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The Odyssey
Ancient Greece
Homer 900-700 BCE
• Ancient Greek bard• “Wrote” epic poems
The Iliad and The Odyssey.
Homer 900-700 BCE
• Epic poems were sung for centuries.• Around 300 BCE people began writing them
down.
Homer’s work has influenced writers for thousands of years.
• Virgil (70-19 BCE)• Roman poet; wrote his own epic in Latin
Homer’s work has influenced writers for thousands of years.
• Chaucer (1343-1400)• Middle Ages
Homer’s work has influenced writers for thousands of years.
• Shakespeare (1564-1616)• Renaissance Era
Homer’s work has influenced writers for thousands of years.
• Keats (1795-1821)• Romantic Era
Homer’s work has influenced writers for thousands of years.
• James Joyce 1882-1941• Modernist• Based Ulysses on
The Odyssey
Homer’s work has influenced writers for thousands of years.
• The Coen brothers: 21st century• A modern adaptation of Odysseus’ struggle to
return home and protect his wife from marrying another man
We read him today because…
• His poems shaped Greek culture, and hence Western ideals and society.
• Furthermore, many modern writers and artists allude to The Odyssey, The Illiad, and Greek mythology in general.
The Iliad and The Odyssey
• These poems memorialize Bronze Age Greece, which ended 500 years before Homer.
• They are legends of Greek gods and heroes.
The Iliad and The Odyssey
• The Iliad deals with the Trojan War.• The Odyssey deals with Odysseus’s travels
after the Trojan War.
The Trojan War
• Helen is the wife of Menelaus, king of Sparta.
The Trojan War
• Paris is a Trojan prince.
The Trojan War
• Paris kidnaps Helen.• Menelaus and his troops besiege Troy for 10
years.
Ancient Greece
The Trojan War
• Finally Odysseus, ruler of Ithaca, thinks of the Trojan horse, which ends the war in favor of Menelaus.
Ancient Greece
The Gods
• While Athena was happy about the outcome, Aphrodite was not.
The Gods
• As a result, Odysseus had some really, really bad luck on his way home, which is what The Odyssey is about.
The Odyssey
• The Odyssey tells the story of how Odysseus gets home after the Trojan War.
The Odyssey
• He sails from Troy with 12 ships and 720 men.
The Odyssey
• He wants to get home to his wife Penelope and son Telemachus.
The Odyssey
• It takes him 10 years to get there. He has many encounters with monsters and goddesses that hold him up.
The Odyssey
• In the meantime, Penelope is fending off suitors who want to marry her, thereby gaining Odysseus’s power and wealth.
Epic Poem
• The Odyssey is an epic poem.• A narrative poem about a hero’s adventures.• The outcome of the story affects nations or
the world.
Elements of an Epic Poem
• Epic Hero– Has great strengths and abilities– Has human flaws– Is helped or hindered by the gods– Emerges victorious from
perilous situations– Embodies qualities that a
culture considers admirable
Elements of an Epic Poem
• Epic Plot– Involves a long journey full of complications
including:• Strange creatures• Divine intervention, both helpful
and harmful
Elements of an Epic Poem
• Epic Setting– Includes exotic, far-away lands– Involves more than one nation or people
Elements of an Epic Poem
• Epic Themes– Universal themes such as:• Courage• Loyalty• Homecoming
Elements of an Epic Poem
• Archetypes– Characters or situations that are recognizable in
many times and cultures, such as:• Epic hero• Loyal servant• Wicked temptress• Buried treasure• Test of faith or loyalty
