The OdysseyBy Homer

Mr. Shelton

George Wythe High School

The Odyssey

Packet Intro:

Cause of the Trojan War:

1. Historical: over a trade route between the Black and the Agean Sea

2. Mythological: over Paris’s stealing of Helen Queen of Sparta

Literary terms

Epic: a long narrative poem about the deeds of a hero

Apostrophe: where someone speaks to someone non present or non existent

Personification: giving something non-human human-like qualities

Direct / indirect characterization: Direct: what is known about the character is simply

stated. Indirect: what is known about the character is

implied through actions or what others say about them or body language.

You will encounter the following in The Odyssey Loyalty, devotion, and fortitude The Greek idea of a strong body and mind The wandering hero The triumph of good over evil Obedience to the laws of the gods

Important characters

Alcinous: king of the Phaecians, the one to whom Odysseus tells his story

Odysseus: King of Ithaca, protagonist Calypso: a sea goddess who loved Odysseus Zeus: king of gods Apollo: god of music, poetry, and medicine Poseidon: god of sea and earthquakes, and

father of cyclops, Polyphemus Athena: goddess of wisdom

Characters to know

Polyphemus: the cyclops who imprisons the Greeks

Penelope: Odysseus’s wife Laertes: Odysseus’s father Telemachus: Odysseus’s son Sirens: creatures whose songs lead sailors to

their deaths Scylla: a sea monster of grey rock

Important characters continued Charybdis: a giant whirpool of destruction Eumaeus: an old faithful swine herder Antinous: the leader of the suitors (antagonist

in part 2)

“Prologue”

1. Homer is “me” in the opening. 2. The man in line 2 is Odysseus 3. Odysseus’s two goals are to save his life and the

life of his shipmates 4. His recklessness led to the destruction of his

men. 5. Homer calls upon the goddess of inspiration (the

Muse) in telling his story (apostrophe). 6. She is daughter of Zeus

“Sailing from Troy”

7. Ten years have passed since the Trojan war. 8. Odysseus’s fame has gone abroad to the “sky’s rim” 9. Odysseus’s father is Laertes 10. Ithaca is good for a boy’s raising. He would never find a

better place in the world. (even if one would find a house of gold)

11. His home is Ithaca 12. Three reasons Odysseus’s men were defeated by the

Cicones: 1. 1.The Greeks were drunk2. 2.The Greeks were outnumbered3. 3. The Cicones were better trained (to fight on ground or

horseback)

“The Lotus Eaters”

13. A storm keeps Odysseus from reaching home after he leaves the Cicones.

Odysseus sent out two men and a runner 14. The men who ate the lotus forget about

home (they only care about the lotus). 15. Odysseus carries his men who have

tasted the plant back to the ship and ties them under the benches.

16. His men don’t always listen to him.

“The Cyclops”

17: 4 descriptions of the Cyclops way of life:

1. They don’t plow or sow by hand (they just let stuff grow)

2. They each dwell in a mountain cave

3. They “deal out rough justice” to wife and children

4. Indifferent to what others do (they do what they want).

“The Cyclops”

18. He took with him: his 12 best men; goat skin of Maron’s wine and victuals (food).

19. Descriptions of cyclops: a. A prodigious man, a brute with one eye. b. A savage 20. he seemed (like) a shaggy mountain 21. the cave had cheeses and pails for

milking

“The Cyclops”

22. Polyphemus call Odysseus a “ninny” because he suggests that Polyphemus would be afraid of the gods.

23. He eats 2 of Odysseus’s men. 24. Odysseus decides not to kill the cyclops

because they cannot move the rock from the door (it is too heavy).

“The Cyclops”

25. He uses the following to escape: Fallen green olive tree to blind the cyclops Nectar and ambrosia to get the cyclops drunk Hot embers and coals to heat and harden the

stake Nohbdy to trick Polyphemus so that he can’t

get other cyclops to help him Sheep for he and his men to hide under their

bellies and ride out.

“The Cyclops”

26. Parts of the curse: 1. O. Never gets home 2. if he does get home, it will be long and

difficult 3. he will lose all companions (shipmates) 4. arrive home under strange (different) sail 5. bitter days at home O. Tempted the cyclops. Why did he do

this? Could it have been a stupid decision?

“The Cyclops”

27. Odysseus finally tries to make an offering to Zeus to “make things right.” Zeus rejects it.

28. This shows that the gods are fickle (they change often).

29. leadership qualities Odysseus shows? Smarts, loyalty, determination

30.Flaws he shows? Stubborn, proud, selfish

“The Land of the Dead”