Homer is quoted or mentioned eight separate times in TheSymposium, so it’s natural to wonder what the guests might have had to say about the role Eros plays (not literally, but figuratively) in the Odyssey. After all, if Odysseus’ nostos centers on a reunion with his beloved Penelope, then Eros is the driving force in the epic – and we mentioned more than once in class how Aristophanes’ idea of the “other half” applies to Odysseus and Penelope. But are there useful connections between these texts other than this one? For part one, choose one or two (no more than two) Symposium speeches, not necessarily ones we discussed in class, and write an essay of 1000 words in which you apply their insights to one or two (again, no more than two) examples of love you see displayed in Homer’s epic. Do not write about how Odysseus is Penelope’s “other half” – we already get that – but take your thinking deeper.
Part II.Write essays of 500 words each on any two of the following.1. Look closely at 2:33-176 (from “Odysseus’ loving son felt glad” to “Now it is coming true,” p. 121-125). Here we see Telemachus’ first assertion of individual initiative and the suitors’ contemptuous response to it. How does the poet involve the themes of kleos, nostos, and xenia in this exchange? What seems to be most important to the hero’s son as opposed to his arch-enemy, Antinous?2. Look closely at 4:24-112 (from “Your Majesty there are two men outside” to “…who was a newborn when he went away”, p. 153-155). Most of this passage is a monologue spoken by Menelaus, one of Odysseus’ brothers-in-arms during the Trojan War. What examples of xenia, nostos and kleos are displayed in this scene, and how do these themes work together?
3. Consider the implications of Odysseus’ refusal to accept the immortality Calypso offers him in Book 5. What does his refusal imply about the hero’s view of what it means to be human? Relevant to this question are Odysseus’ encounters with the immortals and his attitude toward suffering.
4. Book 6 focuses on Odysseus’ encounter with King Alcinous’s daughter Nausicaa, who is approximately 12 or 13 years old (pages 200-207, lines 112-315). This scene is the hero’s first encounter with a mortal human being in many years, and his behavior toward this vulnerable young girl could mean the difference between life and death. Offer an analysis of this scene in which you discuss the following:–What do we learn about any “heroic” traits Odysseus demonstrates?–What role does “mythic consciousness” – that is, awareness of the supernatural – play in this scene?–How does the episode illuminate the themes of xenia, kleos and nostos?
5. Look closely at 7:142-225 (from “He threw his arms around Arete’s knees” to “May I live out my final days in sight / of my own property and slaves at home,’” p. 212-215). What aspects of Odysseus’ character do we learn from his conversation with Alcinous? How does xenia function here?
6. In Book 8, the Phaeacian lords are partying at Alcinous’ palace, and after noticing something unusual during a ballad from local bard Demodocus, the king calls for an athletic contest (pages 224-228, lines 133-255). Study this scene, which is one of the earliest examples of “sports writing” in the West, and discuss the following:–What do we learn about the heroic traits Odysseus embodies?–What role does “mythic consciousness” – that is, awareness of the supernatural – play in this scene?–How does the episode illuminate the themes of xenia, kleos and nostos?
7. Look closely at 10: 302-440 (from “I left the ship and shore, and walked on up” to “Odysseus, you always find solutions,” p. 268-272). If Circe represents a mythic form of the feminine, what does this erotically charged scene reveal about male/female relations in the Odyssey as a whole?
8. Look closely at 14:27-166 (from “Then suddenly / the guard dogs saw Odysseus” to “…who disrespect his wife and noble son,” p. 333-337). What functions does this encounter between the disguised hero and a humble pig-farmer perform in this part of the story, particularly with regard to the themes of xenia, kleos and nostos?
9. Look closely at the reunion scene between Odysseus and Telemachus, 16:167-265 (from “Odysseus, great strategist” to “…and they control both men and gods,” p. 374-378). What does this scene tell us about father/son relationships, about heroism, about the relations between men and gods? In what sense are Telemachus and his father testing one another?
10. Look closely at 17:25-166, pages 355-359 (from “At that Telemachus strode quickly out” through “that everyone you met would see your luck”). Notice how differently the hero’s son speaks and acts after he knows his father has returned to Ithaca. The way he addresses his mother is especially striking. What does the scene reveal about the kleos this young man is developing? In what ways does it connect with themes we’ve been talking about throughout – xenia, nostos, mythic consciousness, heroism, male/female relations?
11. Look closely at the scene in Book 18 involving the boxing match between the mysterious stranger “from Crete” and the local champ, Irus (lines 1-159, pages 408-414). In contrast to our hero’s athletic contest in Book 8, we see here another kind of sport, another kind of audience, and another kind of culture. What do we make of Odysseus’ strategy in the fight? What about his remarkable “victory speech” to Amphinomus, one of the few polite suitors? What does this scene reveal about the state of xenia in Ithaca? What do we learn about the complex challenges the hero must meet here? How do we come to appreciate the thinking of this “complicated man”? What does this scene reveal about the themes of kleos and nostos we’ve been talking about?
12. Look closely at 22:306-401 (from “So the master of longhorn cattle” to “that call for my attention,” 448-451). What do we learn about the Odyssey’s moral values here? On what basis does the hero take or spare the lives of the men in his house?What does the scene tell us about the main themes of the epic?
13. Look closely at Book 23: 166-295, pages 500-502 (“Extraordinary woman!” through “the rites of the old marriage bed”). This scene contains the ironic moment when Penelope orders the removal of the immobile bed. What do we learn about the true content of their relationship at this moment in the story? How do the themes of kleos, nostos and xenia get resolved here, if you think they do?
14. Using these questions as a model, formulate your own short essay prompt about Homer and answer it.
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