Blogger #21 - Aiden Pang - Period 1 - 5/7/2021 - Day A

Blogger #21, Aiden Pang, Period 1, 5/7/2021, Day A, Freshman 2021 

Aim: (9RL) How does the episode of “The land of the Dead” further

our understanding of Odysseus as the epic hero?

Do Now: Whole Class Discussion 

• What are some of the cultural traditions we use to honor the dead
• Consider your culture and/ or religion - What do you and your family do in order to mourn for the passing of a loved one?

Aidan Ng: “Before Covid, my family every year would go to our ancestors grave and pay our respects.

Elliot: “For their birthdays we light a candle, and for their anniversary on the day they died we light a candle”

Ellenor: “We usually go visit their grave sites on their birthday and also the anniversary of their death, and rarely we would go on major holidays.”

Andrew: “My family visits the grave on a certain and have a picnic there kinda, also there is paper money and cardboard versions of certain objects such as a car or phone, we would burn those.

After the Class Discussion we learned about “Death and the underworld” and also about “honoring and remembering the dead”

Death and The Underworld

• The Greeks believed that after death the soul would go on a journey to the Underworld
• The Underworld was deep beneath the earth and was rule by Hades and his wife Persephone
• At the end of this journey they would be brought to 3 judges who would decide their fate

This Video is for additional information:

The Underworld: The kingdom of Hades - Greek Mythology Curiosities -

See U in History [3:50]

Honoring and Remembering the Dead 

• A proper Burial was necessary or the dead would be stuck in between the world of the living and the underworld
• Not honoring the dead was impious and was frowned upon severely

After going over these background information about greek culture we went on

to read “The Land of the Dead” 

Group Discussion


1. As Odysseus prepares to meet the dead he says, “Then I addressed the blurred and breathless dead, / vowing to slaughter my best heifer (cow) for them…” (line 555-556). What can be inferred about ancient Greek beliefs concerning death and the afterlife from these lines?

We can infer the offerings/ sacrificing animals would be a part of the traditions when it came to burying and celebrating the dead.

2. Discuss Elpenor's request to Odysseus (lines 598-608).
What details does he want Odysseus to remember about his burial?
How does this reflect the Greek ritual of death?

Elpenor want odysseus to remember that he existed, as in greek culture remembering the dead was huge part of greek culture, and if one didn’t remember the dead they were said to be impious and were severely frowned upon.

3. How does Odysseus react to seeing Elpenor (Lines 580-585)?
How does he react to Anticlea (his mother) (Lines 614-619)?
What characteristics of Odysseus do we see displayed in this scene?

When Odysseus sees Elpenor’s ghost he wept for pity and called out to him, but when he saw his mother (Anticlea) he was grieved by the death of his mother but didn’t stop her ghost from traveling to the underworld. The characteristics that odysseus displayed in this scene were compassion and sympathy.

4. Although not a god, Tiresias has been endowed with the power of prophecy. Consider the following advice Tiresias gives to Odysseus regarding the remainder of his journey home: “One narrow strait may take you through his blows: denial of yourself, restraint of your shipmates.”
What leadership advice is Tiresias giving to Odysseus?
In addition, what instructions does Tiresias give Odysseus in order to quell Poseidon’s rage?

Tiresias tells odysseus that a leader must be able to control his men and keep them in order. Also Tiresias tells Odysseus to leave a decent sacrifice to quell Poseidon’s rage?

FOIL:

• A character that shows qualities that contrast with the qualities of another character

5. A FOIL is a character who contrasts with another character. How does the
character of Eurylochus serves as a FOIL to Odysseus in book X?

Both Odysseus and Eurylochus were leaders of their respective group of
men when they were on Circe’s Island, When Eurylochus’s men were turned
into pigs he wasn’t able to save them, but Odysseus was.



Aim: (10 RL) How does Odysseus' strategic leadership further characterize him as an epic hero in “The Sirens” episode of Homer’s Odyssey?

Do Now: Whole Class Discussion

How would you define the term “flattery”? Review the 3 morals of Aesop’s Fable below:

What do you believe the morals advise?

• Flattery is a dangerous weapon in the hands of enemy

• Flattery is not proof of admiration 

• He who listens to flattery is not wise, for it has no good purpose

Nikolas: “It’s a fake compliment that you tell someone to get what you want”
Ms. Peterson: “giving someone compliments but you have a ulterior motive, it not done out of the kindness of your heart”

We then  learned about the sirens which are: 

• Seductive creatures that lure sailors to their death with their songs 

• Sirens are often depicted as half- bird/ half-women 

We then watched a video about sirens and their history and read “The Siren” 

Link for the video: 

Sirens: The Seductive Creatures of Greek Mythology -

Mythology Dictionary #15 - See U in History [2:00]

Reflection:

From this lesson I learned that having some context to certain cultures/ things will help with understanding of stories. Also to help assess your understanding of stories answer questions related to the story. This can help further your understanding and reinforce what you have read. These are ways which could help you better understand what you're reading. This can be used when annotating stories/ articles to help you better understand the overall idea of what’s happening in the section/ part of the article.