The Odyssey by Homer
BACKGROUND NOTES:EPIC POETRY, EPIC
HERO, TROJAN WAR, & GREEK MYTHOLOGY
EPIC POETRY
An epic is
defined as a
long
narrative
poem about
the deeds of
gods or
heroes.
Homer’s
The
Odyssey is
an
example of
epic
poetry.
CHARACTERISTICS OF AN EPIC:
 A hero
 A quest or journey
 Epic similes
 An invocation of the muse
 Sacrifice or pray to the gods for victory in battle
 Combat
 Intervention from the supernatural
CHARACTERISTICS OF AN EPIC, CONTINUED:
 Deus Ex-Machina–“god from the machine;” a god
comes down at the end of the story to solve the
conflicts
 Visit to the Underworld
 Apotheosis –elevation to divine status
 In many epics, the hero is a demigod, born to one
human parent and one divine parent.
CHARACTERISTICS OF AN EPIC, CONTINUED:
 Some cycles (series) of epic poems develop around a
hero or event.
 Epics date back to prehistoric times, with the earliest
form being sung by their poets.
 The Iliad and The Odyssey, by Homer, is a cycle that
develops around a partly historical/partly mythical
Trojan War.
 Rules for epics were based on The Iliad & The
Odyssey.
CHARACTERISTICS OF AN EPIC, CONTINUED:
 These rules state that the epic must begin in
medias res, or “in the middle of things,” and
the poet must write in a dignified style that
begins with an “invocation” in which he asks a
Muse for divine inspiration.
THE EPIC HERO
 Hero is of imposing
stature
 Hero and/or his style is
grand, yet simple
 Setting is vast
 Hero has superhuman
strength or courage
 Hero faces supernatural
forces
THE TROJAN WAR
12th ~ 13th Century B.C.
Between the Greeks and the
people of Troy in W. Asia
Minor
Events celebrated in Homer’s
The Iliad & The Odyssey
The Trojan prince, Paris, ran off with the
beautiful Helen, wife of Menelaus of Sparta
TROJAN WAR, CONTINUED…
 Agamemnon, brother of Menelaus, led an expedition
to retrieve her, which led to the war that spanned 10
years.
 War ended when the Greeks pretended to leave Troy,
leaving behind a giant wooden horse
 The Trojans wheeled the horse inside the city walls
 At night, the Greeks poured out of the horse, opened
the gates for their fellow soldiers, and took over the
city of Troy and its citizens
THEMES
The Power of Cunning over Strength
The Pitfalls
of
Temptation
MORTALS
Odysseus is the king of Ithaca and the husband of
Penelope. When he left to fight the Trojan War, he
left Penelope pregnant with his son, Telemachus.
Odysseus is wellknown for his
resourcefulness
and guile and is
known by his
epithet,
“Odysseus the
Cunning.”
MORTALS
PENELOPE
Penelope spends her days
in the palace pining for
the husband who left for
Troy twenty years
earlier and never
returned. Homer
portrays her as
sometimes flighty and
excitable but also clever
and steadfastly true to
her husband.
Wife of Odysseus and
mother of Telemachus.
MORTALS
TELEMACHUS
Odysseus’s son. He
is a natural
obstacle to the
suitors desperately
courting his
mother, but
despite his
courage and good
heart, he initially
lacks the poise and
confidence to
oppose them.
MORTALS
EURYLOCHUS
 Odysseus’ second in command.
 Cowardly and unpleasant, he frequently undermines
Odysseus’ authority and causes trouble.
 Relative of Odysseus through marriage.
MORTALS
Tiresias
A Theban prophet, Tiresias
meets Odysseus when
Odysseus journeys to the
underworld. He shows
Odysseus how to get back
to Ithaca and allows
Odysseus to
communicate with the
other souls in Hades.
THE TWELVE OLYMPIANS
Zeus
Chief Olympian; chases the women, tries to hide his infidelity
from his wife; also called Lord of the Sky, The Rain God, and
The Cloud Gatherer; wields the thunderbolt as a weapon.
THE TWELVE OLYMPIANS
Hera
Wife to Zeus; prolonged the
Trojan War & allowed Troy to
be left in ruins because a Trojan
said another goddess was
lovelier than she; sacred
animals are the peacock and
cow.
THE TWELVE OLYMPIANS
Poseidon
Brother to Zeus; Lord of
the Sea; gave man the
first horse; also
responsible for
earthquakes
THE TWELVE OLYMPIANS
Hades
Ruler of the
Underworld and the
dead; spent most of
his time in the
Underworld because
he was not welcomed
on Mt. Olympus.
THE TWELVE OLYMPIANS
Athena
Daughter of Zeus ONLY –
no mother –she sprang
from Zeus’ head; she
created the olive;
described as a fierce
battle goddess,
protector of civilized
life, and the goddess of
crafts and agriculture.
THE TWELVE OLYMPIANS
Apollo
Described as the beautiful
god of music; plays a
golden lyre; also seen as
the Archer god & a
healer
THE TWELVE OLYMPIANS
Artemis
Twin sister of Apollo;
personality not easily defined
– is she good or evil?
Example: Known to protect
the young while on the hunt –
BUT – kept the Greek fleet
from sailing to Troy until a
maiden was sacrificed in her
honor.
THE TWELVE OLYMPIANS
Aphrodite
Goddess of Love and Beauty; laughter-loving goddess who
used her wiles to hypnotize men; extremely beautiful;
without her…no joy or loveliness anywhere; could have a
deadly or destructive power over men.
THE TWELVE OLYMPIANS
Hermes
Graceful and swift;
wore winged
sandals, had wings
on his hat, and
carried a magic
wand; he was Zeus’
messenger and also
guided the dead to
the Underworld.
THE TWELVE OLYMPIANS
Ares
God of War; described as a
“murderous curse” who
was also a coward; a
symbol of war
THE TWELVE OLYMPIANS
Hephaestus
God of Fire;
unattractive and
crippled –
ironically, he is
married to the
most beautiful of
the goddesses,
Aphrodite.
THE TWELVE OLYMPIANS
Hestia
Goddess of the Hearth;
the symbol of home;
meals began and
ended with an
offering to her; each
city had a public
hearth sacred to her
where the fire was
never allowed to go
out.
THE LESSER GODS OF OLYMPUS
 Eros–The God of Love (Cupid)
 Hebe–Goddess of Youth
 Iris–Goddess of the Rainbow
LESSER GODS OF OLYMPUS
 The Three Graces –Aglaia (Splendor); Euphrosyne




(Mirth); Thalia (Good Cheer).
The Nine Muses
 Clio = History
Urania= Astronomy
Calliope = Epic Poetry
Melpomene= Tragedy
Erato= Love Poetry
Thalia= Comedy
Polyhymnia= Songs
Terpiscore= Dance
Euterpe= Lyric Poetry
THE UNDERWORLD
Ruled by Hades and Persephone
Cerberus –3-headed, dragon-tailed dog who guards
the gate and allows spirits to enter
Two divisions:
Tartarus & Erebus
Two Rivers:
Acheron, River of Woe
Cocytus, River of Lamentation
Aeolus
King of the Winds; lived on Earth on the island of
Aeolia (character in The Odyssey)
The Sirens
3 bird-like female creatures with enchanting voices; would
sing & lure sailors to their death. (also characters in The
Odyssey)
Scylla
A monster with
12 feet and 6
heads with 3
rows of teeth,
carries off a
sailor in each
mouth
Charybdis
A monster at the bottom of the ocean who, three
times a day, caused a whirlpool that would pull in
sailors to their deaths.
Calypso
The beautiful nymph who
falls in love with Odysseus
when he lands on her
island-home of Ogygia.
Calypso holds him prisoner
there for seven years until
Hermes, the messenger
god, persuades her to let
him go.
Polyphemus
One of the Cyclopes
(uncivilized one-eyed
giants) whose island
Odysseus comes to soon
after leaving Troy.
Polyphemus imprisons
Odysseus and his crew and
tries to eat them. He is
Poseidon's son.
Circe
The beautiful witch-goddess
who transforms
Odysseus’s crew into
swine when he lands on
her island. With Hermes’
help, Odysseus resists
Circe’s powers and then
becomes her lover, living
in luxury at her side for a
year.