Download The Poems at the End of the Odyssey We will read in class several

The Poems at the End of the Odyssey
We will read in class several poems that are connected to Homer’s Odyssey, with the final grade being a short essay
(see the end of this handout.) You can download your own digital version of these questions; otherwise, you will
need to answer them on your own paper (except the chart on the reverse  )
“Ulysses”
1. What unfamiliar words or words with multiple meanings do you find? (And what about their
connotations?)
2. To whom is the poem addressed?
3. What images jump out to you? What is their importance to the traditional story of Odysseus?
4. Which images would lose their meaning if the reader was ignorant of Homer’s Odyssey? Did Tennyson
“cheat” by relying on our prior knowledge?
5. What do some of these images symbolize, and how do they build the overall meaning by their use?
6. What does Ulysses say about his people, his wife and son, his duties, and his desires?
7. What can you infer about his point-of-view (POV), biases, and background beliefs, based on what he says in
item #4?
8. How do the first and last stanzas of “Ulysses” function?
9. What themes or ideas do the poems express? List line numbers for these.
10. Look at the list of poetic devices in your notebook/binder. Identify some poetic devices in the poem.
Then explain how the theme/ sound/ poetic merit strengthened by the use of poetic language?
11. Compare and contrast Odysseus’ youth and old age (in the Odyssey and in this poem.) What heroic ideals
does he possess throughout his life? Which heroic ideas have changed? What characteristics does he now
possess that are not heroic?
“Ithaca”
1. Who is the speaker, and to whom does the speaker address in this poem?
2. The speaker says not to fear the Lestrygonians, Cyclopes, and Poseidon unless they are carried within the
soul. What might the Lestrygonians, Cyclopes, and Poseidon symbolize within each of us?
3. Regarding the length of the voyage ahead, what advice does the speaker give? Why?
4. How is Ithaca personified in the 4th and 5th stanza?
5. If we take the speaker’s advice, what attitude should we take with regards to travel, adventure, and the
eventual return home?
“Homecoming”
1. Who is the speaker addressing?
2. How would you describe the overall tone of “Homecoming”? (find actual tone words/line #s)
3. How might you guess that this poem is contemporary?
4. What images jump out to you? Why? Significance?
5. What do you make of the word choice in line four, specifically, Ulysses being drowned in his bed?
6. What do think the poet means when he asks, “Yet did her weaving and unweaving ask so liberal a
testament of blood?”
7. Why could the reader interpret the phrase “faithful tears” as ironic?
8. Who are Eurymachus, Antinous, and Polybus?
9. In the third to last line, to what does the pronoun “this” refer?
10. What is the subject of this poem? What point does the author raise in it?
“Penelope”
1. What can you say about the speaker of the poem?
2. Fill in the chart below:
Language (look especially at
Tone (contrast positive and
the connotations of the
negative aspects)
words)
Lines 1-5
Roles in society (contrast roles
of men and women)
Lines 6-10
3. Who are “they” in the last line of the poem? What is Penelope’s attitude?
4. This poem was first published in the 20th century but it is about the wife of Odysseus. What message does the
author convey?
“An Ancient Gesture”
1. What connections does the speaker make with Penelope?
2. What are the clues to tell the reader the poem is set in a modern time period?
3. By her use of the word really in the last line, what are we meant to understand?
4. Comparing “Penelope” and “An Ancient Gesture,” we see their message is similar. Which one makes the
point more effectively, and why?
“Siren Song”
1. Who is the speaker and who is the “you” in this poem?
2. What happens to the “you”?
3. Find some contemporary language in this poem (line numbers).
4. What is the effect of using these words in a poem dealing with a myth?
5. Much of Greek mythology is misogynistic in its treatment of female characters. Does Atwood’s modern
poem bash women or praise them? (find specific evidence and line numbers)
6. What does the poem say about men and women in our society? What does it say about gullibility or
manipulation? What is the effect of using characters from myth to make these points?
You will be writing a short piece (500 words or less) in which you discuss one of the following choices:
1. Compare the tone and meaning of “Ulysses” to the tone and meaning of either “Ithaca” OR
“Homecoming”
2. Compare the underlying message of “Homecoming” to the message conveyed in “Siren Song” with regards
to the relationships between men and women.
3. Discuss the value and attitudes toward learning and knowledge as seen in “Ithaca” and “Ulysses”