Homer’s Odyssey An Epic Tale - PowerPoint Presentation

Slide1

Homer’s Odyssey

An Epic TaleSlide2

Journal

What makes a hero? Write down the names of two or three people, real or fictional, whom you consider heroic. Then take a few minutes to list character traits that you think a hero of any time and place should have. Revisit and add to your thoughts and notes as you read the

Odyssey

.Slide3

Homer and Ancient Greece

Homer: To Good to be True?

Known to us as the poet famous for his two Greek epics:

Iliad

and

Odyssey

Greeks believed him to be a blind minstrel Chios

Model for bards or

rhapsodes

– singers of tales - historians, entertainers, myth-makers

Historian?

Homer’s epics have been traced to actual historical events and locations from as early as 1200 B.C. Slide4

Homer’s Epic Tradition

The

Iliad:

tells the story of a ten year war fought on the plains outside the walls of Troy (Ilion) – A.K.A The Trojan War

The Trojan War

people of Troy vs. an alliance of Greek kings (each Greek island had its own king)

Helen – the world’s most beautiful woman who abandoned her husband, Menelaus, to marry a prince of Troy.

Model for war epicsSlide5

Homer’s Epic Tradition

The

Odyssey

: tells the story of Odysseus’s journey home to his wife Penelope after the Trojan War

Model for epic journey in classical literature and in contemporary Western Culture:

The Hobbit

,

Star Wars

,

The Wizard of Oz

,

Harry Potter

,

The Lion King

, and

Forrest GumpSlide6

What is an Epic?

Epic

: long narrative poem that tells of the adventures of heroes who in some way embody the values of their civilizations.

Part of an oral tradition

Poets used a repertoire of formulas for describing characters and events

Long narratives – like this – were told over the course of several days, and (we assume) were often summarized in sections in order to complete the story before the bard had to move along.

Myth

: traditional story that is

rooted in a particular culture

basically religious – involve the influence of gods on human affairs

usually serves to explain a belief, ritual, or mysterious natural phenomenonSlide7

Epic Tradition

Iliad

and

Odyssey

were used in schools to teach Greek virtues and establish the conventions of the epic form for later epics such as:

Virgil’s

Aeneid

(Rome)

The Song of Roland

(France)

Dante

Alighieri’s

Divine Comedy

(Italy)

Mahabharata

and

Ramayana

(India)Slide8

Odysseus: Draft-dodger or Hero?

Iliad

–

Odysseus dodges the draft

Wife, Penelope

Son,

Telemachus

Didn’t want to leave them to fight for an adulteress (Helen)

Odysseus wins the war with the Trojan Horse TrickSlide9

Odysseus: Not Your Typical Hero

Odyssey

– traces Odysseus’s outward journey home and his inward quest to find his identity, his place in the world

Post-war world

Feeling of disillusionment and melancholy

What

is

Odysseus when his war record and heroism no longer determine his place?Slide10

Unusual Birth

Call to

Adventure:

Odysseus fights in the Trojan War

Supernatural Helper: Athena

Talisman or special weapon: Odysseus’s wit

Crossing the Threshold: entrance

into the world of the gods

Trials

Achievement of Goal: Odyssey makes it home

Reconciliation with Parental Figure: Odysseus

is reunited with his son

Return Home: He can only full return home when he

reveals himself to his wife

Start

The Hero's Journey

End

Refusal of the

Call: Odysseus pretends to be insane to avoid going to war.Slide11

Contemporary Connections

Discuss two instances from popular books or movies that allude to one of Homer’s epics.