The Odyssey
by CTCWeb Editors
The Foes of Odysseus
Odysseus met with some strange creatures on his trip home. Such creatures as the Cyclops and the Sirens appear on vases as decoration and to tell the story of Odysseus’ attempt to return to Ithaca. Student should look at the following depiction of Odysseus’s foes and obstacles to his return home.
The Cyclops
London 1947.7-14.18 - Odysseus blinding the Cyclops.
London B 502 - Odysseus and his men escape from the cave of Polyphemus.
Toledo 1927.97 - Odysseus and his men escape from the cave of Polyphemus under the Cyclops’s sheep.
The Sirens
Boston 01.8100 - Odysseus and the Sirens.
London E 440 - Odysseus and the Sirens.
Yale 1988.80.37 - An artist depiction of what a Sirens looked like. Does this image of a Siren match the one described by Homer?
Circe
Mississippi 1977.3.116 - This vase shows a woman handing a man a cup. These people may be Odysseus and Circe.
University of Chicago 1967.115.165 - Circe entices Odysseus men to drink the potion that will turn them into animals. There are no images for this vase but the Vase Description provides ample information.
Baltimore, Hopkins 9260 - Odysseus’ men were changed into animals by Circe. This vase illustrates what the Greeks believed lions to look like.
The Scylla
Dewing 428 - Another one of Odysseus’ nemeses, the Scylla, can be found depicted on the coins of the regions of Lucania and Calabria. Homer describes the Scylla in the Odyssey Book 12, line 85. Students should look at this passage for a description of the Scylla.
The Suitors
Berlin F 2588 - On this vase, Odysseus kills the suitors.
Assignment
Choose three portrayals of scene from the Odyssey from the above list. Then answer the following questions based on your observations.
1. How closely do the artistic portrayals of scenes from the Odyssey follow the Homeric text? List those things that are different between the image and the text.
2. What other author mentions the events of the Odyssey that you have chosen in their text? (Hint: Look in the Encyclopedia entries for the characters from the Odyssey .)
3. Do the authors make reference to Homer in their text when re-relating an event from the Odyssey?
