Minor Myths
The Odyssey
Vocabulary
Etymology
Holidays
5
“Don’t fly too close to the sun.”
Who is Icarus (and Daedalus)?
5
The name of Odysseus's faithful wife.
Who is Penelope?
5
A long journey home.
What is an Odyssey?
5
This young man--who was cursed to kill his father and marry his mother--has a Freudian complex where one is closer to an opposite gendered parent and rival against a same gendered parent named after him.
Who is Oedipus?
5
The reason why Christian Theology may believe the number 13 is unlucky.
What is the last supper?
10
“This man has mommy and daddy issues.”
Who is Oedipus?
10
The name of the poet who wrote The Odyssey.
Who is Homer?
10
A belief that you are better than the gods themselves.
What is hubris?
10
This part of the body is named after the fame Greek hero who died from an arrow to this vulnerable place.
What is the Achilles tendon?
10
For good luck, ancient people would invoke forest spirits by performing this action.
What is to knock on wood?
15
“This woman goes through trials to impress her future mother in law.”
Who is Psyche?
15
The name of the cyclops Odysseus and his crew face.
Who is Polyphemus?
15
Good hospitality.
What is Xenia?
15
A flower and personality diagnosis is named after this man who couldn't stop looking at his own beautiful reflection.
Who is Narcissus?
15
Thespians believe it is bad to do this for fear of giving wrong signals back stage (which could result in disaster).
What is whistling?
20
“A man that doesn’t follow simple directions and looks back ‘too soon.’”
Who is Orpheus (and Eurydice)?
20
The goddess that supported Odysseus.
Who is Athena/Minerva?
20
"For the fairest"
What is Kallisti?
20
Due to the creature that Athena turned Arachne into, we get this scientific class name of similar species.
What is an arachnid?
20
The vegetation that was originally carved rather than a pumpkin for a jack-o-lantern.
What is a turnip?
25
“A self-obsessed man and a girl that won’t shut up.”
Who are Narcissus & Echo?
25
The land of which Odysseus was king.
What is Ithaka/Ithaca?
25
A descent into the underworld.
What is Katabasis?
25
Because this man was turned into a wolf/werewolf, we have terms like "Lycanthropy" meaning wolf + man.
Who is King Lycaeon or Lycaon?
25
The number four sounds like this in Chinese (Cantonese) and many other Asian cultures--which is why it may be avoided.
What is "death"?