The Odyssey: Setting 1 key example

Some of the locations described in The Odyssey are largely mythical, such as the island of the Lotus Eaters, and attempts to map Odysseus's travels onto specific geographical locations in the Mediterranean have proven controversial among scholars. Nevertheless, the poem does offer a window into the customs and values of Ancient Greece. In the city of Pylos, for example, Telemachus, a guest, is treated with conventional courtesy and witnesses a significant sacrifice to the gods of the Greek pantheon: 

There sat Nestor among his sons as friends around them 
decked the banquet, roasted meats and skewered strips for broiling. 
As soon as they saw the strangers, all came crowding down, 
waving them on in welcome, urging them to sit. 
Nestor’s son Pisistratus, first to reach them, 
grasped their hands and sat them down at the feast 
on fleecy throws spread out along the sandbanks, 
flanking his brother Thrasymedes and his father. 
He gave them a share of innards, poured some wine 
in a golden cup and, lifting it warmly toward Athena [...]
greeted the goddess now with an invitation[.]

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Though Telemachus has not yet introduced himself, he is treated with a high degree of courtesy by King Nestor and his family. Nestor's sons take Telemachus by the hand and seat him and his retinue on "fleecy throws," inviting them to join in the feast and sharing their food and wine. The poem often emphasizes "xenia," or the Ancient Greek understanding of hospitality, which dictates that a person should be permitted to sit and rest before even introducing themselves to their hosts. Further, the elaborate sacrifice of almost a hundred bulls in Pylos in honor of the god Poseidon attests to Ancient Greek religious practices and conceptions of piety.