The wind god and the witch Circe
1. After Odysseus and his men leave
Cyclops they land on the island of
Aeolia.
2. Odysseus goes to shore to get
water for his men.
3. While at the waterfall a face
appears in the waterfall.
4. The person in the waterfall is the
wind god is Aeolius.
5. Aeolius does not like Poseidon so
he agrees to help Odysseus.
6. The reason Aeolius does not like
Poseidon is because Poseidon is
arrogant.
7. Aeolius climbs to the top of the
island.
8. Once he is at the top of the island
he puts his hand up in the air.
9. With his hand up in the air he is
able to pull all of the wind into a bag.
(all kinds of wind)
10. Aeolius opens the bag just enough
to let the west wind out.
11. He gives the bag to Odysseus and
warns him not to open it until you get
home to Ithaca. “Don’t open this
bag!”
12. Odysseus takes the bag back to
his ship and they sets sail for home.
13. Odysseus does not tell his men
what is in the bag.
14. The men become very very
curious about what is in the bag.
15. Odysseus’ men get within sight of
home, Ithaca. Odysseus can’t help
himself and he falls asleep.
16. The men cut open the bag and it
blows the ship all the way back to the
wind gods island, Aeolia. (The wind
destroyed the ship.)
17. Odysseus yells at his men
blaming them for what happened.
18. Because the men did not listen to
Odysseus it took them 9 more years
to get home.
19. Odysseus again asks the wind god
for help.
20. The wind god refuses to help
Odysseus anymore because he thinks
Odysseus must be cursed.
The Laestrygonians
1. With no favoring wind at all, the
Greeks must row. They come upon
the land of the Laestrygonians.
2. The cannibalistic giants suddenly
attack and devour many of the men!
3. They hurl boulders at the ships and
spear them men like fish.
4. Only Odysseus’ boat escapes the
attack.
Circe
1. The one remaining ship sails to the
island of Aeaea, home of the
beautiful but dangerous Circe.
2. Odysseus, still angry about the
wind and losing his men to the
Laestrygonians sends out a scouting
party to search for food
3. Only one man returns, and he
claims that all of the other men
have been turned into pigs by an
evil witch!
4. Odysseus, being the hero that he is,
sets out alone to rescue his men.
5. On his way, he is visited by the
messenger god, Hermes.
6. Hermes tells him that the witch
Circe ill cast her magic on him, and
he will turn into a pig unless he eats
a plant called moly.
7. Odysseus knows that moly is
poisonous, and refuses to eat it.
8. Hermes askes Odysseus if he has
ever given him a reason not to trust
him, and Odysseus agrees to eat the
plant.
9. Odysseus reaches Circe and she
offers him a drink of wine.
10. The wine has a spell cast over it,
which turns men into pigs.
11. When Odysseus drinks the wine, he
is not turned into a pig!
12. Circe is amazed, and agrees to turn
all of Odysseus’ men back if
Odysseus agrees to take her to bed.
He agrees.
13. After spending the night in Circe’s
castle, Odysseus decides to leave,
because he misses Penelope, his
wife.
14. Circe tells him that things are not
what they seem inside her castle, it
may have seemed like a night, but
an entire year has passed!
15. Odysseus gets mad at Circe and
demands that she tell him the way
back to Ithaca. She says she only
knows one person that knows the
way, the blind prophet Teiresias.
16. “Teiresias is dead!” exclaims
Odysseus!
17. Circe tells Odysseus that the only
way to get home is to go to the land
of the dead and make a sacrifice.