Vocabulary Voyage
If you are trying to get revenge for something done to you, you want to ______ it.
What is avenge?
What do the Lotus-Eaters offer Odysseus's men?
What is the Lotus plant?
What is the name of the Cyclops Odysseus encounters?
Who is Polyphemus?
What do the Sirens use to lure sailors?
What is their beautiful/haunting song?
The Cyclopes do not “plow” or “sow,” and they have “no consultation or old tribal ways.”
What does Odysseus's criticism suggest the ancient Greeks valued?
What are agriculture, law, tradition, and social organization?
A person who has run away to avoid being arrested could be described as this.
What is a fugitive?
What happens when Odysseus's men eat the Lotus?
What is they lose interest in returning home/forget?
Why doesn't Odysseus simply kill the cyclops while he is sleeping?
What is because Odysseus and his men would be unable to move the enormous stone blocking the cave's entrance?
What does Odysseus have his men do to protect themselves from the Sirens?
What is plug their ears with beeswax?
Odysseus says he is famous for “guile.”
What Greek value does this demonstrate?
What is admiration for cunning/cleverness?
Odysseus is famous for using this quality when he relies on clever tricks and deception.
What is guile or cunning?
Why is the Lotus dangerous even though it doesn't physically attack the men?
What is it causes them to forget their desire to return home?
Odysseus tells the cyclops that his name is “Nohbdy.”
What quality does this trick demonstrate?
What is cleverness?
Why does Odysseus have himself tied to the mast?
What is so he can hear the Sirens' song without being able to follow them?
Odysseus repeatedly uses clever plans to survive dangerous situations.
How does this connect to his reputation among the Greeks?
What is his reputation for cunning or guile?
If someone is described as acting “rashly,” which choice best describes that behavior?
A. Carefully planned
B. Reckless or impulsive
C. Extremely generous
D. Quiet and thoughtful
What is reckless or impulsive?
Odysseus is trying to get his men to continue their journey, but the Lotus makes them want to stay.
What larger conflict does this episode represent?
What is the conflict between the desire for comfort/pleasure and the responsibility to continue the journey home?
Odysseus and his men escape after blinding the cyclops, but Odysseus later reveals his real name.
Why is this decision important to Odysseus' future?
What is it allows the cyclops to identify Odysseus and call on Poseidon to curse him?
Odysseus hears the Sirens and desperately wants to be released, but his men continue rowing.
What does this reveal about Odysseus?
What is even though he knows the danger, he is still vulnerable to temptation?
Odysseus is intelligent and strategic, but he also repeatedly takes unnecessary risks.
How do his actions create problems for his crew?
What is his recklessness puts the crew in greater danger, even when they recognize the danger and try to discourage him?
A chess player is most likely to use these when deciding how to defeat an opponent.
What are tactics?
Odysseus does not allow his men to remain with the Lotus-Eaters, even though the men are not being physically harmed. What does this suggest about Odysseus’s priorities as a leader?
What is that Odysseus prioritizes getting his men home and completing their journey, even when they are tempted to give up that goal?
Odysseus's men say:
“Godsake, Captain! / Why bait the beast again? Let him alone!”
What does this reveal about the relationship between Odysseus and his crew?
What is the men recognize that Odysseus's behavior is reckless and try to discourage him from taking unnecessary risks?
Why is Odysseus's plan for dealing with the Sirens different from his crew's plan?
What is Odysseus was instructed (by Circe) to experience the Sirens' song, but he needs his crew to prevent him from acting on the temptation; the crew protects themselves by blocking out the song completely?
Odysseus expects Polyphemus to welcome him and his men as guests, but Polyphemus instead traps and threatens them. What Greek value does Polyphemus violate?
What is xenia, or the Greek tradition of hospitality toward guests and strangers?