Assignment
If the Odyssey poem is about Odysseus, why do we spend Books 1-4 on Telemachus?
List three answers.
Name one of the most important customs in Greek culture that plays a central role in the Odyssey.
Name one person who is the epitome of the violation of this custom.
Name one person who is the epitome of the observance of this custom.
How does Odysseus' return to his house on Ithaca mirror his most famous exploit at Troy? And what is this famous exploit at Troy?
Not to be outdone by her husband, Penelope is equally as clever as Odysseus. Name the first ruse that she employs to keep the suitors from pressing more urgently for her to make a choice of a husband from among their members.
In Odyssey 6, Odysseus meets the young and charming Nausicaa, daughter of King Alcinous and Queen Arete. Odysseus is compared (in a simile) to what when he approaches her? She is compared to whom by Odysseus? What important concept does he tell her at this point in the poem about what is the best thing in life?
List three episodes from Odysseus' tale of his journeys to the Phaeacians. Be sure to describe, very succinctly, what each of these episodes mean to/represent for Odysseus?
How does Calypso come to have Odysseus with her on Ogygia? How long does he stay with her? What does her name mean? Why does he decide to turn down her offer of immortality?