Part One
Part Two
Part Three
Part Four
Literary Analysis
100
How did the Greeks upset Athena?
Ajax stole Cassandra from Athena's temple and beat her.
100
Who was shipwrecked in Egypt?
Menelaus
100
What does the flower from the Lotus Eaters Island do the men who eat it?
It makes them forget about their home.
100
What disguise does Athena give Odysseus?
She disguises him as a beggar.
100
Define foreshadowing.
a literary element where the author hints at something that is going to happen.
200
What was the reason Poseidon drowned Ajax? (Besides getting revenge for Athena.)
Ajax was arrogant and the gods hate arrogance. He believed that no storm could drown him and Poseidon wanted to prove him wrong.
200
Who saved Odysseus from Poseidon's storm and how did she do it?
Ino the sea nymph and she used her magic veil.
200
Summarize what happened in the Country of the Winds.
Odysseus is given a bag full of sea winds. The men think there is gold inside and decide to ignore Odysseus' orders to not open the bag. When they open the bag all the winds escape making a huge storm and blowing them even farther off course.
200
What is Odysseus' and Telemachus's plan to get rid of the suitors?
They plan to hide their weapons, lock them in the dining hall, and then kill them.
200
Characterize Penelope.
She is smart and cunning like her husband. She is very loyal to Odysseus.
300
What trick did Penelope use to avoid picking a suitor to marry?
Penelope promised to pick a husband after finishing a blanket she was making for Odysseus' dying father. Secretly she unraveled the blanket each night so it would never be completed and she would never be forced to remarry.
300
What was the name of the Phaeacian princess who helped Odysseus?
Nausicaa
300
How did Circe help Odysseus on his journey?
She is able to see the future and told him that he would need to travel to the Land of the Dead to find the ghost of Teiresias who could help them find a way home.
300
How does the maid recognize Odysseus?
The scar on his foot.
300
What is the Odysseus' major character flaw? Give an example.
His arrogance. An example is when he admits his real name to the Cyclops. Since the Cyclops has Odysseus' real name is he able to pray to his father Poseidon to stop Odysseus from reaching home.
400
Why does Athena want Telemachus to go on a journey to find information about his father?
Athena is trying to prepare him to be king one day and to build his reputation with the other kings in the area.
400
Why did Nausicaa refuse to bring Odysseus through the town?
She was afraid of the rumors that would spread and that it might give her a bad reputation.
400
What warning did Teiresias give Odysseus and his men?
He warned them to not kill the oxen of the Sun.
400
How does Penelope react when she finally sees Odysseus?
She is happy he is home, but feels like he is a stranger to her.
400
What literary element is used in the following lines: "However, they would not in any case have lived much longer, for their next stopping place, the island of the Sun, the men acted with incredible folly." (310)
Foreshadowing
500
Who is characterized as a "sober, discreet, young man, steady and prudent and dependable"? (295)
Telemachus
500
Summarize Menelaus' encounter with Proteus, the sea king.
He needed to trap Proteus to find a way off the island. The sea king changed his shape into all sorts of things and eventually gave up. In addition of telling Menelaus how to get off the island, he also told Menelaus where Odysseus was currently located.
500
List the order of places Odysseus traveled to starting from Troy and ending at Calypso's Island.
Troy > Lotus Eaters Cyclops> Country of the Winds> Cannibals> Circe> Underworld> Sirens> Scylla/Charybdis> Island of the Sun> Calypso's Island
500
What was Penelope's plan to find a new husband?
She will marry who ever can use Odysseus' bow to shoot an arrow through 12 rings.
500
What is the overall theme of the Odyssey.
Arrogance can cloud your judgement and lead to devastating consequences.
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