Learning Unit Three-Will The Real Ulysses Please Stand Up?

Designed by Mary Ellen Minichiello

Milford, Ct

 

Introduction

 

Who is the man whom Ulysses S. Grant is named after? Why do poets allude to Ulysses(Roman name) or Odysseus(Greek name)in their poems about heroes? Why did Victorian poet Alfred Lord Tennyson use Ulysses as a subject and title of one of his most famous poems? Why would a modern rock star, Eric Clapton,(singing with the group, Cream) write a song called, "Tales of Brave Ulysses"? Would you want to be compared to this man and myth when the world remembers you and your life experiences?

 

Why is a man who leaves his wife for over 20 years be celebrated as a hero? Why would an individual who lies in order to not be drafted into the army be lauded as a hero?Why would a man who boasts of his strength and his distinguished name be remembered as a hero? Are these characteristics you admire?

Is Ulysses, the man and myth, a blend of our dreams, our hopes, and also our weaknesses? Could this be why we empathize with him and make him into our hero?

 

 

Instructional Goals

You will be reviewing the original myth of Odysseus and the character's exploits in Homer's The Odyssey. You will then look at the ways that his life has been interpreted by some writers since Ancient Greece. You will decide his important characteristics that mankind has always admired. You will also examine his weaknesses that are often ignored when writers allude to him and his travels. You will then decide why the character has become the popular hero of all generations, and whether or not he deserves to be.

Instructional Objectives

1. After reviewing the plot of Homer's The Odyssey, you will write a brief complimentary characerization of Odysseus, connecting his positive traits to his experiences in the epic poem.

2. After reading about Odysseus and his temporary reluctance to go to war, as well as ex-President Bill Clinton's letter explaining his resistance to the draft during the Vietnam War, you will write a persuasive essay defending or criticizing each leader for their actions.

3. After reading about Odysseus' relationships with Circe and Calypso, and reading about ex-President Clinton's relationship with Monica Lewinsky, you will imagine yourself a journalist. You will then write a newspaper article on a modern hypothetical character who has experienced the same life as Odysseus. He has recently been elected mayor of the city after being away from his family and home for twenty years. You will give the details about his life that you feel are relevant for the public to know about their municipal leader.

4. After reading the Victorian poem, "Ulysses" by Alfred Lord Tennyson, you will write a three paragraph essay explaining the reasons for the hero's discontent, the decision that he makes, and the theme that is implied in the last lines of the poem.

 

 

Learning Activity

 

Who is the original Ulysses? We have read excerpts from Homer's Odyssey, which tell the story of the Greek hero, Odysseus, and his 20 year voyage trying to reach his home, Ithaca, after the Trojan War. After the Romans conquered the Greek Empire, the names of the mythological characters were translated into Latin, and Odysseus became Ulysses. Homer's story remained the same, and the hero,Ulysses, continued to be regarded as a very noble, courageous man.

To learn more about Homer's original story of Ulysses, go to the following site:http://www.enl.umassd.edu/InteractiveCourse/Homer/homer.html

Task # 1: From your review of Homer's Odyssey, write a brief complimentary characterization of the Greek hero. In your opinion, what are the three most important positive traits of Odysseus? Give an example for each characteristic from the epic poem.

Below is the crititeria that I will use in evaluating your essay: 1. You will write a lucid third person essay defining the three most important traits of the Greek hero, Odysseus. 2. Your ideas will be supported by specific illustrations from the epic poem.

 

Are there less than desirable traits in Homer's Odysseus?

Thomas Bulfinch was an Americana writer of the 1800's. He had a classic education at Boston Latin School and Harvard University, and at the age of 59, he wrote his famous text on mythology. In Bulfinch's Mythology, he describes the background to the Trojan War. Bulfinch mentions an incident,which was originally found in Homer's The Iiad, involving Odysseus and his infant son, Telemachus. At the following site, read the chapter on the Trojan War until you have read about this incident: http://www.bulfinch.org/fables/bull27.html

Odysseus(Ulysses) could be considered a draft dodger in modern times,even though he eventually served in the Trojan War and became a hero. He attempted to deceive the government of Troy so that he would not have to leave his home to fight in the Trojan War. Ex-President Clinton opposed the Vietnam War, protested against the U.S. involvement in Vietnam, and was considered a draft dodger. Some Americans never forgave him for not serving his country. Others applauded his courage to take a stand for his beliefs. Read the following letter that Bill Clinton wrote in order to avoid the draft and instead to become an officer in the ROTC program at the University of Arkansas: http://warlady1.com/atomiclibsmasher/kosovo/dodger.html

Task #2 After reading Clinton's letter to Col. Eugene Holmes, do you think that Clinton should be judged harshly in his decision to resist the draft? In thinking about Odysseus' act of feigning madness, do you think that his reasons for avoiding war are respectable? Both men became leaders of their countries: Odysseus becomes King of Ithaca, and Clinton becomes President of the United States.Write a persuasive essay defending or criticizing each of the two leaders in their youthful protest of war. You may take two different stands, if you wish. Your thesis should refer to both of them.

Below is the criteria that I will use in evaluating your persuasive essay: 1. You have understood Clinton's rationale in his letter to Holmes and use it to support your idea. 2. You consider the circumstances of the Greek hero and compare them to the circumstances that Clinton was facing in the Vietnam War. You base your judgment on your interpretation of their dilemmas. 3. You write a lucid persuasive essay using information from the two sites to substantiate your opinion. Make certain that you focus on the topic at hand and not on other problems of either man. 4. Your thesis includes your opinion on the actions of each leader.

:

Do we have more understanding or less understanding of a hero through acknowledging their personal weaknesses? Do we come to empathize more with them because of their frailities? Or do we hold higher standards to them than to ourselves and judge them more harshly?

In Odysseus' adventures on his way home, he is helped along by some gods and characters, and impeded by others. Two women who stop him from returning home temporarily and eventually help him are Circe and Calypso. While he is living with each of these women for years, his wife, Penelope, is waiting back home patiently and faithfully for him, refusing to take on a suitor. Go back to the original website and familiarize yourself with these three female characters(Circe, Calypso, Penelope) from The Odyssey://www.enl.umassd.edu/InteractiveCourse/Homer/homer.html

Does Odysseus try to return home as expeditiously as possible? Is he as faithful to his wife as his wife in Ithaca is to him ? Is this problem a significant one for us to consider when we think of a man as a hero? Should the private actions of leaders be taken into consideration when we are judging them as leaders(or ultimately heroes)?

Task #3 Ex-President Clinton will be remembered for more than his accomplishments as President of the United States. He will also be remembered for his extra-marital affairs, particularly the affair with Monica Lewinsky. Go to the following site to read about the scandal in The Columbia Encyclopedia: http://www.bartleby.com/65/le/Lewinsky.html Decide whether or not you think that the American public judged President Clinton unfairly by focusing on his personal life. Consider how long a period of time Odysseus spent with Circe and then with Calypso. Most writers emphasize the idea that Odysseus eventually pleads for help from the gods to return home. Yet, he doesn't plead for help immediately. Yet, what is important about Odysseus is that he eventually makes it home to his family after 20 years of frustrating but exciting adventures. Will Bill Clinton be judged differently once time passes, and he settles into a more mundane life? You are to imagine yourself a modern journalist who is covering the story of a war hero, Odysseus, who is returning home to Ithaca, New York, after 20 years. He left his family, unwillingly at first, to fight in a major war in another country. He returns home a hero and immediately runs for the mayor of the city and wins by a landslide. You decide to interview him and dig into his background in order to find out where he was and who he was for the last 20 years. Write a feature on Odysseus, describing him factually and emphasizing what you think is significant for the reader to know about the new mayor. Remember that you have to use facts; don't give your opinion on him since you are a journalist and are supposed to be objective. Your opening paragraph or lead should answer the questions who, what, why, where, how, and when. For information on how to write an article for a paper, go to the following site and click on newsroom: http://soe.kean.edu/~scarty/

Below is the critieria that I will use in evaluating your newspaper article: 1. You will write a factual, objective article on Odysseus based on what you know about his journey from the war to his home. What is important to understand is that you as the journalist decide what is and what is not important information to include for your readers. You are judging Odysseus, but you are not expressing your feelings with words but with what you include and what you omit from his entire story. 2. You will begin with a lead answering the above questions about your subject.

 

 

Once Odysseus(Ulysses) returns home, what is the rest of his life like? Homer ends with him fighting the suitors alongside his son and becoming once again, the King of Ithaca. Although his dog dies after recognizing him, he appears to be warmly greeted by his family and citizens of Ithaca. In the 1800's, Alfred Lord Tennyson wrote a poem entitled "Ulysses", which imagines what Ulysses was thinking about once he returned home from all of his adventures. This type of poem where the poet writes the poem as a person speaking outloud to others is called an interior monologue. Go to the following site and read the poem: http://dandalf.com/dandalf/ulysses.html

 

Task #4 You will write a three paragraph essay on the poem, "Ulysses". In Tennyson's poem, the hero speaks about how he feels after returning home; he is unhappy with his new life in Ithaca. Look carefully at the poem and decide why he is miserable at home. Then, explain what action he intends to take. Finally, paraphrase the last lines beginning with "Though much is taken, much abides..." These lines give the overall theme to this poem and explain why Tennyson sees Ulysses as a hero, despite the fact that he is disgruntled with his life at home with his wife.

Below is the criteria that I will use in evaluating your essay: 1. You will write the first paragraph explaining why Ulysses is unhappy with his return to Ithaca. Give illustrations from the poem. 2. You will write the second paragraph explaining what Ulysses decides to do in his dilemma. Cite lines that substantiate your viewpoint. 3. You will write you third paragraph on the last lines of the poem. In paraphrasing them, explain how these lines illustrate the heroic quality in Tennyson's Ulysses.

 

The youthful yearning for adventure; the fascination, temptations, and curiosity of the unknown; and the eventual settling down in later life mark the journey of Ulysses as well as of many individuals. We emulate and criticize human beings, while we read about their mythical rolemodels in literature. Are we too harsh on ourselves or too easy on fictitious characters? Should their lives only be what we dream about, not what we act upon? Think about this as you read the song by the British rock group, Cream, entitled "Brave Ulysses" at the following site: http://www.gunther.simplenet.com/v/data/talesofb.htm At this point, you are ready to understand any new allusions to the mythical hero, so keep alert for future references to both Ulysses and Odysseus! Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

Assessment

(Design an assessment for each activity. Set up a separate file for the assessment. lu1assess.html. The file will be linked to the Assessment button at the menu bar.)