The Odyssey

• Written BETWEEN 900 AND 700 BCE almost 3,000 years ago

• Considered the FIRST, GREAT work of WESTERN literature.

• Story attributed to a Greek poet named Homer.

• Very little is known about Homer, there is a tradition that he lost his sight and became blind.

• The story of the Odyssey is about a hero named Odysseus and the obstacles he faces and overcomes.

• The story begins with the Trojan War a famous historical event in Greek history.

• The Odyssey is an epic poem, 11,300 lines, and is divided into 24 books

• The story of the Odyssey was not written down. It was passed down from one generation to another in the oral storytelling tradition by rhapsodes.

Characteristics of a Hero

brave

leadership

dedicated

determined

perserverance

sacrifice

honorable

performs duty

Fatal Flaws of a Hero

pride-hubris

arrogant

vain-vanity

temper-anger

reckless-risk taker

seeks glory

seeks adventure

curiosity

Word Bank

Atypical                 untypical              exceptional        unique

Brave                    heroic                   fearless

Valor                     valorous               heroism               valiant

Hero                      heroic                   heroism

Courage               courageous

Virtue                  moral excellence      righteousness

Uncommon          exceptional

Common               ordinary

Perseverance       persist                  carry on             never give up                    hang tough

Leader                  leadership             chief                     

Sacrifice               devoted               dedicated            devoted

Characters

Odysseus-the hero and main character.

Odysseus uses his guile and is a cunning leader.

Penelope-Odysseus' Wife

Odysseus leaves Ithaca to fight in the Trojan War.

He is gone for 20 years. Penelope faithfully waits for his return.

Telemachus-Odysseus' son

Odysseus leaves Telemachus when he is an infant and returns to Ithaca 20 years later.

The Cyclops  One Eyed Monster    Son of Poseidon

     The Sirens  Sea Creatures with Beautiful Voices         

  Calypso Sea Nymph

The Lotus Eaters                                

         Charybdis Giant Whirlpool   

    Scylla 6 Headed Sea Monster

Circe Enchantress 

  Zeus King of the Gods  

Athena Goddess of Intelligence 

Aeolus God of the Wind

Poseidon  God of the Sea                                        

  Helios God of the Sun  

Mount Olympus Home of the God

Settings

Ithaca-Odysseus' Home

MAJOR STORY LINES-3

1. The Story of Penelope and Telemachus

The story of what happens to Odysseus' wife Penelope and their son Telemachus in their home on the island of Ithaca while Odysseus is fighting in the Trojan War.

2. The Journey Home-OBSTACLES AND TEMPTATIONS

The story of Odysseus' 10 year journey home from the war. He must fight constant obstacles and monsters to return home to his wife and son.

3. The Suitors:

Odysseus arrives back to Ithaca after a 10 year absence. He teams up with his son Telemachus to battle the Suitors, men who wish to marry Penelope and steal his Kingdom of Ithaca and his wife. Odysessus must battle the Suitors to regain his kingdom. He is reunited with his wife and son.

EPIC POEM

• LONG
• NARRATIVE
• LEGENDARY HERO

EPIC HERO

• LEGENDARY OR WELL-KNOWN
• GOALS
• EMBODIES THE VIRTUES OF A NATION
• EXAMPLES: CAPTAIN AMERICA, SUPERMAN, HARRY POTTER, LUKE SKYWALKER, KATNISS EVERDEEN, ODYSSEUS

CHARACTERISTICS OF AN EPIC HERO

• MALE                                                                                                                 
  
• NOBLE BIRTH
• LEGENDARY
• COURAGEOUS ACTS
• STRENGTH
• HIS ACTS DETERMINE THE FATE OF HIS PEOPLE

SPECIAL ELEMENTS IN THE STORY

1. Exciting Adventure
2. Monsters
3. Gods and Goddesses
4. War and Fighting
5. Love

THEME-2 WAYS TO INTERPERT THE ODYSSEY

1. A great adventure story with good characters and plot
2. A story for everyone who must overcome temptations and obstacles in their journey through life to find happiness.

Odysseus' Journey-Plot Line

The Island of the Phaecians:

1. Odysseus explains his ten-year journey to them during a feast
2. He is alone-all of his men are DEAD
3. His ship has been destroyed by Zeus

Calypso's Island

1. island of women
2. goddess named Calypso
3. seven-year affair
4. Odysseus builds a new ship to sail home

Troy

1. Odysseus has been fighting for 10 years.
2. Odysseus and his men begin their journey home from here.

The Island of the Cicones

1. After leaving Troy, raid this island for supplies
2. Rape, plunder, battle
3. Odysseus lost 72 of his men
4. Zeus is angry

Island of the Lotus Eaters

1. Odysseus sends his men to search for food
2. Has to rescue them when they eat the Lotus Flower

Island of the Cyclopes

1. Cyclops-giants, one-eyed, live in caves

2. Do not farm

3. Violent

4. Odysseus and his men find a Cyclops’ cave

5. Lured by his cheese and wine

6. Cyclops, Polyphemus, traps them in the cave

7. Blind Polyphemus

8. Sneak out under his herd of sheep

9. More men die!

The Island of Aeolus

1. Aeolus, the god of the winds

2. Gives Odysseus a bag of bad winds

3. Sail to Ithaca

4. Men open the bag

5. Blown out to sea

The Island of the Laestrygonians

1. Race of cannibals

2. Eat the Greeks

3. Only the men on Odysseus’ ship survive

Circe's Island

1. Circe turns Odysseus’ men to swine

2. Odysseus is protected

3. Circe tells Odysseus that he needs to find the blind prophet Teiresias in the Underworld to get home

The Underworld

1. Prophet Teiresias tells Odysseus how to get home

2. Finds his mother there, who has committed suicide from depression

Island of the Sirens

1. Sail near island with women singing

2. Song tries to reel in sailors

3. Odysseus fills men’s ears with beeswax

4. Odysseus tied to the mast

5. Escape the Sirens

Scylla and Charybdis

1. Odysseus decides to sail for Scylla instead of Charybdis

2. Scylla-a six-headed sea serpent

3. Charybdis-giant whirlpool

4. Charybdis--whole ship would be destroyed

5. Scylla, six men die

Island of Helios-Cattle of the Sun God

1. Odysseus falls asleep praying to Athena

2. Men go against his orders eat Helios' cattle

3. Outrages Helios (sun god)

4. Threatens never to rise again

5. Punishment

6. Zeus throws a bolt of lightning at the ship

7. Only Odysseus survives

Calypso's Island

1. An island of women

2. Nymph named Calypso

3. Odysseus has a seven-year affair with Calypso

4. Hermes convinces Calypso to let Odysseus build a new ship so he could sail home.

The Island of the Phaecians:

1. Odysseus explains his ten-year journey to them during a feast

2. He is alone-all of his men are DEAD

3. His ship has been destroyed by Zeus

Ithaca-The Suitors

1. Odysseus arrives home

2. Sees his son, Telemachus, first time in 20 years

3. He and Telemachus kill all of the suitors.
4. Odysseus takes his place as king, alongside with his wife Penelope.

ODYSSEUS' JOURNEY

1.Troy: After the victory at Troy, Odysseus and his men begin their journey home from here.

2.The Island of the Cicones: After leaving Troy, they stop to raid this island for supplies. The Cicones attack on horseback, and Odysseus lost 72 of his men.

3.The Island of the Lotus Eaters: Odysseus sends his men out to search for food, and has to recover them when they eat the Lotus Flower.

4.The Island of the Cyclopes: Here, Odysseus and his men find a Cyclops' cave, lured by his cheese and wine. The cyclops, Polyphemus, traps them inside the cave. Odysseus and his men blind the cyclops, and then sneak out under his heard of sheep.

5.The Island of Aeolus: Aeolus, the god of the winds, gives Odysseus all of the bad winds, so he can safely sail home. Odysseus' men go against his orders and open the bag, and all of the winds escape.

6.The Island of the Laestrygonians: The Laestrygonians, a race of cannibals, eat the Greeks. Only the men on Odysseus' ship and himself survive.

7.Circe's Island: Circe turns Odysseus' men to swine, but Odysseus is protected from her magic with the help of Hermes, who gave him a magical herb called Moly. Odysseus ends up staying there for what seems like a short time, but ended up being a couple years. Before Odysseus departs, Circe finally tells him that he needs to find the blind prophet Teiresias in the Underworld.

8.The Underworld: Odysseus consults the prophet Teiresias to ask how he can get home, and finds his mother there, who has committed suicide in depression.

9.The Island of the Sirens: Odysseus and his men pass here, an island with women singing their luring songs, trying to reel in sailors. So they do not hear, Odysseus fills his mens ears with beeswax, and he has them tie him to the mast.

10.Scylla and Charybdis: Odysseus chooses to sail for Scylla, a six-headed sea serpent, rather than Charybdis, a giant whirlpool. He did this because he knew that if he went to Charybdis, the whole ship would be destroyed. However, if he went towards Scylla, six men would die. A sacrifice the brave Odysseus decided to make.

11.The Island of Helios: They stop here, and Odysseus falls asleep praying to Athena. While sleeping, his men once again go against his orders and eat Helios' cattle. This outrages the god, and he threatens never to rise again. As a punishment, Zeus throws a bolt of lightning at the ship, and turns it to splinters. Only Odysseus survives.

12.Ogygia (Calypso's Island): Odysseus finds this island after drifting in the sea. It is a island of women, with a nymph named Calypso, with whom Odysseus has a seven-year affair with. After the seven years, Hermes convinces Calypso to let Odysseus build a new ship so he could sail home.

13.The Island of the Phaecians: The Phaecians accept Odysseus, and he explains his ten-year journey to them during a feast. They happily give him a ride home on one of their magical ships.

14.Ithaca: Odysseus finally arrives home, and sees his son, Telemachus, for the first time in 15 years. He and Telemachus kill all of the suitors, and Odysseus takes his place as king, once again, alongside his wife Penelope.