Before Reading

1.  What qualities do you associate with a hero? Must a hero be morally admirable? 
2.  What makes a place feel like home? 
3.  Why might a story about returning home after a war be as important as a story about the war itself? 
4.  What responsibilities does a leader have when other people’s lives depend upon his or her decisions? 
5.  Can deception ever be admirable or necessary? 
6.  What do people owe to strangers? 

Books I–IV: Telemachus and Ithaca

1.  Why might Homer begin The Odyssey with Telemachus rather than Odysseus? 
2.  What has happened to Odysseus’ household during his absence? 
3.  Why has Telemachus been unable to stop the suitors? 
4.  What does Athena encourage Telemachus to do? 
5.  How does Telemachus behave differently after Athena’s visit? 
6.  What do the suitors reveal about themselves through their behavior as guests? 
7.  What does Telemachus hope to learn by traveling to Pylos and Sparta? 
8.  How do Nestor and Menelaus provide different models of leadership and homecoming? 
9.  What does Helen’s presence in Sparta remind readers about the Trojan War? 
10.  Is Telemachus’ journey primarily a search for his father, or is it also a journey toward adulthood? 

Books V–VIII: Odysseus Returns to the Story

1.  Why does Odysseus want to leave Calypso even though she offers him comfort and security? 
2.  What does Odysseus’ choice of Ithaca over Calypso suggest about the value of mortal life? 
3.  How does Poseidon affect Odysseus’ journey? 
4.  What does Odysseus’ encounter with Nausicaa reveal about his ability to judge a difficult situation? 
5.  Why does Odysseus approach Nausicaa carefully rather than simply asking directly for what he needs? 
6.  What makes the Phaeacians good hosts? 
7.  Why does Odysseus initially conceal his identity? 
8.  What happens when Demodocus sings about the Trojan War? 
9.  Why might Odysseus be moved to tears by stories about events in which he himself participated? 
10.  What does the Phaeacian episode suggest about the power of storytelling? 

Book IX: The Cyclops

1.  Why does Odysseus enter Polyphemus’ cave rather than leaving after taking food? 
2.  Is curiosity one of Odysseus’ strengths, one of his weaknesses, or both? 
3.  How does Polyphemus violate the expectations of hospitality? 
4.  Why is the name “Nobody” such an effective part of Odysseus’ plan? 
5.  What qualities allow Odysseus to escape from the Cyclops? 
6.  Why does Odysseus reveal his real name after escaping? 
7.  What does that decision reveal about him? 
8.  Does Odysseus’ final boast lessen the importance of his earlier cleverness? 
9.  Who bears responsibility for Poseidon’s anger? 
10.  Is the Cyclops episode ultimately a victory for Odysseus? 

Book X: Aeolus, the Laestrygonians, and Circe

1.  Why do Odysseus’ men open the bag given to him by Aeolus? 
2.  What does the episode suggest about trust between Odysseus and his crew? 
3.  Why does Aeolus refuse to help Odysseus a second time? 
4.  How does the encounter with the Laestrygonians change the scale of Odysseus’ losses? 
5.  What makes Circe dangerous? 
6.  Why is Odysseus able to resist Circe when his men cannot? 
7.  How does Circe change from an enemy into a helper? 
8.  Why might Odysseus and his men remain with Circe for so long when their stated goal is to return home? 

Book XI: The Land of the Dead

1.  Why must Odysseus travel to the world of the dead? 
2.  What does his meeting with his mother reveal about the cost of his long absence? 
3.  What does Agamemnon’s story teach Odysseus about homecoming? 
4.  How does Achilles describe life among the dead? 
5.  Does Achilles’ attitude challenge traditional ideas about heroic glory? 
6.  Why does Ajax refuse to speak to Odysseus? 
7.  What does the underworld episode add to a poem otherwise filled with adventure and travel? 
8.  How might Odysseus be changed by confronting so many people who have died? 

Book XII: The Sirens, Scylla and Charybdis, and the Cattle of the Sun

1.  Why does Odysseus want to hear the Sirens? 
2.  What does his plan for hearing them safely reveal about his character? 
3.  Why does Odysseus withhold some information from his crew before passing Scylla? 
4.  Is it ever acceptable for a leader to conceal information from those he leads? 
5.  Does Odysseus make the right choice between Scylla and Charybdis? 
6.  What should a leader do when every available choice will cause harm? 
7.  Why do Odysseus’ men kill the cattle of the Sun even after being warned? 
8.  How much responsibility does Odysseus bear for what happens to his crew? 
9.  By the end of Book XII, why is Odysseus the only survivor? 

Books XIII–XVI: The Return to Ithaca

1.  Why does Athena disguise Odysseus after he finally reaches Ithaca? 
2.  Why does Odysseus continue inventing stories even after reaching home? 
3.  What does his reception by Eumaeus reveal about Eumaeus? 
4.  Why is hospitality especially important when Odysseus appears to be a powerless beggar? 
5.  How does Odysseus test Eumaeus’ loyalty? 
6.  Why does Athena reveal Odysseus to Telemachus? 
7.  How does Telemachus initially react to the revelation? 
8.  What has changed in Telemachus since the beginning of the poem? 
9.  How are father and son alike? 
10.  What must Odysseus accomplish before he can openly reclaim his household? 

Books XVII–XX: Odysseus in His Own Palace

1.  Why is it important that Odysseus enters his own palace as a beggar? 
2.  What do the suitors reveal about themselves through the way they treat him? 
3.  Why is Argos able to recognize Odysseus when so many humans cannot? 
4.  What makes the scene with Argos so powerful despite its brevity? 
5.  Why does Odysseus tolerate insults rather than immediately revealing himself? 
6.  What does his restraint show about how he has changed? 
7.  How does Penelope respond to the stranger in her household? 
8.  Why does Odysseus continue deceiving Penelope? 
9.  What causes Eurycleia to recognize Odysseus? 
10.  Why must Odysseus prevent Eurycleia from revealing his identity? 
11.  What does the scar suggest about the relationship between memory, the body, and identity? 

Book XXI: The Bow

1.  Why does Penelope choose the bow as the basis of the contest? 
2.  What does the bow represent beyond physical strength? 
3.  Why are the suitors unable to use it successfully? 
4.  How do the suitors react when the disguised Odysseus asks to try? 
5.  What does their reaction reveal about assumptions based on appearance and social status? 
6.  Why is the moment when Odysseus strings the bow such an effective recognition of identity even before he announces who he is? 

Book XXII: The Suitors

1.  How does the mood of the poem change when Odysseus reveals himself? 
2.  Why does Odysseus refuse Eurymachus’ attempt to negotiate? 
3.  Have the suitors received enough warnings before this point? 
4.  Are all the suitors equally guilty? 
5.  Is Odysseus carrying out justice, revenge, or both? 
6.  Does the punishment fit the offenses committed? 
7.  How should modern readers approach actions that the poem appears to regard differently from the way we might? 
8.  Does the violence restore order, or does it create another problem that must still be resolved? 

Book XXIII: Penelope and Odysseus

1.  Why does Penelope refuse to accept Odysseus immediately? 
2.  Why might her caution be reasonable after twenty years? 
3.  What is the purpose of Penelope’s test involving the marriage bed? 
4.  Why does Odysseus react so strongly when she suggests moving the bed? 
5.  What does the bed symbolize? 
6.  How does Penelope demonstrate qualities similar to Odysseus’ own? 
7.  Who is testing whom in this scene? 
8.  Why is shared knowledge more convincing to Penelope than physical appearance? 

Book XXIV: Ending the Poem

1.  Why does the poem continue after Odysseus and Penelope are reunited? 
2.  Why is Odysseus’ reunion with Laertes important? 
3.  What problems remain after the suitors have been killed? 
4.  Why do the suitors’ families seek revenge? 
5.  What role does Athena play in ending the conflict? 
6.  Has peace truly been restored to Ithaca? 
7.  Why might Homer end with the restoration of social order rather than simply the reunion of husband and wife? 

Questions About Odysseus

1.  What is Odysseus’ greatest strength? 
2.  What is his greatest weakness? 
3.  Is Odysseus a good leader? 
4.  When does his intelligence become deception? 
5.  When does his confidence become pride? 
6.  Does Odysseus change during his journey? 
7.  What does he learn, if anything, from the loss of his crew? 
8.  Why is self-control increasingly important once he reaches Ithaca? 
9.  Is the Odysseus who returns home the same man who left Troy? 
10.  Does Odysseus deserve to be called a hero? 

Questions About Penelope

1.  How does Penelope protect herself and her household during Odysseus’ absence? 
2.  Why is the weaving scheme important? 
3.  In what ways does Penelope use intelligence rather than power? 
4.  Why does she repeatedly test information before accepting it? 
5.  How are Penelope and Odysseus alike? 
6.  Is Penelope simply waiting for events to happen, or is she actively shaping them? 
7.  Why is she the final person in the household to accept Odysseus’ identity? 
8.  What does her caution tell us about the effects of twenty years of uncertainty? 

Questions About Telemachus

1.  How would you describe Telemachus in Book I? 
2.  What does Athena see in him that he may not yet see in himself? 
3.  Why does he need to leave Ithaca? 
4.  What does he learn from Nestor and Menelaus? 
5.  How does his attitude toward the suitors change? 
6.  How does his relationship with Penelope change? 
7.  What does he learn from Odysseus? 
8.  At what point does Telemachus become an adult? 
9.  Is his journey as important to the poem as Odysseus’? 

Questions About Major Themes

Questions for the Whole Poem

1.  Why does Homer tell the story out of chronological order? 
2.  Why does Odysseus not appear until Book V? 
3.  Which episode reveals the most about Odysseus’ character? 
4.  Which character changes most during the poem? 
5.  Who displays the greatest intelligence? 
6.  Who displays the greatest loyalty? 
7.  What is the most serious mistake Odysseus makes? 
8.  Which character best represents the poem’s ideal of hospitality? 
9.  How does The Odyssey define civilization? 
10.  What does the poem suggest about the relationship between appearance and reality? 
11.  Why are stories and storytelling so important? 
12.  Does Odysseus control his fate, or respond to circumstances beyond his control? 
13.  What makes Penelope a fitting partner for Odysseus? 
14.  Is Telemachus’ story necessary to the poem? 
15.  What does Odysseus recover when he returns to Ithaca besides his kingdom? 
16.  Is the ending satisfying? Why or why not? 
17.  What does The Odyssey suggest is worth struggling to return to? 
18.  Which question raised by the poem still seems most relevant today? 

Questions for a Final Discussion