The Odyssey Background Notes

1. The Odyssey Background Notes Written by Homer

2. The Iliad and the Odyssey are epic poems that were composed in Greece around 700-800 B.C. • The events are based on mythology and legend, but can be factual. • These were both told orally, and often sung. • Until 1871, Troy was believed to be fictional. Archeologists found a walled city in the area described. It is located what is now known as Northwestern Turkey. Homer is believed to be a blind poet that is given credit for writing these pieces. However, because of its oral nature, these stories could have been created by many and written down by him.

3. “A long narrative poem about the adventures of a hero whose actions reflect the ideals and values of a nation or race.” (The Language of Literature, p. 482) Complete Odyssey has 12,000 lines and is divided into 24 books. Epics address universal themes: --Good vs. Evil --Life vs. Death --Sin vs. Redemption The Epic

4. Characteristics of an Epic (info. taken from The Language of Literature, p. 482) • The story is set in many locations, real or imaginary, across a wide area. • The hero is an important historical or legendary character of high social position--a king or prince, for example. • The hero is usually pitted against overwhelming odds and must be strong and courageous. • Supernatural events and beings play an important role in the plot. • The story is told in language that is formal and grand, but simple and clear.

5. The Trojan War • Thought to have occurred around 1200 B.C. • According to legend, it was thought to have started because the prince of Troy, named Paris, stole Helen, the most beautiful woman in the world, from her husband, King Menelaus, who was the king of Sparta. Menelaus recruited many kings and soldiers from all over Greece to help him rescue his wife and take revenge on Troy. The battle is said to have lasted 10 years.

6. How did the Trojan War end? • Odysseus, the king of the island of Ithaca, was one of the many Greeks who sailed to Troy and besieged the walled city. He thought of a plan that made the Trojans think the Greeks had given up. • He devised a giant wooden horse to be built that would be left at the gates of Troy at night. • The Trojans, finding t he statue and no Greeks in sight (except for one left purposefully there to validate the plan), they pulled the Trojan horse inside their walled city. • After all had celebrated their “victory,” the Greeks snuck out of the horse and launched a surprise attack on the Trojans eventually burning their city to the ground and recapturing Helen.

7. The story of Odysseus . . . • Deals with the adventures he has to overcome as he tries to make his way home to Ithaca where his wife, Penelope, and child, Telemachus, whom he has not seen since Telemachus was just born. • He leaves Troy with 12 ships and approximately 720 men. • He does not encounter military opponents, but monsters and enchanting women who try to keep him from his wife.

8. Olympian Gods and Goddesses • During Homer’s time, gods and goddesses played an important role in their lives. • They believed that the gods took an active interest in human’s affairs and often engaged in punishing humans, meddling in love affairs, quarrels, and even were jealous of humans. • (We will fill out a handout detailing information on the gods and goddesses.)

9. Strategies on how to read an epic: ~ Read the lines as you would for any other story---don’t be afraid of the poetry format. ~ The more you read, the more you’ll get used to the poetic language used in Odyssey. ~ Read parts of the poem aloud. It helps bring the literature alive. Remember that this poetry was meant to be heard. ~ Use the notes in the margins for pronunciations of names, meanings of difficult terms, and background information. ~ Reread sections you don’t understand. ~ To keep track of the events and characters, draw the character and action labeling them.

10. What happened to Odysseus after the Trojan War? • Before this excerpt in this book, Odysseus had to leave his new son and wife to fight in the Trojan War. After 10 years, he is certainly ready to go home and reunite with his wife and his son that he now doesn’t know. • Telemachus and Penelope, back in Ithaca, have been tortured for these years by hundreds of suitors vying for Penelope’s hand to become the next king. Telemachus decides to go in search of answers on whether his father is alive or dead. • Telemachus finds news that indeed his father is alive, yet still doubts who he is and if he will come home. • Odysseus is stuck for the next 7 years on an enchanted island with goddess, Calypso. She has tricked him into forgetting time. He eventually is freed and that is where we pick up our story with Book 9.