How has Penelope been able to "put off" the suitors for three years?
She says she cannot marry one of them until she weaves a death shroud for Lord Laertes. She weaves during the day, and at night, she would sneak in there and unweave what she had done.
Athena disguises Odysseus as a __________. Why does she do this?
beggar. Odysseus needs to see who is with him, who is against him. Who is his friend? Who is his foe?
Why does Telemachus not tell his own mother that Odysseus is home?
Penelope would not be able to hide her emotions. Telemachus does not want the suitors to know Odysseus is home.
Who is the "old and faithful friend" that recognizes him as Odysseus approaches the manor?
The dog, Argos.
What is the symbolism of the dog Argos laying on a massive pile of dung?
It symbolizes the ruin, the destruction, the fall of Ithica. (Ithaca has gone to poo)
What happens to the dog? What does this symbolize?
The dog dies. This symbolizes Odysseus is going to take back his kingdom; he is going to restore Ithaca. (He is going to clean up the poo)
How do the suitors treat the old beggar?
They kick him, spit on him, and refuse to give him food (even tell him it is not his food, even though it is: irony)
Why do Telemachus and Odysseus remove the weapons from the great hall?
They don't want the suitors to have anything which to fight. Take everything so the men cant fight back.
Explain the dramatic irony when Penelope meets with the old beggar.
The audience knows she is meeting her husband for the first time in 20 years.
Explain the two parts of the test Penelope puts in front of the suitors:
1. To string Odysseus's bow
2. To shoot an arrow through a row of 12 axe- handle sockets
What is the climax of this episode?
Odysseus kills Antinous, the crulest and the meanest of all the suitors.
How does Eurymachus try to reason with Odysseus?
1. He tells Odysseus that they will pay all the wine and meat they eat
2. He promises each will give him 20 oxen
3. He promises each will give him gifts of bronze and gold
He says you fought your way into my home, now find a way out if you can. He says he doubts one of them will skin by!
What does Telemachus accuse his mother of being?
He accuses her of being cold, hard, distant - why is she not talking to her husband
What last "test" does Penelope make of Odysseus? EXPLAIN
Bed around tree
No other person except one slave has ever seen their bedroom
The last Homeric simile in the story compares Odysseus' longing for his wife to ____________________________
a swimmer whose boat went down in the sea longing for the shore