Author's Craft
Characters
Plot Points
Rhetorical Strategies
Mr. Nilles
100
It is the figurative device indicated in this quote: "he clutched at my companions / and caught two in his hands like squirming puppies..." What a comparison!
What is simile?
100
As a witch who lives in a stone hall, this character is certainly mean--she turns Odysseus's men into pigs, after all--but she also advises Odysseus to speak to Tiresias in the Underworld and warns Odysseus about sea monsters like the Sirens, Charybdis, and Scylla.
Who is Circe?
100
This person built Odysseus and Penelope's bed--a key detail to Penelope believing Odysseus's identity in Book 23.
Who is Odysseus?
100
This rhetorical strategy tries to manipulate an audience's emotions to make an argument more believable.
What is pathos?
100
This is the state where Mr. Nilles was born and raised. Maybe that's why he loves cheese so much.
What is Wisconsin?
200
Father-son relationships, omens and prophesies, temptation, and the sea are a few examples in the Odyssey of this element of literature, which is defined as a repeated image, idea, symbol, or phrase that appears throughout a story.
What is motif?
200
This character is going to need some glasses in the future, but "nohbdy" is going to be able to find a pair that fits! He is the son of Poseidon and more than a little bitter about what happens to him in Book 9. This is his name, not his kind.
Who is Polyphemus?
200
Penelope tells the suitors she will marry the man who can string Odysseus's bow and cleanly shoot an arrow through holes in twelve of these. Chop, chop?
What are axes or axe heads?
200
This rhetorical strategy tries to use logic and reasoning to make an argument more believable.
What is logos?
200
Mr. Nilles's brother works at the corporate level for this company. You probably have an account with them if you like getting items shipped to your home or if you like prime viewing from home.
What is Amazon?
300
It is the figurative device indicated in this quote from a suitor, said about Odysseus as Odysseus looks over his bow in Book 22: "See how he handles it, the sly old buzzard!" For those who may not know, a "buzzard" is a bird of prey.
What is metaphor?
300
This character, who features prominently in Book 5 on the island of Ogygia, is said to be both goddess and nymph. Her father is Atlas. If that doesn't stir your memory, a brand of lemonades and limeades is also named after her...
Who is Calypso?
300
Odysseus and Penelope's bed is made from the stump and roots of this tree, still planted deep underground. I wonder if their bed is oily...
What is an olive tree?
300
This rhetorical strategy tries to manipulate an audience's belief systems, values, and ethics to make an argument more believable.
What is ethos?
300
Mr. Nilles is a season ticket holder at this theater, seen here, located in Minneapolis. Their current production is "A Doll's House, but it's likely that you've seen another one of their productions, A Christmas Carol, which they have performed every year for the past 51 years.
What is the Guthrie Theater?
400
This element of literature is the underlying message conveyed by the author within a story. Need an example of the literary element in action? Here is one that works well for the Odyssey: "Being too prideful leads to self-inflicted suffering and divine punishment."
What is theme?
400
This god of the sun has very special cattle. Unfortunately, Odysseus's men eat them, which leads to Zeus sending down a bolt of lightning that sinks Odysseus's ship and leaves him stranded on Ogygia--events that end Book 12 and lead to Book 5.
Who is Helios?
400
Tieresias warns Odysseus not to "raid the beeves" in Book 11, but so does this character in Book 12.
Who is Circe?
400
This rhetorical strategy involves the deliberate choice of words to make an argument more believable.
What is diction?
400
Mr. Nilles's first teaching job was at North View Middle School, located in this western Twin Cities suburb. It's also the home of the only Rocky Rococo's in Minnesota--a pizza and pasta chain restaurant founded in Mr. Nilles's home state.
What is Brooklyn Park?
500
It is the figurative device indicated in this quote: "...bad luck shadowed me, and no kindly power…" For those who may not know, "shadowed" means "followed."
What is personification?
500
This swineherd welcomes Telemachus home in Book 16 after Telemachus went searching for his father. In Book 21, he promises to assist Odysseus in facing the suitors.
Who is Eumaeus?
500
Odysseus knows that he is going to lose some of his men to this villain, so instead of warning them, he decides to say nothing in hopes that they keep rowing onward.
Who is Scylla?
500
When analyzing an author's diction, it's important to remember that we always use an adjective to describe the diction (e.g. emotional diction). We also talk about how the connotation associated with an author's diction creates the author's attitude toward the subject matter, which is also known as this.
What is tone?
500
Is New Mexico a favorite vacation spot for South Koreans? This is the make and model of Mr. Nilles's vehicle.
What is Hyundai Santa Fe?