CLT 3370 Final Exam Study Guide THE ODDYSSEY Large portion of the final exam o Book 1 Athena advises Telemachus Homer invokes the Muses The reader knows Poseidon has stranded Odysseus with Calypso the nymph Poseidon is angry because Odysseus poked out the eye of the Cyclopes Athena begs Zeus to let Odysseus return to Ithaca Hermes is sent to free Odysseus from Calypso Athena disguised as Mentor a male family friend tells Telemachus to go to Pylos and Sparta Suitors have overrun Odysseus home and want to marry his wife Telemachus goes to Pylos and Sparta to see King Nestor and King Penelope Menelaus with the suitors the suitors Telemachus learns that is father is alive o Book 2 Telemachus confronts the suitors Telemachus calls all of the Greek men together to discuss the problem During the assembly Zeus sends two eagles omens of death to fly over Halitherses a prophet interprets the eagles to mean Odysseus is coming home and will kill the suitors Antinous the most arrogant suitor is angry at Penelope and blames her for the problems because she will not commit to any of the suitors Penelope has been weaving a burial shroud for Laertes during the day but she unravels it at night She will not marry a suitor until the shroud is done Mentor Athena finds a crew for Telemachus and they sail away together o Book 3 The visit to Nestor Telemachus and his crew arrive at Pylos the land of King Nestor They arrive during a festival in honor of Poseidon Nestor does not know Telemachus but invites him to feast with them Xenia Telemachus asks about his father Nestor says that he and Odysseus were friends Also Nestor mentions that Athena likely helped Odysseus o Telemachus doubts Athena s power o Book 4 The visit to Menelaus and Helen Nestor sends Telemachus to Sparta Telemachus does not reveal his identity initially In Sparta King Menelaus and wife Helen are back together Asks Menelaus about Odysseus Menelaus reminisces about Odysseus Telemachus cries Helen says that Telemachus must be the son of Odysseus They tell Telemachus that they heard that Odysseus is alive and living on Meanwhile back in Ithaca the suitors plan to kill Telemachus when he Calypso s island returns home o Book 5 Calypso the sweet nymph Calypso is the daughter of the Titan Atlas and was forced to live on the island Ogygia as a punishment for siding with the Titans in the Titanomachy Odysseus spends seven years on Calypso s island They have two children together Zeus sends Hermes to secure Odysseus s release Calypso promises Odysseus immortality if he stays with her This is the first time the reader meets Odysseus Hermes finds Odysseus crying He misses Ithaca misses Penelope and Ithaca Odysseus tells Calypso she was more beautiful than his wife but he Calypso allows Odysseus to leave and she warns him that Poseidon will make sea travel very dangerous Poseidon creates a storm and destroys Odysseus s raft Athena helps Odysseus arrive on the island of Sheria home of the Phaeacians o Book 6 The Princess Nausicaa Athena visits the Phaeacian princess Nausicaa in a dream and urges her When she awakens she takes her maids and they wash her clothing in to wash her clothing pools by a river The girls then wash themselves and play a game in the nude Odysseus naked himself wakes up and hears the girls As he approaches everyone is frightened and runs away except for Nausicaa Odysseus flatters Nausicaa He then asks for clothing and directions to the town Odysseus does not walk into town with Nausicaa so that the townspeople do not suspect anything o Book 7 King Alcinous Palace Athena disguised as a little girl gives Odysseus directions to the palace She then shrouds him in mist so no one can see him The Phaeacians do not act kindly to strangers Odysseus meets King Alcinous and Queen Arete King Alcinous asks Odysseus if he is a god Odysseus shares some of his troubles King Alcinous has a banquet for Odysseus and agrees to help him arrive He offers Odysseus his daughter Nausicaa to marry if he will stay on the home island Odysseus insists that he must go home o Book 8 The song of the minstrel Demodocus the blind minstrel story teller is called Odysseus asks him to sing a song about the Trojan horse a song about himself Nobody knows Odysseus s true identity Demodocus sings Odysseus cries o Book 9 The lotus eaters and the Cyclops Odysseus finally reveals himself to King Alcinous Odysseus tells the story of his adventure This story is like a flashback Odysseus is telling his story After 9 days of drifting Odysseus and his crew stop on the Land of the Lotus Eaters The Lotus plant cause feelings of laziness and dreaminess Odysseus sends 3 men to investigate the land o They do not return because they eat the lotus plant o Odysseus finds the 3 men and ties them to the boat so they Odysseus and his crew then sail away to the Cyclops island Odysseus curiosity leads him to the Cyclops cave o The men are sitting inside the Cyclops cave when he can leave returns o Cyclops had one eye in the center of his head The Cyclops leads his sheep out of the cave and blocks the opening of the cave with a huge rock The Cyclops name is Polyphemus son of Poseidon Odysseus does not kill Polyphemus immediately because they will still be trapped in the cave Polyphemus kills a few of Odysseus s men Odysseus gives Polyphemus a lot of wine and gets him drunk Polyphemus asks Odysseus what is name is to which Odysseus replies OUTIS or nobody Polyphemus then passes out and the men stab his eye out Polyphemus begins to yell and call for other Cyclopes o He calls out Nobody tricked me o No Cyclopes come to help Odysseus ties his men to the underside of the sheep so they can As Odysseus is sailing away he can t help but call out his real leave the cave name to the Cyclops o Polyphemus curses Odysseus and asks his father Poseidon o Book 10 The bag of winds and the witch Circe to punish Odysseus and his crew Odysseus and his men land on the island of Aeolia Aeolus the wind king puts all the winds in a bag so that the men won t be harmed on the voyage on their way home Odysseus s crew think that Odysseus is hiding gold and they open the bag They are blown back to Aeolia with no sympathy from Aeolus Next they sail to the land of the giant Laestrygonians Giant cannibals Laestrygonians eat some of Odysseus men and destroy all but one of their ships destroyed o This is where most of the crew dies 11 of 12 ships Odysseus on the last ship lands on Aeaea home to the witch Circe Eurylochus
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