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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Where is Odysseus at the beginning of the poem?

2. According to Teiresias' shade, what will help Odysseus and his crew make it home safely?

3. What is special about the cattle and flocks of the Sun?

4. What skill are Phaecian men skilled beyond others?

5. Who speaks up in Book 7 to ask that Odysseus be given a seat in the court of Alcinous since he has come as a supplicant?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why doesn't Odysseus' journey end when he slays the suitors and gets his vengeance in Book 11?

2. In Book 15, why does Peisistratus let Telemachus go without seeing Nestor again? Is this wise?

3. What does Eumaeus think will happen to the old man if he approaches the suitors for work? Why?

4. Recount the most recent part of Odysseus' story of woe, as told in Book 7.

5. According to Nestor and Menelaus, was the war worth the cost?

6. Describe the suitors' reaction to Telemachus calling a meeting of the assembly in Book 1.

7. How does Euryalus insult Odysseus when the Phaeacians are engaging in sport?

8. In what ways does Odysseus reveal his crafty mind in his encounter with the cyclops?

9. What kind of hospitality does Telemachus offer the old man in Book 16?

10. In Book 20, why does Athene make the suitors laugh uncontrollably?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Sociologists can glean quite a bit of information about a culture from surviving literature. Use The Odyssey to illuminate the values of this society. What ideals are valued? What are some distinguishing characteristic of the Ancient Achaeans?

Essay Topic 2

This poem contains the stories of five pairs of husbands and wives. Explain what is to be learned about marriage from each pair. This should also include a discussion of the roles of men and women.

Essay Topic 3

Even though women are afforded very little in terms of respect, if goddesses did not aid Odysseus, he would not have made it home. Reconcile the disparity between their importance to his survival and the view of women in Ancient Greece.

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