WOH - Key Content

Book 1

Juno gets Aeolus to try and sink the Trojans but Poseidon calms the storm, they land on Agenor and Aeneas explores, they find Carthage and are reunited after Venus clouds them, they give Dido some gifts, Venus gets Cupid to pretend to be Iulus and breathe fire and poison (love) into Dido.

Book 2

Fall of Troy - horse, debate, Sinon, horse, Hector, steal armour, Priam dies, Helen, Venus, Dad, dead wife, leaving

Book 4

Dido in love with Aeneas, stops building the city, Juno tries to get Venus to agree to marriage (so they won't leave Carthage and found Rome and Venus wants to protect Aeneas), they plot and trap Aeneas and Dido in a cave, rumours of their marriage spread through Libya, Mercury sent down by Jupiter crushing Aeneas' passion and reminding him of his pietas, Dido sees him packing and is mad, she is whipped into furor/amor and burns all his stuff, Aeneas leaves at night, Dido kills herself but curses Aeneas first before jumping on Aeneas' burning stuff (pyre) and sword of Troy.

Book 6

Underworld - Apollo tells Aeneas to find a gold branch and bury Misenus, sees lots of typical underworld stuff, the Sibyl shows him the way, sees Dido he cries and tries to hug her but she runs to Sychaeus, talk about the people in Tartarus, finds Anchises who tells him about his descendants including Romulus and Caesar and says Augustus will bring back the golden years and peace, warns Aeneas of impending war in Latium, sends Aeneas through gate of Ivory (empty promises) rather than Horn (truth) - *Pietas, imperial destiny, Kleos, parade of heroes = leadership, self-sacrifice, duty, 'national myth', imperial expansion.

Book 7

Arrive in Latium, Latinus warned not to marry Lavinia to a Latin, Aeneas sends 100 men to Latinus and ask for peace, Latinus gives the men horses and says Aeneas will marry Lavinia, Juno angry and gets Allecto to help out, who makes Amara crazy about loss of Turnus tries to convince Latinus that Aeneas should not marry Lavinia, runs around woods with other women, Allecto goads Turnus into starting a war for Lavinia's hand, Allecto tricks Iulus into into firing an arrow into a stag, starting the war, Allecto throws open the gates of war, Turnus allies arrive - chaos, dangers of Furor.

Book 8

The Tiber sends Aeneas a dream telling him to fight for Latium cos its where he's meant to be and he needs to make friends with the Arcadians, he arrives in Arcadia and Pallas greets them, Aeneas explains their purpose, they speak to Evander of friendship and he invites them to join the Hercules festivities, Venus asks Vulcan to make Aeneas some armour, Evander tells Aeneas he will give him some men to help, Evander collapses as Pallas leaves, Venus gives Aeneas the armour - shield = prophetic, shows story of Italy, Aeneas lifts it and thus shoulders the fate of his descendants (Ekphrasis) - Hercules = saved Evander's people from Cacus, mirrors present tyrrany of Mezentius.

Book 9

Nisus and Euryales - Turnus attacks but the Trojans stick to Aeneas' plan and do not return fire, Cybele asked Jupiter to make the ships immortal and they turn into nymphs, Nisus has a plan to attack the Latins in the night, Euryales insists on joining him, they go to a meeting and Iulus approves the plan, they creep into camp, Nisus asks Euryales to keep guard but he refuses, they kills many, Euryales takes a shiny helmet, they get separated and Euryales is spotted by the helmet and killed, Nisus rushes to avenge him and succeeds and dies on top of Euryales, the Latins carry the bodies back to camp and put their heads on spears, the Trojans prep for battle, Euryales' mother hears he is dead and mourns, all the Trojans get sad, the Latins rush the walls and many dies, Apollo tells Iulus to leave the battle, Turnus rushes the walls again, he gets stuck and tries to escape by jumping in the river - ships to sea nymphs show gods on Aeneas' side, don't need anymore as reached home.

Book 10

Pallas and Mezentius - council of gods = Jupiter vows to take no side and let the fighting tun its course, Trojan camp besieged by Rutulians/Latins then relieved by the arrival of Aeneas and Pallas, Pallas fights Turnus and dies, Turnus takes his belt as a prize, Aeneas hears of Pallas' death and is overcome by furor, he goes on a killing spree seeking Turnus, Juno removes Turnus from battle by disguising herself as Aeneas and getting him to follow onto a boat, Aeneas' furor climaxes with the death of Mezentius and Lausus - Virgilian war is horror with a prejudiced presentation, war seen as evil which will fade when world becomes civilised (anti-war propaganda) - human sacrifice of Latin leader's sons frowned upon by most (A seen as blood thirsty).

Book 11

Drances and Camilla - Aeneas arranges Pallas' funeral, Latins and Trojan's temporarily truce, Drances blames whole war on Turnus, Turnus argues with Drances and agrees to settle war with a duel with Aeneas but Trojan's turn up at gate, Turnus goes to ambush Aeneas whilst Camilla leads the Latin defense, she kills many Trojans before being killed herself - Trojan's ambush removes the main characters from fighting = builds tension by delaying confrontation - Aeneas = belief in fate and piety governing actions, when do not his true emotions emerge e.g. furor.

Book 12

Amata says she will hang herself if Turnus dies, Turnus sends a messenger of peace saying he and Aeneas will duel, Juturna makes the people dissatisfied with the treaty and sends an eagle portent telling them to attack, battle resumes, Juturna disguises herself as Turnus' chariot driver to keep him from battle, Venus influences Aeneas to bring the Trojans against the walls of Latinum, Amata hangs herself, Jupiter weighs their lives, Turnus and Aeneas clash, Turnus' sword shatters, Aeneas' spear gets stuck, Venus frees Aeneas' spear and Juturna returns Turnus' sword, Jupiter agrees to allow the Latins to keep their customs and language if she stops stressing, he sends a monster to confront Juturna and she leaves, Turnus begs for mercy but Aeneas sees Pallas' belt and kills him.

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Book 1

Suitors treat Penelope appallingly (O revenge)

Poor Xenia must be punished - sitting on hides of sheep they slaughtered

Eurymachus pries into the identity of Mentes

Penelope drives Odysseus Nostos

Penelope reflects traditional Greek values

Calypso keeps him trapped for 7 years

Book 5

Athene gets Odysseus off Ogygia

Zeus sets Odysseus free

Calypso good and bad xenia prevents his Nostos

Athene doesn’t step in during Poseidon’s storm

Book 6

Nausicaa helps Odysseus - clothes and directions

Nausicaa saves his life allowing him to share his story and thus self evaluate

Book 7

Petitions Arete for Xenia and doesn’t make any demands - good Xenia

Denies Alcinous proposal cos still wants to return to Penelope

Asks for help to return ASAP when petitions Arete

Odysseus good xenia to the Phaeacians helps him get home (an aid for Nostos)

Arete rebirth

Arete gets Alcinous to give ships and gifts

Book 8

Doesn’t reveal name to Phaeacians even tho could get glory after Demodocus sings ‘The Quarrel of Odysseus and Achilles’

Throws discus for glory

Crying when reminded how long away from home in Trojan Horse stratagem ballad

Book 9

Polyphemus (horrors of journey - gripping passage)

Odysseus invites himself into Polyphemus’ home and eats his food

Reveals his name to Polyphemus cos he wants glory

Stays behind at Polyphemus’ cos wants gifts creating tension

revealing name to Polyphemus means Poseidon revenge

Polyphemus eats many men

Odysseus didn’t need to stop and raid the Cicones but was his choice

Book 10

Circe gives Odysseus advice about the journey ahead - how to get around the sirens and warns about the cattle

Laestrygonians (horrors of journey - gripping passage)

Scylla/Charibdis (horrors of journey - gripping passage)

Odysseus tries to stab Circe when she invites him in

Time - Aeolus and the bag of wind gift which the crew open giving plot

Laestrygonians sink all but one ship - Odysseus parked his outside the harbour

Crew open wind bag sending them all the way back to Aeolia

Circe turns the crew into pigs

Book 11

Reignites Odysseus’ Nostos (Teiresias prophecy, talking to Anticlea reminds of family, seeing Achilles shows him Kleos and glory are meaningless)

Creates tension (Agamemnon’s warning, the ghosts surrounding them, knows about the suitors at home)

Character development (attempts reconciliation with Ajax, sees what happens to men in Underworld yet still refuses immortality, see his human side when sad talking to Anticlea)

Horrors of journey - gripping passage (Teiresias, Agamemnon, Achilles)

Book 12

Scylla eats 6 of his strongest men

Crew eat the cows resulting in a massive storm from Zeus in retribution killing them

Zeus traps them on the island as a test for Odysseus

Book 13

Athene helps Odysseus make a plan to defeat the suitors

Phaeacians Xenia includes gifts allowing him to replace what he lost coming back from Troy

* spiritual rebirth

* banter between A+O shows similarity between

* reintroducing Ithaca - Penelope despair and cunning, Suitors evil, Telemachus in danger

Book 16

Suitors reveal they tried to kill Telemachus

Eurymachus gives dishonest speeches when says they would not try to kill Telemachus

Good xenia to Eumaeus lets O find out more about the suitors and get into the palace

Eumaeus helped raise Telemachus

* Odysseus and Telemachus reunite

* plan next steps

Book 17

Walk to town and entering palace

Argus - symbol of loyalty and waiting

Melanthius disloyalty - but also warns about suitors’ behaviour

Antinous awful Xenia - abuses Eumaeus, hits Odysseys, others think gone too far

Telemachus gives E food and drink for Odysseus

Antinous refuses to give food to Odysseus

Antinous threatens to send Odysseus to Egypt if he begs from him

Antinous footstool

P asks O to tell his story but he asks to wait till sunset

Book 18

Suitors mistreat Odysseus as the beggar (Eurymachus footstool)

Antinous honours the bet by giving Odysseus a lamb after the battle with Irus

Antinous admires Penelope’s beauty

Amphinomous toasts O after the battle

Amphinomous gets the suitors to agree to leave after one last drink thus adhering to Ts request

O gives Amphinomous a way out by saying if he leaves now he will be spared

I + O fight foreshadows

tension on if P will remarry

Melantho’s evil - guilt and unfaithful servant

Book 19

Telemachus gets rid of the swords

Eurycleia sees through disguise

Eurycleia keeps Odysseus’ secret

Eurycleia helped raise Telemachus

Eurycleia gets the women away from the battle

Penelope delays the suitors so Odysseus can return

Bow test revealed - cliff hanger

Penelope’s dream - foreshadowing

Book 21

Telemachus and Eumaeus advocate for Odysseus to get the bow

Journey of the bow builds tension/suspense - gripping passage

Antinous as pious cos wants to make a sacrifice to Apollo to help with the bow challenge

Bow proof of worth? Proof of Odysseus’ identity!

Bow = plot device to win Penelope and give O a weapon

Zeus thunderclap approval signals climax moment

Telemachus shows approval

Book 22

Athene helps Odysseus battle the suitors as a bird

Disloyal maids who slept with suitors hanged

Divine intervention - gripping passage

Melanthius getting weapons for suitors - gripping passage

Eurycleia points out the disloyal servants

Anti-climatic death of Antinous

Melanthius captured torched and killed

Restoration of order

Less focus on suitors deaths more on Odysseus

Book 23

the bed test - tense to immediate ease

Athene elongates the night to allow P+O to spend more time together

reunion

tension

Penelope’s nostos