Odyssey - Book 9

Who speaks for the whole of books 9-12 of the Odyssey? To whom?

Odysseus to the Phaeacians

What does Odysseus think of as perfection?

listening to a bard in a palace, eating fine foods, in festive mood

Who does Odysseus blame for his troubles?

the gods

How does Odysseus introduce himself?

with heroic confidence, arrogance - 'my fame has reached the heavens'

What does he say about Ithaca?

it is furthest of the islands out to sea; a rough land, with mount Neriton

What does a man hold most dear?

his homeland, parents

Why do Odysseus' men insist on staying at Ismarus after they have sacked the town?

to celebrate

How do they suffer as a result of ignoring Odysseus' command to leave?

they lose 72 men the next day, in a tough battle

How many times do the men salute their dead companions?

3 times each

What does Zeus send to the ships as they sail away?

darkness and a gale

Upon making land what do the men do?

rest for 2 days and nights

For how long do they sail to the land of the Lotus Eaters?

10 days

How many men does Odysseus send to explore?

3

What do the men discover?

the Lotus Eaters, who give them lotus to taste

What is the inherent danger of Lotus?

demotivation, forget all thoughts of a return to Ithaca

What does Odysseus do to the three crew?

drag them back, tie them up, put them below decks

How are the Cyclopes describes?

lawless, no assembles, no laws, caves as homes, no society

Why have the cyclopes not colonised goat island?

no ships

Describe goat island

innumerable goats, unspoiled, lush meadows, some level land, safe harbour, fresh stream, a cave

How did Odysseus' ships land?

some god must have guided us in - it was impossible to see

How many goats did they kill?

109, 9 for each ship, 10 for Odysseus'

What do the men do all day?

Feast on goat and wine

What can they see and hear on the land of the Cyclopes?

smoke, bleating, voices

How many ships sail across?

Just Odysseus'

Describe the den of the Cyclops

cave, close to the sea, large flocks penned at night, great wall, tall trees

How many men go to the cave?

12 plus Odysseus

What does Odysseus take with him to the cave?

a goat skin of Maron's wine (priest of Apollo at Ismarus)

Why had Maron given him this wine?

Odysseus had protected Maron and his family at Ismarus

What did they find in the cave?

baskets laden with cheese, lambs, kids, bowls swimming with whey

What did the men beg?

take some cheesesdrive the kids to the ship, sail off

What do they actually do? (3)

wait, Odysseus expects good xenia, friendly gifts

What do they do in the cave? (3)

light a fire, make an offering, wait

What first terrifies the men?

the crash Polyphemus makes with the dry wood bundle

How methodical is Polyphemus? (6)

very - he milks his ewes, goats, returns each to its mother, curdles the milk, collects whey, 'efficient'

Describe the door of the cave.

a mighty slab, a huge stone

How does Polyphemus address the men?

Strangers, and 4 abrupt questions

How truthful is Odysseus? (2)

very - he says they are Greeks, returning from Troy

How does Odysseus try to appease the Cyclops?

Odysseus stresses that they are suppliants and Zeus is god of suppliants

Does the Cyclops care about Zeus?

no

What does Polyphemus want to know?

where their ship is

Why does Odysseus lie about his ship? What does he say happened?

to save his other crew; Poseidon wrecked it

How does Homer make the description of the death scene horrific? (5)

details: Polyphemus seized 2 men; dashed their heads onto the floor; their blood and brains flowed out; they are torn apart; they were entirely eaten

What are the similes used to convey the hopeless mismatch?

puppy dogs vs a mountain lion

Why does Odysseus decide not to try to kill Polyphemus?

they could not escape from the cave

What does Polyphemus eat for breakfast?

2 more men

How does he replace the door stone?

like a lid on a quiver

What does Odysseus do?

cut off a fathom of the staff, sharpen it, harden it, hide it, select 4 men to assist

Does the early evening follow the pattern of the first evening?

yes, the Cyclops tends to his flocks, eats two more men; no, the Cyclops brings inside all of his animals

Describe Odysseus' cunning.

he offers wine, gets the Cyclops drunk, three bowls in all, says his name is metis - cunning / nobody

How is the Cyclops' response ironic?

he will eat Odysseus last - an grimly ironic gift of xenia

What happens after this? (3)

the Cyclops topples over, face upwards, he vomits men's morsels

What do they do to the stake?

they heat the stake, then thrust it into his eye,

And the similes?

the stake hisses like hot iron in cold water, the men work like a team of drillers

How are the neighbouring Cyclopes deceived?

Polyphemus says that it is nobody's trechery, not violence, that is killing him

What do they suggest? (2)

praying to Poseidon, as sickness comes from Zeus

Describe Odyseus' plan to escape. (3)

he lashed the rams together in 3s; the middle one was to carry one of his men; he chose the pick of the flock for himself.

Explain the dramatic irony.

we know where the men are, Polyphemus does not; he even asks the great ram

How does the Cyclops address the ram?

affectionately, respectfully, ironically - you have never lagged behind the others…

How does Odysseus nearly spoil the escape?

he cannot resist arrogantly shouting back to Polyphemus, taunting him

What does Polyphemus do?

enraged, he tears off the pinnacle of rock and it lands just ahead of the ship

Why does Odysseus shout a second time?

arrogance, anger, having the last word, to reveal his identity

Polyphemus is dismayed. Why?

an ancient prophecy from Telemus predicted an Odysseus would blind him, but he expected someone much more impressive

What is the content of Polyphemus' curse, praying to Poseidon? (4)

Odysseus may reach home late, in wretched oplight, in a foreign ship, with trouble at home

How close is his second boulder?

it narrowly misses the tip of the rudder

What happens to the Cyclops flocks and ram?

divided up fairly between all 12 crews and Odysseus sacrifices the ramto Zeus