Book 19 - Eurycleia recognises Odysseus Flashcards
1
Q
Book 19
How does book 19 start
A
- The suitors have gone home for the night.
- Odysseus instructs Telemachus to gather the weapons and hide them where they will not be readily available to the suitors the next day.
- Melantho, the disrespectful servant girl who sleeps with Eurymachus, confronts the beggar/Odysseus once more,
- so Telemachus tells Eurycleia that they are storing the arms to keep them from being damaged, concealing their plot
2
Q
Book 19
What does Penelope do increasing tension
A
- After they have safely disposed of the arms, Telemachus retires and Odysseus is joined by Penelope
- She has come from the women’s quarters to question her curious visitor
- She knows that he has claimed to have met Odysseus, and she tests his honesty by asking him to describe her husband
3
Q
Book 19
What does Odysseus, dressed as a begar, respond with to Penelope’s enquiries
A
- Odysseus describes the Greek hero—himself, capturing each detail so perfectly that it reduces Penelope to tears
- He says how he met Odysseus and eventually came to Ithaca
- In many respects, this story parallels those that he told to Athena and Eumaeus in Books 13 and 14, respectively, though it is identical to neither
- He emphasises that hes alive, & predicts that Odysseus will be back within the month.
4
Q
Book 19
How does Eurycleia come to wash Odysseus
A
- Penelope offers the beggar a bed to sleep in, but he is used to the floor, he says, and declines
- Only reluctantly does he allow Eurycleia to wash his feet
5
Q
Book 19
Describe Eurycleia’s recognition of Odysseus
A
- She immediately recognizes it as the scar that Odysseus received when he went boar hunting with his grandfather Autolycus
- She throws her arms around Odysseus, but he silences her while Athena keeps Penelope distracted so that Odysseus’s secret will not be carried any further
- The faithful Eurycleia recovers herself and promises to keep his secret
6
Q
Book 19
What was Penelope’s dream that she describes to Odysseus
A
- Before she retires, Penelope describes to Odysseus a dream that she has had:
- an eagle swoops down upon her twenty pet geese and kills them all;
- it then perches on her roof and, in a human voice, says that he is her husband who has just put her lovers to death
- Penelope declares that she has no idea what this dream means
- Rising to the challenge, Odysseus explains it to her
7
Q
Book 19
After Odysseus’ bath, what does Penelope decide she will do, despite Odysseus’ explanation of her dream
A
- After the bath, Penelope rejoins the beggar/Odysseus and reveals that she will conduct a contest the following day to select a husband and satisfy the suitors
- The challenge involves a feat that only Odysseus has performed before: stringing his great bow and shooting an arrow through a straight row of twelve axes.
- Odysseus enthusiastically approves of her plan
