Reading Notes: Homer's Odyssey, Part A

(Circe and her bewitched lions; source: Wright Barker)

I was most interested by the story of Odysseus and Circe so I have chosen to focus on that here.

Plot:

• Odysseus' men were defeated and downtrodden as they landed on the shores of Circe's island.
• The men divided into two groups and the first group, headed by Eurylochus, went onto the island and found that lions and other beasts were entranced by Circe's magic.
• Circe invites the men inside and feeds them. Without their knowledge, she has slipped in poison which turns the men into pigs.
• Eurylochus, having stayed behind to witness everything, runs to the ship to tell Odysseus.
• Odysseus heads to Circe's abode and runs into Hermes who offers him help in the form of an antidote to Circe's poison.
• Odysseus manages to make Circe swear to let him and his men safe passage and she invites him into his bed. Before he eats, Odysseus asks Circe to release his men which she does.
• Afterwards, Circe tells Odysseus to bring his remaining men so that they too will be fed and clothed. Odysseus returns to the ship to do so but is met with resistance from the cowardly Eurylochus.
• Eventually, the men head back to Circe's palace and find the others in good condition.
• Odysseus and his men stay on Circe's island for a whole year and then Odysseus requests Circe to let them have safe passage home.
• Circe tells Odysseus that he must first travel to the underworld and meet Hades and Persephone. Odysseus tells his men this sorrowfully and they are about to begin their journey.

Characters:

• Odysseus - brave man, fiercely loyal to his men, deeply desires to return home to Ithaca
• Circe - a goddess with the voice of a human, tricks Odysseus and his men with magic
• Hermes - god who seeks to help Odysseus on his journey
• Eurylochus - one of Odysseus' men, cowardly, blames Odysseus for the deaths of their men

Style:

• Descriptive writing is often written in past tense.
• Like the Iliad, there are similes and metaphors, though to a lesser extent.
• The sentences are long and separated by multiple commas.

Bibliography. Homer's Odyssey translated by Tony Kline.