Is Homer sexist or feminist?

I believe that Homer is a sexist. While it is true that some women, such as Pallas Athena, held some power, the majority of women from The Odyssey didn't have any power. In the Odyssey, Calypso is viewed as the temptress or in modern day terms, the "house wrecker". Calypso kept Odysseus on her island, preventing him from getting home. We place blame on Calypso for keeping Odysseus, but some part of him wanted to stay. He claimed passionately he wanted to return home and see his family, yet he still slept with Calypso. Another example of Homer's sexism is how most of the powerful immortals are men. Yes, there's Athena and Aphrodite and Hera, but none of them have the supreme power. Zeus holds all the power, then his two brothers Poseidon and Hades come next. Hera is also the child of Cronus, so why doesn't she have just as much power? It's because she's a female. 

Another way that Homer presents himself as sexist is how he portrays Penelope. While she stays faithful to Odysseus, there are suitors lined up wishing to marry her. Homer doesn't have her stand up to the suitors and tell them to go home. He doesn't write that Penelope defends herself. Odysseus has to come home and save her from the suitors because she's just a helpless woman. Throughout The Iliad and The Odyssey men were warriors ransacking cities. They took home troves of treasures such as jewels and gold. They also took home women. These men treated women as slaves. It didn't matter that they were already married, they were possessions now. The women were forced into slavery, treated badly, and were usually raped.