The Odyssey
What is it besides being a Rollicking
Great Story?
Discuss
• From what you have learned from reading
and discussing the Iliad, write what you
think makes an epic different from other
genres of writing and storytelling.
The Odyssey’s Construction
• The Odyssey begins in medias res, meaning that the
action begins in the middle of the plot,
– events are described through flashbacks or storytelling.
• Extended adventurous voyage or trip
• Written by Homer
• Told the story about most famous Greek eventTrojan War
The Trojan Horse
Epic Poem
• Long narrative poem about the feats of a
hero (entertainment)
• Hero reflects goals and values of society
• Taught lessons to listeners/readers
• Heroes were included so people would be like
them
• Historical fact, legend and truth
• Incredible deeds and adventures
• Gods/goddesses help and harass the hero
Epic Hero
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Central figure of an epic (Odysseus)
Better than everyone (strength, courage, endurance)
Important
Legend or fact based
Reflects society
Pride in reputation
Love for family/homeland
Forceful leader
Life is precious
kingly
Themes, Motifs & Symbols
Themes
• The Power of Cunning over Strength
– If the Iliad is about strength, the Odyssey is about cunning.
– Odysseus relies much more on mind than muscle. . .
• The Pitfalls of Temptations
– Even Odysseus’s hunger for kleos is a kind of temptation.
Themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas explored in
a literary work.
http://www.philipresheph.com/demodokos/odyssey/books.htm
Argos and Odysseus
Motifs
• Storytelling: Storytelling in the Odyssey, in addition to
delivering the plot to the audience, situates the epic in its
proper cultural context.
• Disguises: From the first line of the epic, Homer explains that
his story is about a “man of twists and turns” (1.1). Quick,
clever, and calculating, Odysseus is a natural master of
disguise, and the plot of the epic often turns on his deception.
• Seductresses: Women are very important figures in the
Odyssey, and one of the most prominent roles they fulfill is
that of seductress. . . While these women do gain a certain
amount of power through their sexual charms, they are
ultimately all subject to divine whim, forced to wait and pine
for love when it is absent.
Motifs are recurring structures, contrasts, or literary devices that can
help to develop and inform the text’s major themes.
Symbols
• Food: Although throwing a feast for a guest is a common part
of hospitality, hunger and the consumption of food often have
negative associations in the Odyssey. . . these cases, excessive
eating represents not just lack of self-control, but also the total
absence of humanity and civility.
• Wedding Bed: The wedding bed in Book 23 symbolizes the
constancy of Penelope and Odysseus’s marriage .. The
symbolism is heightened by the trick that Penelope uses to test
Odysseus, which revolves around the immovability of their
bed—a metaphor for the unshakable foundation of their love.
Symbols are objects, characters, figures, or colors used to represent abstract ideas or
concepts.
Review: Part One 10-25-11
• Homer pleads for the __________ of poetry to help
him tell the story
• Odysseus leaves________ island
• Goes to Phaeacia-ruler’s name is Alcinuous
• Alcinuous offers Odysseus a ship if he talks about his
adventures.
• Then sees Calypso again, then the____________,
then _________, then the _____________, and finally
___________ and ___________.
Part Two
• Odysseus returns to
Ithaca
• Odysseus and
Telemachus plot
against suitors
• Suitors are trying to
court Penelope
Fill-In Review 10-26-11
• Penelope proposes a test for the suitors in which they
must _______________and _________________. She
chose this task because she knew that only ________
could accomplish it. Meanwhile, Odysseus has been
transformed into an ____________ by _________. After,
Odysseus plans to __________ the suitors with
_________ on his side.
Did Penelope Only Have One
Test?....
1. String Odysseus' bow and and with it shoot an arrow through
a dozen axe handles. Whoever did so, she would wed.
2. Proving Odysseus' identity: Know the way their marriage bed
was constructed, so that he could catch her lie when she said it
was moved. No one but Odysseus and Penelope among
mortals knew how it was constructed.
3. Having the suitors prove their intentions by having them offer
her gifts. This tests the suitors' resolve, wealth, and status,
even though she does not wish to marry any of them.
Exit Slip: 10-26-11
• Write a list of comparisons or contrasts
between the movie clip and the text.
• Also, what did you think of the movie as
opposed to the text? Which was better?
Why?