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Odyssey Test
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Who wrote the Odyssey? | Homer |
| When was the Odyssey written? | Around the 8th century B.C. |
| Why is Poseidon angry with Odysseus? | Poseidon hates Odysseus for blinding his Cyclops son Polyphemus |
| Who takes is upon herself to help Odysseus come home? | Athena |
| To whom does does Athena plead on his behalf? | Her father Zeus |
| Where does Telemachus go and whom does he visit to find out about his father? | He goes to Pylos and Sparta and visits Nestor and Menelaus. |
| What are the suitors doing at Odysseus' home? | They are trying to win the hand of Penelope |
| What is their real motivation for being there? | They want everything that Odysseus had - his wife, land and kingdom. They want to be king. |
| How does Odysseus bypass the Sirens? | He has the crew put wax in their ears so they can't hear their singing. |
| Odysseus and his crew must choose between "a rock and a hard place." What does Circe tell them to do? | Circe tells Odysseus to sacrifice 6 men to Scylla instead of losing his whole ship to Charbydis. |
| Does Odysseus follow Circe's advice? | Yes, he lost 6 men instead of his whole ship and crew. |
| Why did Odysseus dig a pit and fill it with blood? | He wanted to be able to talk to the dead. |
| Name 4 people who came to drink from the pit filled with blood. | Achilles, Agamemnon, Tiresias and his mother Anticleia. |
| What did Odysseus learn about another Greek king that may have made him afraid to go home? | Agamemnon's wife had an affair and killed him while he was in the bath. |
| How does Odysseus lose the last of his crew? | They ate the sacred cattle on the island of Helios and are killed. |
| Who are the two that warned him about the cattle? | Circe and Tiresias |
| What lesson should they have learned on the Cyclopes island? | Not to be prideful |
| Who led the crew astray? | Eurylochus |
| How do we learn the details of Odysseus' travels before he reached Calypso's island? | Flashbacks |
| For home many years is Odysseus away from home? | 20 years |
| Where are the years spent that Odysseus is away from home? | 10 years for Trojan War, 7 years with Calypso, 1 year wandering, 1 year returning to Ithaca and 1 year with Circe |
| What does Odysseus say his name is to the Cyclops Polyphemus? | Nobody/No Man |
| How does this benefit him (name given to Cyclops?) | When is being attacked, he says that "Nobody is attacking me" so his friends ignored him. |
| List 4 of Odysseus' trials on his journey home. | Rock and Hard Place, The Cyclops, The Sirens and the Cattle of the Sun God |
| How does he overcome each of them? | Rock and Hard Place - lose 6 men at Scylla The Cyclops - stabs him in eye The Sirens - beeswax in ears Cattle of the Sun God - Zeus sends storm to kill men and he winds up on the Phaeocians island |
| How does Odysseus return to the shores of Ithaca? | The Phaeocians help him sail there. |
| Who helps him and what happens to them because of their assistance? | Poseidon sends an earthquake and turns the ship into stone. |
| How does Telemachus return from visiting Sparta and King Menelaus? | Athena helps him get home by making the suitors fall asleep on their ship and he sails past |
| Does Telemachus have assistance in his return from visiting Sparta? | Athena helps him get home by making the suitors fall asleep on their ship and he sails past |
| How does Telemachus find out that Odysseus his father has finally returned home? | Odysseus shows telemachus himself at the swineherds house |
| Why does Odysseus keep his identify hidden from his wife when he first arrives home? | He was seeing who was still faithful. Agamemnon warns him so he tests to see if she is faithful |
| Argus is Odysseus' dog. Describe him and how Odysseus meets him again. | He is old now and lying on a pile of manure. When he sees Odysseus he wags his tail and then dies. |
| How does Odysseus gain entry into his own house? | Telemachus allows him to beg at his palace |
| Odysseus must participate in a boxing match. Who does he fight and what happens? | He fights Irus. He tries to hold back his punch but still breaks his jaw. |
| There are 2 main suitors described by Homer. Who are they and how do they treat Odysseus. | Antinous and Eurymachus. They throw things at him and are rude. |
| How does a maidservant recognize Odysseus? Does she reveal his secret identity? | The scar on his leg. No. He makes her promise to keep quiet. |
| What task does Penelope set up for the suitors in order that one may win her hand? Who accomplishes this task? | Whoever can string Odysseus’s old bow and shoot an arrow through the twelve axes will win her hand. Odysseus is the only one who can do it. |
| Describe the preparations Odysseus makes for his battle against the suitors. Who sides with Odysseus? Who is spared and not killed? | Telemachus hides the weapons, Euryclea keeps maids in a locked door, the swineherd and cowherd lock the doors to the hallways |
| Describe what happens to the unfaithful servants of Odysseus' house. | They have to clean up the mess of dead bodies and then they are hung. |
| How does Penelope react to seeing her husband after 20 years? | She is very cautious. She just sits there and doesn't say anything. |
| What secret does Odysseus know that proves he is Odysseus and convinces Penelope of his fact? | That she cannot move the marriage bed as one post is a living tree. |
| When Hermes brings the suitors down to Hades, how do the heroes there react? | They cried like babies. |
| How does Odysseus prove to his father that he is his son? Who is Odysseus' father? | The memories of the fruit trees and the scar on his leg. |
| Why does Odysseus head out with his armor again after finally coming home and killing the suitors? | Because the people of Ithaca are angry that they killed their sons and could harm Odysseus |
| How do the gods bring peace back to Ithaca? | Zeus and Athena demand it. They have a party. |
| How many suitors were killed by Odysseus and his followers? | 108 |