Summary: 

We began this class by listing the main ideas of The Odyssey that we focus on while reading. This includes xenia, epic conventions (similes, repetition, epithets, digressions, and magic), irony, culture, and metis. We then focused on dramatic irony, which has been present throughout The Odyssey. However, in books XVII-XX, the irony intensifies, and is much more prevalent. In book XVII, Penelope says to Telemachus that she wishes Odysseus would come back home so that he and Telemachus could avenge the suitors. This passage displays dramatic irony because Odysseus is back, and he plans to kill all of the suitors. In addition, Antinous' speech in book XVII is ironic because he says that the stranger (Odysseus) is consuming all the goods of the house, when in fact Antinous and his fellow suitors are the ones eating all of Odysseus' food and sleeping in his home. 

We also reviewed the traits of a hero by analyzing Odysseus. Metis was a particular trait that was stressed because of its importance in the text especially in the relationship between Odysseus and the Goddess Athena. Odysseus first shows us his cunning abilities when meeting the Cyclops Polyphemus. The Cyclops questions Odysseus about where he left his ship when coming to the island, and Odysseus is quick to reply that Poseidon smashed his ship-quickly realizing that Polyphemus had the same intentions of destroying his ship. Odysseus is not the only character to use trickery. Penelope made a promise to her suitors that she would choose a husband as soon as she finished weaving her tapestry; every day she would weave and every night she would undo what she had done that day, postponing her marriage without notice for three years. 

word count: 285

Passages:

"As his story ended,

 goddess Athena, gray eyes gleaming, broke into a smile

and stroked him with her hand, and now she appeared as a woman, 

beautiful, tall and skilled at weaving lovely things.

Her words went flying straight towards Odysseus:

"Any man-any god who met you- would have to be 

some champion lying cheat to get past you 

for all-round craft and guile! You terrible man, 

foxy, ingenious, never tired of twists and tricks-

so, not even here, on native soil, would you give up

those wily tales that warm the cockles of your heart!"

(Book XIII, lines 324-334)

This passage displays the praise Athena has for Odysseus's use of metis, being the Goddess of wisdom, Athena's gleaming eyes reveil just how clever Odysseus truly is. Throughout The Odyssey, Odysseus and Athena have an amicable relationship, as here Athena is not angry with Odysseus for lying to her, rather she is proud of him for showing such trickery. 

"At that Antinous wheeled on Eumaeus, lashing out at him:

'Your highness, swineherd-why drag this to town?

Haven't we got our share of vagabonds to deal with,

disgusting beggars who lick the feasters' plates?

Isn't it quite enough, these swarming crowds

consuming your master's bounty-

must you invite this rascal in the bargain?'"

(Book XVII, lines 410-417)

This passage displays the three kinds of irony. It shows Dramatic irony because the beggar that Antinous speaks of is actually Odysseus, who is not only not a beggar but the owner of the house that Antinous continues to inhabit. It shows verbal irony because Antinous did not really mean to call Eumaeus "Your highness" Antinous was mocking him, but Eumaeus more of royal status than Antinous realizes because he is Odysseus' swineherd. And finally the passage contains situational irony because Odysseus stays at the palace for the night as a guest.

"But Athena had no mind to let the brazen suitors

hold back now from their heart-rending insults-

she meant to make the anguish cut still deeper

into the core of Laertes' son Odysseus."

This passage is significant because it shows how Athena allowed Odysseus to be taunted to fuel his anger so that Odysseus would fight the "brazen suitors" without feeling guilty. The hurtful things that the suitors say prove to Odysseus and the reader that the suitors deserve the gruesome death that is yet to come as well as making Odysseus look like more of a hero after he murders them. 

Terms:

Metis- A Greek term most commonly linked to cunning. It also means inteligence, trickery, crafts, and technical skills.

Polymetis- having much metis