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Start a new section in your notes called The Odyssey. Copy down this
chart and fill it out about Greek Mythology. This is NOT a journal!
Greek Mythology
Greek Mythology
Mt. Olympus
Circe
Zeus
Athena
Aeolus
Poseidon
The River Styx
Hermes
Hades
Calypso
The Odyssey
By: Homer
Homer: Who was he?
Homer was a Greek poet.
He is credited with writing the great epics, the Iliad and the Odyssey.
The Iliad is the story of the siege of Troy.
The Odyssey, the tale of Odysseus's wanderings and journey to get home from battle.
The place of his birth is unclear, but it was probably a Greek colony on the coast of Asia Minor,
and his date, once put as far back as 1200 BC, from the style of the poems attributed to him is
now thought to be much later.
There is little doubt that Homer's works were originally based on ballads (stories passed down
orally and performed for the public), but that they were much modified and extended. Of the true
Homer, nothing is positively known.
Mt. Olympus
Olympus was the residence of the divine family, the twelve most important ruling gods and goddesses of
ancient Greece, who were called the Olympians.
There they all lived together in an enormous palace, high above the clouds. Olympus is generally identified
with the actual Mount Olympus, which is the highest mountain in Greece, but very often it is also identified as
some mysterious region far above the earth.
Zeus
Zeus was the youngest son of the Titans Cronus and
Rhea.
When he had grown up, Zeus caused Cronus to vomit up
his sisters and brothers, and these gods joined him in
fighting to wrest control of the universe from the Titans and
Cronus, their king. Having vanquished his father and the
other Titans, Zeus imprisoned most of them in the
underworld of Tartarus.
Zeus was the supreme god of the Olympians.
He was the god of sky and weather, law, order and fate.
He was depicted as a royal man, mature with sturdy figure
and dark beard. His usual attributes were a lightning bolt,
royal scepter, and eagle.
Poseidon
Poseidon was the brother of Zeus.
He was the god of the sea and earthquakes, and he was relied upon by sailors
for a safe voyage on the sea.
Many men drowned horses in sacrifice of his honor.
He lived on the ocean floor in a palace made of coral and gems, and drove a
chariot pulled by horses.
Poseidon was a very moody god, and his temperament could sometimes result
in violence. When he was in a good mood, Poseidon created new lands in the
water and a calm sea. When he was in a bad mood, Poseidon would strike the
ground with a trident and cause unruly springs and earthquakes, ship wrecks,
and drownings.
Hades
Hades is the brother of Zeus. He is the lord of the
Underworld, ruling over the dead.
He is a greedy god who is greatly concerned with
increasing his subjects. Those whose calling increase the
number of dead are seen favorably. He is exceedingly
disinclined to allow any of his subjects leave.
He is also the god of wealth, due to the precious metals
mined from the earth. He has a helmet that makes him
invisible. He rarely leaves the underworld. He is unpitying
and terrible.
The River Styx
The River Styx is a river that separates the world of the living from the world of the dead.
Styx is said to wind around the Underworld nine times. Its name comes from a Greek word that means hate, so Styx is the river of
hate.
This river was so respected by the gods of Greek mythology that they would take life binding oaths just by mentioning its name.
To cross the River Styx, a soul had to be ferried by Charon, a boatman.
He demanded payment, so the Greeks placed coins in the mouths of their dead before burying them.
Hades' house stood on the shore of the Styx, and Cerberus, a monstrous three-headed dog, guarded the house.
After crossing the river, each soul was assigned to its eternal home by one of three judges.
Calypso
Calypso was a nymph, the daughter of the Titan Atlas. A
nymph is a minor goddess of nature that dwells in the
mountains, forests, trees, and waters.
She lived on the island of Ogygia.
During The Odyssey, Odysseus washes ashore on Ogygia.
Calypso imprisons him on Ogygia for seven years.
Athena
Athena was the Greek goddess of wisdom, war, the arts, industry, justice and skill. She was the favorite child of
Zeus.
Athena and Poseidon had been the Greeks' greatest allies among the Gods, but when Troy fell all that had
changed. They became their bitterest enemies. The Greeks went mad with victory the night they entered the city;
they forgot what was due to the Gods; and on their voyage home they were terribly punished.
Cassandra was a prophetess. She told the Trojans each time what would happen; they would never listen to her. She
declared that Greeks were hidden in the wooden horse; no one gave her words a thought. When the Greeks sacked
the city, she was in Athena's temple, under the Goddess's protection. The Greeks found her there and they dared to lay
violent hands on her. Not one Greek protested against the sacrilege. Athena's wrath was deep. She went to Poseidon
and laid her wrongs before him. "Help me to vengeance," she said. "Give the Greeks a bitter homecoming. Stir up your
waters with wild whirlwinds when they sail. Let dead men choke the bays and line the shores and reefs."
Athena
Because of the wicked way they had treated Cassandra,
Athena had been angry at all the Greeks indiscriminately, but
before that, during the Trojan War, she had especially favored
Odysseus. She delighted in his wily mind, his shrewdness and
his cunning; she was always forward to help him. After Troy fell
she included him with the others in her wrathful displeasure
and he too was caught by the storm when he set sail and
driven so completely off his course that he never found it
again. Year after year he voyaged, hurried from one perilous
adventure to another.
Ten years, however, is a long time for anger to last. The Gods
had by now grown sorry for Odysseus, with the single
exception of Poseidon, and Athena was sorriest of all. Her old
feeling for him had returned; she was determined to put an
end to his sufferings and bring him home.
Hermes
Hermes was the herald or messenger of the Olympian gods.
Hermes is the god of shepherds, land travel, merchants, weights
and measures, oratory, literature, athletics and thieves, and known
for his cunning and shrewdness.
It was his duty to guide the souls of the dead down to the
underworld.
Hermes is usually depicted with a winged cap, winged sandals and
the heralds staff.
Aeolus
Aeolus was the god of the four winds. He
lived on one of the rocky Lipara islands, close
to Sicily.
In the caves on this island were imprisoned
the winds, and Aeolos, directed by the higher
gods, let out these winds as soft breezes,
gales, or whatever the higher gods wished.
Circe
Circe was the daughter of the sun.
She was a sorceress best known for her
ability to turn men into animals with her magic
wand.
She is renowned for her knowledge of magic
and poisonous herbs.
Epic Poetry
very imposing or impressive;
What does
the wordthe
epic
mean?
surpassing
ordinary
heroism,
bravery,
majesty, great
tragedy,have?
and great triumph
What qualities
or attributes
doeshorror,
an epicgreat
story/event
Homer's Illiad and Odyssey
What are examples of epics?
Raiders of the Lost Ark
The Lord of the Rings
Milton's Paradise Lost
Dante's Divine Comedy
Star Wars
What is perhaps the most famous epic of all time?
Homer's The Odyssey
Epic Poetry
Turn to page
1094!
Cyclops
Epic Characteristics Chart
Characteristic Titles/Definitions
Examples from the Odyssey
Epic Hero
Epic Plot
Epic Setting
Fill out this chart
as we read
The Odyssey.
Archetypes
You will use this
later.
Epic Themes
Epic Poetry
With a partner,
answer #'s 1-3
on page 1095.
Cyclops
The Language of Homer: Keys to Reading The Odyssey
1. The Simile: Also called an Extended, Epic, or Homeric Simile
·an extended simile often running for several lines, used typically to intensify the heroic
stature of the subject and to serve as decoration
·elaborate comparisons, or in chains of comparisons, by which the ordinary world is
"braided" into the heroic world of the epic plot
·Often used to describe scenes or characters and compare them to easily understandable
everyday events/objects.
Homeric Simile Examples:
·As when the shudder of the west wind suddenly rising scatters across the water, and the
water darkens beneath it, so darkening were settled the ranks of Achaians and Trojans in
the plain.
·But swift Aias the son of Oïleus would not at all now take his stand apart from Telamonian
Aias, not even a little; but as two wine-coloured oxen straining with even force drag the
compacted plough through the fallow land, and for both of them at the base of the horns
the dense sweat gushes; only the width of the polished yoke keeps a space between them
as they toil down the furrow till the share cuts the edge of the ploughland; so these took
their stand in battle, close to each other.
What are the similes in these two passages? Circle them.
2. Epithets: brief descriptive phrases used to characterize a particular person or thing.
Main characters are often named by prominent characteristics
·"Hector of the loud war-cry“
·"Achilles, breaker of men"
·"the man whose name was known for courage“
Main characters are often named by kin association or clan allegiance, to recall famous
lineage and to link sons or vassals deeds to their fathers' or leaders' fame.
·"Halfdane's Son"
Many times they look like appositive phrases (if written as nouns)!
·Odysseus, raider of cities, stormed the island.
Catherine the Great, baby boomers, The Refrigerator-these epithets are used to
characterize an empress, a generation, and a football player.
Homer uses many epithets as formulas to characterize places and people. When
Penelope is referred to as "faithful Penelope," we all are instantly reminded of her
outstanding character trait.
A Famous Epithet Mystery
One of Homer's most famous epithets is the descriptive phrase "the wine-dark sea." Since
wine is red or white or yellowish, and the sea is none of these hues, the description is
puzzling. Some say that the ancient Greeks diluted their wine with water and that the alkali
in the water changed the color of the wine from red to blue. Others think the sea was
covered with red algae. Still others suggest that the Greeks were colorblind. But Robert
Fitzgerald, the great translator of the Odyssey, thought about the question when he was
sailing on the Aegean Sea: "The contrast of the bare arid baked land against the sea gave
the sea such a richness of hue that I felt as though we were sailing through a bowl of dye.
The depth of hue of the water was like the depth of hue of a good red wine."
Epithet Practice
Write your answers in your notebook.
1. Dawn is described as "rosy-fingered." What does this epithet help you see?
2. Make up epithets for at least two characters that are popular on TV or in the new
today (sports stars? singers?). Make at least one an appositive phrase.
3. Allusion: reference to a famous person, place, or event.
Example
When Odysseus' son first sees the palace of Menelaus,
he says "This is the way the court of Zeus must be."
Circle the allusion.
Turn to page
1097!
Answer #'s 1
and then 1-2
Scylla
Turn to page
1098!
Scylla
Reading the Epic
Remember, it is a poem, so there will be sound devices used.
Alliteration: repetition of a consonant sounds at the beginning
of words
"but never have I seen one like Odysseus for steadiness and stout he
Assonance: repetition of vowel sounds within nonrhyming words.
“Try to light the fire”
Consonance: repetition of consonant sounds within and at the end of words
"He struck a streak of bad luck"
Turn to page 1099
and answer #'s 1-5.
Also, what reading skill
is used in each one?
www.liquiddragon.com/odyssey.php <http://www.liquiddragon.com/odyssey.php>
The Odyssey Scavenger Hunt on page 1104
Objective: Work together to better understand and interpret The Odyssey.
Directions:
1. Open up your group discussion by talking about the journal.
2. You are going to work together as a group to compile all of
the answers for the scavenger hunt. Friendliness and Support.
3. Write your answers on one piece of paper, but put all of
your names on it. Also, everyone must write answers at
some point! Don't write on the handouts.
4. I will call up ONE group at a time to use the Smartboard to
answer #2.
5. Remember, everyone should have their books out and looking
up answers and discussing the questions.