The Odyssey

The Odyssey

Book Ten: The Grace of the Witch (916-925)

1. Who lives on the island of Aeolus? ___________________________________________

2. What gifts does Aeolus give Odysseus? _______________________________________

3. What do Odysseus’ men do that curses their voyage even more? ___________________

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4. What happens in the land of the Laestrygones? _________________________________

5. Who lives in Aeaea? ______________________________________________________

6. In lines 1-11, what is unusual about Circe’s hall? Write the words and phrases that describe her home.

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7. If you were among the group in lines 23-26, whom would you follow – Polites or Eurylochus? Why?

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8. What happens to the men after they drink Circe’s magic potion, in lines 27-36?

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9. What does Eurylochus beg Odysseus to do? ___________________________________

10. What does Odysseus do? __________________________________________________

11. How does Odysseus protect him self from Circe? _______________________________

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12. Why does Circe free Odysseus’ men from her spell? _____________________________

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13. What epithets does Circe use in lines 108-110 to describe Odysseus?

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14. Lines 118-126 are an epic simile. What two things are being compared? How does this simile help you picture the scene that Odyseuss is describing.

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15. Of what do the men have to remind Odysseus? ________________________________

16. What does Circe tell Odysseus he must do to get home?

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Book Twelve: Sea Perils and Defeat (928-938)

1. Who lives in the underworld? _____________________________________________

2. Odysseus must talk to Tiresias, the blind prophet. Of what does he warn Odysseus?

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3. During this trip to the underworld, who does Odysseus see and speak to that is a surprise to him? ______________________________________

4. Circe warns Odysseus about the Sirens. How do the Sirens tempt the men?

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5. In lines 15-21, Circe suggests a way for Odysseus to hear the Sirens safely. What does she suggest?

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6. What is Scylla? (lines 43-55) How is Scylla described?

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7. What is Charybdis? ________________________________________________________

8. What decision does Odysseus have to make regarding Scylla and Charybdis?

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9. What does Circe caution Odysseus against doing, in lines 72-85, and why?

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10. “Now give those kine a wide berth, keep your thoughts intent upon your course for home” (line 101)

The word kine in this quote means ____________________________.

11. In lines 134-159, the men panic when they hear the thundering surf. How does Odysseus help them overcome their fear and thus regain control of the ship?

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12. Explain the metaphor in lines 193-197 comparing Scylla to a man fishing.

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13. Is Odysseus right to keep his decision to sail toward Scylla a secret from his men? Give reasons for your opinion.

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14. Why do Odysseus’ men want to land on Thrinacia, the island of the sun god?

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15. What warning does Odysseus give his men about the cattle of Helios, the sun god?

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16. Do the men obey Odysseus’ warning? What do they do?

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17. How does the sun god feel and what does he do?

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18. How does Zeus, lord of the gods, try to appease (satisfy) Helios?

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“Siren Song” by Margaret Atwood

1. What does the Siren reveal about the song?

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2. What does she reveal about herself?

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3. Who might the “others” be who have heard the song but “can’t remember”?

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4. The siren describes the song as “fatal and valuable.” In what sense is it valuable?

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5. To whom might the siren be speaking? Give reasons for your opinion.

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6. How much of “Siren Song” is based on Homer, and how much is Atwood’s original creation?

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7. The poem “Siren Song” is an ___________________________ to the story of the Sirens in Homer’s epic, The Odyssey.
Epic Simile

The Odyssey was not a written story that the Greeks would sit down and read. Rather it was a performance by a master storyteller, a poet with a golden voice, singing or reciting his great tale in verse crafting many of the details as he went. Two of the techniques that he used are the epic simile and the epithet.

Epic simile – As you know, a simile is a comparison between two things that uses the word like or as. Sometimes, Homer develops a simile at great length and detail, going on for several lines. This is known as the epic simile, an elaborate, more involved version of a regular simile. Homer uses epic similes for emphasis, whether he’s describing a character’s thoughts and feelings or the magnitude of a battle between two armies.

An epic simile, also called a Homeric simile, is an elaborate comparison that continues for a number of lines. Epic similes contain words such as like, as, so, or just as. Two such similes, involving a shipwright and a blacksmith’s shop, convey the blinding of Polyphemus in Book 9.

In the excerpt below, Odysseus is watching the performance of a bard, a minstrel like Homer himself. Suddenly he finds himself listening to the story of the fall of Troy and of his own part in it. What is his reaction? Notice two things that are being compared. What does the comparison help to emphasize?

And Odysseus let the bright molten tears run down his cheeks, weeping [like] the way a wife mourns for her lord on the lost field where he has gone down fighting the day of wrath that came upon his children. At sight of the man panting and dying there, she slips down to enfold him, crying out: then feels the spears, prodding her back and shoulder, and goes bound into slavery and grief. Piteous weeping wears away her cheeks; but no more piteous than Odysseus’ tears, cloaked as they were, now, from the company --Book 8, lines 560-571

(Odysseus becomes emotional and begins to cry at the minstrel’s performance. The comparison emphasizes the depth of Odysseus’ emotion and his inability to control it.)

1. Complete the chart on page 7 of this packet.

2. Compose an epic simile that conveys (tells about) Circe’s appeal for Odysseus and his men and the way she helps them. Then write another epic simile that conveys the threat she poses to them.

3. Write one ephithet that describes yourself.

From the Odyssey, Book 10: The Grace of the Witch (page 916)

Literary Analysis SkillBuilder

Epithets and Epic Similes

An epithet is a descriptive phrase that presents a particular trait of a person or thing. It can be a quick aid to characterization. A simile is a comparison between two unlike things that have something in common. An epic simile, also called a Homeric simile, is an elaborate comparison that continues for a number of lines. Epic similes sometimes contain words such as like, as, so, or just as. In the chart below, write down epithets that are used to describe Odysseus and Circe in Book 10. Then find at least one epic simile, copy it, and record the lines where it is located.

|Epithets |
|Describing Odysseus |Describing Circe |
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|Epic Simile |Lines |
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How do the epithets help you as you read the Odyssey?

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