The Odyssey by Homer 1) Pick one passage from The Odyssey to analyze. Options are at the bottom. 2) What is most noticeable in the passage? – Theme (What universal truths are revealed through the language?) – Tone (What is the author’s or speaker’s attitude that is established through the language?) – Characterization (How is the character directly or indirectly established through the use of language?) – Mood (What feeling or atmosphere is established through the language?) 3) Once you have picked the effect(s) that you want to focus on, determine how the author creates that effect. What language device(s) does the author use to create the effect? Which passages of the text best show these language devices creating the effect? Some common language devices are: epic similies and metaphors, epithets, allusion, anaphora, diction choices, dialogue, foreshadowing, hyperbole, imagery, irony, juxtaposition, metaphor, morif, parallelism, personification, pun, repetition, rhetorical questions, simile, symbolism, syntax choices, understatement, word play, etc. Please consider: – How do multiple language devices work together to achieve a specific effect? – How does one particular language device achieve multiple effects? If your thesis focuses on multiple devices, you might divide paragraphs according to each device. If your thesis focuses on one device that achieves multiple effects, you might divide paragraphs according to the various effects. Choose a format to use: OPTION 1: a) Intro (one effect, two devices): Examine how multiple language devices work together to achieve a specific effect. Be sure to introduce the text and author and give some context about the passage you picked. b) First device and how it reveals one effect (c) Second device and how it reveals that same effect (TWO OR MORE QUOTES) d) Conclusion OPTION 2: a) Intro (two effects, one device): Examine how one particular device is used to achieve multiple effects. Be sure to introduce the text and author and give some context about the passage you picked. b) One effect and the device that reveals that effect c) Second effect and the same device that reveals the second effect d) Conclusion OPTION 3: – Organize by change in effect throughout different passages from various portions of the text (perhaps try the beginning, the middle, and the end).
