Historical Background
Homer
Who is the author of The Odyssey?
Mount Olympus
Where is the home of the gods?
Zeus
Who is the king of the gods that rules the heavens?
She keeps Odysseus on her island for 7 years and only lets him go because Zeus tells her to.
Who is Calypso?
Argus
Who is Odysseus' dog who dies after seeing his master again?
Around 1200 B.C.
When did the Trojan War take place?
A belief in many gods
What was the religion of the Ancient Greeks?
Athena
Who is the goddess of wisdom that helps Odysseus on his journey home? She is also the Goddess of war and warriors who helps Odysseus in the battle with the suitors.
They make you forget about home and you want only to stay on the island.
What are the lotus flowers?
3 years
How long is Penelope able to put off the suitors by weaving during the day and unweaving at night a death shroud for Laertes?
10 years
How long did the Trojan War last?
They were passed down through the ages by word of mouth.
What is the oral storytelling tradition?
Poseidon
Who is the god of the seas who hates Odysseus and tries to kill him several times on his way home? He wants revenge on Odysseus because he blinded his son, Polyphemus.
She turned some of Odysseus' men into pigs and then kept them on the island for 1 year.
Who is Circe?
String the bow and shoot an arrow through 12 axe heads.
What is the challenge that Penelope gives to the suitors to decide whom she will marry?
The Trojan Horse
What is the plan that Odysseus came up with where soldiers hid inside the horse to gain access to the city? This ended the Trojan War.
An element that repeats throughout the literature of different cultures and throughout time.
What is an archetype?
Hermes
Who is the messenger god that brings messages from Zeus to Odysseus during his journey?
Why Odysseus puts beeswax in his men's ears.
What is so they can't hear the sirens' song?
An olive tree
What is the type of tree that Odysseus built their bedroom around and that he made into one of the posts of their bed?
Between 850 B.C. and 750 B.C.
When was Homer most likely alive?
A long story in poem form that combines myths and legends. It contains a larger-than-life hero who usually goes on a dangerous journey.
What is an epic poem?
Hades
Who is the god of the underworld?
He tells him Nohbdy.
What does Odysseus tell the Cyclops his name is?
The leader of the suitors who is arrogant.
Who is Antinous?
The Trojans would not send Helen back to the King of Sparta.
What started the Trojan War?
With festivals and Olympics.
How did the Ancient Greeks celebrate their gods?
Lord Helios
Who is the god of the sun who owned cattle and sheep that were immortal? Odysseus' men ate them and Zeus sent a lightning bolt that destroyed their ship and they all drowned.
It is sometimes a water spout and sometimes a whirlpool. It has teeth at the bottom of the whirlpool.
Who is Charybdis?
He is told to hide the weapons, tell no one Odysseus has returned, and prepare for battle against the suitors.
Who is Telemachus, Odysseus' son?
Killed the king while he was praying
What happened that angered the gods and made the journey home more treacherous?
Associated with different aspects of nature and/or human behavior.
Who are the gods?
The muses.
Who are the nine goddesses over the arts and sciences? Homer prays to the goddess of epic poetry at the beginning to help him tell the story correctly.
It has 12 legs like tentacles, 6 heads on serpent necks, and 3 rows of teeth in each head.
Who is Scylla?
All of the food they had eaten, 20 oxen from each, and bronze and gold.
What is what the suitors offer Odysseus as repayment in hope that he won't kill them all?
The home of poetry and learning
What is Ionia, the city where Homer is from?
They displayed many human qualities and were often vengeful and quarrelsome.
Who are the gods?
The fates.
Who are the 3 that control a person's life? One weaves the thread for birth, one measures the thread for the lifespan, and one cuts the thread for death.
What Odysseus does every day on Calypso's island.
What is sit on the beach and cry and look out to sea?
Her shield
What does Athena show to the suitors so they know that Odysseus has the backing of the gods?