The Odyssey Theme of Piety

Piety in the Odyssey is shown by deference to the gods, submission to their will, and through gestures such as sacrifices, festivals, banquets, and prayers. It also entails respect for the dead – proper burials and rites. Impiety or direct challenges to the gods often result in suffering or death for the offender.

1. Why do the gods put such importance on the living respecting the dead? In other words, are the dead more god-like than the living?
2. How are the suitors – in taking advantage of Odysseus’s house in his absence – committing a crime against the gods?
3. How is piety rewarded? What specific cases of divine intervention represent a boon from the gods for proper respect paid earlier?

Although the men in the Odyssey revere the gods, that respect is not returned; the gods have little value for human life and often use men as their playthings.

In speaking of Odysseus, the people of Ithaka refer to him in language usually reserved for gods; they equate him with godliness, as does Homer, which is why those who disrespect him suffer the same consequences as those who are impious.