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The Odyssey Study Guide: Part V
Answer the following questions using your EOL book. Answers may be found on pages 1256-1265.
DEATH AT THE PALACE
1. The climax of the story is in this section. What is the major question you expect the climax to answer?
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2. What makes the description of Antinous’s death especially powerful?
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3. What does Homer mean when he says the suitors “imagined as they wished” in line 30?
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4. What does Eurymachus’s speech reveal about his character?
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5. What two things has Odysseus done that make it nearly impossible for the suitors to “fight [their] way
out or run for it”?
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6. Why does the appearance of Athena’s shield make the suitors “mad with fear”?
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THE TRUNK OF THE OLIVE TREE
7. What did Athena do to get Odysseus ready to meet his wife?
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8. To what does the simile in lines 8-12 compare Odysseus?
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9. Why did the Goddess go to such lengths to make Odysseus so handsome?
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10. Why does Odysseus need the help of a goddess now?
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11. What is Penelope implying in lines 22-26?
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12. What was the process by which Odysseus built his bed?
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13. What do Penelope’s physical sensations suggest she is feeling?
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14. What is ironic about Penelope’s statement “No one ever matched your caution!”?
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15. What does Penelope mean when she refers to her “stiff heart”?
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