Wit and Wisdom MOD 2 Lesson 17- Part 2

Wit and Wisdom

MOD 2- A Hero's Journey

Lesson 17

December 18, 2020

Learning Goals

• Analyze how the final chapter supports the text’s big ideas and solidifies some of its themes. (RL.6.1, RL.6.2, RL.6.3)

• Analyze what big ideas in the story have morphed into themes and explain how the text illuminates them. (RL.6.1, RL.6.2, SL.6.1, SL.6.4, SL.6.6)

Open Ended

Quick Write:

Odysseus declares, ‘What I want is justice!’ (163). Justice means “the appropriate judgment of right and wrong." Should Odysseus receive justice? How does the topic of justice connect to some of the other big ideas explored in this myth?”

What is the difference between a big idea and a theme?

-A big idea is a concept or topic that a story explores, such as courage or perseverance.

-A theme is a fully formed statement delivered by a story in message format. It suggests something important about the human condition or experience. It is a general truth that stands independent of the text, although the text helps deliver it to the reader.

What big ideas are explored in “A Husband for Penelope” on pages 158–66? How does the text support these ideas?

• Perseverance is rewarded: Odysseus has a chance to defeat the suitors by setting a well-conceived trap that will result in their deaths. Although the trap seems to be working (for example, Odysseus and Telemachus remove all the weapons in the palace the night before the contest), it requires patience before it can be fully executed. All the suitors first must try their hand at the contest (“there [are] more than a hundred of them”), and “the contest [lasts] all day” (162). Odysseus must be patient for his reward; he is on the verge of winning the final battle (the defeat of the suitors).

• Hubris is punished: The suitors are “outraged” that Odysseus the beggar wants to take a turn in the contest, and Odysseus must ignore their “jeers” as he strings the bow (162). The suitors falsely believe they deserve Penelope, and they falsely believe they are safe. They have no shame about how they have “dishonored [Odysseus’s] house and almost ruined Ithaca with [their] greed” (163). Their excessive pride in their superiority and lack of vulnerability results in their downfall.

• Hubris is dangerous: Odysseus knows that his son wants to prove himself and defend his father’s good name (by stringing the bow), but he knows that his son should not allow his pride to control him. If his pride controls him, Telemachus will make foolish decisions that might destroy their plan and cost them their lives. They cannot afford any mistakes if Odysseus is to succeed in reclaiming the kingdom. Odysseus learns this lesson from his experience with the Cyclops.

What is the final test, featured on pages 167–69, that Odysseus must pass on his journey?

• After Odysseus reveals himself to Penelope, she is not entirely convinced that he is her husband. She tells him that she will not sleep in the same bed as the “old beggar” until she is sure of his identity (166).

• She tells her maid, Eurycleia, to bring the great bed out of her bedroom. When Penelope gives this order, Odysseus responds, “Woman, what have you done? I built that bed around an ancient olive tree” (Cross 169). Odysseus and Penelope are the only ones who know this secret of the bed; his response is proof that Odysseus is who he says he is.

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What big ideas are emphasized in this final scene of the Return phase? How does the text support these ideas?

• Big ideas: the importance of perseverance and humility. Odysseus beats the suitors and reclaims his kingdom, but his wife is still not convinced that he is her husband. Odysseus must again have patience and pass an additional test if he is to win her heart and confidence, and he must show humility and not become upset that she initially rejects him.

• Big idea: the importance of perseverance. Likewise, Penelope continues to persevere. She does not give up her battle against people who might deceive her. She tells Odysseus, “I’ve been faithful to Odysseus for twenty years, and I’m not going to let an imposter deceive me” (168). Even though she wants desperately to believe that the old beggar is her husband, she makes sure to test him first before letting down her guard.

• Big idea: the importance of perseverance. The outcome of perseverance for both Penelope and Odysseus is pure “joy” (169). They have both suffered many hardships, but they never gave up on their dream of being reunited. They are equally emotional, Odysseus “almost in tears himself” (169).

• Big ideas: the importance of perseverance and humility. At the end, Odysseus lets Penelope know that he needs to undertake one more journey to live a peaceful life. He needs to continue to persevere through more hardship until he completes this final task (a sacrifice to Poseidon), and he needs to continue to embrace humility and accept that he is not in control: the gods are. Although she is disappointed, Penelope does not “waver” in her support for him (170).

How does this last test in Odysseus’s (and Penelope’s) journey—and the many other tests that come before it—help convey The Odyssey’s theme about arête? How does the text support this theme?

• A person’s arête is perfected through struggle. This last test emphasizes how much Odysseus has changed during the course of his journey, perfecting his arête through struggle and perseverance. When Penelope does not immediately embrace him after the suitors have been killed, he does not become upset because she hesitates. Instead, he “[stays] calm” because he knows that eventually she will recognize him (167).

• A person’s arête is perfected through struggle: Odysseus’s behavior shows that he is both “wise and patient,” qualities he develops while undertaking his lengthy journey (167). These traits make him a better leader, father, and husband than he was in the past. This change in Odysseus upgrades the “status quo” and transforms Odysseus’s ordinary world for the better.

• A person’s arête is perfected through struggle: Penelope has perfected her virtue through struggle. Her loyalty to Odysseus has never wavered, and she has relied upon her excellence in thinking—her cunning—to protect herself. Like Odysseus, she is patient, and she wants to make sure that the beggar is actually Odysseus. Her devotion, patience, and cunning pay off; she tests Odysseus in a way that proves his identity, and she succeeds in her twenty-year struggle to remain loyal until Odysseus’s return.

• A person who perfects his arête will be rewarded: When Odysseus passes Penelope’s test, he regains everything he fought for during his hero’s journey: the restoration of his kingdom and the reunification of his family. Odysseus and Penelope’s love has only been strengthened by his absence, seen when he tells her, “How faithful and true you are…how wise and beautiful. I am a happy man to come home to such a wife” (169).

• A person who perfects his arête will be rewarded: Throughout the journey, Odysseus has made it his mission to get back to Penelope, and it has caused him much suffering. His loving reunion with his wife is his ultimate triumph over suffering.

Socratic Seminar

• Which of the statements on Handout 10A captures one of the story’s big ideas, and which of these statements advances one the story’s themes? Explain your thinking.

• Big Idea: Intelligence is more important for a warrior to possess than strength. This idea is more specific to The Odyssey, not the human experience. It is a bit too narrow of an idea to turn into a larger truth about the human condition.

• Theme: Failure and struggle are necessary for a person to become great. This seems more like a theme that is developed throughout the whole story, and advanced by the actions of its hero, and speaks to a universal truth that most people would acknowledge.

• Which big ideas has emerged as a theme of the story? How might you phrase this theme as a statement?

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Open Ended

Exit Ticket-

What are the themes in The Odyssey?

Homework

1. Make sure you have completed TWO I-Ready lessons!