the odyssey. ancient greece homer 900-700 bce ancient greek bard “wrote” epic poems the iliad...

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