THE EPIC OF THE ODYSSEY

EPIC TRAITS  An Epic is a long narrative poem  We learn everything important about cultural values of that culture from epics  Uses length and depth to express themes  The story of life itself  Large and ambitious projects  Epics help people define themselves  Embody who we are and what we should be like a literary mirror

2 KINDS OF EPIC ACCORDING TO C.S. LEWIS  Primary Epics  generally anonymous- arose in cultures that does not rely primarily on literacy or writing.  Bard must call on his resources when telling the tale: Repetitious sequences, epithets, and fragments that fit inside the poetic meter/formula to help bards tell the tales-he works the same way as an improvisational musician (live concerts vs a cd) given the audiences interests.  Began as oral tradition-The Iliad, The Odyssey, Beowulf, and The Epic of Gilgamesh.

2 KINDS OF EPIC ACCORDING TO C.S. LEWIS Secondary Epics  make up the vast majority of epics-has an author that wrote and published the epic (no oral tradition) they are in response to the primary epic Written in verse-Aeneid, Dante’s Inferno, and Paradise Lost.

EPIC HERO TRAITS Embodies ideals and values that the culture admires Larger than life figure who undertakes great journeys Possesses super human strength, craftiness, and confidence Helped or harmed by interfering gods Emerges victorious from perilous situations

ODYSSEUS Known for his multifacetedness and polytropos— being resourceful and able to approach a problem from many vantage points. He has not only strength, but cunning, leadership, and military skill. Greek cultural self-portrait of what it means to be Greek. Odysseus also plays the role of bard or poet telling his story. —Remember that Odysseus is a master of cunning and deceit which begs us to figure out is he telling the truth of what happened to him and his crew. How is he the only survivor? He says that monsters ate/killed them. Funny how those monsters only show up when he’s telling the story and the rest of the story is more natural.

SUPER IMPORTANT EPIC CONVENTIONS Simile: “then, as doves or thrushes beating their spread wings against some snare rigged up in thickets—flying in for a cozy net but a grisly bed receives them— so the women’s heads were trapped in a line, nooses yanking their necks up, one by one so all might die a pitiful, ghastly death” (lines ) Epithets: Dawn with her rose red fingers wine-dark sea clear-eyed goddess Epic Simile-a simile that tells a story for several line within its comparison. Begins with “as” and ends with “so…” Epithet-adjectives that describes a person or thing Medias Res-in the middle of things (The Odyssey begins in the middle of the story and then is told with flashbacks) Hubris-excessive pride (Odysseus’ flaw)

MORE EPIC CONVENTIONS Epic Plot Strange creatures Divine intervention Large-scale events Treacherous weather Epic setting Includes fantastic or exotic lands Involves more than 1 nation

MORE EPIC CONVENTIONS Archetypes-stereotypical characters, situations, and images Sea monster Buried treasure Epic hero Wicked temptress Suitors’ contest Loyal servant Epic themes (universal concerns) Courage A homecoming Beauty Loyalty Life and death Fate of a nation

ARÊTE: VIRTUE OF EXCELLENCE Something all Greek people strive to have Odysseus can do anything that is called upon him. Penelope is also the perfect picture of a wife. The swineherd and Eurycleia are valuable and loyal persons of excellence. Argos-Odysseus’s dog.