Underworld in The Odyssey: How It Affects Our Hero
The Underworld in The Odyssey plays a crucial role in Odysseus' return home to Ithaca as the land of the dead makes our Greek hero realize his responsibilities as a hero, father, and husband. Odysseus visits the Underworld as per Circe's advice to seek the blind prophet Tiresias to acquire the knowledge of safely returning to Ithaca.
Katabasis
Odysseus consults the soul of the prophet Tiresias in his katabasis during Book 11 of The Odyssey. A katabasis or catabasis ( Ancient Greek: κατάβασις, romanized : katábasis, lit. 'descent'; from κατὰ (katà) 'down' and βαίνω (baínō) 'go') is a journey to the underworld. Its original sense is usually associated with Greek ...
The Odyssey: Book 11 Summary & Analysis
The Odyssey: Book 11. Odysseus continues telling his tale to Alcinous and the Phaeacians. When he and his men reached the entrance to the world of the dead, they did exactly as Circe said: they dug a trench, offered libations, and sacrificed a ewe and a ram. Thousands of ghosts appeared when the blood started flowing.
What is Achilles' behavior in the Underworld in The Odyssey
Odysseus therefore meets Achilles when he visits the underworld. Just as he was when he was alive, Achilles is moody and brooding. He tells Odysseus that it is terrible to be a shade in the land ...
Odysseus's encounters in the Land of the Dead in The Odyssey
The most significant figure Odysseus encounters in the underworld (Book 11 of the Odyssey) is Achilles, the central character from Homer 's Iliad. Achilles, a demigod, was the greatest Greek warrior.
The Odyssey Book IX
In Book IX of Homer's Odyssey, Odysseus (Ulysses) travels to the Underworld and speaks to ghosts to learn of his future and how to get home.
Book 11 Essays
11.1-50 Odysseus and his crew arrive at the entrance to the Underworld and perform animal sacrifices to the dead. The long narrative arc that began with the Calypso episode ends as the Greek sailors sit dutifully in their ship, guided by the gods, heading for the land of the dead.
The Underworld
The Underworld Sources A whole book of the "Odyssey" - the 11 th - is dedicated to Odysseus' descent into the Underworld; analogously, Virgil devotes the 6 th book of the "Aeneid" to Aeneas' similar journey.
Book 11
Odysseus' own mother, who died of grief and longing for him, is allowed to approach only after his audience with the seer. Until seeing her among the dead, Odysseus was unaware of his mother's death. She tells him of his father, Laertes, who still lives but similarly grieves and has lost his will. In one of the most moving scenes in the epic ...
Why does Odysseus return to Circe's island after visiting the
Get an answer for 'Why does Odysseus return to Circe's island after visiting the underworld in Book 11?' and find homework help for other The Odyssey questions at eNotes
Odyssey 24
The first of these three scenes in Odyssey 24 takes place in the underworld. The scene here is more compressed than a comparable scene that takes place earlier, in Odyssey 11. In the earlier scene, Odysseus visits the underworld while he is still alive—and he manages, after his visit, to leave the underworld while staying alive.
Hades & the Underworld in the Odyssey
In the ancient Greek epic, the Odyssey, the hero Odysseus is tasked with going to the gates of Hades. The name Hades refers both to the physical underworld, or Hell, and also to God of the ...
Odysseus's Descent into the Underworld
Allessandro Allori, Odysseus questions TelemachusApproximately halfway through his journey home from Troy, Odysseus is told that he must descend into the Underworld. Curiously, when Odysseus is told this, his first reaction is to cry (Ody.10.496-500). One might interpret this as indicating Odysseus's simple fear of death because truly
14 Journeys to the Underworld in Greek and Roman Mythology
In ancient Greek and Roman Mythology, the Underworld or Hades was where the souls of the dead resided. Thanatos, the deity of death, made no exceptions. All mortals would inevitably reach the Underworld and stay there forever. Still, there were a few instances where a mortal went to the Underworld and returned to the living, a mythological journey known as a katabasis.
After Odysseus's Underworld visit, where are two instances he doesn't
When Odysseus visits the Underworld and Tiresias warns Odysseus not to do certain things, Odysseus promises to heed his words, but later on, he does not obey the warning.
Ulysses & The Odyssey: Hades
The Odyssey, Book XI: Odysseus travels to the underworld and meets the prophet Tiresias, who reveals the ultimate fate of Odysseus and his crew. Odysseus has a chance to speak to other souls in the underworld, including his mother, a parade of impressive women, and Trojan War heroes such as Agamemnon, Achilles, and Ajax.
Why must Odysseus speak to the blind prophet Teiresias in The Odyssey
The journey to the underworld of Hades to speak to the dead Theban prophet Teiresias is a command given to Odysseus by the enchantress Circe. Circe, who was initally hostile to Odysseus and his ...
In the Odyssey, what does the prophet Teiresias warn Odysseus against
In Book 11 of The Odyssey, The Kingdom of the Dead, Odysseus visits the underworld to consult with the prophet Tiresias. Circe instructs him to visit Tiresias so he can find out about his future ...
COMMENTS
The Underworld in The Odyssey plays a crucial role in Odysseus' return home to Ithaca as the land of the dead makes our Greek hero realize his responsibilities as a hero, father, and husband. Odysseus visits the Underworld as per Circe's advice to seek the blind prophet Tiresias to acquire the knowledge of safely returning to Ithaca.
Odysseus consults the soul of the prophet Tiresias in his katabasis during Book 11 of The Odyssey. A katabasis or catabasis ( Ancient Greek: κατάβασις, romanized : katábasis, lit. 'descent'; from κατὰ (katà) 'down' and βαίνω (baínō) 'go') is a journey to the underworld. Its original sense is usually associated with Greek ...
The Odyssey: Book 11. Odysseus continues telling his tale to Alcinous and the Phaeacians. When he and his men reached the entrance to the world of the dead, they did exactly as Circe said: they dug a trench, offered libations, and sacrificed a ewe and a ram. Thousands of ghosts appeared when the blood started flowing.
Odysseus therefore meets Achilles when he visits the underworld. Just as he was when he was alive, Achilles is moody and brooding. He tells Odysseus that it is terrible to be a shade in the land ...
The most significant figure Odysseus encounters in the underworld (Book 11 of the Odyssey) is Achilles, the central character from Homer 's Iliad. Achilles, a demigod, was the greatest Greek warrior.
In Book IX of Homer's Odyssey, Odysseus (Ulysses) travels to the Underworld and speaks to ghosts to learn of his future and how to get home.
11.1-50 Odysseus and his crew arrive at the entrance to the Underworld and perform animal sacrifices to the dead. The long narrative arc that began with the Calypso episode ends as the Greek sailors sit dutifully in their ship, guided by the gods, heading for the land of the dead.
The Underworld Sources A whole book of the "Odyssey" - the 11 th - is dedicated to Odysseus' descent into the Underworld; analogously, Virgil devotes the 6 th book of the "Aeneid" to Aeneas' similar journey.
Odysseus' own mother, who died of grief and longing for him, is allowed to approach only after his audience with the seer. Until seeing her among the dead, Odysseus was unaware of his mother's death. She tells him of his father, Laertes, who still lives but similarly grieves and has lost his will. In one of the most moving scenes in the epic ...
Get an answer for 'Why does Odysseus return to Circe's island after visiting the underworld in Book 11?' and find homework help for other The Odyssey questions at eNotes
The first of these three scenes in Odyssey 24 takes place in the underworld. The scene here is more compressed than a comparable scene that takes place earlier, in Odyssey 11. In the earlier scene, Odysseus visits the underworld while he is still alive—and he manages, after his visit, to leave the underworld while staying alive.
In the ancient Greek epic, the Odyssey, the hero Odysseus is tasked with going to the gates of Hades. The name Hades refers both to the physical underworld, or Hell, and also to God of the ...
Allessandro Allori, Odysseus questions TelemachusApproximately halfway through his journey home from Troy, Odysseus is told that he must descend into the Underworld. Curiously, when Odysseus is told this, his first reaction is to cry (Ody.10.496-500). One might interpret this as indicating Odysseus's simple fear of death because truly
In ancient Greek and Roman Mythology, the Underworld or Hades was where the souls of the dead resided. Thanatos, the deity of death, made no exceptions. All mortals would inevitably reach the Underworld and stay there forever. Still, there were a few instances where a mortal went to the Underworld and returned to the living, a mythological journey known as a katabasis.
When Odysseus visits the Underworld and Tiresias warns Odysseus not to do certain things, Odysseus promises to heed his words, but later on, he does not obey the warning.
The Odyssey, Book XI: Odysseus travels to the underworld and meets the prophet Tiresias, who reveals the ultimate fate of Odysseus and his crew. Odysseus has a chance to speak to other souls in the underworld, including his mother, a parade of impressive women, and Trojan War heroes such as Agamemnon, Achilles, and Ajax.
The journey to the underworld of Hades to speak to the dead Theban prophet Teiresias is a command given to Odysseus by the enchantress Circe. Circe, who was initally hostile to Odysseus and his ...
In Book 11 of The Odyssey, The Kingdom of the Dead, Odysseus visits the underworld to consult with the prophet Tiresias. Circe instructs him to visit Tiresias so he can find out about his future ...