The Iliad and The Odyssey:
The Back-story
It’s Like a Big Deal…I mean
people know this.
(Psst…there’s an allusion here.)
A hint
Quick Time™ a nd a
d eco mp res so r
ar e n eed ed to s ee this pic tur e.
Who wrote the Odyssey?
Homer - He was a blind minstrel, or
bard
Wrote 2 epics: long, narrative poems
The Iliad is a war epic
The Odyssey is a long journey epic
 Odyssey = journey
Both were written about 800 BC and
told about events that happened in 1200
BC
Here’s a pic
QuickTime™ and a
decompress or
are needed t o see this picture.
No, THIS Homer
QuickTime™ and a
decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
What is an Epic?
The oldest literary form or genre
A long story poem involving:
A great hero with supernatural qualities
(more modern: super powers)
The gods and goddesses take an active
part in helping or hindering
 (Poseidon is Odysseus’ enemy and represents
all the bad traits of O. while Athena helps O and
represents all of his good traits)
Epic
 The fate of an entire race of ppl is often at
stake
 Heroes found their greatest glory in battle
 It involves a struggle that the culture of the
hero values
The hero embodies the values of their culture;
used to teach these values.
 Begins with an invocation ( prayer to the
muse of poetry)
A minstrel is a entertainer who told
stories and sang songs -Like Kanye
without the drama
Both a historian and an entertainer
Minstrels BORROWED material from
legends, epics and myths already
known by the ppl;
Used descriptions and phrases that were
familiar to the people called EPITHETS
They made the stories as simple as
possible
Stories were told repetitively.
There was no written history.
Homer outshone other minstrels of his
day because of his:
Originality of ideas
Expression and effect he had on his
audience
Meant to teach a lesson--EVERY
SINGLE episode in the ODYSSEY is an
ALLEGORY for a real life situation.
Allegory
A symbolical narrative
A story that represents something else
 The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe- life of
Christ
 The Lord of the Rings-Life of Christ
 Animal Farm- WW2
 Avatar - save the world!! Yay! Go green!
Two Part Story
The Iliad, then the Odyssey…
The Iliad
QuickTime™ and a
decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
The Iliad
 Tells of the war
QuickTime™ and a
decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
between Greece
and Troy (located in
present day Turkey.)
 Provides the
background for the
Odyssey and
Odysseus
Iliad
 The War lasted ten
QuickTime™ and a
decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
years
 In reality, it possibly
began because the
Greeks tried to
control trade routes.
The Iliad
According to myth: Paris, a prince of
Troy, kidnapped Helen, queen of Sparta
and wife of Menelaus, king of Sparta.
QuickTime™ and a
decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
QuickTime™ and a
decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
Quic kTime™ and a
decompressor
are needed to see this pic ture.
The Iliad
The Greek kings banded together and
sent armies in 1,000 ships to attack
Troy. (Helen is known as “The face that
launched a thousand ships.)
Gods and goddesses took sides in the
war.
For nine years, there was no victory.
The Iliad
 Finally, Odysseus
Qui ckT ime™ and a
dec ompress or
are needed to s ee this picture.
devised a plan: The
Trojan Horse.
 The Monty Python
Version…
QuickTime™ and a
decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
But it was probably more like
this…
And then this
 A graveyard full of Trojans
The Iliad
 The Greeks conquered
QuickTime™ and a
decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
Troy; the Trojans were
slaughtered and the city
was destroyed.
 The Greeks set out for
home in their ships.
 Many gods and
goddesses were
offended when Greeks
desecrated temples and
did not make offerings.
(The beginning of O’s
troubles.)
The Odyssey
 Epic poem of the long
Quick Time™ and a
decompress or
are needed t o see t his pic ture.
journey home that
begins in media res.
 Greeks would have
been familiar with
Odysseus as a hero
from the Iliad
 Tells of Odysseus’
adventures trying to
return home to Ithaca;
his wife’s trials at home;
and how his son grows
up without a father.
Or…the more modern version
QuickTime™ and a
decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
The Odyssey
It took TEN years for him to sail
home…
And this is why:
Typical Male…
QuickTime™ and a
decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
Main Characters
Odysseus (Ulysses): Super human hero
from Ithaca
Penelope: his wife
Telemachus: Odysseus’ son
Circe: a Witch
Antinous: takes over O’s home while O
is away
Gods/Goddesses
 Athena: Goddess of wisdom
She is on Odysseus’ side and represents all of his
good traits: courage, loyalty, bravery
 Poseidon: god of the sea
He is against Odysseus and represents all of his
bad traits: Mouthy, reckless, prideful
 Zeus: King of the gods
 Hermes: Messenger of the gods
 Aeolus: god of the winds
Greek Values and Beliefs
 Believed it was wrong for any man to have
hubris: excessive pride or arrogance
 The character of a man was very important:
courage, loyalty to home and family
 Man was not the master of his own fate; he
was a pawn in a chess game
Could not control his own fate but he could control
how he reacted to the gods’ interfering or
meddling (Odyssey is all about O’s
reactions…temper, temper, temper)
Questions?
Save your notes to your folder. You may
need these later.
Go to thetree and under the Odyssey-B
tab, click the Helen pages link.
Follow the instructions. 1st tri or
newbies work with a 2nd tri person.