Lessons to Learn in Homer's The Odyssey

A Lesson Plan for Making Real World Connections with Homer’s Classic

Oct 20, 2008

Teaching The Odyssey to students can be overwhelming. How can you teach a classic epic poem with glorious language and texture and somehow make modern students care?

Students can create Odyssey board games and watch the film for visual appreciation, but ultimately, you have to read it together. Making real world connections to The Odyssey will enable students to connect on a personal level and to understand how literary pieces transcend from paper to symbolize life.

Explain to students that while The Odyssey is a mythological epic poem set in Ancient Greece after the Trojan War, tracking the hero Odysseus on his 10 year lost adventures, the epic poem also represents any human’s journey through life.

Have them keep a journey chart tracking Odysseus’ s adventures. For each adventure, have them list the main events. Then, have them make a real world connection. The main adventures in chronological order (not in medias res) are: Cicones, Land of the Lotus Eaters, Cyclops, Aeolus, Laestrygonians, Circe’s Island, Underworld, Sirens, Scylla & Charybdis, Island of the Sun God (cattle), Calypso, King Alcinous’s island, Ithaca.

Now have students connect to the lessons Odysseus and others should have learned throughout his adventures and have them apply it to their own lives.

Connecting to the Cyclops

For example, after reading the Cyclops adventure, state the obvious. Ask students, “Are you ever going to meet a cyclops in your life?” Of course not. But then ask, “Will you ever run into people who live lawless lives, who beat their wives and children, and who won’t listen to reason?” Now, they will connect the description of the cyclops with the real world. How do you interact with lawless people? Do you keep your distance, or do you try to be neighborly?

In the same adventure, Odysseus also taunts the cyclops with his victory. Discuss how boasting of one’s success can backfire.

Connecting to The Land of the Lotus Eaters

The Land of the Lotus Eaters is a clear warning against drug use. Do you want to forget your goals in life and live clueless and happy? What if your friends take drugs and forget their goals? Can you reason with friends on drugs? Should you leave friends behind and follow your goals?

Connecting to Circe’s Island

Circe seduces men with her charms and turns them to swine. Odysseus doesn’t want to cheat on Penelope, but he wants his crew back. At Circe’s island, Odysseus shows his willingness to help his crew. Sometimes to help others you must sacrifice yourself.

Of course, Circe also represents temptation and infidelity. Will you someday be tempted to cheat on a spouse? Perhaps. But this overlooks the finer details of Circe’s island. Besides, if it’s all about cheating, then the men should stay pigs….

Connecting to The Underworld

The Land of the Dead represents mortality. Every person must be brave enough to face death before they are actually ready to die. To travel to the underworld and back shows an acceptance of the inevitable and a willingness to change one’s life based on new information. It also shows respect for the past and those that have lost their lives, especially the loss of friends and a parent.

Connecting to Calypso’s Island

Calypso, the Concealer, represents hiding. Odysseus could easily stay here forever and become immortal. It’s a great rest after a long journey. But it’s not his ultimate goal. If Odysseus stays complacent with life on Calypso’s island, he will never reach his goal of returning home.

Many people become complacent on their journey through life, forgetting their childhood dreams and giving up because they are tired. Life becomes good enough, but not as great as it could have been.

Connecting to Ithaca

Once in Ithaca, have students think about the various relationships in Ithaca: mother/son, father/son, husband/wife, father/father, man/dog, wife/suitors, soldier/returning home. What is the likelihood that you will see one of your parents get remarried? Would you feel frustrated like Telemachus? How would you deal with unwelcome guests? Could you have the patience, loyalty, and faithfulness of Penelope? How do soldiers return home to their families? Is it an easy transition?

Most of all, The Odyssey teaches students the importance of family as a motivating factor through life. It’s not about the adventure; it’s about finding one’s self and finding one’s home.

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