Discussion topic

you leamed about love among mortals and
immortals, and mortal to mortal love, but
there is no greater love than that of odysseus
and penelope. what about the story of the
odyssey makes you believe in their love and
what makes you question their love? what
does their sacred tree upon which their house
is centered symbolize about their love?
consider that odysseus spent extended and
intimate periods of time with calypso and
circe, while penelope remained loyal to him.
does that make him less loyal, or are his
liaisons a reflection of ancient greek culture?
in the odyssey, odysseus visits achilles in the
underworld. discuss how achilles feels about
his choice now that he is in the underworld. in
the telemachy (first four books of the
odyssey), homer describes several united
couples, such as menelaus and helen, and
nestor and his wife, in contrast to penelope
and the suitors. why does he spend so much
time retelling agamemnon's fate over the
course of odysseus' travels in the end of the
odyssey, odysseus is disguised as a beggar. is
this really a disguise? what makes odysseus a
hero? why is his goddess protector athena
and not ares?