Download Homer`s The Odyssey Name _____ Date ______ Examining the

Homer’s The Odyssey
Name ____________________________________________Period _____ Date _____________
Examining the Homeric Epics
Considered the greatest masterpiece of the epic form, The Iliad and The Odyssey present high
drama and intense emotions. In both books, important plot elements include the interference of
gods in human affairs, the epic heroism of the central characters, and the saga of the Trojan War
and its aftermath.
The Trojan War
The legendary conflict between Greece (or Achaea) and Troy began around 1200 B.C. Paris, a
Trojan prince, kidnapped Helen, the wife of Menelaus, king of Sparta, Menelaus recruited the
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.
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’ brother, and Hector’s subsequent funeral.
The Odyssey recounts Odysseus’ adventures as he struggles to make his way home from postwar 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.
The Intervention of the 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, 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.
Homer’s The Odyssey
Background on Homer
Homer may have lived sometime between 900 and 800 B.C.- if he ever lived at all. Although the
ancient Greeks credited him with composing The Iliad and The Odyssey, people have long
argued about whether or not he really existed. Many theories speculate on who Homer may have
been and where he may have lived. Details in the stories suggest that he was born and lived in
the eastern Aegean Sea, either on the islands of Chios or Smyrna, and that he was blind.
Whatever position modern scholars take on the debate, most believe that one or two
exceptionally talented individuals created the Homeric epics. The Iliad and The Odyssey each
contain 24 books of verse, but they probably predate the development of writing in Greece. The
verses, which were originally sung, gradually became part of an important oral tradition.
Generations of professional reciters memorized and performed the poems at festivals throughout
Greece. By 300 B.C., several versions of the books existed, and scholars undertook the job of
standardizing the texts.
Homer’s poems profoundly influenced Greek culture and, as a result, contributed to the
subsequent development of Western literature, ideas, and values. The Roman poet Virgil wrote a
related poem, the Aeneid, in Latin, and Odysseus appears in Dante’s Inferno. Poets throughout
English literature, from Geoffrey Chaucer in the Middle Ages to William Shakespeare in the
Renaissance to John Keats in the Romantic era, have found inspiration in Homer. James Joyce’s
1922 novel Ulysses (the Latin form of Odysseus’ name) transforms one ordinary Dublin day into
an Odyssean journey. Dozens of movies have retold the saga of the Trojan War and the long
journey home, both directly and symbolically. For thousands of years, people have taken the
tales a wandering Greek bard and made them their own.
Works Cited
Collections. Orlando, FL: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2015. Print.