The Odyssey Background Notes

I. Epic Poem

A.The Odyssey is written in a genre called an epic poemB.An epic poem is a long, narrative poem about warriors and heroes.C.It has four main ingredients:

Myth Legend Folktale History

Epic Poem (continued)

D. An epic poem has cultural significance. It is like a cultural bible.E. The Greeks had two major poems: The Iliad and The Odyssey.F. The Romans had an epic poem called The Aeneid.G. The English have an epic poem called Beowulf.

Epic Poem (continued)

H. The Odyssey has two strong features:

Homeric similes (long similes)

Epithets ( a word or phrase used to characterize someone or something such as “Raider of Cities” referring to Odysseus, or “Lord of the Clouds” referring to Zeus.)

II. The Greek Gods

A. The Greeks were polytheistic (believed in many gods).

B. Their gods behaved like humans; they played jokes, got angry, etc.

C. The Greeks believed that the gods lived in northern Greece on Mt. Olympus.

D. They believed that the gods came down to earth disguised as wandering strangers.

The Greek Gods (continued)

E. The major gods:

Zeus- King of the godsHera- Queen of the godsAthena- Goddess of war & wisdomAphrodite- Goddess of love &

beautyApollo- God of the sunPoseidon- God of the sea

III. The Life of Homer

A. Homer was the poet who wrote both Greek epic poems, The Iliad and The Odyssey.

B. The Iliad is about a ten-year war at Troy.

C. The Odyssey is about Odysseus’ ten-year journey back home after the war.

D. Homer wrote these poems about 800 B.C.; however, the Trojan War took place 400 years earlier in 1200 B.C.

The Life of Homer (continued)

E. Homer is believed to have been blind

F. Homer memorized the entire poem and sang it for hours, as a kind of entertainment for people to listen to.

G. This type of poem-singer was called a rhapsodoi (professional reciter) similar to minstrels of Medieval England.

H. These epic poems united all the Greek city-states into one nation.

The Life of Homer (continued)

I. The poems were viewed as sacred and the ultimate authority on morality.

J. The poems were lost during the Dark Ages but were rediscovered in Constantinople (Turkey) during the Renaissance.

IV. The Greek People

A. The Greeks were polytheistic and believed in many gods.

B. The gods could come to earth disguised as wandering strangers, therefore, the Greeks treated all wandering travelers with hospitality. To treat a stranger badly was a risk at offending a god. Therefore, the people valued hospitality very highly.

The Greek People (continued)

C. The Greek people respected their religious prophets called oracles.

D. The people also valued moderation and looked down on people with too much pride (hubris) or who were greedy or cruel.

Greek People (continued)

E. Greek households grouped together to form city-states. Each city-state tried to win the favor of a particular god or goddess by giving offerings.

F. The people also believed in hero worship involving a person who displayed honor, bravery, hospitality, loyalty to home, intelligence, and respect for the gods.

Greek People (continued)

G. The people traveled mainly by sea because Greece is so mountainous. They traded with countries who had alphabets and began to develop their own about the time of Homer. The story was passed down from generation to generation until it was written down about 750 B.C.

V. Background Information

A. The Historical Perspective

1. The city of Troy did exist. In fact, there were at least nine “Troy’s” built one on top of the other- all located in the country we now call Turkey

2. Later conquered by the Greeks, the city also went by the Ilios, and when conquered by the Romans it became Ilium; hence, the name of Homer’s first epic, The Iliad, (not the Troyad)

Background Information (continued)

3. Troy was an important trade city that was strategically located at the Dardanelles Strait. The Dardanelles Strait links the Black, Marmara and Aegean Seas.

Background Information (continued)

4. Since sea trade was vital to transporting goods, anything from the Far East went across the land to the Black Sea, where it could be loaded onto boats and distributed to the Mediterranean Sea area.5. Troy was a city worth capturing and archaeologists say that it was burned to the ground in the 11th Century B.C., about the time of the Trojan War.

Background Information (continued)

6. The word “Greek” did not exist back then; the people from Greece were called Achaeans, Argives, and Danaans.

The Story behind the City of Troy

1. In the 11th Century B.C., Troy was supposedly ruled by King Priam

2. With his wife, Hecuba, and his other wives, King Priam had 50 sons and 12 daughters.

3. In those days, dreams were believed to foretell the future, and Queen Hecuba dreamed that she would have a trouble maker of a son who would bring about the fall of Troy.

The Story behind the City of Troy

4. The next child is born, a son named Paris. He is taken to the mountainside and left to die ( a frequent Greek custom usually reserved for handicapped children).

*The Greeks believed only the strongest should survive.

The Story behind the City of Troy

5. The baby, Paris, was given a rattle with the King’s seal on it to entertain himself while he dies.

6. Legend says that Paris was rescued and raised by a shepherd.

The Story behind the City of Troy

7. The shepherd kept the rattle, and when Paris was a young man the shepherd revealed his identity to him. Paris returned to the king’s household to continue his life.

8. There was an important social wedding in Troy between a mortal man named Peleus and a sea nymph named Thetis.

The Story behind the City of Troy

9. One goddess, Eris, the goddess of strife and discord, was deliberately left off the guest list.

10. In revenge, Eris “crashes” the wedding and rolls a golden apple down the wedding table. The apple is engraved with the words, “To the Fairest.”

The Story behind the City of Troy

11. The three most powerful goddesses- Hera, Aphrodite, and Athena- each grab for the apple considering themselves to be the “fairest.”

The Story behind the City of Troy

12. Zeus is afraid to make the controversial decision over who should get the apple, so he picks Prince Paris to make it instead.

13. Bribery begins:Hera- promises all the power in the worldAthena- promises wisdom and military skillsAphrodite- promises the most beautiful

woman in the world.

Paris chooses: Aphrodite as the “fairest”

The Story behind the City of Troy

14. The most beautiful woman in the world is Helen of Sparta. Unfortunately, she is already married to King Menelaus.

15. Paris pretends to be a beggar at King Menelaus’ castle and kidnaps Helen with Aphrodite’s help.

The Story behind the City of Troy

16. Menelaus gathers armies from all his friends (including King Odysseus of Ithaca) and sails to Troy to bring back his wife.

17. The Greeks fight the Trojans for nine years before Odysseus comes up with the idea for the Trojan horse in the 10th year. This idea ends the war and they regain Helen. This is the basis for the epic poem, The Iliad.