Odyssey, Bks. 1, 9, 12, 2 1, 22, 23, 24 Objectives: 1. Study the trials and return of O dysseus in Homer’s Odyssey. 2. To consider the role of the gods in the Odyssey vs. the Iliad. 3. Identify the qualities Penelope shares with her husband. Important Terms/Names: nostos (pl. nostoi): The Greek word for “return.” Odysseus (Lat. Ulysses): Son of Laërtes and Anticlea; husband of Penelope; father of Telemachus; hero of the Trojan War; he spends 10 years at sea trying to return to his kingdom and family. He is the “man of many ways,” and his name may mean “one who causes or receives hatred.” Ithaca: Island kingdom of Odysseus. Laërtes: Father of Odysseus. Anticlea: Odysseus’ mother, whom he unexpectedly meets in the Underworld; she had died in longing for her son’s return. Penelope: Wife of Odysseus; mother of Telemachus; she is a perfect match for her husband in cunning and guile; one of her most important epithets is periphron (“circumspect”). Telemachus: Son of Odysseus and Penelope; guided by Athena, he goes on a mini-­‐odyssey to learn whether his father is alive or dead, and how to be a son worthy of such a father. W hen Odysseus finally returns, he and Telemachus plan the murder of the suitors and cleanse the palace. Argus: Odysseus’ aged dog; ill treated by the suitors, upon O dysseus’ return he recognizes his master and dies. Antinoüs: Leader of the suitors for Penelope’s hand; he is the first one Odysseus kills. Melanthius: A goatherd, treacherous tool of the suitors; he is mutilated and killed. Aeolus: Keeper of the w inds; gives Odysseus a bag of winds to aid his return home. Odysseus’ men open the bag before they reach their destination; Aeolus refuses additional aid. Calypso: Daughter of Atlas; Odysseus spends seven years in captivity on her island of Ogygia. Circe: Sorceress and daughter of Helius; at first she is hostile to Odysseus’ men, transforming them into swine. With Hermes’s gift of the moly plant, Odysseus remains unharmed and eventually spends one year with Circe; she conceives Telegonus; Circe counsels Odysseus to journey to the Underworld. moly: Herb given by Hermes to Odysseus to protect him from Circe’s witchcraft. Telegonus: Son of Odysseus and Circe; in one tradition Odysseus is eventually killed by him. Sirens: Alluring singers of song w ho “know everything that happens upon the fertile earth.” In Homer they are human in form; later tradition ascribes to them birdlike features, with women’s heads. Odysseus has himself lashed to the mast and his crew’s ears stopped w ith w ax, so he may listen to the Sirens without danger. Cyclopes (sing. Cyclops): A race of o ne-­‐eyed giants, one of whom, Polyphemus, son of Poseidon, terrorizes and eats many of Odysseus’ men. Using cunning and the gift o f w ine received from Maron, Odysseus is able to escape from the Cyclops’ cave, but as he is sailing away, he discloses his identity and is cursed by Polyphemus. Lotus-­‐eaters: Inhabitants of an outwardly friendly land, harboring a very real danger, the fruit of the Lotus, which blots out all desire to return home. Eumaeus: The trusty swineherd of Odysseus, who aids his master in his plan to kill Penelope’s suitors. Helius: God of the sun. Odysseus lands at the island of Thrinacia; his men steal the cattle of the sun, and for this sacrilege they d ie before they reach Ithaca. Tiresias: Theban seer; Odysseus goes to the Underworld to speak w ith Tiresias and learn more about his return to Ithaca. Xenia: the concept of hospitality that the suitors violate in wasting all Odysseus’ w ealth. b.
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i. As the Odyssey opens 1. “Man of many ways” 2. Penelope, his wife, beset by suitors 3. Telemachus, his son, struggling to grow to adulthood in his father’s absence 4. Odysseus with Calypso on Ogygia ii. Odysseus himself will sing the song of his adventures to the Phaeacians iii. Poseidon’s wrath iv. Athena’s protection The Cicones and the Lotus Eaters i. Cicones 1. Thracian city of Ismarus sacked by Odysseus 2. Gift of wine for sparing Maron, priest of Apollo ii. Lotus Eaters 1. Fruit of the Lotus, which blots out the desire to return home The Cyclopes i. One-­‐eyed giants ii. Polyphemus, son of Poseidon iii. Polyphemus’ cave iv. Odysseus as Nobody (outis) v. Blinding of the cyclops vi. Escape on the underside of a ram vii. Disclosure of Odysseus’ name viii. Polyphemus’ curse Aeolus and the Laestrygonians i. Aeolus, keeper of the winds ii. Gift to Odysseus: bag of winds iii. Stupidity of Odysseus’ men iv. Aeolus’ refusal of additional aid v. Laestrygonians: sinking of all of Odysseus’ ships but his own Circe i. Island of Aeaea ii. Sorceress, daughter of the Sun iii. Men transformed into swine iv. Hermes’ aid: Moly v. Odysseus spends one year with Circe; birth of Telegonus vi. Circe counsels journey to underworld The Nekuia i. “Book of the Dead”: Odyssey, Book 11 ii. Tiresias iii. Odysseus’ mother, Anticlea iv. Meeting with old comrades 1. Agamemnon 2. Achilles 3. Ajax The Sirens, the Planctae, Charybdis, and Scylla i. In Homer the Sirens are human in form ii. In the later tradition they become birdlike, with women’s heads iii. Odysseus lashed to the mast; crew’s ears stopped up with wax iv. The song of the Sirens: “We know everything that happens upon the fertile earth” v. “The Wandering Rocks” (Planctae) vi. Scylla, monster with girdle of six dogs’ heads vii. Charybdis, a whirlpool h. The Cattle of the Sun (Helius) i. Island of Thrinacia ii. Theft of the cattle iii. Loss of all Odysseus’ men i. Calypso i. Daughter of Atlas ii. Ogygia iii. Seven years of captivity of Odysseus j. The Phaeacians i. Approach to Scheria, island of the Phaeacians ii. Rescue of Leucothea iii. Nausicaä iv. Palace of Alcinoüs and Arete v. Odysseus’ tale vi. Return of Odysseus to Ithaca vii. Punishment of the Phaeacians k. Ithaca i. Suitors courting Penelope ii. Penelope’s ruse of the loom iii. Telemachus, growing to manhood, but still too young to succeed his father iv. Odysseus recognized by Eumaeus and Telemachus v. Odysseus’ entrance into the palace in the guise of a beggar vi. Ill-­‐treatment by Melanthius, a hanger-­‐on vii. Argus, Odysseus’ old dog, recognizes his master and dies viii. Odysseus receives insults from the suitors and another beggar, Irus ix. Euryclea, Odysseus’ old nurse x. The contest of the bow l. The bow and the killing of the suitors i. The suitors fail ii. Telemachus nearly succeeds iii. Odysseus strings the bow and begins to kill the suitors, beginning with Antinoüs iv. Medon, the herald, and Phemius, the bard, are spared v. Twelve maidservants who colluded with the suitors are hanged vi. Melanthius is mutilated and killed