Lilla Timperman

English G Block

12.11.18

Revenge Falls Short of Justice

The concept of justice continues to challenge humanity as it has for centuries. The

questions regarding “What is fair?” and “What is right?” often leave us puzzled. Margaret

Atwood’s The Penelopiad, provides insight to the reader about Penelope’s perspective of

Homer’s famous The Odyssey. Throughout the book, the maids use “The Chorus Line” chapters

to offer their viewpoints on injustice regarding the events involving the maids that transpire in

The Odyssey. The maids poetically describe their unpleasant experiences, and convince the

reader that Odysseus patronizes them. As the maids will never be recognized as equal to men,

their retaliation against Odysseus falls short of justice, and instead takes the shape of revenge.

Not only do the maids want justice or “fairness”, they want revenge for the loss of their

lives. In “The Chorus Line” chapter, The Trial of Odysseus, as Videotaped by the Maids, the

maids create a hypothetical play about a trial against Odysseus that discusses a raping incident.

Raped by the suitors at a young age, the maids experience cruel and unethical treatment

throughout their lives in Ithaca. During the trial, the judge dismisses the maids’ story and states,

“your client’s times were not our times. Standards of behavior were different then… Therefore, I

must dismiss the case” (Atwood 182). The judge fails to respond to their overall grievance of a

lack of equality; instead, he condescendingly counters with a statement that speaks to the statute

of limitations regarding their complaint. Immediately after their dismissal, the maids clap back

saying, “We demand justice! We demand retribution! We call upon the angry ones” (Atwood

183). They proceed to call upon the furies for revenge against Odysseus. “Be our defenders, we

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who had none in life! Smell out Odysseus wherever he goes! From one place to another, from

one life to another, whatever disguise he puts on, whatever shape he may take… Let him never

be at rest (Atwood 183)! Odysseus, always able to escape, has his attorney for the defense call

upon Athena to protect him from the furies. “I call on grey-eyed Pallas Athene… to defend

property rights and the right of a man to be the master in his own house, and to spirit my client

away in a cloud” (Atwood 184). Odysseus, once again, has been saved by Athena who also foils

the maids’ attempt to achieve justice. Demonstrated throughout their lives in Ithaca, Odysseus

continuously avoids difficult situations, while the maids take the blame. Although the maids

attempt for revenge during the trial ultimately fails, they continue to work towards their deep

desire for revenge and justice.

Despite their failed attempt to call on the furies, the maids do not give up, but instead

take matters into their own hands by planning to follow Odysseus in his afterlife as he roams the

never-ending fields of Asphodel. The maids, aware that Athena cannot protect him once he goes

to the afterlife, take full advantage of the opportunity to harass him; Penelope, Odysseus’ loyal

wife, also has difficulty coping with the maids because they break the bond of love that connects

her and her husband. “It’s the maids. He [Odysseus] sees them in the distance heading our way.

They make him nervous. They make him restless. They cause him pain. They make him want to

be anywhere and anyone else” (Atwood 189). Although the maids do not experience justice in

Ithaca, they realize once in the afterlife, they can constantly force Odysseus life and into another.

While the maids’ actions only represent partial retribution against Odysseys, they can achieve

more vengeance in the afterlife than they would in Ithaca. Moreover, a life on Earth represents

only a short period of time in the grand scheme of the universe. However, once the afterlife is

reached, time lasts forever. Odysseus may have hurt the maids during their life in Ithaca, but

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once they reach Asphodel, time becomes infinite. The maids decide to ambush Odysseus and

follow him wherever he goes. However, Odysseus always has an escape plan to foil the maids’

aftermath. Penelope describes the concept of rebirth regarding Odysseus: “He’s been a French

general, he’s been a Mongolian invader, he’s been a tycoon in America, he’s been a film star, an

inventor, an advertising man. It’s always ended badly with a suicide or an accident, and then he’s

back here again” (Atwood 190). Odysseus possesses the ability to be reborn and move from life

to life. It is an escape from the maid-infested fields of Asphodel. Like when saved from the

furies, Odysseus also possesses the ability to escape from the maids’ plan of ambush. Although

they work towards revenge, the maids ultimately fail because Odysseus escapes to a new life.

The maids recite an envoi at the end of The Penelopiad which gives the reader insight on

how the maids really feel in the world of Ithaca. In the envoi, they recite, “we had no voice. we

had no name. we had no choice. we had one face. we took the blame. It was not fair. but now

we’re here. we’re all here too. same as you” (Atwood 195). The maids explain that they’re

portrayal as minor characters in the story that failed to demonstrate an ultimate victory for their

equality. “The maids”, a title for the many lives lost, make clear that they want revenge for

having no name and no life in The Odyssey. The maids show themselves as equals to Odysseus

when they say to him, “We’re all here too. Same as you. And now we follow you, we find you

now, we call to you” (Atwood 195). The maids clearly believe that Odysseus took their lives in

Ithaca; therefore, they can take his life in the underworld. No matter how many lives he

embodies, the maids choose to stalk and ambush him. The maids desire justice and revenge and

will not stop until they obtain the equality they deserve.

All mistakes have consequences. In Odysseus’ case, he learns that just one mistake in

Ithaca can affect his afterlife in Asphodel. The single story of The Odyssey has so much more to

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it than just a heroic, clever, man killing everyone he sees. Penelope, the maids, and the many

other characters portrayed in the famous epic have stories of their own. Everyone has a story and

an opinion, and why listening to all sides may prove wise when seeking the truth. Although the

maids represent minor characters, their roles play part in debilitating Odysseus in the afterlife.

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 Works Cited:

Atwood, Margaret, The Penelopiad. NY. O. W. Toad Ltd. 2005. Print.