Download The Odyssey Guided Notes

THE ODYSSEY BY HOMER
GUIDED NOTES AND BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON GREEK MYTHOLOGY
SECTION 1: EPIC
The Odyssey, an epic, began thousands of years ago in
the oral tradition of ancient Greece.
1.) What is an epic? A long narrative poem that recounts
the adventures of an epic hero.
SECTION 1: EPIC
2.) Elements of the Epic: Epic Hero, Archetypes, Epic
Plot, Epic Themes, and Epic Setting
a.) Epic Hero Contains extraordinary abilities, but also
human frailties.
*possesses superhuman strength, craftiness, and
confidence
*helped or harmed by gods or fate
*embodies qualities valued by the culture
*overcomes perilous situations
SECTION 1: EPIC
b.) Archetypes Characters and situations recognizable
across times and cultures.
*brave hero
*sea monster
*evil temptress
*suitor’s (or suitors’) contest
*loyal servant
*buried treasure
SECTION 1: EPIC
c.) Epic Plot Depicts a long, strange journey filled with
such complications as
*strange
*divine
creatures
intervention
*treacherous
weather
*large-scale
events
SECTION 1: EPIC
d.) Epic Themes Reflect universal concerns, such as
*courage
*loyalty
*beauty
*life and death
*a homecoming *the fate of a nation
SECTION 1: EPIC
e.) Epic Setting
*includes fantastic or exotic lands
*involves more than one nation or culture
SECTION 2:
LITERARY TERMS & BACKGROUND INFORMATION
1.) epic simile: a comparison using “like” or “as”
developed at great length over several lines.
Example The following lines compares an angry Odysseus to a roasting
sausage:
“His rage
held hard in leash, submitted to his mind,
while he himself rocked, rolling from side to side,
as a cook turns a sausage, big with blood
and fat, at a scorching blaze, without a pause,
to broil it quick: so he rolled left and right,…”
SECTION 2:
LITERARY TERMS & BACKGROUND INFORMATION
2.) epithet: renames a person or thing with a
descriptive phrase.
*To maintain the meter of the poem or complete the
line of verse, the poet would often use an epithet
containing the necessary number of syllables.
Examples Homer often refers to Odysseus by
such epithets as “son of Laertes” and “raider of
cities.”
SECTION 2:
LITERARY TERMS & BACKGROUND INFORMATION
3.) allusion: a reference to a literary or historical
person, place, event, or composition.
3 most common types of allusions in stories and
movies: 1) Bible
2) History 3) Greek Mythology
Example: “This is the way the court of Zeus must
be.” Every listener in Greece immediately
understood the allusion to Zeus, the ruler of the
gods.
SECTION 2:
LITERARY TERMS & BACKGROUND INFORMATION
4.) The Trojan War:
The legendary conflict between Greece and Troy began around 1200 B.C.
Paris, a Trojan prince, kidnapped Helen, the wife of Menelaus, king of
Sparta. Menelaus recruited armies of allied kingdoms to attack Troy and
recover his wife. For ten years, the Greek forces held Troy under siege,
but they could not penetrate the walls of the city.
Finally, Odysseus, king of Ithaca, came up with a plan to break the
stalemate. He ordered his men to build a giant wooden horse. One
morning, the people of Troy awoke to find that horse outside the city
gates – and no Greeks in sight. Assuming the Greeks had retreated and
had left the horse as a peace offering, they brought the horse inside the
gates. They soon discovered, too late, that the horse was filled with
Greek soldiers, and that their city was doomed.
SECTION 2:
LITERARY TERMS & BACKGROUND INFORMATION
5.) Heroism:
Great heroes play key roles in Homer’s epics. The Iliad tells the story of
Achilles, the mightiest Greek warrior, and of his bitter quarrel with
Agamemnon, brother of Menelaus and commander of the Greek forces at
Troy. The tale climaxes in a fierce battle between Achilles and Hector,
Paris’s brother, and Hector’s subsequent funeral.
The Odyssey recounts Odysseus’s adventures as he struggles to make
his way home from post-war Troy, along with the conflicts that arise in
Ithaca just before and after his return. He prevails against gruesome
monsters, enchanting women, and greedy rivals intent on preventing him
from reaching his objective. Although Odysseus lacks the superhuman
martial abilities of Achilles, he employs great cleverness and guile to get
out of difficult situations.
SECTION 2:
LITERARY TERMS & BACKGROUND INFORMATION
6.) The Intervention of Gods:
Adding to the heroes’ struggles are the residents of Mount
Olympus, bickering gods who like nothing better than influencing
and manipulating human affairs.
For example, Athena, the goddess of wisdom, supports the Greeks
in the Trojan War.
Aphrodite, goddess of love, sides with Troy.
Further, the heroes often displease other gods who place additional
obstacles in their paths. The Olympians display human shortcomings
and petty jealousies, and people become pawns as the gods pursue
advantages in their internal quarrels.
SECTION 2:
LITERARY TERMS & BACKGROUND INFORMATION
7.) Homer (the alleged author):
*May have lived somewhere between 900 and 800 B.C. –
if he ever lived at all.
*The Iliad and The Odyssey both contain 24 books of
verse. The verses were originally sung.
*Homer’s poems influenced Greek culture, and as a
result, contributed to the development of literature,
ideas, and values. Dozens of movies have retold the saga
of The Trojan War and the long journey home, both
directly and symbolically.
SECTION 3:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
Book 1:
1.) Helios the sun god, who raises his cattle
on the island of Thrinacia
SECTION 3:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
Book 1:
2.) Zeus the ruler of the Greek gods and
goddesses; father of Athena and Apollo
SECTION 3:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
Book 1:
3.) Telemachus son of Odysseus
SECTION 3:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
Book 1:
4.) Penelope wife of Odysseus
SECTION 3:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
Book 1:
5.) Athena goddess of wisdom
SECTION 3:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
Book 9:
6.) Alcinous the king of the Phaeacians
SECTION 3:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
Book 9:
7.) Circe a goddess and enchantress
who lives on the island of Aeaea
SECTION 3:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
Book 9:
8.) Cicones allies of the Trojans, who live in
Ismarus
SECTION 3:
Book 9:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
9.) Lotus Eaters inhabitants of a land
Odysseus visits
SECTION 3:
Book 9:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
10.) Cyclopes a race of one-eyed giants; an
individual member of the race is Cyclops.
SECTION 3:
Book 9:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
11.) Apollo the god of music, poetry,
prophecy, and medicine
SECTION 3:
Book 9:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
12.) Poseidon the god of the seas,
earthquakes, and horses; father of the Cyclops
who battles Odysseus (he stirs up powerful
storms that cause problems for Odysseus and
his crew)
SECTION 3:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
Book 10:
13.) Aeolus the guardian of the winds
SECTION 3:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
Book 10:
14.) Laestrygones cannibal inhabitants of a
distant land
SECTION 3:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
Book 10:
15.) Eurylochus a trusted officer of Odysseus
SECTION 3:
Book 10:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
16.) Persephone the wife of Hades, ruler of
the underworld
SECTION 3:
Book 10:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
17.) Tiresias a blind prophet whose spirit
Odysseus visits in the underworld
SECTION 3:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
Book 11:
18.) Elpenor one of Odysseus’s crew; killed in
an accident
SECTION 3:
Book 12:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
19.) Sirens creatures whose songs lure sailors
to their death
*Scylla and Charybdis
SECTION 3:
Book 12:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
20.) Scylla a six-headed sea monster who
devours sailors
SECTION 3:
Book 12:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
21.) Charybdis a dangerous whirlpool
personified as a female sea monster
SECTION 3:
Book 17:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
22.) Argos Odysseus’s dog
SECTION 3:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
Book 21-23:
23.) Antinous a suitor of Penelope’s
SECTION 3:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
Book 21-23:
24.) Eurymachus a suitor of Penelope’s
SECTION 3:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
Book 21-23:
25.) Philoetius a servant in Odysseus’s
household
SECTION 3:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
Book 21-23:
26.) Amphinomus a suitor of Penelope’s
SECTION 3:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
Book 21-23:
27.) Eurynome a female servant in Odysseus’s
household
SECTION 3:
IMPORTANT CHARACTERS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
Book 21-23:
28.) Eurycleia an old female servant, still loyal
to Odysseus
Essential Question While We Read:
Do you think Odysseus deserves to
be called an epic hero?
*Go back through the characters.
Draw a star next to the ones who are
gods and goddesses.
Draw a square around “other divine.”
Draw a circle around the humans.