Odyssey- book 10

Question 1

what is still happening at the beginning of book 10?

Answer 1

Odysseus is still telling his story to the Phaeacians

Question 2

where did the men stop off first at the beginning of book 10?

Answer 2

The men’s next stop was the Aeolian island, home to the god of the winds. They stayed with Aeolus for a month, and his parting gift to Odysseus was a leather bag made from the skin of an ox.- The leather bag contained the energies of all the winds. Aeolus also called up the breeze from the west to blow Odysseus’ ships across the sea.

Question 3

what was Aeolus’ gift to Odysseus?

Answer 3

a leather bag made from the skin of an ox which contained all the energies of the winds, apart from the west wind- he then drew up the west wind to blow Odysseus’ ship back to Ithaca

Question 4

how long did the men sail from Aeolus’ island?

Answer 4

9 days- on the 10th day they caught sign of Ithaca’s shores

Question 5

why did the men get back to Aeolus’s island?

Answer 5

Odysseus had been steering the ship for 9 days, not trusting his men to take control of the ship- but on the 10th day when they caught sight of Ithaca’s shores, Odysseus fell asleep from exhaustion. His crew became suspicious that the tied up bag Odysseus had gotten from Aeolus contained a great treasure of gold and silver that he wasn’t sharing, so they untied it to see what was inside and in doing so freed the winds. Odysseus woke and watched in despair as the winds blew them back out to sea and then to Aeolus’s island.

Question 6

when the men found themselves back at Aeolus’ island, what did Odysseus do?

Answer 6

Odysseus begged Aeolus for help, but Aeolus believed that Odysseus’s misfortune proved that he was hated by the gods, and turned him away. There was no wind to help them, so the men had to row.

Question 7

where did Odysseus and his men find themselves next after Aeolus’ island?

Answer 7

after seven days of rowing, they reached the island of the Laestrygonians.

Question 8

what did Odysseus do with his ship in comparison to his crew?

Answer 8

Odysseus left his ship on the shore quite far away from the harbour, whilst his men left their ships in the harbour- this fits in with Polyphemus’ curse as he vowed that Odysseus would lose all of his ships- here all of his crew ships will be eliminated apart from his

Question 9

when the men landed at the island of the Laestrygonian’s, what did Odysseus do?

Answer 9

Odysseus sent two of his men with a messenger to investigate whether the inhabitants were monsters or civilised people.

Question 10

what did the two men and messenger find?

Answer 10

The men came across the daughter of antiphates, the laestrygonian chief, who directed them to her father’s palace. They saw an enormous queen, who called over her husband Antiphates; he walked in and ate one of Odysseus’s men, but the other two fled, causing antiphates to call upon the laestrygonians to find the men.The Laestrygonians ate most of Odysseus’s crew and threw large rocks onto the harbour which destroyed all but one ship.

Question 11

where did Odysseus and his crew go after the island of the Laestrygonian’s?

Answer 11

Odysseus and his single ship sailed on, and anchored on Circe’s island- They rested for two days, and nights, grieving for the other crew which had been killed.

Question 12

after grieving the men for two days and two nights, what did Odysseus do on the third?

Answer 12

Odysseus decided to go out and find any food to eat, but on his search he came across Circe’s palace, and decided it would be best to find a meal for his crew before sending out an ‘exploring party’. Odysseus finds a deer which he kills and cooks for him and his men to eat

Question 13

what was strange about the stag that Odysseus found?

Answer 13

It was the largest stag he had ever come across- here we have the role of the gods as Athene sends Odysseus a stag for him and his men to eat

Question 14

what did the men do the next morning after feasting on the stag?

Answer 14

The next morning, Odysseus told the men that he saw smoke rising somewhere in the middle of the island, and the men cried out in fear of the inhabitants of the island as they remembered what antiphates and the cyclops had done to Odysseus’ crew.
Odysseus then divided the men into two groups with a leader for each, and the other group, who’s leader was Eurylochus, set off to Circe’s palace.

Question 15

when the men came to Circe’s palace, what did they hear?

Answer 15

When the men came to Circe’s palace, they heard her singing as she weaved. They called out to her and walked in – all but Eurylochus, who sensed that circe was plotting a plan- here, Circe is presented as a parallel to Calypso, who was also introduced as a goddess who wove and sung when Hermes came to Ogygia to free Odysseus

Question 16

when Circe welcomed the men to the table, what happened?

Answer 16

She welcomed them to her table, but she mixed a potion into their food that she had offered them that erased their memories of home and turned them into pigs at once.
Eurylochus ran back to the ship and told Odysseus that the men vanished into the palace and did not return.

Question 17

when Odysseus made his way to Circe’s palace to rescue his men, who did he come across?

Answer 17

Odysseus set off for the palace, but before he reached its doors he met Hermes, who was disguised as a young man. The god gave him a drug called moly that would make him immune to Circe’s potion. When Circe touches you with her wand, the god advised, run at her with your sword until she backs away in fear and invites you to her bed. The god told Odysseus to accept the goddess’s offer, but only after she swore a binding oath not to hurt him.

Question 18

when Odysseus arrived at Circe’s palace to rescue his men, what happened?

Answer 18

When Odysseus walked into Circe’s palace, everything happened just as Hermes predicted, and Circe then guessed that the stranger must be Odysseus. When they retired to bed, Circe’s maids prepared a bath and a feast. But Odysseus was too troubled to eat, so Circe transformed his crew from pigs to men again.

Question 19

When Odysseus returned to the beach to hide his cargo in caves and call the rest of his crew to circe’s palace, what happened?

Answer 19

Eurylochus urged the men to depart right then, instead of rushing into a situation that might be a trap; he reminded them of the men that died in Polyphemus’s cave because of Odysseus’s poor judgement. But the men followed Odysseus, Eurylochus included.

Question 20

How long did the men stay on Circe’s island?

Answer 20

The men stayed on the island for a year, living in luxury, but after a year the crew grew increasingly restless and finally convinced Odysseus that it was time to leave.

Question 21

When Odysseus announced to Circe that he needed to leave, what task did she give him?

Answer 21

Circe advised him to go down to the land of the dead to speak to the ghost of Tiresias, a blind prophet.
Circe told Odysseus to find the spot between the river of flaming fire and the river of lamentation, to dig a trench there and pour offerings (libations), which consists of a mixture of milk and honey, sweet wine and water. Over this mixture he must then sprinkle barley and begin his prayers to the ghosts of the dead and to promise to them that when he returns to ithaca he will sacrifice a heifer in his palace and sacrifice a separate jet black sheep in teiresias’ honour.
Afterwards, Odysseus must slaughter a ram and an ewe with his head turned away. Only then will the spirits emerge. At that moment, Odysseus’s crew must burn the corpses while Odysseus keeps the spirits away from blood; then Tiresias will appear and advise him how to complete his journey home.

Question 22

what happens at the end of book 10?

Answer 22

As Odysseus and his crew woke the next morning to depart, they discovered that Elpenor, the youngest member of the crew, had gotten drunk the night before, slept on the roof, and when he woke in the morning at the sound of the other men working he fell off the roof and broke his neck. Odysseus explained their coming journey to the underworld, and the men were disappointed to learn how complicated the trip will be.

Question 23

what is Circe’s island called?

Answer 23

Aeaea

Question 24

What are the Laestrygonians like?

Answer 24

They are a race of cannibal ginats that massacure some of Odysseus’ men and destroy the remaining ships. They are also used as a plot device to enact the curse that has been put upon Odysseus.

Question 25

How is Eurylochus presented?

Answer 25

He is presented as being logical but also cowardly, as when he relays the news to Odysseus that the men have been bewitched by Circe, he proposes that they leave while they still can. Eurylochus is a stark contrast to Odysseus’ reckless and loyal character.

Question 26

how is the theme of Xenia shown in book 10?

Answer 26

There is anti-xenia shown in this book, as Circe feeds the men with very strange foods which you would not expect to have usually. The food is also drugged- goes against the unspoken rules of xenia entirely, and xenia has been put in place to ensure that both the guest and host are prevented from harm- which Circe opposes.

Question 27

how is the role of gods shown in book 10?

Answer 27

The gods are shown in duality to each other- Hermes is helpful towards Odysseus by giving him moly, whilst Circe (who can be classed as both a goddess and witch) turns Odysseus’ men into pigs.

Question 28

How is the theme of magic presented in book 10?

Answer 28

Circe is a witch who possesses dark magic and magical herbs. in this book we see the use of special drugs which turn Odysseus’ men into pigs, as well as the ointment which reverses this. She also enchants the animals which graze outside her home so that they do not attack, even though they are predators. Also, Herme’s gives Odysseus the ‘moly’ plant which blocks Circe’s spells.

Question 29

what does Rutherford say about men, women and goddesses?

Answer 29

That in some ways, the female characters are cleverer and ‘more effective agents’ than the men, even on a divine level.