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 event-

Trojan War

The Trojan Horse

• Long narrative Long narrative poem about the feats of a hero (entertainment)

• HeroHero reflects goals and values of society• Taught lessons to listeners/readers• Heroes were included so people would be like

them• Historical fact, legend and truthHistorical fact, legend and truth• Incredible deeds and adventuresIncredible deeds and adventures• Gods/goddessesGods/goddesses help and harass the hero

Epic Poem

Epic Hero

• 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

• 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

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?