The Odyssey
Books 20-24 Cloze Notes Activity
Book XX: Odysseus Prepares for Revenge
Unable to sleep because his heart is plotting revenge, 1)___________ lies down under the portico wrapped
in a cloak Eurycleia spreads over him. Odysseus attempts to calm his heart, but is unsuccessful so 2)__ ________
comes down in the form of a woman and asks him why he is not resting now that he is home with his wife and son.
Odysseus reveals that he is 3)____ _______ about how to handle all of the suitors and his escape plan. Athena
scolds him and calls him 4)_____ _____ because he puts his trust in weaker friends than she; she is a god and is able
to protect him no matter how many mortal men try to take a stand against him. Athena instructs Odysseus to sleep
and assists him by 5)_______ _____ sleep on his eyelids and she returns to Olympus. While Odysseus sleeps,
Penelope awakens crying and praying for 6)____________ to shoot an arrow into her chest and take her out of her
misery and the situation in her home. She continues to weep until dawn and as Odysseus hears her cries, he prays to
7)___________ asking for a sign assuring him that he will be successful carrying out his plan for revenge. Zeus
hears his prayer and immediately sends down a 8)___________; Odysseus rejoices and he hears a servant woman
also praying to Zeus asking for the suitors to be destroyed. This 9)___________, or sign, gives Odysseus confidence
that he will be successful exacting his 10)___ _________. When Telemachus wakes, he makes sure that the servant
women have been treating Odysseus fairly and 11)___________, the faithful female servant, orders the women to
prepare the palace for the suitors’ dinner. As Eumaeus makes sure the Achaeans have been treating the stranger,
Odysseus, fairly, 12)____________, the goatherd, comes along and begins hurling verbal assaults.
13)____________, an outstanding man, greets Odysseus, explains the rude actions of the suitors over the years, and
reveals his hopes that Odysseus will return home soon to kill every suitor. In the meantime, the suitors are plotting
to kill 14)__________ yet as they plot, an 15)___________ flies past them with a dove in its grips. Reading this
omen as a sign that their plot will not go well, 16)______ _______ tells his comrades to forget about the plot at the
moment and to return to the palace to feast. Back at the palace, Telemachus places his father safely by a wall to
protect him from insults and blows from the suitors; then he warns the suitors not to start any trouble. Angry about
this, 17)____ ______, the leader of the suitors, objects to Telemachus’ words claiming that he is threatening them
but they will listen to his words only because Zeus has not given them permission to get rid of him yet. The feast
continues peacefully and then the troublemaker, 18)____________, addresses the suitors claiming he wants to give
Odysseus a gift and then proceeds to throw an 19)___________ hoof at him but Odysseus is able to quickly avoid it.
Telemachus warns Ctesippus that he is lucky he missed or he would have rammed his spear into his chest. Agelaus
speaks up trying to convince Telemachus that his father will not return home and he needs to stop stalling his
mother’s marriage; Telemachus’ reply is to ensure Agelaus he is not stalling but he will not drive his mother away
from her 20)______________. Pallas Athena then casts a spell on the suitors making them 21)_____________
uncontrollably. When 22)________________ notices that something evil is covering everything, he warns the
suitors about it. Eurymachus calls Theoclymenus crazy, however, Theoclymenus warns the suitors that they are
headed for 23)____________ and leaves the palace. The suitors then turn their insults on Telemachus who looks to
his father for a sign to 24)_____________ and as Penelope listens to all that is happening in her home, Homer tells
the reader that something will happen to the suitors due to their 25)___________.
Book XXI: The Contest with Odysseus’ Bow
Bright-eyed Athena comes down to the palace and places in Penelope’s heart the idea of the test of the
1)________ for the suitors. Penelope then explains the rules to the suitors; the first man who is able to
2)__________ the bow and then shoot it through twelve axe heads with the greatest of ease will become her
husband. As Eumaeus and Philoetius help to set up this challenge, they are 3)__________ because they are
distraught that Odysseus has not returned home. The leader of the suitor’s, 4)__________, rebukes the goatherd and
the swineherd but inside he is nervous about this test because he knows it takes a huge amount of strength to string
this bow – yet, we learn from Homer that Antinous won’t be successful but he will be the first to “taste” the arrow.
Telemachus speaks to the suitors telling them to hurry up and complete the contest; he urges them on by setting up
the axe heads and then attempts to string the bow. He tries this 5)____________ times but Odysseus motions for
The Odyssey
Books 20-24 Cloze Notes Activity
Telemachus to stop and be patient. Antinous then directs the suitors on the order they will attempt this feat and
Leiodes, the only suitor who is angry with his comrades actions, attempts the test and is 6)__________. Antinous
then directs 7)_____________ to start a fire so the young men can warm the bow and rub grease on it to make it
easier to string. However, none of the young men can string Odysseus’ bow. When Eumaeus and Philoetius leave
the room, Odysseus follows them and asks them if their 8)__________ is to return, which side would they fight for,
to which they promptly respond that they would be faithful to Odysseus. Once Odysseus is confident that they are
trustworthy, he reveals his identity and to make sure they believed him, he showed them the 9)____________ on his
leg. Odysseus then gives them directions: Eumaeus is ordered to 10)__________ the women in their room while
Philoetius is to lock the courtyard 11)_____________ and wait for his sign and then Eumaeus is to give him the
bow. Upon their return, 12)__________ is trying to string the bow unsuccessfully and then becomes angry because
he is worried about appearing weak in the eyes of other men in Ithaca. Antinous responds and assures Eurymachus
not worry about it; they will continue to celebrate tonight by making a sacrificial offering to Apollo for strength and
then try the bow in the morning. Attempting to exact his 13)__________, Odysseus addresses the suitors and asks
them to allow him to string the bow. As the suitor’s anger seethed, Antinous tells Odysseus to stay in his place and if
he is successful in stringing the bow, he will face great trouble because they will ship him off to king
14)____________ who likes to kill and torture everyone. Penelope answers Antinous and tells him that it is not fair
to deny a 15)____________ in Telemachus’ home to which Eurymachus explains that she is correct and if public
gossip was to get out they would be shamed. After Penelope scorns the suitors, Telemachus orders the bow be given
to the stranger and for his mother to go to her 16)________________ while he handles this situation. Penelope
leaves for her chambers in astonishment and weeps for Odysseus until 17)_____________ casts a sweet sleep on her
eyes. The suitors begin to hurl verbal assaults toward Odysseus as Eumaeus walks over to him with the
18)___________ and then orders Eurycleia to keep the women locked in their room no matter what they hear in the
hall. Once this was complete, Odysseus has no trouble stringing the bow and shooting the arrow through the axe
heads. He then gives 19)_____________ a sign who then grips his sword and stands beside his father in glittering
20)_____________.
Book XXII: The Killing of the Suitors
With his bow in his hand, Odysseus takes the first arrow and aims it at 1)___________, the leader of the
suitors and shoots the arrow into his throat. All of the other suitors cry out in shock telling Odysseus that he will pay
for this act to which Odysseus reveals his 2)___________. Pale with fear, the suitors look for a way to escape while
Eurymachus speaks claiming that the man 3)___________ for their foolish actions is now dead and they will repay
him for all that they have taken, therefore, Odysseus should allow them to all go free. Glaring at Eurymachus,
Odysseus explains that they cannot repay enough for their transgressions and warns that not one of them will
4)__________. Eurymachus then tries to rally the suitors to charge at Odysseus and pulls his 5)___________ and
charges at Odysseus with a blood-curdling shout. With fluency and accuracy, Odysseus shoots an arrow at him
which hits him in the 6)__________ and causes Eurymachus to convulse on the floor. 7)____________ charges next
and 8)_____________ throws his bronze-tipped spear between his shoulders. Then Telemachus goes to the
storeroom to retrieve more 8)__________ while his father continues to kill one suitor after another with his arrows.
When Agelaus and the other suitors realize there is no means of escape, the goatherd, 9)____________, realizes
where Odysseus stores his weapons and goes to retrieve some for the suitors; when he attempts to get more,
10)_________ catches him and is told to tie him up and lift him up into the rafters to torture him. Back in the
banquet hall, 11)_________ comes down in the form of Mentor to encourage Odysseus to fight harder but does not
give him the power to win decisively because she is still testing his strength and determination. The suitors fail in
their attempt to get Mentor to fight with them and when Mentor (Athena) flies up into the rafters in the form of a
12)__________, the suitors see this as a sign that Odysseus will no longer be able to defeat them but as they throw
many spears at one time, 13)____________ makes all of the spears miss Odysseus. Although Odysseus avoids harm,
Telemachus is wounded in the 14)_________ and Eumaeus is grazed in the 15)____________. The fighting
continues, Odysseus, Telemachus, Eumaeus, and Philoteius are able to kill the suitors one by one and then
The Odyssey
Books 20-24 Cloze Notes Activity
16)___________ grabs Odysseus’ knees and begs for his mercy. Odysseus’ responds by 17)_________ Leiodes.
18)_________, the minstrel and 19)_________, the herald are allowed to go free because they are innocent. When
Odysseus looks around the room, he sees that all of the suitors are flopping around like 20)___________ in pools of
blood and Telemachus is ordered to call the 21)___________ women to come and clean. As Eurycleia enters, she is
obviously ready to 22)____________ when she sees all of the dead and dying suitors but Odysseus checks her
response telling her that it is appropriate to rejoice in her heart but not out loud because it is a sacrilege. Odysseus
asks Eurycleia to tell him which servant women have been 23)___________ and then tells her to bring those women
to him. In the meantime, he orders his son, Eumaeus and Philoteius to start carrying out the bodies, then the servant
women begin cleaning up the hall and afterwards, are taken out back and 24)___________; Melanthius’ fate is to
have his body parts dismembered and fed to the dogs. Odysseus then instructs Eurycleia to purify the house with
25)___________ and purify the hall with fire. Finally, Odysseus is reunited with his faithful servant women in a
warm embrace.
Book XXIII: Odysseus and Penelope
Laughing to herself, 1)__________ goes to wake her mistress to tell her that Odysseus has arrived and that
he has killed all of the suitors. Penelope responds by saying that the gods have made her 2)__________ and scorns
her for waking her from a peaceful sleep to mock her when her heart is grieving. In efforts to convince Penelope that
Odysseus has returned home, Eurycleia tells her mistress she saw the 3)__________ on his leg from when he was a
boy. This information motivates Penelope to go and seek 4)_____________ so that she can see the dead suitors and
the man responsible for killing them. While Penelope is in the presence of her son and husband, she sits in silence
for a long time because she could not 5)___________ that this man is her husband. Angry with his mother’s
reaction, Telemachus scolds his mother for having a heart made of 6)__________ because she will not sit next to
Odysseus and she will not speak to him. Penelope assures her son that she is simply speechless and needs to know
for sure whether he is truly her husband. Odysseus finally speaks and instructs his son to allow his mother to
7)___________ him and he understands that she cannot recognize him because he is filthy. Odysseus suggests that
everyone bathes and dresses up, then they will have the holy minstrel come in and sing so that anyone on the street
will think they are having a 8)__________ and won’t get suspicious. Once everyone is cleaned and dressed, they sit
again in the dining hall, yet, Penelope continues to be silent. Odysseus claims that she truly does have a
9)___________ heart because no woman would be able to keep herself away from her husband who has returned
after twenty years. In response, Penelope tests Odysseus by ordering Eurycleia to make a bed for Odysseus
10)___________ of their bed chambers. Hearing this, Odysseus becomes extremely 11)_________ because their
bedroom is very sacred; he explains that he built the bed with his own hands and it cannot be removed from the
room. When Penelope hears this, she immediately embraces her husband, kisses his forehead, and begs him not to
be angry with her; there have been many men trying to 12)__________ her over the years and she wanted to be
cautious so that she would not be drawn into adultery. Odysseus 13)___________ with joy and 14)_________
comes down to slow the night so that Odysseus and Penelope can spend more time together. Odysseus reveals the
instructions that 15)____________ gave him in Hades, shares all of his exploits with Penelope and she tells him her
stories and the struggles she endured on Ithaca. The next morning, Odysseus tells Penelope that he is going to visit
his father and prepare for another war with the suitors’ families. She and the women should stay in the upper
chamber to stay safe.
Book XXIV: Zeus and Athena End the Fighting
The killer of Argus, 1)__________ leads the suitors into Hades where they see Achilles, Patroclus,
Antilochus, Ajax, and Agamemnon. The warriors are surprised to see all of these men coming down to the
Underworld all at the same time and inquire about their presence to which Amphimedon tells the story of their
plight. He claims they did nothing wrong and that 2)___________ tricked them by claiming she had to weave a robe
for her father-in-law and then unraveled it every night for three years. Then he explains how Odysseus planned the
The Odyssey
Books 20-24 Cloze Notes Activity
test of the 3)_____________ knowing that he would be the only one able to string the bow and shoot the arrow.
Meanwhile, Odysseus has reached his father’s home and as he approaches him, Odysseus debates whether he should
4)_________ his father, embrace and kiss him, or question him. Odysseus decides to test his father by insulting him
and claiming he cannot be 5)____________, the father of the great Odysseus; he is filthy, he is not taking care of the
garden properly, nor does he look like royalty. Laertes claims to be the man he seeks, however, the absence of his
son and the trouble the suitors have caused has taken its toll on him and then he asks the stranger who he is and
where he is from. Odysseus claims to be 6)___________, the son of Apheidas from Alybas who was on his ship
heading to Sicania when he was blown off course. He claims to have seen Odysseus 7)___________ years ago when
Odysseus was leaving his island. When Laertes hears this, his heart is grieved, he grabs some 8)__________ and
dumps it over his head. This action grieves Odysseus and he embraces his father and assures him that his son is
home after twenty years, but Laertes does not automatically believe Odysseus and asks for some 9)_____________.
Odysseus reveals his 10)__________ and reminds his father of the times they spent together in the garden which
makes Laertes rejoice yet his heart if filled with dread because of the revenge the suitors’ families will want. Back at
his home, Laertes is bathed and cleaned; father and son are able to converse with one another and have dinner when
11)____________, Odysseus’ good friend, arrives. Meanwhile, 12)__________, the messenger, rushes through the
city informing every one of the suitors’ demise; every family member gathers at Odysseus’ house to collect their
loved one and bury him. Then the families gather in an assembly and 13)___________ father, Eupeithes, is the first
to speak expressing his grief and the wrong that has been committed. 14)__________, the godlike singer, defends
Odysseus claiming that he did not plan to kill the suitors, it was the gods that prompted him; this creates fear
amongst the assembly and Halitherses speaks up and tells them that everything happened because of the foolish
conduct of their sons. This arouses anger in the majority of the assembly and they gather their weapons to avenge
their sons; in the meantime, Athena asks her father if he will allow more brutality to occur and 15)__________
claims that they should make the families forget the murders and love one another again. Back at Laertes’ house,
Odysseus finishes his dinner and discovers the suitors’ families are fast approaching; Odysseus, 16)____________,
Eumaeus, Poletius, Dolius and Laertes put on their armor and go out to fight. Pallas Athena appears as
17)_________ and urges Laertes to pray to Athena and Zeus for strength so that he can throw his spear; Athena
breaths enormous power into him and he throws the spear hitting 18)____________, father of Antinous. This action
starts the war but 19)___________ quickly shouts out which causes paralyzing fear to grip all of the men; the
suitor’s kin turn and are ready to run back into the city, and Odysseus lets out a warrior’s cry and jumps out to chase
them down and kill them. 20)__________ sends down a might thunderbolt and Athena warns Odysseus to stop
fighting before he angers Zeus. Odysseus obeys; Athena transforms into Mentor and has both sides draw up a treaty
designed to last forever.
THE END 