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Myth Close Reading and Explication Handout: Merwin’s “Odysseus” __**Background and Synopsis**__ : 1. Odysseus : 2. The Odyssey Summary: __**Structure**__**:** 1. This poem lacks any rigid rhyme scheme or meter. Rather, Merwin prefers slant rhymes. It loosely follows iambic pentameter form, and it occasionally has rhyming couplets. This disorganized structure may allude to Odysseus’s long, inconsistent journey back to Ithaca. (See “Sense” section for examples of this rhyme scheme.) 2. The latter half of the poem has more rhyming couplets, which increase the intensity and poignancy of the last few lines. __**Sense**__ : 1. “Same sea, same dangers waiting for him As though he had got nowhere but older” - Odysseus was famous for his heroic prowess and adventures, but here we can see that these adventures provided little peace of mind as he is described as only becoming older 2. “The identical reproaches, and somewhere Out before him, the unraveling patience He was wedded to…” - There is a sense of alienation here from the people he leaves behind on the “receding shore,” but there is someone or something on his journeys to which he is wedded. 3. Odysseus is known for being a womanizer and having many relationships with women other than his wife, Penelope, notably Calypso and Circe. The fact that he always betrays women explains the reproaches he received and the twining welcomes he received from women. In the end, he seems to return to the woman who wishes him perils perhaps out of his guilt for being a Casanova.
 * Legendary Greek king of Ithaca and the hero of Homer's epic poem
 * Heroic trait is his //mētis//, or "cunning intelligence"
 * He uses disguises and deceptive speech. He told Polyphemus the Cyclops that his name was “nobody” then stabbed him in the eye. When the other cyclopses asked him who hurt him he said “nobody”, and Odysseus escaped.
 * His main character flaw is arrogance and his pride, or hubris.
 * Odysseus sets out for Troy to fight a war which he doesn’t care for.
 * After the war the beautiful nymph Calypso, possessed by love for Odysseus, has imprisoned him on her island, Ogygia.
 * A bunch of suitors are back in Odysseus’s home town are trying to marry his wife. The suitors plan to kill Odysseus when he gets back.
 * Zeus helps Odysseus escape the island, but Poseidon tries to wreck his ship because he’s bitter that he stabbed his Cyclops son Polyphemus in the eye. Athena saves him from the storm.
 * He returns to Ithaca disguised as a bum. In order to win back his wife from the suitors, he wins a competition that required him to shoot his bow and arrow through 12 axes. After the competition he shoots all of the suitors.
 * Rhyme scheme: AABBCDEFFGGHHIJKK