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The Odyssey

Total questions: 21

Worksheet time: 17mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

How does Athena keep the city's people from recognizing Odysseus?

a)

Makes all the other men blind

b)

Surrounds him in mist

c)

Gives him a clever disguise

d)

Renders him invisible

2.

What disguise does Athena put on to lead Odysseus to the palace?

a)

an old man

b)

a large sheep

c)

a little girl

d)

a beautiful woman

3.

King Alcinous is the grandchild of which god?

a)

Zeus

b)

Poseidon

c)

Hermes

d)

Athena

4.

How does the king and the rest of the city think of the queen, Arete?

a)

That she is beautiful and wise

b)

That she is a temptress of all men

c)

That she is overbearing and harsh

d)

That she doesn't deserve the throne

5.

Odysseus finds King Alcinous' palace is:

a)

in ruins and ashes

b)

dazzling and filled with dazzling people

c)

massive and forbidding

d)

gaudy and overdone

6.

Outside the gates of the palace is:

a)

A splendid orchard of various abundant fruit

b)

A wide moat filled with rare sea creatures

c)

A darkened forest made up of impressive fir trees

d)

A finely-crafted stable containing magnificent horses

7.

The first thing Odysseus does when he sees the king and queen is:

a)

Throw himself at the feet of the queen, begging forgiveness

b)

Fire an arrow into the nearest target to show his strength

c)

Takes the king's hand and tell him how much he admires the palace

d)

Stand in front of them and announce that he is the son of good Laertes

8.

Odysseus asks King Alcinous to give him:

a)

A sheep to sacrifice

b)

Passage home

c)

A gold-tipped spear

d)

His daughter, as a second wife

9.

After everyone has left the feast for the night, Queen Arete asks Odysseus for his story because:

a)

She sees his many scars

b)

She sees he is wearing clothes that belong to them

c)

She sees a sign in the clouds

d)

She sees when people are lying

10.

Odysseus' story to the king and queen included all of the following EXCEPT:

a)

His gloried at Troy

b)

His time with Calyso

c)

His harrowing journey to reach their island

d)

How their daughter helped him

11.

King Alcinous is angry, briefly that his daughter:

a)

did not escort Odysseus home herself

b)

did not give Odysseus food to eat

c)

did not warn them about the impending visitor

d)

did not give Odysseus her horse

12.

King Alcinous offers, if Odysseus wants to stay:

a)

his daughter in marriage

b)

a whole army to command

c)

a right-hand position in his sentry

d)

immortality

13.

If Odysseus wants to leave, however, King Alcinous offers:

a)

his men to row him home

b)

a chariot and horses

c)

a blessing from Hermes

d)

a specially formed shield

14.

Near the end of the book, Odysseus praises Zeus for:

a)

giving him sleep

b)

keeping his promise

c)

making him strong

d)

sending him Athena

15.

This quote is said about King Alcinous:

a)

"they obeyed him like a god"

b)

"never suffers strangers gladly"

c)

"how long I have suffered"

d)

"lacks nothing in good sense and judgment"

16.

Why did Athena disguise Odysseus as he made his way to the palace of Alcinous?

a)

so he wouldn‟t be pursued by women who are attracted to his godlike qualities

b)

so he wouldn‟t be recognized by Poseidon‟s spies in Phaeacia

c)

so he wouldn‟t frighten the Phaeacians and ruin his chances of seeing the queen

d)

so he wouldn‟t be harassed by the xenophobic Phaeacians

17.

Why did Alcinous think that Odysseus was a god?

a)

Nausicaa intentionally dressed Odysseus as a god

b)

Nausicaa forewarned her father of the strange man‟s arrival.

c)

Athena shed a golden grace upon Odysseus.

d)

Odysseus suddenly appeared at Arete‟s feet

18.

What prompted Arete to question where Odysseus came from?

a)

Athena put it in her mind to begin questioning Odysseus

b)

She recognized the mantle and tunic Odysseus was wearing.

c)

He reminded her of Agamemnon, who stayed at her palace after the Trojan War

d)

She was assessing him as a possible husband for Nausicaa.

19.

How did Odysseus assure Alcinous that Nausicaa should not be reprimanded for not escorting him to the palace

a)

Odysseus claimed that he convinced Nausicaa to maintain her reputation and honor

b)

Odysseus explained that Athena made him invisible to Nausicaa

c)

Odysseus declared that he refused out of fear of making Alcinous angry

d)

Odysseus expressed regret for not accepting Nausicaa‟s invitation to be accompanied

20.

Why does Homer include a song about the tryst between Ares and Aphrodite?

a)

It alludes to the day when Odysseus, like Hephaestus, will retaliate against those who have tried to steal his wife.

b)

It provides a backdrop for Demodocus the bard to showcase his skills as a reflection of Homer‟s own poetic skills.

c)

It draws the audience‟s attention away from Odysseus‟s troubles and acts as an interlude

d)

It foreshadows the story Odysseus is about to tell skillfully in comparison with Demodocus‟s lyric skills.

21.

What prompted Alcinous to finally ask Odysseus who he was?

a)

Alcinous wanted Odysseus to marry his daughter

b)

Arete became impatient and pushed Alcinous to ask.

c)

Odysseus began to weep at Demodocus‟s song.

d)

Nausicaa whispered to Alcinous her suspicions of Odysseus‟s identity.