In understanding the Odyssey one should have at least a basic knowledge of the events from the Iliad. The Iliad was set in Troy during the final weeks of the Trojan War, a ten-year war between the Greeks (Achaeans, Homer's name for the Greeks) and the Trojans. The Greeks set out to attack Troy to avenge the wrong doing of Paris, the son of the king of Troy. Paris seduced and kidnapped Helen, the wife of Menelaus, King of Sparta.
What happens between the end of the Iliad and the beginning on the Odyssey? The knowledge of the events between these two epics is important to understanding Odysseus' tale. These intermediate epics did not survive time, but summaries of them have. They are often referred to as "The Epic Cycle".
The first intermediate epic, Aethipis takes place after the death of Hektor in the Iliad. Hektor is the first-born son of King Priam of Troy, Achilles had spent days dragging Hektor's body around before he was convinced to allow his body to be properly buried. The Aethipis describes the subsequent death of Achilles. Archilles dies from an injury inflicted by Paris, the prince that started the Trojan War. Any guesses as to where Achilles was injured? Think of a medical term you have heard. | The next story is known as the Little Iliad and described the aftermath of Achilles' death and the events of the Sack of Troy. As a great warrior the armor of Achilles was a prized item to be rewarded. Aias the Greater was second to Achilles in warrior status and he firmly believed the honor of receiving Achilles armor would be bestowed upon him. He was distraught when Odysseus was chosen to receive the armor and subsequently committed suicide. The fall of Troy is credited with the Trojan Horse ploy used the Greeks. The wooden horse was the brainchild of Odysseus, which could explain why the armor of Achilles was awarded to him instead of Aias the Greater. The next set of stories found in the Ilioupersis intertwines with the Little Iliad in telling the story of the Sack of Troy. However, these books tell of the brutal acts carried out by the Greeks during the Sack of Troy. These events are said to be the reason for future punishments inflicted upon the perpetrators of these acts. These attacks included Neoptolemos, Achilles' son, killing King Priam, at his altar. Killing someone at their altar was viewed as a sacrilege against the gods. The son of Hektor, Astyanax was thrown from the walls of Troy and killed. Aias the Lesser committed a crime, even greater than Neoptolemos' by raping Kassandra. Kassandra was the King Priam's daughter and she had sought refuge in Athena's temple. Athena is the virgin goddess, to rape someone in her temple was sacrilege on a whole new level. The fourth intermediate epic filling the gap is the Nostoi. This tells of the return or homecoming of our Greek warriors. Most of the warriors never made it home, those that did faced adversity along the way. One warrior, Agamemnon made it home only to be killed by his wife and her new lover. Menelaos and Helen wandered for over seven years before they finally made it home. Aias the Lesser was killed at sea. |
As you can see a lot happens between the Iliad and the Odyssey. I wanted to get my hands on a copy of these, but that hasn't happened this week. I don't know anything about these editions yet, but here are ones I found to consider looking at for the future:
- The Greek Epic Cycle by Malcolm Davies; ISBN: 978-1853990397
- The Epic Cycle: A Commentary on the Lost Troy Epics by M.L. West; ISBN: 978-0199662258
- Greek Epic Fragments: From the Seventh to the Fifth Centuries BC by Martin L. West; ISBN:978-0674996052
Now, what exactly is dactylic hexameter? If you are like me, your head is spinning and shaking and you are thinking huh? In simple terms, it is the rhythm of the poetic lines. Dactyl is finger in Greek, the finger has three phalanges, a long and two short parts (as shown in the picture to the right). Hexa the prefix for six refers to six of these long/short/short parts for a line/verse/meter. Looking like this _UU_UU_UU_UU_UU_UU for the hexameter line. A long syllable, short syllable, short syllable, repeat five times for your rhythm of the line. Of course, this is the general rule and not every line always follows the rule. The tradition of the Odyssey was an oral story, so try reading it aloud or finding an audio version to listen to some of the structure to get a feel for the flow of the words. |
Are you ready to join the Read Along? Feel free to sign-up on this post and follow along. Update post are not required, but greatly welcomed to help each other along as we explore this epic work.
Previous Postings: Sign-Up/Schedule
[Notice: Original posting 2014-02-15 at Plethora of Books Blog: http://bookchallenges.weebly.com]
Tags: Odyssey; Read-Alongs
Previous Postings: Sign-Up/Schedule
[Notice: Original posting 2014-02-15 at Plethora of Books Blog: http://bookchallenges.weebly.com]
Tags: Odyssey; Read-Alongs