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THE ODYSSEY
Literary Terms
HOMERIC SIMILE
Also known as “Epic” Simile
“An extended simile that is typically
in epic poetry to intensify the heroic
stature of the subject.”
HOMERIC SIMILE
An ordinary simile describes by using
“like” or “as” but the HOMERIC SIMILE
enlarges the comparison so that it
becomes a little poem – within a
poem.
*Homeric Similes may be as long as a
dozen lines.
HOMERIC SIMILE
“…true son of Odysseus sprang from bed and
dressed, over his shoulder he slung his wellhoned sword, fastened rawhide sandals
under his smooth feet and stepped from his
bedroom, handsome as a god.” (Book II, 2-5)
Examples
HOMERIC EPITHET
Epithet = comes from the Greek
for putting (something) on
(something).
*Also known as Homeric Epitaph
HOMERIC EPITHET
A word or phrase applied to a
person or thing to describe an
actual or attributed quality.
HOMERIC EPITHET
It is a tag or a “nickname” that can be
used on its own or together with the
real name, depending on other features
of the Greek language.
Etymology
HOMERIC EPITHET
A combination of a descriptive
phrase and a noun. An epithet
presents a miniature portrait that
identifies a person or thing by
highlighting a prominent
characteristic of that person or
thing.
HOMERIC EPITHET
In English, the Homeric epithet usually consists
of a noun modified by a compound adjective,
such as the following examples:
fleet-footed Achilles, rosy -fingered dawn,
wine-dark sea, ear th-shaking Poseidon, and
grey-eyed Athena
HOMERIC EPITHET
Epithets add a bit of color and also fill out the
meter when the name on its own doesn’t quite
fit. In addition, epithets ser ve as a mnemonic
device reminding listeners that they have,
indeed, already heard mention of the character.
The epithets, generally compound adjectives, are
picturesque, which cer tainly helps make the
assignment of character to epithet memorable.
Why would this be helpful during this period of
literature?
HOMERIC EPITHET
Homer never calls the Greeks ‘Greeks’. Sometimes they are
Achaeans. As Achaeans they receive the epithets ‘well-greaved’
or ‘brazen-clad Achaeans’. The title anax andron ‘lord of men’ is
most often given to the leader of the greek forces, Agamemnon,
although it is also given to others. Odysseus is polutols ‘muchsuffering’ and polumytis ‘of many devices, crafty’. There are
other epithets for Odysseus beginning with polu- ‘many/much’
that Homer selects on the basis of how many syllables he needs
for the meter.
In The Odyssey
HOMERIC EPITHET
The Homeric epithet is an ancient relative of
such later epithets as Richard the Lionhearted, Ivan the Terrible, and America the
Beautiful.
Modern
Epithet
OTHER LITERARY
DEVICES
Tone
Alliteration
Foreshadowing
Dramatic Irony
Verbal Irony
Imager y
Formal Rhetoric
Repetition
PERSONAL TODAY
Af ter learning about the tradition of the Homeric Epithet,
it is your turn to create a per sonal epithet with the same
structure.
This epithet should characterize you in a concise and
descriptive phrase.
For example, if you are a generous and philanthropic type,
your epithet may be “open -palmed” Jonathan.
Conver sel y, if you are more of the angr y and belligerent
type, you may be “closed -fi sted” Jonathan.
Additionally, choose 2 other people in the class and give
them a per sonal epithet. We will be sharing these in
class.