The Odyssey Test; Books 4 - 9

Quiz THE ODYSSEY page  1 of 4

Student’s Name:

Period: 

1. THE ODYSSEY begins approximately _________ after the fall of Troy.

a) Ten years c) Three years

b) Five years d) Two years

2. The first major character we meet in THE ODYSSEY is:

a) Odysseus c) Telemachus, Odysseus’ son

b) Penelope, Odysseus’ wife d) Calypso

3. The goddess who has taken a special interest in the cause of Odysseus is:

a) Athena, the goddess of wisdom c) Hera, the goddess of the hearth

b) Aphrodite, the goddess of beauty d) Artemis, the goddess of the hunt

4. The first time we see Odysseus is in Book Four when he is on the Island of Calypso and is:

a) Madly in love with the goddess Calypso c) Turning his men into animals

b) Crying in loneliness for his wife and son d) Eating the lotus flower

5. Athena asks Zeus to intercede for Odysseus on the Isle of Calypso so that he may:

a)   Remember that he has a wife and son to return to

b)   Stop eating the lotus flower

c)   Quickly return home to his family

d)   Fall out of love with Calypso

6. Hermes, the messenger of the gods, is dispatched to convince Calypso to release Odysseus by telling her that if she doesn’t release Odysseus:

a)  Calypso’s beautiful nymphs will be turned to pigs 

b)   Her island will be plunged to the bottom of the sea

c)   She will be turned to stone 

d)   Odysseus will die if she doesn’t release him

7. Odysseus proves he is a brilliant man by telling Calypso:

a) That he loves her more than Penelope

b) He misses his son

c) That Penelope is old and he no longer wants her 

d) He realizes that Penelope is merely mortal and cannot compete with a goddess but he misses her.

Quiz THE ODYSSEY page 2 of 4

8. Calypso allows Odysseus to build a raft to set sail for home but:

1. Poseidon stirs up a storm and blows him off course 
2. He must go to the Land of the Dead first

c)   Helios convinces Zeus to strike his raft with lightning 

d)   His ship is sucked into a whirlpool

9. Odysseus is discovered by the Princess Nausicaa who:

1. Holds him captive for another five years 
2. She runs away in fear

c)   Takes him to her father’s court where he is treated with hospitality 

d)   She ignores his pleas for help.

10. Odysseus’ treatment at the court of Alcinous reveals one of the most sacred beliefs of the ancient Greeks:

1. One must be wary of strangers 
2. The ties between host and guest are sacred

c)   A man must never cry 

d)   One must brag about one’s exploits

11. THE ODYSSEY begins in “media res” which means:

1. In the middle 
2. Near the beginning

c)   Near the end 

d)   In flashback

12. It is at the Court of Alcinous that Odysseus reveals his identity to the astonishment of the court and begins to:

1. Lament the past few years of his life 
2. Tell where he has been for ten years

c)   Ask for news about his home 

d)   Brag about his war record in Troy

13. One of the first stories Odysseus recounts is:

1. The Land of the Cyclops 
2. The Isle of the Cicones

c)   The Land of the Dead 

d)   The Isle of Calypso

14. On the Isle of the Cicones, Odysseus loses many men because they disregard his orders to:

1. To board the ship before fresh troops arrive to avenge their Cicone kinsmen.
2. The men are eaten by a sea monster

c)   The men won’t stop eating the lotus flower 

d)   The men are sucked into a whirlpool

Quiz THE ODYSSEY page 3 of 4

15. Odysseus must drag some of his men from the Isle of the Lotus Eaters because:

1. Partaking of the lotus plant makes one forget one’s ambitions
2. The men are under the spell of a witch

c)   The men are starving 

d)   The men have been turned to pigs

16. Polyphemus, the one-eyed cyclops, is the son of:

1. Athena b) Poseidon c) Zeus d) Helios

17. Part of the problem Odysseus and his men encounter on the Cyclops’ island is that both they and the Cyclops violate the ancient and sacred Greek cultural codes of behavior:

1. The ties between host and guests. 
2. The bonds which tie all Greeks

c)   The bond between warriors 

d)   One must honor the host

18. Odysseus tricks Polyphemus by telling him his name is:

1. Menelaus b) Nohbdy c) Agamemnon d) Alcinous

19. Polyphemus is a particularly vile monster because he devours some of Odysseus’ men alive:

1. True b) False

20. In the battle between Polyphemus and Odysseus, it could be said that Polyphemus represents:

1. Brute force and narrow mindedness b) Intelligence and cunning

21. In the battle between Polyphemus and Odysseus, it could be said that Odysseus represents:

1. Brute force and narrow mindedness b) Intelligence and cunning

22. Odysseus and his men trick Polyphemus by getting him drunk and blinding him while he is sleeping it off:

1. True b) False

23. Odysseus and his men manage to escape from Polyphemus’ cave by hiding under the cyclops’ rams and riding out of the cave when he lets them out in the morning:

a) True b) False

24. Polyphemus’ curse on Odysseus includes all the following except:

a) He must travel many years trying to get home 

b) All of his companions will be killed and he alone will return home

c) His wife will be married to another man

d) He will return home to find his kingdom in discord

25 Odysseus and his men could have escaped without being cursed by the cyclops’ father if Odysseus had not:

a) Become prideful and boastful and told the cyclops his real name

b) Told the cyclops that Odysseus did not owe his father any credit in winning the Trojan War.

c) Taunted the cyclops’ stupidity

February 12, 2018 - February 16, 2018 Weekly Agenda for 9th Grade English

Monday, February 12th:
Kahoots! The Cyclops
Unit 4 Vocabulary
Read The Odyssey 

Kahoots!

The Wind God

Cyclops

Circe

Vocabulary

Tuesday, February 13th: 

Page 673

 Odysseus is sitting on the island of Alcinous and he is telling the court where he has been for the past ten years.

After he and his men escape the Cyclop’s island, they encounter the Wind God Aeolus who gives Odysseus a bag of "bad" winds - the north, the south, and the east winds, leaving only the west winds to help him get home.

Julian – If Odysseus had only told the men what was in the bag, they would have trusted him and not opened the bag. When they opened the bag, the winds were released, causing the ship to blow back out to sea!

Now he is on the island of the lovely enchantress Circe.

Vocabulary:

Tidbits – small bits of delicious food!!!!!!!

Julian and David

Beguiling – charming and enchanting, often in a deceptive way!

Snare – a trap set by hunters to catch their prey

Eurylochus feared a trap or a snare and would not eat the food that Circe served the men.

A pinch – a small amount of food that is literally the amount that a pinch (a small granule of salt pinched between the fingers would provide.

Vile – morally bad or wicked

Vial – a small container

Scarce – barely enough; as soon as

Pigsty – a place where pigs live

Swinish – pig like

Swine – a pig

Fodder – food for farm animals

Foreboding: a sense of something bad is about to happen.

The moral of the Island of Circe – do not let fun get in the way of your goals. Do not let distractions prevent you from accomplishing your goals.

Cereal is made from grains

Ceres is the goddess of grains and grass and trees and flowers

Persephone is her daughter!

Teiresias is a blind seer or prophet.  Teiresias is an old man who is now dead and living in the Underworld.  Circe sends Odysseus to see Teiresias to find out how he can get home safely.

Wednesday, February 14th: 
  Choose one of the stories we have read so far in The Odyssey:
Class determined the themes of each Odyssey story:

1.     The Ciccones – get your priorities straight! Follow orders!

2.     The Bag of Winds – Be honest! Trust each other! Keep people informed

3.     The Cyclops – Honor your guests! Honor your host!

4.     Circe – Don’t let distractions get in the way of your goals.

5.     The Suitors – Behave in a respectful way

6.     The Lotus Eaters – Do Not Do Drugs! You will never get ahead!

Write down the names of the people in your group and your first two choices. This will be on a first come, first serve basis.

1.     Jason, David, Julian – The Bag of Winds

2.     Alejandra, Lizbeth L., Julia – Circe

3.     Yessenia, Hilaryd – the Cyclops

4.     Takai, Sam, Makenna – the Suitors

5.     Tymiah, Taylor, Cierra – The Ciccones

6.     Melanie, Milan – Circe

7.     Lizbeth A., Katherine, Idalia – The Lotus Eaters

8.     Jose, Adolfo – the Suitors

9.     Jasmine, Salamata – the Bag of Winds

Write a sixty-second PSA (public service announcement) about the lessons learned in the above stories from The Odyssey.  It can be funny. You should use the stories from The Odyssey for your P.S.A. 

1.     The script must be written – typed would be best

2.     Everybody in the group must participate!

3.     The PSA must be based on The Odyssey

4.     You can use a “Percy Jackson” approach – mixing the present with The Odyssey!


Thursday, February 15th:  
Allowed some time to rehearse the scenes. 

Following scenes performed:

Circe’s Island  - Julia, Alejandra, Julian

The Lotus Eaters – Julian, Jason, David

Redo:

The Ciccones – Tymiah, Taylor, Cierra

Extras – Julian, Jose, Idalia, Adolfo

Friday, February 16th: 
Performances:
Jasmine and Salamata  -"The Bag of Winds"
Redo with help from Lizbeth L. and Julian

Lizbeth A., Katherine, Idalia - "The Lotus Eaters"