9th Lit & Comp
Odyssey Unit Test
from the Odyssey, Part 1 by Homer
Critical Reading Identify the letter of the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
_____1. Part 1 of the Odyssey is mainly about Odysseus’
A. influence with the gods.
B. love of travel.
C. heroic deeds.
D. loyalty to Helios.
_____2. Which of the following quotations describes an act typical of an epic hero?
A. “Now I let go with hands and feet, plunging / straight into the foam beside the
timbers, / pulled astride, and rowed hard with my hands / to pass by Scylla.”
B. “I rather dwelt on this part of the forecast, / while our good ship made time, bound
outward down / the wind for the strange island of Sirens.”
C. “In the next land we found were Cyclopes, / giants, louts, without a law to bless
them.”
D. “We beached her, grinding keel in the soft sand, / and waded in, ourselves on the sandy
beach.”
_____ 3. The epithet “Laertes’ son,” which is frequently applied to Odysseus, emphasizes
A. Laertes’ high standards for Odysseus.
B. Laertes’ trust in Odysseus.
C. Odysseus’ lack of maturity.
D. Odysseus’ loyalty to his family.
_____ 4. Which statement most accurately describes the role of Zeus in Odysseus’ adventures?
A. Zeus encourages Odysseus’ crew.
B. Zeus controls the weather by which Odysseus sails.
C. Zeus strengthens Odysseus’ enemies.
D. Zeus protects Odysseus’ crew from harm.
_____ 5. Read the following passage from the Odyssey:
Cyclopes have no muster and no meeting,
no consultation or old tribal ways,
but each one dwells in his own mountain cave,
dealing out rough justice to wife and child,
indifferent to what the others do. . . .
In this description, what ancient Greek cultural value does Odysseus imply that the
Cyclopes lack?
A. ambition to achieve success
B. artistic and literary talent
C. structured life in a well-organized society
D. loyalty to the gods
9th Lit & Comp
Odyssey Unit Test
_____6. Although Odysseus’ men want to steal the Cyclops’ cheese and animals and depart immediately, Odysseus
wishes “to see the cave man, what he had to offer.” Considering
Odysseus’ character, what might he be hoping the Cyclops will offer?
A. an exciting challenge
B. a faster ship
C. a place to stay
D. a good meal
_____ 7. Which is the best rephrasing of the following lines?
When the young Dawn with fingertips of rose
lit up the world, the Cyclops built a fire. . . .
A. When young Dawn’s fingertips turned rosy and lit up the world, the Cyclops built a fire.
B. At daybreak, the Cyclops built a fire.
C. The Cyclops built a fire whenever he saw a pinkish or rosy-colored sky.
D. The sun rises. The Cyclops builds a fire.
_____ 8. Which character trait does Odysseus demonstrate when he lies about his name to the Cyclops?
A. ruthlessness
B. loyalty
C. cleverness
D. stubbornness
_____ 9. What is the meaning of Polyphemus’ words in the following lines?
Let him lose all companions, and return
under strange sail to bitter days at home.
A. Let Odysseus return home without his companions.
B. Odysseus and some of his crew will sail home in a strange type of sailing vessel.
C. Let Odysseus return home in a stranger’s boat, alone and troubled.
D. Curse Odysseus with a difficult journey home.
_____ 10. Which of the following correctly defines an epic?
A. a lengthy narrative that alternates sections in prose with sections in verse
B. a narrative whose central character experiences a conflict with nature
C. a long narrative poem about important events in the history or folklore of a nation or culture
D. a lengthy narrative whose plot features romantic love
_____ 11. The epic hero Odysseus most clearly demonstrates the realistic, human side of his character when he
A. resists the temptations of Calypso and Circe.
B. refuses to taste the honeyed Lotus plant.
C. ties his men beneath the Cyclops’ rams.
D. weeps upon meeting Elpenor’s ghost in Hades.
_____12. What is meant by the expression in medias res?
A. on the Mediterranean Sea
B. according to law
C. in the middle of things
D. in conformity with fate
9th Lit & Comp
Odyssey Unit Test
_____13. What is demonstrated by Odysseus’ failure to wake up and prevent his men from slaughtering the sun god’s
cattle?
A. Eurylochus’ skills as a leader
B. Odysseus’ exhaustion
C. the power of the gods
D. the disloyalty of the crew
_____14. To understand the cultural and historical context of a literary work, which of the following is most hopeful?
A. Skim the work first, and then read it slowly and carefully.
B. Consider how the work has affected subsequent poems, novels, or essays.
C. Read the author biography, footnotes, and other textual aids.
D. Consider how you would set the work to music.
from the Odyssey, Part 2 by Homer
Critical Reading Identify the letter of the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
_____15. Odysseus’ comment to Telemachus, “This is not princely, to be swept / away by wonder at your father’s
presence,” implies which of the following about ancient Greek cultural values?
A. People expected that princes would be easily amazed.
B. People looked up to princes as men of imagination.
C. Princes commonly believed in miracles.
D. Princes were not expected to display emotion.
_____16. An epic simile is different from a normal simile in that an epic simile
A. is not limited to a single, distinct image, but is more complex.
B. is used only in connection with the epic hero.
C. begins with the words like, as, just as, or so.
D. contains personification.
_____ 17. In Part 2 of the Odyssey, the hero appears disguised as which of the following?
A. a suitor
B. Eumaeus
C. a beggar
D. a priest of Zeus
_____ 18. The episode about Argus, Odysseus’ dog, is important to the plot because it emphasizes
A. the length of Odysseus’ absence from home.
B. Eumaeus’ awareness of Odysseus’ disguise.
C. the epic’s main theme of loyalty vs. treachery.
D. the qualities that people and animals have in their youth.
_____ 19. Which of Telemachus’ actions best demonstrates his obedience to his father?
A. his journey through Pylos and Sparta in search of Odysseus
B. his suspicion that the beggar is a god
C. the tears he sheds when Odysseus reveals his true identity
D. his silence when Antinous confronts Odysseus
9th Lit & Comp
Odyssey Unit Test
_____ 20. What is one result of Odysseus’ initial exchange with the suitor Antinous?
A. Telemachus removes all the shields and weapons from the hall.
B. Penelope summons the “beggar” Odysseus and questions him.
C. The swineherd Eumaeus discovers Odysseus’ true identity.
D. Argus is killed.
_____21. The episode in which Penelope invites the old beggar to her room is important because it
A. allows suspense to build.
B. explains Penelope’s sadness.
C. explains Telemachus’ sadness.
D. reveals Odysseus’ identity.
_____22. Why does the disguised Odysseus make up a story and tell Penelope that her husband will be home soon?
A. to give himself a few days to figure out what to do
B. to see whether her reaction to the news is one of joy or disappointment
C. to prepare Penelope emotionally for recognizing and welcoming her husband
D. to make the surprise of his true identity all the greater
_____23. Which of the following character traits does Penelope reveal in Part 2 of the Odyssey?
A. stubbornness and fear
B. weakness and longing
C. prudence and loyalty
D. indecision and panic
_____24. Choose the phrase that best defines an epic simile.
A. a figure of speech in which one thing is spoken of as if it were something else
B. a literary technique that involves differences between meaning and intention
C. a work created in imitation of another
D. a long, elaborate comparison between two dissimilar actions or objects
_____ 25. Which of the following is an important theme in Part 2 of the Odyssey?
A. Good triumphs over evil.
B. Separation weakens relationships.
C. The quest for power never ends.
D. Old age triumphs over youth.
_____26. Toward the end of Part 2, how does Penelope test Odysseus?
A. She disguises herself to see if he will recognize her.
B. She tells him that she almost married one of the suitors.
C. She pretends that she has moved their marriage bed.
D. She challenges him to string the great bow a second time.
_____27. Odysseus’ slaughter of the suitors shows that ancient Greece held which of the following cultural values?
A. Violence is never justified.
B. Even heroes sometimes allow their emotions to get the better of them.
C. Intelligence is more highly prized than physical strength.
D. Revenge is sometimes justified, even if it involves killing.
9th Lit & Comp
Odyssey Unit Test
Short Answer
28. In “The Challenge,” lines 1370–1378, in the Odyssey, Part 2, Odysseus takes his turn in the contest to string the bow
and shoot an arrow through twelve ax handle sockets. What simile describes Odysseus’ stringing the bow?
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DIRECTIONS: Read the epic similes that follow. Then, circle the letter of the answer that best
completes each sentence.
But the man skilled in all ways of contending,
satisfied by the great bow’s look and heft,
like a musician, like a harper, when
with quiet hand upon his instrument
he draws between his thumb and forefinger
a sweet new string upon a peg: so effortlessly
Odysseus in one motion strung the bow.
_____29. The comparison suggests that, like the musician, Odysseus
A. is nervous before he begins.
B. works with a stringed instrument.
C. is proficient in music.
D. knows his instrument and where to get good strings.
Think of a catch that fishermen haul in to a half-moon bay
in a fine-meshed net from the whitecaps of the sea:
how all are poured out on the sand, in throes for the salt sea,
twitching their cold lives away in Helios’ fiery air:
so lay the suitors heaped on one another.
_____30. The comparison suggests that
A. Odysseus was also a good fisherman.
B. the suitors had as much chance against Odysseus as fish have when they are caught in a net.
C. something fishy was going on in Ithaca, and Odysseus had to correct it.
D. the setting of much of the epic is the Greek isles, where fishing is an important industry.
Essay: (20 Points)- On a separate sheet of paper.
Consider Part 2 of the Odyssey as a set of problems and solutions. After an absence of twenty years, Odysseus must face
a number of problems when he returns to Ithaca. In an essay, identify three problems that Odysseus faces. Explain how
he solves each problem, and describe the consequences of his actions. (3-4 paragraphs).