Books needed for the essay : Iliad, trans. R. Fagles (Penguin) and The Odyssey, trans. Richmond Lattimore (Harper). It must be the exact books as these so that the reference pages are the same and the information is also accurate. Essay Prompt Information: Greek civ Essay Information Background: In composing a sequel to the Iliad of equal stature, the Odyssey-poet needs to rehabilitate Odysseus from the Iliads distinctly mixed portrait of him so that, for all his cunning and self-interest, he can present his own noble and perhaps even more useful mode of valor. Where Achilles derring-do wins the war in the Iliad, the Odyssey attributes the victory to Odysseus crafty Trojan horse. Where the Iliad grabs listeners attention at the start by showing, on the eve of victory, how the great champion boycotts the war and imperils the Achaean cause, the Odyssey starts (also against character) with the risk-averse Odysseus throwing away the security that Kalypso offers in order to face the angry sea in a DIY raft (see below, p. 6). Odysseus, like Achilles, is crying by the shore. Listeners will want an action climax on the last day of performance (books 22) and then a dnouement with some sort of reunion or conciliation (Achilles and Priam in Iliad 24, Penelope and Odysseus in Odyssey 23). In such homologous passages, the Odyssey virtually proclaims, This isnt your dads epic anymore! This assignment asks you to concentrate on one of these comparable scenes. Topic: Compare some aspects of a book of the Odyssey with a book of the Iliad to gain perspective on the differences in outlook and style of the two epics. That is, formulate a close and selective comparison of particular scenes that leads to a broader reflection on how the epics profile their protagonists (), climax (), or conclude (). Please pick scenes from one of the following three areas: Prompt 1: Embassy: Iliad 9 and Odyssey 11 Epic poets, like tragedians later, prefer to have the protagonists character and thoughts emerge from dialogue. Where moderns are used to soliloquies, dream sequences, diaries, letters and other techniques, Greek audiences favor the cut-and- thrust of verbal confrontations. Achilles longest and most telling speeches come in response to the embassy of Iliad 9 (Phoenix, Ajax, and Odysseus, who conveys Agamemnons offer). Showing Odysseus among his comrades poses some challenges, since they are mostly dead, so he visits them in the underworld. To be sure, Odysseus is not, like Achilles in Iliad 9, arguing about his decision not to fight. But when Odysseus talks to the dead Achilles, the audience surely recalls their exchange from Iliad 9. And theres Ajax (Aias) again, even more laconic than in Iliad 9. While Odysseus sticks to his decisions, he has more to learn about the price that others pay for his success. Some possible angles: the protagonists response to prophecy, parents, homecoming, loyalty/comradery, the waiting alter-ego (Patroclus, Telemachos). Note: to avoid confusion, with recurring characters be careful to discriminate which version, Iliadic or Odyssean, you mean. One way would be to use: Odysseus-I / OdysseusO; AchillesI / Achilles-O). Prompt 2: Showdown: Iliad 22 and Odyssey 22 In promoting Odysseus as a worthy successor to Achilles, the Odyssey gives him a climactic battle that echoes and varies the great duel of Achilles and Hector in Iliad 22. To be sure, there is no series of battles leading up to this shoot-out in the great hall, just minor skirmishes (., Odysseus-beggars wrestling match with Iros). Nonetheless, the fate of a kingdom (Ithaka, like Troy) rests on the prowess of the protagonist. Some possible angles: staging (who fights? who watches? whats happening offstage at the same time?), trickery vs. confrontation, weapons, Athenas role, similes, subsequent rituals (., treatment of corpses). That Achilles favors force, while Odysseus favors guile, doesnt need more proving; go further and dig into the implications, including the problem of getting beyond the trickster side of Odysseus character. Prompt 3: Conciliation: Iliad 24 and Odyssey 23 After the climactic combats of book 22, both epics proceed to scenes of reconciliation (Achilles and Priam) or reunion (Odysseus and Penelope). In both cases, a resourceful visitor must manage to penetrate a fiercely protected private space(Achilles lodge, Penelopes bedroom). Some possible angles: hospitality, recognition, memory, sons, divine intervention (or the lack of it), deception, night, rituals, anger, beds, getting to yes (with Achilles and Penelope). .. Notes from Professor: With all comparisons (Il. 9Od 11; Il. 22Od. 22; Il. 24Od. 23), the total pattern of similarities and differences would sprawl endlessly in all directions. Instead of aiming for comprehensiveness, try to find some specific theme (., family, memory, trust, divine help, hospitality, exchange, memory), device (., simile, embedded tale, representation of violence), or image (., object, setting, gesture) that encapsulates what you find central in the contrast between the scenes and, in turn, between the epics that they are starting, climaxing, or concluding. Again, assume what has been worked over in class and the notes and move on to new territory. Or, rather than for these two match-ups, you may also formulate a comparative topic concerning other passages in the epics (., about Priam [Iliad 24] and Laertes [Odyssey 24], or Penelope and Andromache), but please talk with me in advance. In evaluating the essays I look for how fresh the analysis is, how insightful, how well grounded in textual evidence, and how difficult (., how well would the writer have to know the epics in order to make these observations?). Almost all of what writers present will be valid, but will provoke a scale of responses: from du-uh to okay, but so what? to helpful new perspective to wow! The contrast of the larger qualities of the epics need not be global (., epic of war vs. epic of peace, obviously), but should offer new clarity about narrative techniques (., time and memory, artistic self-consciousness), underlying values (martial heroism vs. survival; deceit), gender roles or other social hierarchies, or other significant issues. Generalizations about fate and the gods tend to be tricky1 Information: Citation: Again cite rather than extensively quote the texts and do not summarize the plots. Cite by book and line number, as in the reading notes (., Il. ). Organization: Make sure that I have a sense of plan. Ask yourself with every paragraph: What work is this paragraph doing to advance the argument? At what point in the essay will the reader figure out where I am taking him/her? Possessives: If you want to be hyper-correct: Modern proper names always take an s (., Fagless); ancient names ending in s take an apostrophe (Achilles, Odysseus), with the exception of monosyllables (Zeuss). Title: Go wild! Give me a title beyond Essay 2. The title does not have to be witty or profound, but let it at least be a signpost. Youre picking a focus; tell me what it is. Information to note: Make sure that you actually compare the two texts. Do not discuss theme X in text 1 and then theme X in text 2 and close. You need either a third movement to compare what you have found in 1 and 2; or, better, talk about theme X in text 1 and then X in texts 2 and 1; or, best, go back and forth between the two texts, issue by issue (not always possible if theme X in text 1 is so complicated that it needs a separate discussion). The sample essay below compares Demeter and Achilles throughout. Style. Refer to plot elements in the present tense (Achilles withdraws…), since youll want to refer to the text in the present (The Iliad concerns….), and its dauntingly difficult to mix in the past tense consistently (As the plot complicates itself, Achilles withdrew….). = DO NOT FLIP FLOP REPEATEDLY FROM PRESENT TENSE TO PAST IN RECOUNTING THE NARRATIVES BECAUSE THE FLIP DRIVES ME CRAZY. Be sparing with abstractions. Since you are writing in unfamiliar territory, I am encouraging you to work from the manageably specific to the somewhat general. Some glamorous terms in this vicinity are terminally slippery: “fate,” “humanity,” “tragedy.” “Fate” sounds grand and stirring, but in Homer it mostly amounts to “lifespan.” Remember that the mortal/ immortal distinction is much firmer than divine / human (., human beings can temporarily take on divine [godlike] attributes without alleviating their mortality even slightly). Some hypotheticals: Weve been drawing comparisons to the Iliad throughout our discussion of the Odyssey. Let me map out some comparisons from earlier books in the epics that might have worked had the assignment addressed these earlier passages.
