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September 27: Odyssey, books 10-16
Phaeacians / unfair gods
>After reading the most recent assignment I had one question about the hospitality of the
Phaeacians. It seems that a huge theme through out the entire story is hospitality. We have even
discussed in class just how important hospitality is to the gods even though things like murder
and fowl play go unpunished. For this reason, it was really shocking to me that Zeus agreed to
let Poseidon punish the Phaeacians for helping Odysseus when they were incredibly hospitable.
They allowed Odysseus to sleep completely uninterrupted on the voyage and even carried him
from the ship with his gifts. It was just really weird to me that Zeus would punish this
especially because it turns the hearts of the Phaeacians towards no longer being hospitable
towards sailors and sea fairers. It seems to be a big discrepancy to me.
Men / men in groups
>This book possesses many instances in which temptation seems to overtake the male
characters. My question to that is what do you think this says about men of this age? Perhaps
that they are disloyal and lacking temperance? Or was the norm and even women were ok with
it?
¶My other comment is that it is reoccurring that Odysseus' crew gets him into trouble. Does the
fact that he has a careless/uncontrollable crew make Odysseus look better in the eyes of the
audience? Are they necessary to make Odysseus look smarter and sharper because he always
has to fix their mistakes?
Women and monsters
>Why did Circe change her attitude suddenly after she failed to deceive Odysseus? Why does
she want to 'lie together in the bed of love(p.161.335)', instead of sending him back? (This
question can be similarly applied to Kalypso's case.)
If being naked means 'being a weakling, unmanned(p.161.341)', does this mean that the
masculinity lies not on a male body but somewhere else(e.g. his sword)?
¶Why were Skylla and Charybdis represented as female? (Something treacherous in general
seems to be depicted in the Odyssey as a female one.)
>I found Penelope's reaction to the suitors interesting after their failed attempt to kill
Telemachos. It seems like she decided to change her tactics and confront the issue directly.
Odysseus also seem to enjoy his life with Circe. He has to be reminded that he has to continue
with his voyage!
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Hades
> I am interested in the way Homer depicted the underworld. It seems that this depiction of the
afterlife makes all worship to the gods pointless. Souls do not seem to enjoy the after life but
are mindless shades who can only speak after drinking blood??? It reminds me of a horror film.
What exactly did the Greeks believe happened to a soul in the afterlife? Was there any
enjoyment or just death? Why then worship the gods?
> What is the importance of talking to all the dead people and recounting their stories? I
understand that talking to his mother and Agamemnon was important but why the need to talk
to the women one by one?
- -Changing your social rank was hard to do so it was surprising to hear about Eumaios’ story
and how he once was a king’s son and now is a servant. It must have been really frustrating.
Divine help / godlike mortals
>A theme brought up in class was the idea of rites of passage for some of the main characters in
the epic. We talked how telemachos and Odysseus had to endure much suffering in order to
become a man and soon ruler of Ithaka and earn a return home respectively. But how
meaningful are these tasks or rites when the gods themselves walk them through what is
necessary to do in order to drive out the suitors or find their way home in Odysseus's case?
Because the gods are already on the sides of our heroes and will that they succeed in the end, I
find it difficult to understand the purpose for all of their "troubles".
>"...he bestowed his daughters on his sons, to be their consorts." If I am not mistaken, this is a
case of incest. Was this considered acceptable, or tradition?
¶"I counted off al my strong-greaved companions into two divisions, and appointed a leader for
each, I myself taking one, while godlike Eurylochos has the other." I found this interesting for
two reasons, one, this is a prime example of his capabilities as a leader and, two, the use of
"godlike" struck me as a high sense of appraisal for another individual. I think he later proves
his worth, however.
¶Last of all, I found it quite common to compare certain individuals with the gods. Was this a
common comparison? It was interesting to read this, when gods and goddesses of this period
seem unreachable and untouchable.
Omens
>What I found interesting in this reading were the omens. Several times, the gods told of the
future, and yet I still managed to be surprised by the actual outcome. For example, when Helen
predicted that Odysseus would soon seek revenge on the suitors, I expected the battle to occur
as soon as he arrived at Ithaca. While that might have been exciting, I much rather preferred
how Homer instead added the slowly paced reunion with Telemachus. It was very
heartwarming...and Odysseus really needed that after all the struggles he had been through!
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It got me wondering about the omens, though. They obviously were a very important part of
Greek culture, but obviously, as seen above, their predictions are not immediately carried
through. Were omens, then, not as binding as an oath from a god was?
Sirens / fine line
>What I found particularly interesting in this week's reading takes place in Book XII - when
Odysseus insists on being strapped to his ship's mast so that he can hear the song of the Sirens.
Although a relatively short scene, I felt like this section in particular sort of emphasized a
recurring struggle though out the book: Odysseus is constantly faced with temptations that
attempt to allude him from the accomplishment of his long-term goal: homecoming. In this
scene in particular, Odysseus anticipates the potential for trouble: He has his crew's ears
plugged, and himself strapped down so that he may not be allowed to make any rash decisions.
When Odysseus signals for his companions to set him free, we are presented with a physical
representation of what must always be going through Odysseus' head: He wants so badly to
feed his immediate wants and yearnings, but forces himself (in this case through the use of
forethought and tight ropes) to endure the seductive luring so that he can continue on his
journey. Maybe the reason the storyteller doesn't have Odysseus plug his ears is to show the
listener that he is one who will indulge in these seductions (as he did with Kalypso), but whose
priorities manage to take front seat. In this respect, by walking a thin line, Odysseus manages to
reap the benefits without paying the consequences.
Slavery / Ithaka
>I think it is interesting how Odysseus uses the character of a slave as an alias. The ideas of
slaves are very different because it is as if slavery is a transient position of life. Any man can
become a slave but any slave can become a man. When Odysseus' alias was captured he was a
slave but as soon as he escaped he was considered a man and Eumaius treated him as a man,
not an escaped slave, or a subhuman. This seems to be the main difference between slavery in
the Ancient Greek sense and slavery in the American sense, slavery is not as permanent.
>-Why does Athena change Ithaka’s appearance to Odysseus? He’s been dreaming about seeing
his wonderful homeland for so long and seems very dissapointed at the sight of it.
¶-Why is Odysseus still undercover when he is taken in by Eumaios?
>In these books, there is a lot of deceit. As usual, Athene transforms Odyesseus into whoever is
appropriate for the situation and together they fool someone. In book 16 one of the suitors,
Eurymachos, is planning the murder of Telemachos, but he tells Penelope that he will not have
anyone lay a hand on Telemachos for as long as he lives. The Odyssey as a whole is about
treachery and its consequences. This includes the act of treachery, the suspicion of treachery
(oaths), and the consequences of a treacherous act.
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¶In response to why Telemachos failed to accept his father's revelation, it would be because
there are so many tricksters around. Even Odysseus himself is called a trickster. Apparently,
being a trickster is an acquired virtue because it means that you know how to meet desired
ends. In order to convince Telemachos, Odysseus has to explain to him that Athene assisted him
with his disguise.
Epithets (fixed adjectives)
¶Last of all, I found it quite common to compare certain individuals with the gods. Was this a
common comparison? It was interesting to read this, when gods and goddesses of this period
seem unreachable and untouchable.
People called godlike:
Odysseus
Telemachos
Menelaos
Alkinoos (good king of the Phaiakians) and his grandfather Nausithoos
Deiphobos (Helen’s paramour after Paris, as described by Menelaus)
Eurylochos (particulary cowardly crew member)
Theoklymenos (prophet and kin-murderer, to whom Telemachos gives passage)
Eurymachos (one of the ring-leaders of the suitors)
Result: In some cases, closeness to the gods is important (e..g, with the
Phaeacians); in other cases, the poet needs to fill a slot in the line and “godlike” is
relatively routine. All the nobles in this glamorous age were more like the gods
(who aren’t necessarily admirable) than are the poet and his audience.
Unique epithets for a character, however , can characterize vividly, as do the whole system of
epithets for an individual:

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Odysseus1
o resourceful, man of many resources, of many turns (πολύ-τροπος polú-tropos)
o much-enduring (πολύ-τλᾱς polú-tlās)
o great-hearted (μεγαλ-ήτωρ megal-ḗtōr)
o sacker of cities (πτολι-πόρθιος ptoli-pórthios)
o wise
o loved of Zeus
o great glory of the Achaeans
o master mariner
This list is adapted from “Epithets in Homer” in Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epithets_in_Homer
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o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
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
mastermind of war
hotheaded
man of action
the great teller of tales
man of exploits
man of pain
that kingly man
the hero
Raider of Cities
The great tactician
Telemachus
o poised
o thoughtful
Penelope
o Circumspect
Suitors
o Swaggering (but “god-like” is used for Antinoos and Eurymachos
men
o
o
o
shining, divine (δῖος dîos)
god-like (ἀντί-θεος antí-theos)
high-hearted
leaders
o
lord of men
women
o white-armed (λευκ-ώλενος leuk-ṓlenos)
o lovely-haired (ἐυπλοκάμις or ἐυπλόκαμος eüplokámis, eüplókamos)
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