The Odyssey Key Terms

A long narrative poem.

Epic metre, an elaborate verse rhythm used by the ancient Greek poets consisting of lines of six ‘feet’.

The period from about 3000BC when bronze was introduced and came to be used widely.

The last phase of the Bronze Age, from about 1600-1100BC.

This refers to the myriad of questions and concerns surrounding Homer and the two epic poems – the Iliad and the Odyssey.

• The main character, often eponymous
• One of an elite class or warriors

The behaviour expected of a member of the heroic class, including behaviour in battle, loyalty to colleagues, care of the weak, aged and dead; hospitality, generosity, etc.

'Renown' or 'glory'

Honour

Everything to do with the guest–host relationship.

A person who recites epic poems, especially one of a group in ancient Greece whose profession it was to recite the Homeric poems.

Phrases that are regularly employed under the same metrical conditions to express a given idea; familiar markers of time and rituals

A supernatural source of inspiration.

A series of lost mini-epics dealing with the homecomings of various Trojan heroes.

A preface to the poem, setting out the main storyline.

The action of delaying or slowing the progress or development of something, in this case, the plot.

The first four books of the Odyssey, focusing primarily on Telemachus, the son of Odysseus.

An epithet is an adjective or phrase expressing a quality or attribute regarded as characteristic of the person or thing mentioned.

A homeric epithet is the use of recognisable and often repeated epithets (adjectives) like ‘thoughtful Telemachus’, ‘grey-eyed Athene’, ‘circumspect Penelope’.

A comparison stretched into a little story that conveys deeper meanings or highlights similarities or contrasts in the main text.

Disrespect of the gods

The concept of returning or homecoming.

A song or poem to lament the dead.

A speech in praise.

Implying a meaning that is opposite to the literal, superficial meaning of the words.

Suffering; the artistic quality of arousing feelings of sadness and pity in the audience.

A situation in which it is clear to the audience, but not to the characters, or is clear to one character but not to another, or which will only be revealed as the drama unfolds.

House, home and family. This includes the household.

A digression in epic where we leave the story but are later returned to the story at the point where we left it.

The appearance of being true or real.