![]() ![]() How can this statement be true if Tiresias gives him instructions and choices to make?ħ. Does this mean that Odysseus may not survive this episode, even after Athena has pledged his protection?Ĭ) Finally, Tiresias closes with “All that I have told you will come true” (9.156). Then, Tiresias says that if they slaughter the cattle, “I can see it now: your ship destroyed, your men destroyed as well.” Again, was there really a choice for the men to make, or was this outcome inevitable?ī) Tiresias then tells Odysseus “And even if you escape, you’ll come home late” (9.129). Read this passage carefully.Ī) In (11.125-128), Tiresias tells Odysseus that if his men spare the cattle, all may make it to Ithaca. In light of question 5, consider the instructions and prophecy that Tiresias gives Odysseus in the Kingdom of the Dead (11.111-157). Or did they? Did the men exercise free will, or were they fated to kill the cattle?Ħ. Odysseus tells his shipmates to leave the cattle alone (12.345-348), but they ignore his warning and condemn themselves to shipwreck (12.413-418). In book 12, Odysseus’ men pay the price for slaughtering some sacred cows. If Odysseus had not shouted his name, would Polyphemous have pieced it together from the old prophecy? Did his will, his desire for fame, curse him? More to the point, are Zeus and Poseidon fated to champion Odysseus and Polyphemous, respectively? Did Odysseus and Polyphemous meet by chance, or were they placed in each other’s paths for a reason?ĥ. The nature of Fate in ancient Greece is complicated. Polyphemous replies that an old prophecy had finally come true and curses Odysseus with an invocation to Poseidon (9.584-595). After blinding Polyphemous and escaping his cave, Odysseus cannot resist taunting the Cyclops with his name, address and identifying details (9.558-562). Odysseus’ luck changes, however, when his arrogance gets the best of him. I got the very ones I would have picked myself,įour good men, and I in the lead made five. When sleep had overcome him? Luck of the draw: To hoist our stake and grind it into his eye “And now I ordered my shipmates all to cast lots – In order to blind Polyphemous, Odysseus needs a little luck: In Alcinous’ court, he recounts his story, and his encounter with the Cyclops Polyphemous proves to be fateful indeed. In Book 9, the readers learn the origin of Odysseus’ woes after the Iliad. Does Calypso, as a supernatural being, have free will?Ĥ. Zeus sends the messenger god, Hermes, to tell Calypso to release Odysseus on a “lashed, makeshift raft.” This passage is interesting for two reasons: first, because Zeus has a say in many minor details of Odysseus’ journey, and second, because Calypso, who is a supernatural being, is as much a pawn as Odysseus in this battle of wills between Zeus and Poseidon. ![]() This occurs after Odysseus has been trapped on Calypso’s island for seven years. Zeus decrees the conditions of Odysseus’ homecoming in Book 5, lines 32-46. In hindsight, Nestor calls him a “fool." Why is this considered foolish? Is there anything Agamemnon could have done? Should he have just resigned himself to fate?ģ. The minds of the everlasting gods don’t change so quickly.”Īgamemnon performed a ritual sacrifice in hopes of changing the course of events. Poor fool, he never dreamed Athena would not comply. “He meant to detain us there and offer victims,Īnything to appease Athena’s dreadful wrath. ![]()
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