Transcript The Odyssey

The Odyssey
The Odyssey =
An ancient Greek epic
by Homer that recounts
the adventures of
Odysseus during his
return from the war in
Troy to his home in the
Greek island of Ithaca.
Essential Traits =
 long narrative poem
 great and serious subject
 elevated style
 centered on a heroic or
somewhat divine figure
http://homepage.mac.com/mseffie/assignments/beowulf/epic.html
Essential Traits (continued) =
 the fate of a tribe, a nation, or the
human race relies on the hero
 traditional epics shaped by literary
artist
 historical and legendary materials
developed from oral traditions
 hero’s nation during a period of
expansion and warfare
http://homepage.mac.com/mseffie/assignments/beowulf/epic.html
 Common
Traits =
 invokes a Muse (one of the nine
daughters of Zeus)
 narrative opens "in the middle of
things" (in media res)
 long lists place the finite action within
a broader, universal context
 extended formal speeches
 repetition and stock phrases
http://homepage.mac.com/mseffie/assignments/beowulf/epic.html
 The
main character is a hero, who is
often possessed of supernatural
abilities or qualities.
 The hero is charged with a quest.
 The hero is tested, often to prove the
worthiness of himself and his quest.
 The presence of numerous mythical
beings, magical and helpful animals,
and human helpers and companions
The hero’s travels take him to a
supernatural world, often one that
normal human beings are barred from
entering.
 The cycle must reach a low point where
the hero nearly gives up his quest or
appears defeated.
 A resurrection.
 Restitution. Often this takes the form of
the hero regaining his rightful place on
the throne.

Homer
poet
thought to be blind, but
describes events as a seeing
person
lived around 1200 B.C.E
Homer
Wrote the Illiad and the Odyssey
- stories about the war between
the Trojans and the Greeks
which had happened between
900 and 700 B.C.E.
Persons in the Iliad
 Acheans
 Trojans
– Achilles &
– Hector &
Patrocles
Alexandros
– Agamemnon &
– Priam, Helen,
Menalaos
Andromache
– Odysseus, Ajax,
Phoenix
 Gods
– Zeus, Apollo,
Aphrodite
– Athena, Hera,
Thetis
Place of Homer in Ancient
Greece
 Persons and Themes
– Glories of War and Heroism
• Reasons for War
• Realistic Description of Battles
• Character of the Hero
– Social and Human Conditions
• Patriarchal and Hierarchical Society
• “shame culture”
• Individual, Society/Family, Gods, Fate
The Iliad
Wrath of Achilles, Part I
– Quarrel with Agamemnon
– Picture of Heroic Ideal
– Glimpse of Olympus
Behind the Walls of Troy
– Hector as Tragic Hero
– Women and Family Life
– Fate: Troy and Hector
The Iliad
Wrath of Achilles, Part II
– Death of Patrocles
– Death of Hector
– Priam’s Plea
Parting Remarks
– Involvement of the gods
– Education: types of men/women,
identity
The Odyssey
 Journeys
 Disguise, Deception and Craftiness
 Fantastic Voyages
 Women in the Odyssey
 Homecoming: Loyalty & Order
The Odyssey
 Two Journeys in One Story
– Odysseus and Telemachus:
Fantastic and Worldly
– Narrative Thread: Time and
Memory
– Heroic Struggles:
gods/immortality, monsters &
home
– Xenia = generosity and courtesy
towards strangers
 Disguise, Deception and
Craftiness
– Odysseus is polutropan = of
many twists
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Mt. Olympus
Troy
Cicones
Lotus Eaters
Cyclops
6. Aeolia’s Island
7. Laestrygonians
8. Circe’s Kingdom
9. Land of the Dead
10. Sirens
11. Scylla & Charybdis
12. Calypso
13. Ithaca
The Odyssey
 Fantastic Voyages:
Horrible and Seductive
–
–
–
–
Cyclops (Bk. IX)
Circe’s Island (Bk. X)
Land of the Dead (Bk. XI)
Sirens, Scylla and
Charybdis (Bk. XII)
Circe turning crew into pigs
The Odyssey
 Women in the
Odyssey
– Calypso, Nausicaa
(& mother), Circe
– Penelope
The Odyssey
Homecoming (Bk. XXIII)
– Disguises at Ithaka: Athena
– Penelope and Telemachus: Loyalty and
Order
– Killing the Suitors: Xenia?
Homer: Iliad & Odyssey
Concluding Remarks: Iliad & Odyssey
– Heroic Ideals
– Gods and Humans: fate
– Moral and Social Order
Illiad
Story of the last year of the
Trojan War
War had lasted 10 years.
Troy was defeated when
Ulysses and his men were able
to get inside the walls of Troy
concealed within the body of
the Trojan horse.
The Trojan Horse
The Odyssey
The story of the journey of
Ulysses and his men trying to
get home after the Trojan War.
10 years
an epic about humans on the
journey of life overcoming
temptations along the way.
Characters
Ulysses or Odysseus
Sirens - group of females who
lured sailors by their singing
Characters
Circe - goddess, enchantress,
who turned men into swine
Scylla - monster with 12 feet
and 6 heads with 3 rows of
teeth, carries off a sailor in each
mouth
Characters
Charybdis - 3 times a day pulls
sailors into her whirlpool
Hyperion - the sun (distinct from
Apollo, the sun god)
Jove=Zeus=Jupiter=leader of
the gods
Eurylochus - one of the crew
members