Understanding The Odyssey: A Student Casebook to Issues, Sources, and Historic Documents

by Claudia Durst Johnson, Vernon Johnson

Overview

For thousands of years, The Odyssey has resonated throughout the Western world. Homer has been an original source of inspiration to writers, painters, sculptors, and filmmakers, as well as a vital source of information about the mythology, history, and culture of ancient Greece. This casebook uniquely blends commentary and primary documents, situating the epic within historical contexts that are important for students to understand.

The literary analysis chapter is ideal for readers coming to The Odyssey for the first time, introducing the work with a chronology of events and identification of major characters and themes. Topical chapters carefully consider matters of mythology, geography, archeology, and class issues pertinent to The Odyssey. Excerpts from classical and scholarly sources, including Herodotus, Plato, Thucydides, and Bulfinch, help students understand the historical framework, and materials from government documents and newspaper accounts help students make connections betweenThe Odyssey's thematic ideas and current events, such as the September 11th attacks and the ongoing conflict in Ireland.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780313308819
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	06/30/2003
Series:	The Greenwood Press "Literature in Context" Series
Pages:	248
Product dimensions:	6.14(w) x 9.21(h) x 0.62(d)
Age Range:	14 - 17 Years

About the Author

CLAUDIA DURST JOHNSON, former chairperson of English at the University of Alabama, is currently a freelance scholar and writer in Berkeley, California. She is the author of books on American history and literature, as well as theater history. She is also series editor for Greenwood Press's Exploring Social Issues through Literature Series and the Literature in Context Series, for which she has authored several volumes including Understanding To Kill a Mockingbird and Understanding The Grapes of Wrath.

VERNON JOHNSON has wide experience as an author, theater director, and professor of world literature. He is co-author of Understanding The Crucible. He now resides in Berkeley, California, where he continues to write and teach.

Table of Contents

Introduction
A Literary Analysis of Homer's The Odyssey: Transformation and Returban
Greek Mythology and Homer
The Geography of The Odyssey
Summary of Archeological Excavations
The Historical Context of The Odyssey
The Trojan War Myth and Legend
Supporting Players in The Odyssey: The Underclasses
Contemporary Applications: The Problem of Revenge
Contemporary Applications: The Athlete and Athletics
Contemporary Applications: The Evolution of the Heroic Ideal
Index

Editorial Reviews

Gr 10 Up-Complementary aids to one of the West's foundational works. After an analysis of central themes, the Johnsons devote six chapters to context (mythology, geography, archaeology, history, the Trojan War, and the social structures of the Achaeans). They close by examining contemporary echoes of the issues of revenge, athletics, and the heroic ideal. Each chapter also includes relevant documents, projects or questions for exploration, and a bibliography. Little attention is paid to the Internet, and there are two abominable maps, but this is an intelligent and well-conceived book. Morrison takes readers book-by-book through the epic. Opening chapters discuss structure, the oral tradition, Homeric values, and history. The author's style is enthusiastic and takes a personal tone. The informative text and sidebars provide a wealth of information on literary form, themes, techniques, background, context, linguistic insights, and later influence. A few black-and-white pictures show Greek artworks or artifacts, and the three small maps are useful. Brief appendixes cover pronunciation, the literary legacy, further reading, online connections, and more. Although accessible and engaging rather than scholarly and exhaustive, Companion does go beyond the guides available online. Neither book ties itself to a single translation; both open the epic to first-time readers. If your budget will stretch to only one title, the Johnsons' volume is the one of choice. It will save students and teachers many hours because it gathers together excerpts from ancient and modern writers to expand the points at which readers might connect to this immortal epic.-Patricia D. Lothrop, St. George's School, Newport, RI Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

School Library Journal