The Never-Ending Story: Who Is Odysseus?

The Odyssey begins with a big empty space where Odysseus should be. His home, his familiy, his household are all suffering for want of him. But where is he--and more importantly, who is he? That's the poem again and again and today, we begin trying to answer it. If there's one thing everyone remembers from this poem it's the adventure stories in the middle: the Cyclops, Circe, the Lotus Eaters. We embark on those stories now, beginning with the moment when Odysseus finally chooses to reveal his true identity to his hosts the Phaeacians...and perhaps also to himself.

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Peter Struck’s interactive Odyssey Map: https://www2.classics.upenn.edu/myth/php/homer/index.php?page=odymap

Simon Netchev’s Odyssey Map: https://www.worldhistory.org/image/15906/odysseus-ten-year-journey-home

Selective attention test (the basketball gorilla): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJG698U2Mvo

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