes a long time. Maybe it doesn’t take 20 years to travel like it did for Odysseus, but it kind of feels like it. It took an extremely long time for me to get home from florida as i was finishing the book over break. not fun.
May 3rd, 2007 at 9:35 pm
I think the concept of heroes from The Odyssey is relevant today because of the many similarities and differences from then and now. In The Odyssey, Odysseus is portrayed as a hero through his difficult journey to get home and facing the monsters and other obstacles. Today, whenever a person survives a horrible experience (either emotionally or physically) and they exhibit great courage and determination in the process, they could (and probably will) be qualified as a hero as well. However, in The Oydssey, Odysseus starts getting rather egotistical, especially after puncturing the Cyclops’ eye. The Cyclops scene is where Odysseus starts to brag about his great accomplishment, causing him even more sorrow in the long run because Cyclops tells his father, Poseidon. Odysseus tells this story to King Alcinous as well as others but it doesn’t affect their judgement of Odysseus at all, and if possible makes them even more in awe of him. If a situation similar to that happened now where the hero becomes cocky, everyone would suddenly lose their respect for that person and suddenly, they wouldn’t be a hero anymore. However, in The Oydssey, not a lot of people knew about Odysseus’s bragging, so it didn’t affect his status as much and as I said before, it wouldn’t affect their opinion of him either. Throughout Odysseus’s journey, it reveals that being a hero is a difficult job and it’s even rather easy to staya herp; whereas today, becoming a hero is tough, and it’s even harder to stay one.