Week 2 Reading Diary continued: Homer's Odyssey

When reading the second half of Homer's Odyssey, here are a few notes/thoughts that I had while reading:

• Ulysses talks to the dead and is reminded of home and of the long journey ahead 
• Teiresias tells him his future and warms him on what is to come, kind of like a guidance counselor 
• When speaking to his mother, Ulysses learns that his family is patiently waiting for his return and morns when he is gone
• We often forget that there is a whole other story of the people waiting for the great hero to return. We forget about them and their feelings and usually only focus on Ulysses's adventures. 
• He talked to many ghosts and heard from many of the women
• Atreus tells him not to come home openly but secretly, his wife had killed him and warned Ulysses that things might be different when he returns home
• He saw the afterlives of people in hell and how tortured they were, so he decided to leave and continue on his journey to go home
• When passing the Sirens he is tempted to stop, they represent passing new temptations in life
• Passing Scylla is like getting to the top of the mountain, getting to the ultimate challenge to continue on to home

Speaking to the Dead