Books, including The Odyssey, a book previously part of the curriculum at GCDS, are being targeted and barred from being taught in order to incorporate more modern and progressive literature into the curriculum. 

Homer’s The Odyssey, an ancient epic, and originally oral story revolving around the story of Odysseus, was recently banned from a school in Massachusetts. The epic contains views and portrayals of people that many consider to be outdated and inappropriate for modern schools. 

The Odyssey depicts some women, such as the wife of Odysseus as submissive and weak, being dominated by men throughout their lives. This portrayal of women, and even the environment of the time where the epic was told and recorded, some argue, is reason enough to ban and replace books such as The Odyssey. 

In an article published in December of 2020 by TheMa news, one teacher stated that Odysseus is “trash”. Another writer who supports the removal of the book from the English curriculum, wrote, “Insisting on exposing diverse children to racist classics in which they see characters like themselves demeaned, or, at best, entirely excluded, is not just insensitive, but downright cruel”. 

The Odyssey has been removed from the curriculum this year due to it not lining up with the overarching topic that ninth graders are focusing on, but was included during the 2019-2020 school year. 

Mr. Mezzo, an English teacher at GCDS who taught The Odyssey, was interviewed about his take on the matter, and the idea that books should be barred and removed from the school curriculum due to outdated ethics and portrayals. In regards to the importance of books such as The Odyssey, Mr. Mezzo stated, “The value of a text like The Odyssey is still available to young people. Do I think that it’s absolutely necessary that students have to read The Odyssey to be educated? No. Do I think that it has to be banned? I wouldn’t agree with that either.” 

While some say that the banning of controversial texts, keeping them out of the classroom, replacing them, or avoiding them, is necessary,  Mr. Mezzo, believes that “If students are only exposed to language, or styles, or vernaculars, of which they’re comfortable, they’re not necessarily broadening their horizons or learning to read different voices”. 

There was a large focus on the hidden feminism and ethics of being a good samaritan throughout The Odyssey that many gloss over at GCDS, but also what a society can learn and avoid repeating by looking into the misogyny of the epic. Others, such as one Massachusetts school, would rather get rid of it all, and replace it with modern “progressive” books.

 Picture credit – Barnes and Noble