HUMAN BEINGS
Odysseus - king of Ithaca, liar | Circe - dread witch who shelters Odysseus |
Penelope - queen of Ithaca | Calypso - cutesy goddess who shelters Odysseus |
Telemachus - their young son | Agamemnon - recently deceased king of Mycenae |
Anticleia - Odysseus's recently deceased mom | Tiresias - the blind, dead prophet |
Arete - queen of the Phaeacians |
Argos - old doggy who recognized Odysseus |
GODS AND MONSTERS
Zeus - supreme Greek god | Athena - goddess who adores Odysseus |
Hades - underworld god | Sirens - beautiful, deadly singers |
Poseidon - underwater god, control of the sea |
Polyphemus - Cyclops, son of Poseidon |
PLACES
Ithaca - island off east coast of Adriatic Sea |
Underworld - probably Portugal, or somewhere else |
Pillars of Heracles - Straits of Gibraltar |
Troy - northwestern Turkey |
Circe - possibly based in Italy? |
Map of Odysseus's World - http://www.uwm.edu/Course/mythology/1200/2001.jpg |
PRINCIPAL STORYLINES
Odysseus and Penelope's marriage |
How does one go to hell in ancient Greek literature? |
How do the deceased souls appear to Odysseus? |
What is the point of human existence? |
What is Anticleia's advice to her son? |
Odysseus's actions after his katabasis |
Parallels between Enkidu and Gilgamesh |