Iliad and Odyssey

1. Dr.Jeanneath D. Velarde
Dean, Arts and Sciences
Emilio Aguinaldo College,
Cavite,Philippines
ILIAD AND ODYSSEY
jvelarde2020

2. THE PRINCIPAL GODS
EPIMETHEUS
HERMES
DIONEZEUS
APHRODITE
MAIA
PHOEBE

3. FAMILYOF TREE of HELEN

4. THE HOUSE OF TROY

5. ANCESTOR OF ACHILLES

6. ANCESTOR OF PERSEUS AND HERCULES

7. THE OLYMPIANS
GREEK NAME ROMAN NAME
Zeus Jupiter
Hera Juno
Poseidon Neptune
Hades Pluto
Pallas Athena Minerva
Phoebus Apollo/ Apollo Apollo
Artemis Diana
Aphrodite Venus
Hermes Mercury
Ares Mars

8. ZEUS
Though Zeus (Jupiter or Jove) is the closest figure in
mythology to an omnipotent ruler, he is far from all-
powerful. He also lacks the perfection we might expect
in a divine ruler.
As ruler of the gods, Zeus is destined to overthrow
his father, Cronus, who himself became lord of the
universe after overthrowing his own father, Heaven.
Zeus himself is fated to be overthrown by one who is
yet unborn.

9.  Zeus attempts to learn the identity of his future
overthrower from Prometheus but continues his daily
habit of revelry, sometimes at the expense of innocent
mortals and other gods.
 Always conscious of what he sees as an insurmountable
difference between gods and humans, he has no pity for
mortals. It is perhaps this essential lack of sympathy
that enables Zeus to toy with humans heartlessly,
raping and ruining the lives of many women, who seem to
exist only for his pleasure. Yet this behavior only
represents one side of Zeus’s character; the other,
more evolved side is his role as the divine upholder of
justice for both gods and humans.
(www.sparknotes.com)

10. Iliad and Odyssey by Homer
Homer was an ancient Greek poet. Traditions say that
Homer was blind . In Greek, his name is “ Homeros”
which is Greek for “hostage.” Some say that his name
was derived from the name of society of poets called
“Homeridan” which literally means “ sons of hostages,”
or descendants of prisoners of war. The two important
works of Homer are Iliad (The Wrath of Achilles and
the Trojan War) and the Odyssey (Travel of Odysseus)
Both have very strong religious and supernatural
elements. Its heroes descended from divine beings. They
constantly offer sacrifices to the gods and consult
priest and prophets to decide on their actions. Iliad
covers only a few weeks of the tenth and final year of
the Trojan War.

11. Iliad is one of the most celebrated and well
known epics of the world. It is believed to
be written by in 9th century BC by Homer.
This poem is based on the legend of Trojan
war.
Iliad means the tale of Ilios or the tale of
Troy. It narrates the story of the Greek
struggle to rescue Helen, from Trojans, the
wrath of Achilles and subsequent destruction
of Troy. It covers only a few weeks of the
10th and final year of the Trojan War.

12. The Golden Apple

13. The story begins with the pairing of the
mortal Peleus and the immortal Thetis- the
parents of Achilles.
All the gods and goddesses are invited,
except Eris, the goddess of Discord.
During the ceremony, Eris appears but she is
turned away and in her anger throws out a
golden apple inscribed with the words:
“ To the Fairest”.

14. The three goddesses Athena – the goddess of
wisdom; Hera - the queen of the gods; and
Aphrodite – the goddess of love, claim the
title.
Zeus is being asked to mediate but because
all the goddesses are important to him he
commands Hermes, the winged god, to lead the
three to Paris of Troy.

15. Hera is the wife of Zeus, Aphrodite is the daughter of Zeus to
a sea nymph, while Athena is the daughter of Zeus with Metis.
Zeus was told that his son would take his throne from him, just
as he had taken power from his father Cronus. Accordingly, when
Metis was pregnant, he swallowed her and Athena was born from
Zeus’ head, wearing armor and fully grown.
Each goddess offers Paris a bribe. Athena offers him an
infinite wisdom and an equal amount of influence over men;
Hera promises a great kingdom and lordship over men; Aphrodite
offers him the love of the most beautiful woman in the world.
Paris chooses the most beautiful woman.

16.  Incidentally, Helen, the daughter of Zeus, is
considered as the most beautiful woman in the world and
who has a squadron of suitors ready to avenge and
protect her.
 Aphrodite helps Paris(Trojan prince) to steal Helen from
her husband ,Menelaus, who is also the brother of the
most powerful king in Greece, Agamemnon.
 The suitors of Helen, who are true to their pledge of
protecting Helen, sail to retrieve her. They besiege
TROY for nine years.

17. ODYSSEY
Ten years after the fall of Troy, and the Greek hero
Odysseus still has not returned to his kingdom in Ithaca.
A large and rowdy mob of Penelope’s suitors have overrun
Odysseus’s palace. The suitors pressure her to choose among
the suitors.
To pacify the angry suitors, she promised them that she will
choose a new husband after finishing a cloak for Odysseus
father.

18. She has remained faithful to Odysseus. At night,
Penelope untie every weave she makes during
the day .
SENTENTIAE ANTIQUAE
Prince Telemachus, Odysseus’s son, wants
desperately to throw them out but too young to
fight them.

19.  One of the suitors, Antinous, plans to assassinate the young
prince, eliminating the only opposition to their dominion over
the palace.
 Unknown to the suitors, Odysseus is still alive. The beautiful
nymph Calypso, possessed by love for him, has imprisoned
him on her island, Ogygia. He longs to return to his wife and
son, but he has no ship or crew to help him escape.
 While the gods and goddesses of Mount Olympus debate
Odysseus’s future, Athena, Odysseus’s strongest supporter
among the gods, resolves to help Telemachus.

20.  Disguised as a friend of the prince’s grandfather, Laertes, Athena
convinces the prince to call a meeting of the assembly at which he
reproaches the suitors.
 Athena also prepares him for a great journey to Pylos and Sparta,
where the kings Nestor and Menelaus, Odysseus’s companions during
the war, inform him that Odysseus is alive and trapped on Calypso’s
island.
 Telemachus makes plans to return home, while, back in Ithaca,
Antinous and the other suitors prepare an ambush to kill him when he
reaches port of Ithaca.

21.  On Mount Olympus, Zeus sends Hermes (god’s messenger) to
rescue Odysseus from Calypso. Hermes persuades Calypso to let
Odysseus build a ship and leave.
 The homesick hero sets sail, but when Poseidon, god of the sea,
finds him sailing home, he sends a storm to wreck Odysseus’s
ship.
 Poseidon has harbored a bitter grudge against Odysseus since the
hero blinded his son, the Cyclops Polyphemus, earlier in his
travels.
 Athena intervenes to save Odysseus from Poseidon’s wrath, and
the beleaguered king lands at Scheria, home of the Phaeacians.

22.  Nausicaa, the Phaeacian princess, shows him to the royal
palace, and Odysseus receives a warm welcome from the
king and queen.
 When he identifies himself as Odysseus, his hosts, who
have heard of his exploits at Troy, are stunned.
 They promise to give him safe passage to Ithaca, but
first they beg to hear the story of his adventures.

23.  Odysseus spends the night describing the fantastic
chain of events leading up to his arrival on Calypso’s
island.
 He recounts his trip to the Land of the Lotus Eaters,
his battle with Polyphemus the Cyclops, his love affair
with the witch-goddess Circe, his temptation by the
deadly Sirens, his journey into Hades to consult the
prophet Tiresias, his fight with the sea monster Scylla
and the swallowing of the raging whirl pool,
Charybdis.

24.  When he finishes his story, the Phaeacians return
Odysseus to Ithaca, where he seeks out the hut of his
faithful swineherd, Eumaeus.
 Though Athena has disguised Odysseus as a beggar,
Eumaeus warmly receives and nourishes him in the hut.
He soon sees Telemachus, who has returned from Pylos and
Sparta despite the suitors’ ambush, and reveals to him his
true identity.
 Odysseus and Telemachus devise a plan to massacre the
suitors and regain control of Ithaca.

25.  When Odysseus arrives at the palace the next day, still
disguised as a beggar, he endures abuse and insults from
the suitors.
 The only person who recognizes him is his old nurse,
Eurycleia, but she swears not to disclose his secret.
 Penelope takes an interest in this strange beggar,
suspecting that he might be her long-lost husband.

26.  Quite crafty herself, Penelope organizes an archery
contest the following day and promises to marry any man
who can string Odysseus’s great bow and fire an arrow
through a row of twelve axes—a feat that only Odysseus
has ever been able to accomplish.
 At the contest, each suitor tries to string the bow and
fails. The old man steps up to the bow and, with little
effort, fires an arrow through all twelve axes. He then
turns the bow on the suitors. The old man transformed into
Odysseus, assisted by Telemachusa and a few faithful
servants, kill every suitor.

27.  Odysseus reunites with his loving Penelope. He travels
to the outskirts of Ithaca to see his aging father, Laertes.
 They come under attack from the vengeful family
members of the dead suitors, but Laertes, reinvigorated
by his son’s return, successfully kills Antinous’s father
and puts a stop to the attack.
 Zeus dispatches Athena to restore peace. With his
power secure and his family reunited, Odysseus’s long
ordeal comes to an end.

28.  1. What moral lessons do you get from the characters of
Odysseus and Penelope?
Odysseus:
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Penelope:
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 2. What kind of leader is Odysseus?
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29. 3. Odysseus plans almost fail due to temptations. What are
the traits of Odysseus that help him overcome temptations
and succeed on his plans.
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4. Reflect on the modern world that we are currently living
in. Do you think we can still expect fidelity and allegiance
from someone we choose to trust? Explain.