- In Homer S Odyssey After Odysseus Blinds Polyphemus The Cyclops And Escapes He Taunts Him By Saying So Cyclops I 1 (181.14 KiB) Viewed 128 times
In Homer's Odyssey, after Odysseus blinds Polyphemus, the Cyclops, and escapes, he taunts him by saying, "So, Cyclops, it turns out it wasn't a coward / Whose men you murdered and ate in your cave, / You savage! But you got yours in the end, / Didn't you? You had the gall to eat the guests/ in your own house, and Zeus made you pay for it," (Book 9, lines 475-479). Polyphemus's response, once he learns of Odysseus's identity, is a prayer to Poseidon Hear me, Poseidon, blue-maned Earth Holder, If you are the father you claim to be, Grant that Odysseus, son of Laertes, May never reach his home on Ithaca. But if he is fated to see his family again, And return home to his home and own native land May he come home late, having lost all companions, In another's ship, and find trouble at home. (Book 9, lines 526-533) What does this exchange show about how the ancient Greeks viewed the gods? (Note: The quotes are taken from the Stanley Lombardo translation in the shorter third edition of the Norton Anthology, which is the same as the PDF handout The Emily Wilson translation in the shorter fourth edition is slightly different, but the book and line numbers are the same). To receive full credit (5 points) for each discussion board, all of the fritlanin mount hn nahininn. c w