Odyssay Never Underestimate a Trickster

Odysseus is the primary character in Homer's The Odyssey, but without supporting characters there would be no grand story to tell. While a great deal of recognition is given to the characters that serve as Odysseus' threatening foes, as well as the powerful gods which guide his adventures. However, one of the most significant characters in the story, Penelope, is underrated and underrepresented throughout Homerian discussion and interpretation. She is often mentioned as a passing character that serves as little more than a prop in the story, like a favorite arm chair to which the hero wishes to return home and once again be comfortable by the fire. Penelope is actually a very significant part of the plot of The Odyssey, and her character is far from passive or dull. According to Norman Austin, the main action of the Odyssey is recovering spiritual and psychological harmony between Odysseus and Penelope, and there are several aspects of her character which make this connection possible....

Penelope is dedicated and faithful to Odysseus, but she is at the same time independently clever and skeptical, making her a good match for her husband.
The first reason why Penelope is a good match for Odysseus is because she is so faithful and dedicated to him. Odysseus is plagued throughout his life by randomness and unexpected events, such as that series of events which kept him away from home for twenty years. Many husbands would not be as lucky as he is, and would lose the faith of their wives over the course of a two-decade long absence! Despite being courted by countless suitors, Penelope does not re-marry. In Book One of the Odyssey, Penelope is seen both rejecting the suitors, and also mourning the absence of her husband.

Penelope is not simply a mourning wife, however, as she proves herself to be equally as clever and intelligent as her trickster husband. For three years, Odysseus learns in Book Nineteen, Penelope held off suitors by promising to choose one of them as her new mate as soon as she…