The Odyssey: Books 1-6

THE ODYSSEY

Books 1-6

Objectives

By the end of the lesson, the student will be able to:

• Identify key characters and conflicts introduced in Books 1–6.
• Explain how the gods influence events in the story.
• Analyze how the graphic novel format (panels, images, color, layout) helps communicate theme and characterization.

Warm Up

Imagine your parent or guardian has been gone for 20 years, and strangers have taken over your home.

• How would you feel?
• What would you do about it?

Books 1-6: A Recap

Book 1 – "Ithaca and Olympus" The story opens on Mount Olympus, where Athena pleads with Zeus to finally let Odysseus return home. He has been trapped on the island of the nymph Calypso for years while, back in Ithaca, a mob of arrogant suitors overruns his palace, pressuring his faithful wife Penelope to remarry. Athena travels to Ithaca in disguise and encourages Odysseus's young son Telemachus to stand up to the suitors and go searching for news of his father. Book 2 – "Counsel" Telemachus calls a public assembly and boldly confronts the suitors, but they mock him and refuse to leave. Undeterred, and with Athena's continued help (disguised as his advisor Mentor), he secretly sets sail that night with a small crew to seek word of Odysseus.

Books 1-6: A Recap

Book 3 – "Pylos" Telemachus arrives at Pylos and is welcomed by the elder king Nestor, a veteran of the Trojan War. Nestor has no news of Odysseus but advises Telemachus to continue on to Sparta, where King Menelaus may know more. When Mentor departs by transforming into an eagle, Nestor realizes Athena has been walking among them. Book 4 – "Sparta" In Sparta, Menelaus and his queen Helen receive Telemachus warmly. Menelaus reveals that he heard from the sea god Proteus that Odysseus is alive but stranded on Calypso's island. Meanwhile, the suitors back in Ithaca learn of Telemachus's voyage and plot to ambush and kill him on his return.

Books 1-6: A Recap

Book 5 – "Calypso and Poseidon" Hermes, sent by Zeus, travels to Calypso's island and orders her to release Odysseus. Though she reluctantly agrees, Poseidon — still furious at Odysseus for blinding his son the Cyclops — spots him at sea and sends a catastrophic storm that wrecks his raft. Odysseus barely survives, washing ashore on the island of the Phaeacians, the people of King Alcinous. Book 6 – "Nausicaa" Athena guides the Phaeacian princess Nausicaa to the beach, where she and her handmaidens find the exhausted, shipwrecked Odysseus. Nausicaa treats him kindly and directs him toward the palace of her parents, advising him how to win the favor of her mother, Queen Arete, setting the stage for Odysseus to finally tell his story.

MAJOR CHARACTERS

Odysseus

Telemachus

Penelope

Athena

The Suitors

Nausicaa

Key Concepts in Books 1-6

The role of the gods in Greek epics

Hospitality (xenia) as an important Greek value

The coming-of-age journey of Telemachus

Why might Athena help Telemachus instead of solving the problem herself?

Passage 1: Athena Visits Telemachus (Book 1)

Panel Moment: Athena disguised as Mentor encouraging Telemachus to take action.

• What emotions do you see in Telemachus’s body language?

• How does the artwork show Athena’s wisdom or authority?

• Why is this moment important for Telemachus’s growth?

Passage 2: Telemachus Confronts the Suitors (Book 2)

Panel Moment: Telemachus publicly speaking against the suitors.

• What does this moment show about Telemachus compared to earlier scenes?
• How do the suitors react in the panels?
• What visual clues show tension in the scene?

Passage 3: Telemachus Visits Nestor (Book 3)

Panel Moment: Nestor describing the aftermath of the Trojan War.

• What does Telemachus learn about his father?
• How does the setting contribute to the feeling of history and tradition?
• Why might this visit be important for Telemachus personally?

Passage 4: Odysseus Meets Nausicaa (Book 6)

Panel Moment: Odysseus emerging from the bushes after the shipwreck.

• How does the artwork portray Odysseus’s condition?
• How does Nausicaa react differently than the other girls?
• What does this moment show about Greek ideas of hospitality?

Discussion Questions

• Why does the story begin with Telemachus instead of Odysseus?
• What qualities make a good leader in this story?

• How do the gods influence human decisions?

Homework Assignment

Reading Response (1 paragraph): Choose one important panel from Books 1–6 and explain:

• What is happening in the scene
• What the artwork shows that the text alone might not
• Why the moment is important to the story

Exit Ticket

In 3–4 sentences, answer:

• What is one way Telemachus changes in Books 1–6?
• How do the gods influence events in the story so far?
• Write your answers in the chat!

READ BOOKS 7-12

• A model of loyalty and cunning, Penelope has spent years resisting the suitors' relentless pressure to remarry, famously stalling them with the trick of weaving and unraveling a funeral shroud each night — her quiet cleverness serving as a feminine counterpart to her husband's famous craftiness.
• Largely powerless yet central to the story, Penelope is the prize the suitors are fighting over and the reason Odysseus is desperate to return home; her grief, patience, and endurance hold the household of Ithaca together in the long years of her husband's absence.

• Odysseus's divine champion, Athena is the driving force behind much of the plot — it is her appeal to Zeus on Olympus that sets the whole story in motion, and she repeatedly intervenes on behalf of both Odysseus and Telemachus, appearing in disguise, smoothing their paths, and protecting them from harm.
• Goddess of wisdom and strategy, her patronage of Odysseus is no accident — she favors him precisely because he thinks like she does, relying on cleverness and cunning over brute strength, and her guidance of Telemachus reflects her belief that the son has the same potential for greatness as his father.

• A model of loyalty and cunning, Penelope has spent years resisting the suitors' relentless pressure to remarry, famously stalling them with the trick of weaving and unraveling a funeral shroud each night — her quiet cleverness serving as a feminine counterpart to her husband's famous craftiness.
• Largely powerless yet central to the story, Penelope is the prize the suitors are fighting over and the reason Odysseus is desperate to return home; her grief, patience, and endurance hold the household of Ithaca together in the long years of her husband's absence.

• Son of Odysseus and Penelope, Telemachus grows from a passive, grieving boy into a young man of action across the early books — goaded by Athena, he boldly confronts the suitors in assembly and sets off on his own dangerous sea voyage to find news of his long-missing father.
• His journey mirrors his father's, as both are tests of courage, cunning, and identity; by the time he returns to Ithaca, Telemachus has gained the confidence and maturity that will make him a worthy ally when Odysseus finally comes home to reclaim his kingdom.

At the start of the epic, Telemachus is passive and uncertain — a boy overshadowed by a legendary absent father, unable to control his own household or command respect from the suitors who have overtaken it. He is defined almost entirely by loss and helplessness. His sea voyage changes that. Traveling to Pylos and Sparta, meeting great men like Nestor and Menelaus, and navigating the adult world on his own terms, Telemachus gradually discovers his own voice and capability. Each encounter asks something more of him, and he rises to meet it. By the time he returns to Ithaca, he is no longer just Odysseus's son — he is a young man in his own right, capable of keeping secrets, defying the suitors, and standing beside his father when it matters most. His journey is in many ways the emotional heart of the early books, a classic coming-of-age arc embedded within a much grander adventure.

Athena, the goddess of wisdom, disguises herself as Mentes, an old friend of Odysseus. She arrives at Odysseus’s palace in Ithaca, where Telemachus is struggling with the situation in his home. At this point in the story:

• Odysseus has been gone for nearly 20 years.
• A group of arrogant men called the suitors are living in the palace.
• The suitors are eating Odysseus’s food, drinking his wine, and pressuring Penelope to marry one of them.
• Telemachus feels frustrated and powerless.

• A symbol of disorder and disrespect, the suitors have invaded Odysseus's palace, feasting on his wealth, harassing Penelope, and dismissing Telemachus — their arrogance and greed representing everything that has gone wrong in Ithaca during the long years of its king's absence.
• Their refusal to heed warnings seals their fate, even when Telemachus confronts them in assembly and an ominous omen appears foretelling their deaths, the suitors mock and ignore it — their hubris marking them as men who have overstepped the sacred laws of hospitality and will ultimately pay a deadly price for it.

• Telemachus and Athena (still disguised as Mentor) arrive in Pylos.
• They find Nestor performing a sacrifice to Poseidon with his people.
• Nestor welcomes them and demonstrates strong hospitality (xenia).
• During the conversation, Nestor describes what happened after the Trojan War, including:
• Disagreements among the Greek leaders
• The difficult journeys home for many warriors
• News about Agamemnon’s murder by Aegisthus

• Nestor does not know Odysseus’s fate, but he encourages Telemachus to continue searching.

• A figure of grace and compassion, the young Phaeacian princess stumbles upon the shipwrecked, bedraggled Odysseus on the beach and — unlike most who might flee in fear — treats him with kindness and dignity, embodying the ideal of generous hospitality that runs throughout the epic.
• Her role is brief but pivotal, as it is Nausicaa who bridges Odysseus's long isolation and his return to the civilized world, guiding him toward her parents' court where he will finally be given the help he needs to get home — making her a quiet but essential turning point in his journey.

• Telemachus calls the first assembly in years on Ithaca.
• He publicly accuses the suitors of destroying his household and eating his family's food.
• The suitors mock and challenge him, especially Antinous.
• An omen of two eagles fighting appears, predicting the suitors’ eventual downfall.
• Telemachus announces he will travel to search for news of Odysseus.

• Telemachus calls the first assembly in years on Ithaca.
• He publicly accuses the suitors of destroying his household and eating his family's food.
• The suitors mock and challenge him, especially Antinous.
• An omen of two eagles fighting appears, predicting the suitors’ eventual downfall.
• Telemachus announces he will travel to search for news of Odysseus.

Hospitality — known in Greek as xenia — was a sacred social code in ancient Greece, obligating hosts to welcome strangers with food, shelter, and respect before even asking their name or business. In The Odyssey, it serves as a moral measuring stick: characters like Nausicaa and King Alcinous embody it graciously, while the suitors, who devour Odysseus's household from within, represent its total violation. The gods, particularly Zeus, were seen as enforcers of xenia, which gave the code a divine weight — to abuse a guest or host was not just rude, but an offense against the natural and sacred order of the world.

• After his ship is destroyed by Poseidon, Odysseus washes ashore in Phaeacia.
• Nausicaa, the daughter of King Alcinous, is at the river with her attendants washing clothes.
• The girls begin playing ball and laughing, which wakes Odysseus.
• Odysseus emerges from the bushes dirty, exhausted, and barely clothed.
• Most of the girls run away in fear, but Nausicaa bravely stays.

The gods in Greek epics are active, temperamental participants rather than distant forces — they take sides, hold grudges, and play favorites, with Athena championing Odysseus while Poseidon works to destroy him, creating much of the story's core tension. Their involvement also raises uncomfortable questions about free will — when Athena emboldens Telemachus or Hermes delivers Zeus's orders to Calypso, it's never entirely clear how much of the outcome belongs to the mortals themselves. Greek epic lives comfortably in that ambiguity, presenting human courage and divine favor as inseparable.

• Odysseus's divine champion, Athena is the driving force behind much of the plot — it is her appeal to Zeus on Olympus that sets the whole story in motion, and she repeatedly intervenes on behalf of both Odysseus and Telemachus, appearing in disguise, smoothing their paths, and protecting them from harm.
• Goddess of wisdom and strategy, her patronage of Odysseus is no accident — she favors him precisely because he thinks like she does, relying on cleverness and cunning over brute strength, and her guidance of Telemachus reflects her belief that the son has the same potential for greatness as his father.

• Odysseus's divine champion, Athena is the driving force behind much of the plot — it is her appeal to Zeus on Olympus that sets the whole story in motion, and she repeatedly intervenes on behalf of both Odysseus and Telemachus, appearing in disguise, smoothing their paths, and protecting them from harm.
• Goddess of wisdom and strategy, her patronage of Odysseus is no accident — she favors him precisely because he thinks like she does, relying on cleverness and cunning over brute strength, and her guidance of Telemachus reflects her belief that the son has the same potential for greatness as his father.

The clever and resourceful king of Ithaca, Odysseus is the hero of the epic. After the Trojan War, he spends ten years trying to return home, facing monsters, gods, and temptations. His intelligence and determination define his character.