Legislative ideology as a feminist trope in Homeric and Nigeria societies

Abstract

Politics is an important aspect of every society, and often times, men have been the major players on the political landscape. It is also an indisputable fact that women constitute over half of the population of the world. The question then arises: why are there so few women elected as public officials? Over the years, bigotry has made people believe that women are not suitable for politics or decision- making positions and, they have nothing to offer to the overall development of society. Nigeria is not an exception with regard to this kind of thinking. Though the significant part of the national population is constituted of women, yet the numerical strength of women does not correspond to women representation in Nigeria’s public life. This is due to the fact that Nigeria is a patriarchal society characterised by intense discrimination against women. Like contemporary Nigeria, the ancient Homeric society epitomises a misogynistic society, a world where men ruled supreme, and women, the objects. Despite this, Homer's Odyssey presents the character of a unique woman in Penelope who survived a male dominated world by her personal strength and protected her home and family from predators and enemies. This paper reviews the character of Penelope in Odyssey of Homer and analyses how female power and worth were measured in the Homeric world. It also explores the role of women in Nigerian politics and the factors debarring them from active political participation in comparison to the Homeric world