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The Odyssey

The Odyssey. What is it besides being a Rollicking Great Story?. Double Negatives. Revise these sentences: Example: Many scholars cannot hardly believe that the Odyssey was written by Homer. Many scholars can hardly believe tat the Odyssey was written by Homer

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The Odyssey

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  1. The Odyssey What is it besides being a Rollicking Great Story?

  2. Double Negatives • Revise these sentences: Example: Many scholars cannot hardly believe that the Odyssey was written by Homer. Many scholars can hardly believe tat the Odyssey was written by Homer • These scholars cannot help not thinking that many poets contributed to the epic. • Scholars have no historical facts about Homer’s life; they have not but a few legends.

  3. Journal ¾ page • What trials must a hero go through to achieve their goal? What can happen on their journey to derail them? • Alternately, What should the returning hero’s homecoming look like? What would you do to welcome home a hero?

  4. The Journey http://www.cs.iupui.edu/~cfarring/Odyssey/index.html

  5. What is this Odyssey you speak of? • “Written down sometime between 800 and 600 BCE, the Odysseyis of the best known and most stupendously awesome works of ancient literature—make that any literature. Composed (maybe) by a poet named Homer (maybe), it tells the story of a man trying to make his way home from war. But not just any man, and not just any war. Its hero is Odysseus, who is basically the James Franco of Ancient Greece: smart, strong, attractive, brave, beloved by the gods, and way cooler than you are” (Shmoop.com). • BTW – Odysseus is NOT cooler than you are, because you rock! But, he was pretty epic.

  6. The Odyssey’s Construction • The Odyssey begins in medias res • the action begins in the middle of the plot • prior events are described through flashbacks or storytelling. • Nearly all modern editions and translations of the Odysseyare divided into 24 books. • This division is handy but it is not original; it was developed by Alexandrian editors of the 3rd century BC. • We will excerpts from the Odyssey, but not the entire work

  7. Themes, Motifs & Symbols Themes • The Power of Cunning over Strength • If the Iliad(which tells the story of the Trojan War) is about strength, the Odyssey is about cunning. • Odysseus relies much more on mind than muscle. . .He knows that he cannot overpower some of his foes. Instead, he schemes around his disadvantage in strength by tricking and exploiting stupidity. • Penelope, Odysseus’s wife, is clever as well. She tricks the men back home, while waiting for her husband’s return. Themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas explored in a literary work.

  8. Themes • The Pitfalls of Temptation • many of the pitfalls that Odysseus and his men face are obstacles that come from mortal weakness and the inability to control it. • The submission to temptation or recklessness either angers the gods or distracts Odysseus and the members of his crew from their journey: • they by tempted by hunger to slaughter sacred animals • they are tempted by the lotus eaters • they are tempted by the Sirens • How will they fare, do you think? Themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas explored in a literary work.

  9. Motifs • Storytelling: • Delivery of the plot is often in this form • places the epic in its proper cultural context(bards) • 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, • the plot of the epic often turns on his deception. • Seductresses: • Women are very important figures • These women gain power through their charm • 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.

  10. Symbols • Food: • Hospitality – welcome and eat! • Feasts are often the scenes for storytelling • Negative association: excessive eating represents not just lack of self-control, but also the total absence of humanity and civility. • Wedding Bed: • the constancy of Penelope and Odysseus’s marriage Symbols are objects, characters, figures, or colors used to represent abstract ideas or concepts.

  11. Parallel Structure • Revise these sentences: Example: Of all the writings of ancient Greece, the Odyssey was probably the most popular, imaginative, and exerted the most influence. Of all the writings of ancient Greece, the Odyssey was probably the most popular, imaginative, and influential. • The story begins with Odysseus’ imprisonment by Calypso, switches back to the scene at his palace in Ithaca, finally returning to his adventure-filled wanderings. • The story combines realistic accounts of life in ancient Greece, fairy tales about imaginary lands, and includes elements of historical events.

  12. Myth, Folktale and Fable • Fable :short tale to teach a moral lesson,  oftenwith animals or inanimate objects as characters • TheTortoise and the Hare; Aesop's fables. • Myth: a traditional story, esp. one concerning the early history of a people or explaining some natural phenomenon, and typically involving supernatural beings or events. • Echo and Narcissus; Greek Myth • Folk Tale: atale or legend originating and traditional among a people or folk, especially one forming part of the oral tradition of the common people • Paul Bunyan; American Folk Tale

  13. Plot • Freytag’s Pyramid  • Foreshadowing: an advance sign or warning of what is to come in the future • Flashback: a scene set in a time earlier than the main story

  14. Foreshadowing or Flashback?

  15. Foreshadowing or Flashback?

  16. Foreshadowing or Flashback?

  17. Foreshadowing or Flashback?

  18. Foreshadowing or Flashback?

  19. Vocabulary 6A • Graze • Squall • Siege • Defrauded • Brute • Plead • Courtesy • Bliss • Dismembered • Perish • Willow • Embarked

  20. Graze • verb • eat grass in fields; eat snacks • I did not want a big meal, so instead I grazed on cheese and crackers from the kitchen.

  21. Squall • noun • windstorm • A huge squall came out of nowhere and upturned the ship, scattering its passengers into the ocean.

  22. Siege • noun • military operation • A metal pole with handles has replaced the wooden battering ram for a modern siege, but the general idea of busting open a door has remained the same.

  23. Defrauded • verb (past) • cheat somebody • When the juicer salesman left, I had the distinct feeling that I had been defrauded, as the $500 juicer would not even turn on, let alone extract juice from a whole pineapple.

  24. Brute • noun • somebody brutal; animal-like • The wrestler was a brute, smacking around people on the street and in grocery stores without provocation.

  25. Plead • verb • beg earnestly • When I wanted to go out for the weekend, I knew I must plead my case to my mother, which may go well, depending on how good a mood she was in.

  26. Courtesy • noun • polite or considerate behavior • Common courtesy dictates that you ask before you take the last cookie.

  27. Bliss • noun • complete happiness; spiritual joy • No greater bliss can be felt than that of biting into a fresh garden tomato, straight from the vine.

  28. Dismembered • verb (past) • remove limb from body; destroy something by taking it apart. • When criminals were found guilty in Medieval England, they were sometimes tied to horses and dismembered.

  29. Perish • verb • die • The forgotten cat eventually perished from lack of nourishment.

  30. Willow • noun • tree with long, flexible branches • Willow trees can often be found around lakes, where their long branches hang over the water like straggly hair.

  31. Embarked • verb (past) • go aboard or put on board a ship or transport. • We loaded up all our belongings and embarked for Germany.

  32. Think/Pair/Share: • Compare the setting in the Odyssey to today’s setting. What is Odysseus’s world like? Compare it to the American South. What are some similarities and differences? • What are modern equivalencies for the Lotus Eaters?

  33. Within Odysseus' narrative, Book 9, featuring Odysseus' encounter with the cyclopsPolyphemus, is traditionally called the Cyclopeia; • and Book 11, the section describing his meeting with the spirits of the dead, is known as the Nekuia. • Books 9 through 12, wherein Odysseus recalls his adventures for his Phaeacian hosts, are collectively referred to as the Apologoi: Odysseus' "stories."

  34. Book 22, wherein Odysseus kills all the suitors, has been given the title Mnesterophonia: "slaughter of the suitors. • The last 548 lines of the Odyssey, corresponding to book 24, are believed by many scholars to have been added by a slightly later poet. • Several passages in earlier books seem to be setting up the events of book 24, so if it is indeed a later addition, the offending editor would seem to have changed earlier text as well.

  35. http://www.philipresheph.com/demodokos/odyssey/books.htm

  36. Argos and Odysseus

  37. The Pitfalls of Temptation • The initial act that frustrated so many Achaeans’ homecoming was the work of an Achaean himself: Ajax (the “Lesser” Ajax, a relatively unimportant figure not to be confused with the “Greater” Ajax, whom Odysseus meets in Hades) raped the Trojan priestess Cassandra in a temple while the Greeks were plundering the fallen city. That act of impulse, impiety, and stupidity brought the wrath of Athena upon the Achaean fleet and set in motion the chain of events that turned Odysseus’s homecoming into a long nightmare. • It is fit that the Odyssey is motivated by such an event, for many of the pitfalls that Odysseus and his men face are likewise obstacles that arise out of mortal weakness and the inability to control it. • The submission to temptation or recklessness either angers the gods or distracts Odysseus and the members of his crew from their journey: they yield to hunger and slaughter the Sun’s flocks, and they eat the fruit of the lotus and forget about their homes.

  38. The Pitfalls of Temptations • Even Odysseus’s hunger for kleos is a kind of temptation. • He submits to it when he reveals his name to Polyphemus, bringing Poseidon’s wrath upon him and his men. • In the case of the Sirens, the theme is revisited simply for its own interest. With their ears plugged, the crew members sail safely by the Sirens’ island, while Odysseus, longing to hear the Sirens’ sweet song, is saved from folly only by his foresighted command to his crew to keep him bound to the ship’s mast. • Homer is fascinated with depicting his protagonist tormented by temptation: in general, Odysseus and his men want very desperately to complete their nostos, or homecoming, but this desire is constantly at odds with the other pleasures that the world offers. Kleos(Greek: κλέος) is the Greek word often translated to "renown", or "honor". It is related to the word "to hear" and carries the implied meaning of "what others hear about you". A Greek hero earns kleos through accomplishing great deeds, often through battle.

  39. Sites Cited • Farrington, Crystal. The Odyssey. 9 Oct. 2007 <http://www.cs.iupui.edu/~cfarring/Odyssey/index.html> • Phillips, Brian and Hunter, James. SparkNote on The Odyssey. 9 Oct. 2007 <http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/odyssey/>. • The Trojan War—An Illustrated Companion. 9 Oct. 2007. <http://www.philipresheph.com/demodokos/homer.htm>

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