Chapter 11 of the Odyssey

1. Chapter 11 of the Odyssey By: Irene, Bari, and Amelia http://www.sandystonwalpack.org/Greek_Gods/Greek_Mt.Olympus.jpg

2. Key Events • Went to Hades • Made libations to the dead • Talked to Elpnor, he requested that he didn’t desert him/bury when he dies • See’s mom, she doesn’t recognize him • Gives his mom and talks to Tiresias • Odysseus and mom reunite (mom describes life at home) • Doesn’t listen to Arete and tells the story later

3. Character Chart

4. Odysseus’ Character Pg. 261 lines 408-410 • Odysseus tells Alcinous that if he would be happy to stay one more year with him. Odysseus wouldn’t mind staying longer because he would have more experiences and adventures. He wants to be more prepared because he will earn more respect from the people in Ithaca. This shows he is cocky and arrogant. Pg. 256 lines 235-243 • Odysseus gets upset because he can’t hug his mother because she is a ghost. He gets very upsets and starts crying and gets very frustrated. He says “each time the grief cut to the heart” because he tries to hug her over and over but he can’t. Odysseus eventually breaks down and starts crying to his mother. The is shows Odysseus in a weak state of mind. Pg. 260 lines 383-385 and pg. 262 line 436 • Odysseus doesn’t listen to Arete after she tells him to stop telling his story. He doesn’t listen to a woman which was unusual. Odysseus starts telling the story again and ignores Arete’s request to stop telling it. This shows Odysseus he thinks better than woman and woman don’t know as much as he does.

5. Monomyth     In the Odyssey, Chapter eleven, some parts of the story fit different parts of the monomyth cycle. Odysseus experiences an entry to an unknown location, separation and receives supernatural aid. Odysseus enters the House of Death, the place were Circe told him to go to find his future and way home. The House of Death is a strange place for a man very much alive to be, and the people, or ghosts, there are also quite odd. In the House of Death, Odysseus spots his dead mother. As thrilling as he was, he became quite upset when he could not hold or touch her since she was a ghost, and when Odysseus left, to leave his mother again was very displeasing. Lastly, Odysseus confronted Tiresias the prophet that told him about what laid ahead for Odysseus on his way home and for the rest of his life.

6. Comparison or contrast to Genesis or Arabian Nights In The Odyssey woman play a higher role than in Arabian Nights because Athena helps the main character through all of his problems. Without Athena Odysseus would never be able to get the help he needs to return home to Ithaca.

7. Epithets • Odysseus (all in chapter 11) • Old campaigner • Master of exploits • Renowned • Shining • Deft • Tactful • Athena • Bright-eyed  gleaming eyed

8. Greek Culture The classical Greeks didn’t have much of a standard religion. Instead, they believed in different gods and heroes, like the one’s in the Odyssey. These gods and heroes were legends that showed “the nature of the world” and shown much significance to the Greeks practices or sorts of rituals. The Greek gods were the source of power, and could never die. Zeus, like in the Odyssey, was the biggest, most powerful and important god of all. Greek gods and goddesses inspired and was part of the Greek culture

9. Greek Gods (Teresias) • Teresias is blind because one day when he was walking in the woods and stabbed two serpents, because he did this he was turned into a woman. The same thing happened 7 years later and he was turned into a man.  Zues and Hera were fighting over who gets more pleasure from making love, so they tested their theories on Tiresias. Tiresias sided with Zeus in saying that it was more pleasurable for men, and Hera blinds him.  http://odysseus9nh.files.wordpress.com/2008/03/tiresias.gif

10. Discussion Questions • What was Circe reasoning for Odysseus to go to the House of Death? • How does Odysseus’ personality change as he goes to the House of Death? • Why did they give us examples of all the people who lived in the House of Death?