Odyssey
Review
Game
The Homecoming.
Who ‘Dat?
Characters in
the Odyssey
100
The king of Ithaca
Odysseus
200
Removes the suitors’
weapons from the
great hall.
Telemachus
300
The loyal
swineherd who
brings Odysseus
his bow.
Eumaeus
400
Dies after seeing
Odysseus make it
home.
Argos
500
Recognizes
Odysseus while
giving him a
footbath.
Eurycleia
That’s What Heroes
Are Made Of
Epic Hero Traits
Revealed in
Quotes
100
 “He draws between his thumb
and forefinger / a sweet new string
upon a peg: so effortlessly /
Odysseus in one motion strung the
bow.”
 Battle Skills
 Not one of the other suitors can
string the bow, but Odysseus does
it in one try!
200
 “‘Now listen to your orders: / when the time
comes, those gentlemen, to a man, / will be
dead against giving me a bow or quiver. / Defy
them. / Eumaeus, bring the bow / and put it in
my hands there at the door. / Tell the women
to lock their own door tight. / Tell them if
someone hears the shock of arms / or groans
of men, in hall or court, not one / must show
her face, but keep still her weaving. /
Philoeteus, run to the outer gate and lock it. /
Throw the crossbar and lash it.’”
 Authority/Leadership
 Odysseus demonstrates authority as he tells
Eumaeus to bring him the bow and Philoeteus
to lock the gate when the fight begins.
300
 “‘I am home, for I am he. / I bore
adversities, but in the twentieth
year / I am ashore in my own
land.’”
 Determination/Persistence
 Even after 20 years of hardships,
Odysseus never gives up and
returns to Ithaca!
400
 “Now from his breast into his eyes
the ache / of longing mounted, and
he wept at last, / his dear wife,
clear and faithful in his arms.”
 Loyalty/Persistence
 Odysseus is finally home, happy to
be reunited with his wife.
Name That Epic
Characteristic
Applying Epic
Characteristics to Quotes
100
 “Athena / lent him beauty, head to
foot, She made him / taller, and
massive, too, with crisping hair in
curls like petals of wild hyacinth /
but all red-golden.”
 Divine Intervention
 Athena transforms Odysseus into a
strong, young, good-looking man.
200
“‘Now watch me hit a target
that no man has hit before.’”
Boasting
Odysseus is bragging that
he can hit the target that no
one else could.
300
 “‘The stranger / you welcomed in your
hall has not disgraced you. / I did not
miss, neither did I take all day /
stringing the bow. My hand and eye are
sound, / not so contemptible as the
young men say.’”
 Boasting
 Odysseus brags that it didn’t take him
forever to string the bow and hit the
target.
400
 “‘I find / the two of you, alone among my
people, / longed for my coming. Prayers I never
heard / except your own that I might come
again. / So now what is in store for you I’ll tell
you: / If Zeus brings down the suitors by my
hand / I promise marriages to both, and cattle,
/ and houses built near mine. And you shall be
/ brothers-in-arms of my Telemachus.’”
 Hospitality Code
 If Eumaeus and Philoeteus help bring down
the suitors, Odysseus will reward them with
ladies, cattle, and homes—not too shabby!
“My Name Is
Nohbdy!”
More
Characters
from the
Odyssey
200
She holds off the
suitors with a
weaving trick
Penelope
400
This suitor is the
first to die because
he was the
ringleader.
Antinous
600
This suitor tries to
get Odysseus’
forgiveness by
promising to pay back
wine and food.
Eurymachus
800
This character
(the cowherd) is
told to lock the
outer gate.
Philoeteus
1000
A disloyal maid;
calls the beggar a
drunk
Melantho
I Know That Hero Trait
Applying Epic Hero
Traits to Quotes
200
 “Now flashed / arrow from
twanging bow clean as a whistle /
through every socket ring, / and
grazed not one, / to thud with
heavy brazen head beyond.”
 Battle Skills
 Odysseus is able to make his shot
go through all the holes and not hit
a one.
400
 “‘You yellow dogs, you thought I’d never make it
/ home from the land of Troy. You took my
house to plunder, / twisted my maids to serve
your beds. You dared / bid for my wife while I
was still alive. / Contempt was all you had for
the gods who rule wide / heaven, / contempt for
what men say of you hereafter. / Your last hour
has come. You die in blood.’”
 Authority/Leadership/Persistent
 Odysseus tells the suitors they will pay for
invading his home, taking advantage of his wife,
and plotting to kill his son.
600
 “‘Not for the whole treasure of your fathers, /
all you enjoy, lands, flocks, or any gold / put up
by others, would I hold my hand. / There will
be killing till the score is paid, / You forced
yourselves upon this house. / Fight your way
out, / or run for it, if you think you’ll escape
death.’”
 Authority/Leadership/Cleverness
 Odysseus refuses to accept any payment from
the suitors for their despicable behavior; their
payment will be death!
.The Bold, the Brave,
and the Boastful
More Characters from
the Odyssey
200
Calls the beggar a pig
and kicks him on the
way to town
Melanthius
400
Odysseus’s father’s name
Laertes
600
Calls Penelope “coldhearted” for not taking
Odysseus back immediately
Telemachus
800
Where Odysseus and
Telemachus first go
when they return to
Ithaca
Eumaues
1000
Reassures Odysseus
and gives him
confidence that he can
“whip those dogs.”
Athena
Prego—It’s in
There!
It Could Be Anything!
200
 Epic hero trait that applies to this
event:
 Penelope holds off the suitors for
2-3 years by unweaving a loom she
told them she must finish before
she can marry.
 Intelligence/cleverness
400
 Epic characteristic in this quote:
 “Now flashed / arrow from
twanging bow clean as a whistle /
through every socket ring, / and
grazed not one, / to thud with heavy
brazen head beyond.”
 Exaggeration
 Odysseus can shoot an arrow
through twelve tiny holes and not
hit a one?
600
Name this character:
Throws a stool at
Odysseus
Antinous
800
 Epic characteristic in this quote:
 “He draws between his thumb and
forefinger / a sweet new string upon a
peg: so effortlessly / Odysseus in one
motion strung the bow.”
 Exaggeration
 Odysseus can string the bow in one try,
yet the suitors could barely even bend it.
Gods, Goddesses, and
Mortals, Oh My!
Characters in The
Odyssey
200
This king takes in Odysseus
as a stranger, and Odysseus
tells him about his travels
Alcinous
400
Warns Telemachus that the
suitors plan to ambush him
Athena
600
Hangs the disloyal maids
Telemachus
800
Devises a bow and arrow
contest
Penelope
1000
Tells Penelope that
Odysseus is back and has
defeated the suitors
Eurycleia