Download exploring greece3

Name_____________________________________________ Date ____________ Class _____
EXPLORING THE GREEK WORLD
What is an epic poem? Who is Homer? How did Odysseus get involved in the Trojan War?
These are all questions you will find on an internet expedition. Visit each listed website and find the
answers to the questions and write your response in the space provided. Make sure to type the address
EXACTLY as it is on the page.
Epic Poem: http://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/engl257/General%20lit/six_elements_of_the_epic.htm
1. What is an epic poem?
2. What are the typical elements of an epic poem?
Epic Hero:
What is an Epic Hero?
An epic hero is defined as “a special kind of god-like human being,” satisfying the “human need to understand
ourselves and bridge the gap between the human and the divine” (Holt 17). These heroes “personify the
values of the societies that create them” (21). These heroes also follow these common characteristics:
-has unusual circumstances of birth
-leaves family or homeland and lives with others
-an event (sometimes traumatic) leads to adventure or quest
-has a special weapon only he can use
-has supernatural help
-must prove himself many times on an adventure
-is spiritually rewarded when he dies
Homer:
http://ancienthistory.about.com/od/homer/p/HomerGuide.htm
Introduction and Background
8. Homer is famous for which two epic poems?
9. When do many scholars now believe Homer’s epic works were composed?
10. What is the Homeric question?
1
Trojan War:
www.mythweb.com/odyssey (Then click on detailed version!)
Background Section:
11. What groups fought in the Trojan War?
12. How long did the Greeks lay siege (fight with) to Troy?
13. How did the clever Greek Odysseus trick the Trojans?
14. Explain what happened as the Trojans slept.
15. Which side finally won the ten-year war?
16. How did the Trojan War begin?
17. Who was the “face that launched a thousand ships” and why?
Important Characters:
http://pantheon.org - Go to Greek mythology then type name in SEARCH
FOR section…OR go to godchecker.com
GODS
18. Aeolus –
19. Apollo –
20. Athena –
21. Helios –
2
22. Muses –
23. Poseidon –
24. Zeus –
25. Hermes
HUMANS
26. Laertes –
27. Odysseus –
28. Penelope –
29. Telemachus –
30. Tiresias –
SUPERNATURAL BEINGS
31. Calypso –
32. Charybdis –
33. Circe –
34. Cyclops/Polyphemus –
35. Scylla –
36. Sirens –
LOCATIONS
3
37. Olympus –
38. Underworld –
39. Ithaca –
Mythology Today:
www.mythweb.com
Click on TEACHERS, WHY TEACH, THE BASICS
Read about these famous myths:
40. A huge heroic task is ______________________________________________.
41. What is the Midas touch? ______________________________________________.
42. A book of maps gets its name from_________________________________. Who was this Titan?
_____________________________________________________________.
43. A person’s point of vulnerability is the ______________________________ heel.
44. The word panic comes from the shepherd god _______________________________.
4