Aim: How does “The Cattle of the Sun God '' episode illustrate the culminating challenge Odysseus faces as a leader?
We started the class off with a Kahoot on “The Cattle of the Sun God”, the episode we had read for homework. “ The Cattle of the Sun God” is about how Eurylochus persuades the men to kill and eat Helios’ cattle while Odysseus is away, leading to their downfall. We then had a whole class discussion about how we would feel if someone highly trusted did something we asked them not to do. Many people said that they would feel betrayed and wouldn’t be able to trust others easily anymore. Some also said that they would question their motives or try to understand the person and I could relate to many of their sentiments. This lead to a discussion about trust in relationships, and to choose the people you would trust and to not accept mistreatment.
We then had a whole discussion about "The Cattle of the Son God". We were asked why we thought there was a change in Eurylochus’ character and his reasoning to betray Tiresias’ warning. There were many different answers to the first part of the
question. Eurylochus could have wanted to follow in Odysseus’ footsteps and wanted to help lead the men or he felt like he couldn’t follow Odysseus after seeing how many men he had gotten killed. For the latter, Eurylochus justified his betrayal as dying from hunger would be shameful seeing as they grew up pampered. This scene portrayed a role reversal between Eurylochus and Odysseus. Eurylochus was at first more cowardly and thought before taking action, but Odysseus took the chance as it was presented. Now, Eurylochus ignored the omen and Odysseus was hesitant to go to Helios’ island. An omen is something that acts as a sign for the future similar to intuition.
We then broke out into our groups to do team work. We discussed the similarity in Odysseus and Eurylochus’ speech as they both intended to persuade their men. They looked to their previous hardships and explained that they should seize the opportunity right in front of them. For the second question we talked about how the Gods were involved in mortal lives when punishing them when people wouldn’t listen to their wishes. The final question was about the flashback and how it clarified how important the cattles were to Helios.
We had a whole class discussion to wrap up the lesson. First we discussed the question, “Do the members of the crew deserve the punishment they receive for killing the cattle?” Many of my classmates felt that while the men deserve to be punished, it shouldn't have been as severe as it was. The final question was, “Is Odysseus learning to not be so proud and too confident? Has his hubris been “put in check’” I had felt that Odysseus had learned to not be so proud and confident because at first he would be the first person to suggest something and to run head first into the situation, but after seeing how his actions could have consequences his hubris had been put in check.
This lesson helped me understand “The Cattle of the Sun God” better as well as help me see new sides of the story. For example, the change in dynamic between Odysseus and Eurylochus showed the effects of the long journey. It provided inspiration for the postcard project as being able to see the story in depth would help to create a postcard that would be able to express the emotions Odysseus may have felt in this specific instance and in another. In addition it showed me how character development doesn’t necessarily have to only be one-on-one and could be something between two characters. Overall this lesson provided more preparation for upcoming lessons and the project.
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