OdysseyAnalytical Discussion

Books 11 & 12

Book 11The Kingdom of the Dead

The Journey to the Underworld

• Archetypes relating to death• Archetypal ritual for the summoning of the

dead

Encounter with Elpenor

• Summary of encounter• What Greek cultural concept does this

encounter reflect?• Motif – temptation, monster, or

folly/recklessness?

Encounter with Tiresias• Background of Tiresias• The Prophecy

– What does it echo?– What will the rest of

Odysseus’s journey involve?

– What must he do?– What, essentially, does

Tiresias warn against?

Encounter with Anticleia

• Summary of the encounter• Relationship between Odyssey and

Anticleia – What can we conclude?• How does this encounter characterize

Odysseus? Think about the characteristics of an epic hero.

The Rest of the UnderworldReads like a “who’s who” of dead Greek people

– Tyro– Antiope– Alcmena– Jocasta– Chloris– Leda– Iphimedeia– Phaedra– Procris– Ariadne– Clymene– Maera– Eriphyte

• The interlude on pp. 260-262 reflects the strong oral culture of the Greeks.

In the Underworld, Odysseus learns of many of the other Achaean heroes who either never made it home or didn’t make it home for long.– Agamemnon– Achilles– Patroclus– Antilochus– Ajax– Minos– Orion– Tityus– Tantalus– Sisyphus– Heracles (Hercules)

Encounter with Achilles

• Concepts of nostos and kleos

• What does Achilles say about nostos and kleos? (lines 550-560)

• How might this relate to the rest of the epic?

Book 12The Cattle of the Sun

Circe’s Instructions

• Relation to Tiresias’s prophecy

• What is Circe’s opinion of how Odysseus should handle these situations? What is revealed about her by this?

The Sirens

• Summary of events• What do we make

of Odysseus’s actions here?

• Motif – temptation, monster, or folly/recklessness?

• Metaphorical meaning – restraint, knowledge of life’s risks, lack of control

Scylla and Charybdis• Summary of the event• Epic simile – p. 279• Motif – temptation, monster, or

folly/recklessness?• Metaphorical meaning – difficult

decisions, “being caught between a rock and a hard place”

• What can we learn about dealing with difficult decisions based on Odysseus’s experience of being caught between a whirlpool and a six-headed, man-eating monster?

• Evaluate Odysseus’s leadership based on this event. How do we perceive his leadership?

Thrinacia – Helios’s Cattle• Summary of events• Role of Eurylochus and his

rationale• Imagery• Motif – temptation, monster, or

folly/recklessness?• Metaphorical meaning – respect

for authority and law• What can we learn about the

Greeks’ perception of the relationship between the individual and law/authority?

• Evaluate Odysseus’s leadership based on this event.