2. "I Am Laertes' Son" *Odysseus is found by King Alcinous' daughter *He joins them for a great feast in their hall *Odysseus identifies himself and

Transcription

1 1. Calypso *She compelled Odysseus to lie with her each night. *Hermes, the messenger god, is sent by Zeus to free Odysseus from Calypso. *Odysseus finally is able to leave Calypso and her island even though she tempted him with the possibility of immortality. *He was on her island for a total of 7 years. *As Odysseus departs, Poseidon makes a horrible storm to give him even more difficulty on his journey. *He then crashes and falls into a deep sleep.

2 2. "I Am Laertes' Son" *Odysseus is found by King Alcinous' daughter *He joins them for a great feast in their hall *Odysseus identifies himself and tells of his adventures thus far. *He specifically discusses his time with Calypso, Circe, and his battle with the Cicones. *He also tells them of a horrible storm raised by Zeus that causes them to drift for nine days.

3 3. Lotus Eaters *Odysseus tells of him and his men landing on the coastline of the Lotus Eaters. *These "people" didn't seem to be harmful, just offering Odysseus and his men to eat of the sweet lotus plant (symbolism)? *When his men partook of this plant, it made them forget all about their hopes of returning to Ithaca. *Odysseus had to forcefully take these men from this island and strap them down unwillingly...

4 4. "The Cyclops" *The giant Cyclops (Polyphemus) imprisons Odysseus and his men... *Odysseus lies to him that his ship has been destroyed. *He watches as Polyphemus snatches up two of his men and devours them. *Odysseus realizes that he can't kill Polyphemus or else they would be trapped there forever. *Polyphemus kills two more men... *Odysseus works to sharpen a wooden stake and hid it... *Odysseus tempts him with wine and Polyphemus partakes and becomes intoxicated... *Odysseus tells him that his name is "Nohbdy"--why? *Odysseus and his men work together to use the stake to blind the Cyclops.

5 4. Cyclops (cont.) *Polyphemus screams in pain and other Cyclopes come and ask him who has hurt him... *Polyphemus replies that "Nohbdy" hurt him--so they left--clever trick on Odysseus' part. *Then, Odysseus devises another clever plan to escape the cave. He ties his men under the sheep so that the blind Polyphemus will not realize they are escaping. *They flee to their ship and Odysseus yells back at him about his true identity. *Polyphemus throws a huge boulder down the hill toward Odysseus and his crew. *Polyphemus prays to his father Poseidon that Odysseus doesn't get back to Ithaca, but if he does, it takes a long time and his homecoming will not be sweet. He wants him to have many more battles / obstacles before and after he reaches his homeland.

6 5. Circe *They arrive at Circe's island, Aeaea. *She is a witch / sorceress. *Her singing and music are very enchanting, almost hypnotic. *She then turns Odysseus' men into swine (pigs). *Hermes gives him "moly" that will help reduce Circe's power. It works and she frees his men, and Odysseus stays with her and feasts on meat and wine for "several seasons." *Circe commands Odysseus to visit the "Land of the Dead."

7 6. The Land of the Dead *Odysseus arrives in the Land of the Dead and follows Circe's commands as to how to summons Teiresias--the blind prophet. *Teiresias appears and provides Odysseus with a warning and prophecy: 1) You will encounter Helios' herd of cattle--both you and your men should leave them alone--don't bother the cattle! 2) You alone will finally get back to Ithaca, your homeland, but you will experience much anguish beforehand. 3)When you finally arrive there, your house will be in disarray. 4) You will eventually have to make sacrifices to Poseidon.

8 7. Sirens, Scylla, and Charybdis *Odysseus is still speaking in King Alcinous' court. *Circe warns Odysseus about Scylla, Charybdis, and the Sirens. *Her advice is for his men to put beeswax in their ears, so they cannot hear the Sirens' hypnotic song. She also advises that they tie him down so that he is not lured to his death by their song. *She also tells him to go closer to Scylla (the 6-headed monster) than to Charybdis. She says it's better to sacrifice 6 of his men than for all of them to die in the deadly whirlpool. *She also advises him NOT to bother Helios' cattle! *He does as she instructs and indeed they make it through the Sirens and six of his men are devoured by Scylla.

9 8. "The Cattle of the Sun God" *Odysseus is still telling his story in King Alcinous' court. *He talks about how terribly hungry and desperate his men have become on this island. *Eurylochus is the one who came up with the plan to kill the sun god's cattle as a sacrifice (while Odysseus was sleeping). *Helios vows revenge. *Odysseus and his men leave--zeus sends a thunderbolt to destroy Odysseus' ship and crew. *This is how Odysseus ends up alone on Calypso's island and in King Alcinous's court.