The Odyssey: Review and Essay Questions

The style of writing I have chosen was free writing under the theme of tragedy portrayed in The Odyssey by Homer. What elements of the adventures caused death and, pain or suffering for the main character, the mass homicide of the crews being eaten by the Cyclops? Why would perilous adventures that cause sorrow to be constantly pursued? Do these adventures mean for a sense of pride that many men would risk their lives? Does Homer use the constant death of the crew as a way to keep the tragic sense of the Odyssey continuing and keeping the audience interested in the long poem? I believe that the main theme is to convict intense sorrow and uphold the theme of tragedy to draw upon the audience, wanting to hear more of the strange and perilous journey that Ulysses endured to and from Troy and his issues with his men. Is there perhaps another reason behind it?

Theme: Tragedy by Johnni Arnold

Based on the prewriting, what claim(s) might/do your classmates argue about the primary source(s)? Suggest a working thesis in the space below.

Based on the prewriting, the classmate claims that the primary source provides the theme of tragedy is the most pronounced theme in Odyssey by Homer. In addition, the primary source used by the classmate is reliable because it shows how the theme of the tragedy appears in the book and some instances that lead to the occurrence of the theme. The audience or rather the reader is able to identify the various circumstances identified by the classmate that leads to the fatal events. Therefore, the thesis for this paper should be how Homer has portrays the theme of tragedy in the Odyssey.

What are the most important points your classmate makes in the prewriting? Please list. Next, comment on how this information can be organized in the final draft of the essay.

The most important points the classmate makes are:

• The elements that led to suffering and pain for the main character
• The crews being consumed by Cyclops
• The reason why death-defying adventures should be pursued

Does the adventure experienced by the main character and the crew occur as a sense of pride?

Does Homer use the constant death of the crew as a way to keep the tragic sense of the Odyssey continuing and keeping the audience interested in the long poem?

Instead, the information should be organized as follows:

• The crews being consumed by Cyclops
• The elements that led to suffering and pain for the main character
• The reason why death-defying adventures should be pursued

Does the adventure experienced by the main character and the crew occur as a sense of pride?

Does Homer use the constant death of the crew as a way to keep the tragic sense of the Odyssey continuing and keeping the audience interested in the long poem?

Examine how the theme is treated in the text that you chose by using relevant literary terminology.
Tone- the tone used is celebratory and then turns to be nostalgic. When the crew is sailing, they think they are safe, but later they face death because of their pride.
Genre- Homer uses drama genre tragedy. The tragedy is quite significant as it allows the audience to be emotional. The crew was eaten by Cyclops one after the other until they remained few of them.

Point of view- The epic is set as celebrated and significant than life.

Imagery- Homer uses imagery throughout book 9 in painting dramatic images in the mind of the audience. For instance, he says “Limb by limb he tore them to pieces to make a meal, which he devoured like a mountain lion…” (9, 291-292). He also uses terrifying imageries in developing emotional responses from the audience. In addition, in the classmates except, Homers compares a lion feeding on its prey and the Cyclops eating some of Odysseus men, and this gives the audience an intuitive image.

Questions to ask
What does the literary text say about the theme – The theme helps in developing the characterization and in the development of other chapters.
How does the development of the theme in the text reveal ideas associated with them:
Culture- Era- Greek era There is a conflict between the gods and goddesses
Region- Athenian religion had the power to control nature.

In which each text was written:
which, if any, literary movements are associated with the text – Greek movement
why is all of this is important and significant? – The audience knows the background of the story and how the epic is related to the community.
Suggest additional information that is important to your classmate’s argument and that provides evidence for it.

In the introductory part, the classmate should be specific to the tragic event to discuss in the paper. Several tragic events happened in the three books, so the classmate should be specific on which tragedy because if other tragic events are mentioned in the discussion and were not mentioned in the introductory part, then this distorts the entire thesis.
Identify an excerpt from the primary source (the story) that can be used as evidence in the final draft of the essay. Explain how you interpret this excerpt and why it should be used in the paper.
“When Ulysses and his men are safe from the island, Ulysses brags about his encounter with the cyclops Polyphemus. Polyphemus hears this and hurls giant boulders in the direction of the ship. A couple came very close to sinking the ship. Still, that was not enough for him. Carried away in his pride he unwisely gave away his identity to Polyphemus. With that, Polyphemus called upon his father, Poseidon, to punish the man who had blinded him. That incident hurt Ulysses more than losing a few men because Poseidon made his travel home miserable.
This excerpt identifies the Ulysses character of pride, which led him to face the calamities. As evidenced by the excerpt, Ulysses pride leads to the death of his crew, and this is a very important context in the paper since it comprehensively covers the tragedy. It is from this tragedy that other similar events occurred. For instance, Odysseus journey back home was characterized by numerous tragic events, which almost killed him.

What information in the prewriting should not be included in the final draft of the essay? Tell why.
I find all the information relevant and should be included in the final paper.
Note additional concerns that your classmate should consider when drafting the paper.
Provide more tragic events that support the theme of tragedy.

Reference
Homer, 800 B.C.; The Odyssey Retrieved from: http://classics.mit.edu/Homer/odyssey.10.x.html