The Odyssey Comic Strip W.S.

Name ___________________
Per.________

Compare the Odyssey with O Brother, Where Art Thou.

Movie Book
Ex. Everett’s first name is Ulysses which is Roman for Odysseus

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List five character traits of Penelope from the Odyssey. Now list five character traits of
Penny from O Brother.

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Think about the culture of ancient Greece. Why was Penelope portrayed with those
traits? Penny was portrayed very differently in the South during 1930s. Why was she
given her traits? If you were to retell the story in modern times in California what kind of
person would you make Penelope?

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Odyssey Comic Lesson Plan
Standards 3.5 Compare works that express a universal theme and provide evidence to
support the ideas expressed in each work.
1.3 Identify Greek, Roman… mythology

Student will have read the Odyssey in the Text and watched selections from the film, O
Brother, Where Art Thou.

Materials:
white board space, W.S., legal paper, colored pencils, and the Text

After completing the Odyssey Comic W.S., I will lead a class discussion.
Notes:
Universal themes (there can be exceptions to universal)
Some aspects of society change with location and though time.
What Universal themes did we see in both stories?
How did the location and time period of each story affect the plot?
What can you learn of each culture though the stories?
If you were to rewrite the Odyssey in the current time period and in CA, how
would you change the plot to reflect our culture?
What would you keep the same?

What does this tell us about literature and humanity? (Journal Topic for tomorrow)
Have student come up with their own answers.

Make sure they address: homesickness, the desire to be remembered, loyalty,

faithfulness, fate, god, journeys, friendship, love …

Assessment:
Write instructions on board
To be done in class
Create an eight box comic strip of an important scene from the Odyssey.
Make sure it deals with a universal theme.
Change the location and place of the scene.
Make reference to cultural changes so the date and location are obvious.
Write a one page, single space explanation of your scene, explaining your
universal theme and the cultural changes you portray.
 UNIVERSAL THEMES AND GENERALIZATIONS

THEMES

1. Change
2. Conflict
3. Exploration
4. Force or Influence
5. Order vs Chaos
6. Patterns
7. Power
8. Structure
9. Systems
10. Relationships
 THEMES AND GENERALIZATIONS

1. Change

• Change generates additional change

• Change can be either positive or negative
• Change is inevitable
• Change is necessary for growth
• Change can be evolutionary or revolutionary

2. Conflict

• Conflict is composed of opposing forces

• Conflict may be natural or human made
• Conflict may be intentional or unintentional
• Conflict may allow for synthesis and change

3. Exploration

• Exploration requires recognizing purpose and responding to it

• Exploration confronts "the unknown"
• Exploration may result in "new findings" or the confirmation of "old
findings"

4. Force

• Force attracts, hold or repels

• Force influences or changes
• Force and inertia are co-dependent
• Force may be countered with equal or greater force

5. Order vs Chaos

• Order may be natural or constructed

• Order may allow for prediction
• Order is a form of communication
• Order may have repeated patterns
• Order and chaos are reciprocals
• Order leads to chaos and chaos leads to order

6. Patterns
 • Patterns have segments that are repeated
• Patterns allow for prediction
• Patters have an internal order
• Patterns are enablers

7. Power

• Power is the ability to influence

• Power may be used or abused
• Power is always present in some form
• Power may take many forms (chemical, electrical, political, mechanical)

8. Structure

• Structure have parts that interrelate

• Parts of structures support and are supported by other parts
• Smaller structures may be combined to form larger structures
• A structure is no stronger than its weakest component parts

9. Systems

• Systems have parts that work to complete a task

• Systems are composed of sub-systems
• Part of systems are interdependent upon one another and form symbiotic
relationships
• A system may be influenced by other systems
• Systems interact
• Systems follow rules

10. Relationships

• Everything is related in some way

• All relationships are purposeful
• Relationships change over time

Adapted from: Curriculum Guide for the Education of Gifted High School Students,
Texas Association for the Gifted and Talented, 1991