The epic Odyssey

Chapter 1

The real world behind the myth

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Chapter 2

Monsters and magic on the high seas

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Chapter 3

The mind of a trickster

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Chapter 4

The final homecoming and legacy

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YOUR GOAL

Master of The epic Odyssey

Ch 1 · The real world behind the myth

grecory The Real Odyssey

They prayed to the hero of the sea! (Odysseus!) / A real-world ancient sanctuary! (Yeah, history!)

grecory Decoding the real geography of the voyage

The actual Bronze Age ruins of Ithaca

grecory The actual Bronze Age ruins of Ithaca

Fun Fact

Oral memory trick: Ancient bards memorized all 12,110 lines of the Odyssey without writing a single word down.

How oral poets remembered massive epics

grecory How oral poets remembered massive epics

Glossary

mycenaean (adjective)
Relating to the Aegean civilization of the late Bronze Age in Greece. Heinrich Schliemann excavated this civilization's ruins in 1876, proving the historical basis of Homer's epic.

Quiz

Which strict poetic meter did ancient Greek bards use to perform the Odyssey?

Gossip

Which character has the most tragic story?

Let's look at Trojan Horse Play.* It's clever.

grecory Let's look at Trojan Horse Play.* It's clever.

grecory The actual Bronze Age ruins of Ithaca

Quiz

In which century BCE do classicists believe the Odyssey was first written down?

grecory How oral poets remembered massive epics

Quiz

What ancient Greek word for 'homecoming' is the root of the modern word 'nostalgia'?

grecory The mystery of Homer's true identity

Quiz

Which Greek island revealed a 13th-century BCE palace matching Odysseus's home in 2010?

Quiz

Why did ancient Greek bards use repetitive epithets like 'rosy-fingered Dawn'?

Quiz

Which Tunisian island is traditionally linked to the mythical Land of the Lotus-Eaters?

Quiz

What is the 'Homeric Question' in literary history?

Quiz

Around which year BCE did the historical Trojan War end, starting Odysseus's journey?