1 Homer’s The Odyssey Building Background

2 Before traditional literature... Stories were shared through an oral tradition.

3 Oral Tradition Written literature grew out of the oral tradition, the passing of stories, poems, and sayings by word of mouth. Around campfires and at other gatherings, people told tales about love, ambition, and friendship. Expressing their human concerns in stories, they explored universal themes, insights into life that are true for many different times and cultures.

4 Some Universal Themes... The importance of heroism The strength of loyalty The power of love The dangers of greed Can you find a connection to any of these themes in modern literature or movies?

5 Myths and Legends Myth – explains the actions of gods and the humans who interact with them. Legends – are tales that recount the adventures of a human hero and are usually based on historical truth.

6 The Greek Gods & Goddesses

7 The EPIC A long narrative poem that tells the adventures of a larger-than-life hero. Epics are often based on legends that contain a kernel of truth, they are not works of history but rather works of the imagination. Epics portray the past, but it is an imaginary past Epics express the values, ideals, and behaviors cherished by a society or culture.

8 The epic hero The hero usually engages in a dangerous journey or quest that is important to the history of a society, group, or culture. The epic hero : –Possesses the traits that are highly valued by his society –Takes part in long, dangerous adventures and accomplishes great deeds that require courage and super-human strength –May also possess human faults: overly curious, foolishly cocky, short-tempered, etc.

9 In the Middle of Things... Many epics begin in medias res (“in the middle of things”), meaning that major events occurred before the poem begins. The hero’s adventures are often recounted in a flashback. The epic hero’s traits are developed by what he says in narration and dialogue, and by his actions.

10 The Odyssey before it was written... The Odyssey was not a written story that Greeks would sit down and read. Rather it was a performance by a master storyteller, a poet with a golden voice, singing or reciting his great tale in verse, crafting many details as he went. Two techniques that he used are the –Epic Simile and –Epithet

11 Epic Simile Epic Simile – –a simile with a lot of detail; used for emphasis –can go on for several lines –elaborate, more involved than regular simile –describes characters feelings and thoughts or the magnitude of a battle (ex p. 891)

12 Epithet An epithet is a: –Brief, descriptive phrase that helps to characterize a particular person or thing Odysseus is described as a “master mariner”