Aim:
How does Homer's invocation establish tone for the beginning of the Odyssey?
Do Now:
How do you become inspired? Where does it originate?
The Do Now for today’s lesson was a class discussion. The class had a discussion on where inspiration originates. Many classmates said that their inspiration originates from the people around them. They get motivated by the people around them and feel the need to also do something. Others said that inspiration originates from their own ideas and thoughts. Other places that people get inspiration from are from the things around them.
After the do now, the class had a spirit read on the Nine Muses. The following passage is from today’s spirit reading:
The Nine Muses:
Muses serve as inspiration for poets and other artists. In Greek mythology, there were nine goddesses of arts, literature and science that served as muses. One of nine Muses inspired different forms of prose, poetry, drama, rhetoric, or general writing. Homer’s invocation pays homage (special honor and respect) to these goddesses and to Ancient Greek culture in general expresses the purpose of the narrative Incorporates traditions familiar to his specific audience.
Below is the YouTube video provided with the slide:
Muses: The 9 Inspirational Goddesses of Greek Mythology - Mythology Dictionary - See U in History
The Nine Muses:
The Nine Muses were the daughters of the Greek god, Zeus and the Titaness Mnemosyne. The nine muses were: Calliope, Melpomene, Thalia, Terpsichore, Clio, Euterpe, Polyhymnia, Urania, and Erato.
The muses were accountable for eloquence (epic poetry), tragedy, comedy, dance, history, lyric arts (music), storytelling (and hymns), astronomy, and erotic poetry respectively.
What exactly is an invocation?
The slide after the Nine Muses starts with the question above. The class was asked to find the definition of the word invoke.
Invoke:
- A prayer to receive a god’s aid or protection
These were the notes from the slide:
Homer’s invocation pays homage (special honor and respect) to the goddesses and to Ancient Greek culture in general. Expresses the purpose of the narrative. Incorporates traditions familiar to his specific audience.
After the discussion on invocation, the class was asked to read Homer’s invocation (line 1-17 of the Odyssey). In his invocation, Homer addresses the muse of epic poetry, Calliope, for help in telling the tale of Odysseus. The class was then asked a question.
Invocation Discussion:
Why did Homer pray to this muse?
Homer prayed to the muse of epic poetry because he wanted inspiration and support from the muse. The reason why he chose to pray to that one specific muse was because he was writing an epic poetry.
Homer’s Invocation:
Sing in me, Muse, and through me tell the story
of that man skilled in all ways of contending.
The wanderer, harried for years on end,
after he plundered the stronghold
on the proud height of Troy.
He saw the townlands
and learned the minds of many distant men,
and weathered many bitter nights and days
in his deep heart at sea, to bring his shipmates home.
But not by will or valor could he save them,
for their own recklessness destroyed them all—
children and fools, they killed and feasted on
the cattle of Lord Helios, the Sun
and he who moves all day through heaven
took from their eyes the dawn of their return.
Of these adventures, Muse, daughter of Zeus
tell us in our time, life the great song again.
Group Discussion:
The class was then asked to answer three questions, with their groups, about the invocation and the Odyssey.
What is your opinion of Odysseus so far after hearing Homer's invocation to the muses and learning about the Trojan War?
My group felt that Odysseus seemed like a great leader. He did what he could to bring his shipmates back home. During the class discussion, some students shared their groups’ opinions. They said that Odysseus was a hero to the Greeks since he was the one who thought of creating a Trojan Horse. Another group felt that Odysseus was pitiable. He went through a long war but couldn’t return home because of his shipmates. He tried his best to get him and his shipmates home safe and sound. However, his own shipmates are reckless and almost caused their own downfall.
How does Homer maintain the audience’s interest in the story, knowing that the audience is aware of the outcome from the very beginning?
My group said that Homer maintained the audience’s interest in the story even though the audience is aware of the outcome by using poetic language. He used metaphors and similes. During the class discussion, another group also pointed out the same thing. Some classmates also said that Homer used imagery and that he used interesting word choices to make readers what to keep reading.
What does the invocation of the Muse in the opening lines clarify about Odysseus’ culpability (responsibility for a fault or wrong; blame) during his voyage home?
My group said that the invocation tells about how Odysseus is responsible for his shipmates’ safety but he couldn’t prevent them from being reckless and doing wrong stuff. Odysseus didn’t take responsibility for his wrong-doings. During the class discussion, we said that he was supposed to care for his shipmates but he still couldn’t save them and blamed the gods for his wrongdoings. Odysseus also did a lot of bad stuff. Furthermore, the Greeks defiled temples. This led to punishments. Since Odysseus was also Greek, he is also part of the punished.
The lesson ended with a Google form. In the Google form we were given phrases and idioms and were asked if we agree, disagree or aren’t sure about the phrases.
Reflection:
In today’s lesson, I learned what an invocation was and the importance of invocation. Homer started his epic poetry with an invocation to the Muse of epic poetry. He sought aid and support from the Muse. During the lesson, we utilized Homer’s invocation to answer the three group discussion questions. I learned this information because it will help me and give me an idea of what I will be reading about as I read The Odyssey. I can apply what I learned today to other literary texts that have invocations. Reading and analyzing the invocation can give me an idea of what I will be reading about.
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