Blogger #31- Reiko Zheng- December 23, 2020 - Day C - Period 9 - Freshmen Lit 2020
Aim: How do Odysseus' actions in "The Cyclops" support or refute his epic character?
Do now: How important is hospitality and xenia to you As previously discussed, the term, “Xenia” is the ancient Greek concept of hospitality, the generosity and courtesy shown to those who are far from home and/or associates of the person bestowing guest-friendship. The rituals of hospitality created and expressed a reciprocal relationship between guest host.
Therefore, based on your understanding of the term, how important do you believe this attribute or behavior is to exemplify? Why?
When my class discussed the do now question, there were mixed responses. As our class discussion occurred, I realized that the general agreement is that xenia and hospitality is important only when the guest is willing to reciprocate that kindness. Many people expressed their worries on how the guest that they invite into their house might have ill intentions. We discussed how we believe there is a limit with how much generosity we can afford. We also mentioned how knowing the person is important. However, some people also brought up that we should treat people how we want to be treated so they believed that hospitality should be generally extended to everyone who needs it. Overall we agreed that hospitality is important when you know that the guest will also reciprocate your good intentions.
Class Discussion-Reflect on the heroes you have encountered throughout your life, in various forms: literature, movies or TV. Identify any weaknesses the hero(es) may have, and explain how it impairs their ability.
Our class discussed how the strengths of the hero often can be their weaknesses. For example, one of the weaknesses mentioned is self sacrifice. To be a hero, being able to put others before yourself is important, however, this can cause the consequences that befall other people to become the hero’s responsibility. For example, a person who sacrificed themselves to save someone from a burning building may be the one who dies. Therefore, self sacrifice is a major weakness of a hero. Another weakness that my class discussed is pride. A hero’s pride is often justified however, if it is excessively reinforced that they are better than everyone else, the hero may get full of themselves and begin to act as a villain who bullies people who they perceive as lower. This also may lead to reckless behavior that will harm others.
Vocabulary introduced to the class
Homeric simile, also known as epic similes: elaborate comparisons consisting of many lines that use the words “like”, “as”, “so”, and “just so.”
Used by Homer to ensure that readers understand unfamiliar objects
Foreshadowing- where the author suggests future events in a story with varying degrees of subtlety. Foreshadowing is not explicitly stated.
Video on foreshadowing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P07O8cacBsk&ab_channel=VoxLetters
Hubris- greek term that means being over-confident being excessively prideful. This is a common character flaw in the heroes of classical Greek tragedies.
We also spirit read part 1 of The Cyclops from The Odyssey.
Link to the pdf: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B9xgktq1tg9eZkRKVWw4ODk2SnM/view?usp=sharing
Summary:
Odysseus and his men stumbled upon the land of the cyclopes. The cyclopes were a race of giants with one eye. Odysseus took twelve of his men along with win onto the land. On the island they found a cave and the cyclops was away tending to his sheep. Odysseus’s men asked him if they could take the cheese and sheep and run. Odysseus wanted to stay and meet the cyclops. Polyphemus, the cyclops, came back and Odysseus asked for hospitality from Polyphemus. Polyphemus refused and instead ate 2 of his men. Odysseus had the idea to stab Polyphemus and kill him, however, he realized that they would be trapped in the cave because Polyphemus had closed the boulder door. When Polyphemus left in the morning, Odysseus and his remaining men sharpened a wooden stake and hid it. When Polyphemus came home, he ate two more men and Odysseus offered him wine before telling Polyphemus that his name was “Nohbody.” Polyphemus drank the wine and slept drunk. Odysseus and his men then drove the wooden stake into Polyphemus’s eye, blinding him. The other cyclopes heard Polyphemus’s cries and asked him if anyone was hurting him. To this Polyphemus replied “Nohbdy, Nohbdy’s tricked me, Nohbdy’s ruined me!,” causing the other cyclopes to leave him again. Polyphemus then blocked the door with his body to prevent the men from running away. Odysseus cleverly snuck his men out by tying them under the bellies of the sheep that Polyphemus raised. When the sheeps were let out in the morning, the men were carried out. The men then ran to the ship and Odysseus mocks Polyphemus, making Polyphemus aware that they had left. Polyphemus would then curse Odysseus to lose all his companions and never return home, while Odysseus offered an offering to Zeus. The gods did not acknowledge Odysseus’s offering and instead listened to Polyphemus’s. This foreshadows the long journey ahead of Odysseus.
After reading The Cyclops, we discussed some questions together with the class.
Here is how we answered the questions:
1) Based on your understanding of foreshadowing, review lines 153-156. How is foreshadowing used, and what exactly is being foreshadowed?
In lines 153-156, a “towering brute” is foreshadowed, and the wine that he brought with his was also alluded to as being important for the future “towering brute.” The foreshadowing was used to hint at the future danger that is the cyclops.
2)What heroic qualities does Odysseus display thus far?
What does the fact that he doesn’t want to attack the Cyclops reveal about his character? That he is cunning and understands situation well
Odysseus displays intelligence and resourcefulness when he thinks of a way to escape. He also displays loyalty and bravery when he acted on his plan on getting him and his men out. The fact that he didn’t attack the cyclops at first reveals that he is intelligent and thinks well under pressure because if he killed the cyclops, him and his men would be stuck in the cave.
3) Refer to line 232-243. How does Homer use figurative language to create imagery? (identify examples and explain their effect)
In lines 232-243, Homer used various word choices, and similes in order to create the imagery. He chooses words such as “squirming” to describe how powerless the men are and similes such as “crunching like a mountain lion,” to make it easier to imagine Polyphemus eating the men.
4)How should we judge the heroic qualities of Odysseus based on his actions with the cyclops?
We should judge Odysseus as a true hero because of how he demonstrates that he cares for his men. One of the fundamental qualities that a hero should possess is caring for others and Odysseus demonstrates this with his careful plan to not only save himself but also his men. He also demonstrates with his plan that he is intelligent enough to help other people. A hero would not be a hero if they don't have the ability to help anyone.
We were then asked to do question 5 and 6 on our own because it would relate to the debate discussion that was assigned for homework.
Here is how I answered the questions:
5) Contrast Polyphemus’ values and the values of Odysseus (hospitality [xenia], respect for the gods, protections for his men).
Can you identify any qualities/characteristics that both Odysseus and Polyphemus share?
Polyphemus does not seem to value much other than his rams and sheep. Odysseus on the other hand values his crewmates and the gods. Odysseus who was human, valued xenia which was a tradition that was a result of respecting the gods. However, Polyphemus was not human and did not respect the gods as much and therefore did not value xenia.
Both Odysseus and Polyphemus cared for something. Although what they cared about were different they still value and hold a living being to a level of importance. Odysseus showed that he cared for his men through how he attempts to rescue them and escape together with them. Polyphemus shows that he cares about his herd with how he tends to them everyday. He lets the sheeps out to graze and do what they need to do, showing that he wants the sheeps to be healthy.
If Odysseus represents civilization, and Polyphemus represents nature, what do you think Homer is saying about the relation of man to nature?
i. Can you see potential dangers (that are becoming increasingly evident, especially in the modern era) in this position taken by Homer?
I think that Homer is saying that the relationship between humans and nature is that they will mutually harm each other. Odysseus and his men who represented civilization had expressed their intentions to rob Polyphemus (nature). In the modern era, this is increasingly evident with how we are using up resources of the earth. When we use up the resources, such as wood, nature will also hurt us with issues such as increased erosion. Increased erosion causes floods and the degradation of the land. This is similar to how Polyphemus killed Odysseus's men.
6)As previously discussed, the story is told through flashback (Odysseus is revealing the past events of his journey), therefore, how has Polyphemus’ curse impacted the course of Odysseus’ future.
Polyphemus's curse caused Odysseus and his men to hit many different obstacles and delayed Odysseus’ reunion with his wife and son. The curse allowed the gods to make Odysseus’s journey difficult. This is confirmed in the flashback.
Reflection:
Today I learned about Odysseus and his men’s meeting with the Polyphemus as well as various aspects of Greek culture and figurative language that is used. I think that we learned about Odysseus and Polyphemus because Polyphemus’s curse would impact the plot of the story and this event displays various characteristics of the heroic side of Odysseus. This would also give more insight of the personalities of his crew as well. The way that Odysseus and his crew acted in this lesson will influence my opinion on whether or not Odysseus is a hero in the future. I also learned about foreshadowing, hubris and homeric similes. I think we learned about these literary devices because they will continue to be used throughout The Odyssey. I will continue to apply my knowledge on these literary devices on future reading as well. I also learned about xenia and the importance of xenia in greek culture. This was particularly interesting to be because of the reason that they practice it- to respect the gods. The reason that I learned about this is because Odysseus expects xenia from others because he practices it. This caused this entire ordeal with Polyphemus to occur. With knowledge of xenia, I can better understand the reason behind why Odysseus may treat people in the future the way he does. Overall, I learned a lot from this lesson whether it be the traits about a hero, literary devices or about greek culture. I believe that what I learned would be helpful, not only in understanding literature, but in understanding the views and culture of ancient greece.
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