Review of Book11 Odysseus visits the blind prophet, Teresias, as a shade in Hades. Odysseus mother is there, died of grief because of his long absence

• Review of Book—11• Odysseus visits the blind prophet, Teresias, as a shade in Hades.

• Odysseus’ mother is there, died of grief because of his long absence

SEA PERILS AND DEFEAT—pg 928

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Johann_Heinrich_F%C3%BCssli_063.jpg

The Odyssey—Book 12

Ody returns to Circe for advice• She warns of the Sirens:

Birdlike women that sing so

sweetly that all men jump

overboard to be with them• The Siren’s coastline is

littered with the bones and

rotting skins of men


• Circe advises Ody to plug the ears of his oarsmen with beeswax

• Odysseus insists on hearing the Siren Song, so Circe tells him to have his men bind him to the ship’s mast


• Circe warns of the

monster Scylla

• Scylla has 12 legs

and 6 heads with 3

rows of teeth

• She takes one sailor

for each gullet (toll)


Circe warns of Charybdis• A living maelstrom that swallows ships whole• Odysseus wants to know how he can fight against these monsters• Circe advises him to row, row, row…


• Circe also warns Odysseus not to go to Thrinacia, the island where Helios’ immortal cattle graze• Odysseus decides to tell his men about the Sirens, but not to tell them about the other monsters WHY?


• The trip past Siren Island goes as planned

• Odysseus commands to be untied but his crew does not hear his pleas


• Why? Did he not trust his sailors? Would you row past a creature that was sure to devour 6 out of 45 sailors? Odd are, three students out of this class would be eaten.

• As they near Scylla and Charybdis the men become afraid but Ody calms them with reminders of his guile with the Cyclops (neglecting to mention that this was all his doing)

http://homepage.mac.com/brian_curtis/brian_curtis_page/images/Scylla%201.jpg


• Scylla snatches 6 good men (Epic simile—they are reeled up like mackerel)

• They bypass Charybdis and head towards home (Ithaca)


• Hungry, the men disobey Odysseus and butcher the beeves (cattle) on Helios’ Island of Thrinacia

• Once again, Odysseus

was sleeping when this

act occurred

Cow.wav

MOO


• Helios is angry and refuses to pull the sun across the sky until he gets restitution

• Zeus appeases him by

striking their ship with a

thunderbolt


• The ship and crew are lost; Odysseus is the lone survivor

• This episode ends the telling of his tale to King Alcinous

• Over 20 years after Ody left for Troy

Documents

Review of Book11 Odysseus visits the blind prophet, Teresias, as a shade in Hades. Odysseus mother is there, died of grief because of his long absence