The Odyssey
Background and Trojan
War Review
IMPORTANT BACKGROUND
INFORMATION
The Odyssey
1. Epic poem- long, narrative poem that tells about the
adventures of a hero who reflects the ideals and values
of a nation or race.
2. Composed sometime around 800 B.C. – 600 B.C.
3. Composed by Homer
a. Homer did not create the Odyssey, he
simply wrote it down.
However, Homer was rumored to be
a blind storyteller. He would NOT
have
been able to write.
b. The Odyssey was being told orally
through storytellers long before
Homer wrote it down
Characteristics of the EPIC:
1.Has an epic hero
Other National EPICS are:
Greek = The Iliad by Homer
Spanish = El Cid
2. Often written in poetry form
but not always
3. Often includes myths, legends,
and history
4. Usually has a serious tone and
language
Roman = The Aeneid by Virgil
American= Forest Gump
5. Deals with a quest
6. Often based on some truths
7. Includes epithets & flashbacks
8. Usually involves a battle and
oftentimes a single combat like
Achilles fighting Hector or the
final showdown between Harry
and Lord Voldemort
English = Harry Potter Series Percy Jackson & Olympians
Series
Epic Hero
1. A larger-than-life figure, usually male, who embodies the
ideals of a nation or race.
2. Take part in long, dangerous adventures and accomplish
great deeds that require courage and superhuman
strength.
3. Often, the divine world of the gods or other supernatural
forces will interfere with the human world of the epic hero.
Some epic heroes:
- Harry Potter
- Frodo from Lord of the Rings
- Luke Skywalker from Star Wars
Epic Simile
Simile- comparison of two unlike things that uses the
“like” or “as.”
Epic Simile- an elaborate, more involved
version of a regular simile.
Just as an angler poised on a jutting rock flings
his treacherous bait in the offshore swell,
whips his long rod—hook sheathed in an oxhorn
lure—
and whisks up little fish he flips on the beachbreak,
writhing, gasping out their lives . . . so now they
writhed, gasping as Scylla swung them up her
cliff and there at her cavern’s mouth she bolted
them down raw—
screaming out, flinging their arms down toward
me,
lost in that mortal struggle . . .
- great length and detail
- extends for several lines
- also called the “Homeric
Simile”
word
Epithets
Epithets- brief, descriptive phrases that helped to
characterize a particular person or thing.
- repetition of a phrase
Odysseus is described as:
“master mariner”
“old contender”
“man of twists and turns”
“great tactician”
- remember: he initiated the
idea of the Trojan horsesource of the Greeks defeating Troy
Trojan War and The Odyssey
background-Key Players
Sparta
• Menelaus-King of Sparta
– Married to Helen
• Helen
– Most beautiful woman
• Agamemnon-King of Mycenae
– Menelaus’ brother
– Convinces brother to go to
war with Troy
• Greek fighters
– Odysseus
– Ajax
– Achilles
Troy
• Paris-Prince of Troy
– Son of King Priam and
Queen Hecuba
– Helen runs off with him
• Hector-Prince of Troy
-Paris’ brother
The Trojan War in Review
The Iliad and the Trojan War
Trojan War may have occurred around 1200 B.C. and established the
background for Homer’s epics.
The mini-version of the Legend is
Paris, Prince of Troy and son of King
Priam and Queen Hecuba, fell
in love with another man’s wife
and took her back to his
kingdom of Troy with the
interference of the gods, one
goddess in particular
Helen, known as the most
beautiful woman and the face
that launched a 1,000 ships
“runs away” with Paris and
her absence enrages her
husband
Family Loyalty—How far would a person go for
his brother?
Menalaus, King of Sparta, is upset and seeks the
advice of his brother
Agamemnon, King of Mycenae, who is power
hungry and wants control of all lands,
especially Troy; he convinces his jilted
brother to go after his wife and wage a war
against Troy to get her back and regain
some of the dignity his brother has lost.
Together they utilize their power as kings to
gather as many great warriors to fight for
their cause.
Agamemnon
• The war lasted 10 years, during which
time many heroes emerged.
• Fighting for the Greeks
( Under rule of King Agamemnon):
-Odysseus (the hero of The Odyssey)
– Ajax (almost giant like warrior who was unable to
kill the greatest Trojan warrior but wounded him)
-Achilles (the Greek hero of The Iliad
and the greatest warrior)
AJAX
• Fighting for the Trojans –Brothers Prince
Hector and Prince Paris
Prince Hector
(the greatest
Trojan warrior)
defends his
country to the
death
Prince Paris—the one
who brought Helen to
his kingdom and
brought destruction to
his home
The Iliad and the Trojan War
• The Iliad
– Homer’s 1st Epic
– Serves as a prequel to The Odyssey
– The epic only deals with about 20 days in the 10th and final year of the
Trojan War
– Homer concentrates on one main Greek hero, Achilles, and one main
opposing hero for the Trojans, Hector.
– As the epic begins, Achilles is furious with King Agamemnon over a
slave girl, Briseis, and sulking in his tent, refusing to fight.**The epic
begins in the middle or in media res**
– The Trojans start winning and beating back the Greeks.
– But, when Hector kills Achilles’ best friend, Patroclus, Achilles
becomes enraged and returns to battle for the sole purpose of
destroying Hector.
– After Hector’s death, Achilles is killed by Paris, but the Trojans never
recover from the loss of Hector and finally, Troy falls.
The Horse That Ended The War
• After Hector is killed, unless
the Greeks get inside the
walls of Troy, the war would
most likely continue.
• Odysseus, King of Ithaca and
a “master strategist” devises
the plan of building a giant
Trojan horse to represent a
gift to the Trojans.
• As the Trojans believe that
the Greeks have given up and
decided to go back home,
they wheel the large wooden
horse inside the walls of
Troy.
• While the Trojans are
sleeping, after a night of
partying and celebrating
the end of the war,
several Greeks, led by
Odysseus, crawl out of
the horse, open the gates,
and after a massive
amount of bloodshed,
Troy burns and the Trojan
War ends
• Hubris is excessive pride or arrogance
– It can lead to rash behavior and to not
thinking clearly in serious situations
HUBRIS AS A CHARACTER FLAW
AGAMEMNON—King of Mycenae—
Allows his pride to get the better of
him when he refuses to give
Chryseis back causing disease and
fire to rain down on the Greeks,
courtesy of the god Apollo. Once he
does he give her back, he takes
someone else’s girl causing another
big problem for the Greeks.
Odysseus—Hero
in The Odyssey
also exhibits
hubris which
angers the gods
and leads to many
difficulties and
hardships for him.
ACHILLES—He allows
his pride of losing his
slave girl Briseis and
love interest to
Agamemnon get the
best of him and refuses
to continue fighting at
Troy….until his dear
friend is slain by the
Trojan Prince Hector
causing his desire for
revenge and eventually
his death all because of
pride
So what does this have to do with
The Odyssey?
What is the Odyssey about?
- Tells of Odysseus’ adventures as he makes his way
home from Troy
•He was gone for a total of 20 years
•10 years at war and 10 more years trying to get home
- He has a fleet of 12 ships carrying about 720 men
- Back at home (Ithaca)
-Penelope (wife of Odysseus) and Telemachus
(son of Odysseus) are waiting for Odysseus’
return while suitors have taken over Ithaca,
hoping that she will marry one of them
Odysseus encounters many mythical beings and has to fight his own
personal “demons” and overcome his own character flaws during
his return home