DOCSLIB.ORG

An Analysis of Odysseus' Pedestrian Journeys in the Odyssey

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text

Load more

From Fleet to Foot: An Analysis of Odysseus’ Pedestrian Journeys in the Odyssey by Jessica Higgins A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Classics University of Toronto © Copyright by Jessica Higgins 2015 From Fleet to Foot: An Analysis of Odysseus’ Pedestrian Journeys in the Odyssey Jessica Higgins Doctor of Philosophy Department of Classics University of Toronto 2015 Abstract This dissertation examines the narratives of two pedestrian journeys made by Odysseus in the Odyssey in apposition to the Apologue’s narrative of his fleet’s destruction. The first journey takes place on Scheria (6.254-7. 135) and the second on Ithaca (17.182-17.341). Though the Phaeacian episode, and that of Odysseus’ return to Ithaca have been studied extensively, the pedestrian narratives within them have generally been overlooked. These narratives depict the hero in lowly circumstances, enduring the anonymity and dishonour that other heroes would not. I thus argue that the walking journeys serve a characterizing function. My analysis is informed by spatial and phenomenological theory. Odysseus’ fleet is interpreted as a “centre” of Hellenic culture that implaces him and its destruction as his social and spatial displacement. I conclude that Odysseus’ displacement is both a consequence and a reflection of an overall shift in his ethos from one that was balanced between the active, (violent and assertive) and passive (enduring and deferential) to one that favours passivity. For Odysseus, walking produces ambivalent results. Pedestrianism, in the ancient world, is born of necessity and lowliness. Nevertheless, walking allows the pedestrian a great degree of engagement, both somatic and mental, with his surroundings. The two pedestrian journeys under consideration are read as narrative doublets. Both begin with the hero in lowly circumstances, on the social and spatial margins of society. They conclude with his (re)integration into the ii respective communities. But while the Phaeacian journey, through his somatic engagement with the cultural landscape, leads to the hero’s integration into the Hellenic-type society, the Ithacan walk is part of his beggar’s disguise and highlights his exteriority. During this walk Odysseus avoids engagement with the landscape and suppresses signs of his familiarity with it. Consequently, the disguised hero is able enter his palace, to test his household while incognito, and ultimately to take revenge on Penelope’s suitors. Overall the pedestrian journeys are read as emblematic of Odysseus’ mental and physical endurance. These narratives are seen as the Odyssey’s celebration of its hero’s uncommon ability to passively endure and to prioritize nostos over heroic glory. iii Acknowledgments The support and guidance that I have received during this process have been such clear and steady beacons on a sometimes-murky path. As I reflect back on this journey, I realize that I ought to individually acknowledge the people who have helped me along the way. I am extremely grateful to my supervisor Dr. Johnathan Burgess whose thoughtfulness, keen insight, and ingenuity have been much appreciated through the years. I have long admired his work and his willingness to engage with very new readings of very old texts. Without his patient guidance, this project would not have seen completion. My committee members, Dr. Victoria Wohl and Dr. Dimitri Nakassis, have been wonderfully constructive and insightful guides and for this I owe them great gratitude. I also very much appreciate the involvement of my external examiner, Dr. Alex Purves, in this project. Her perceptive comments and questions have both clarified and complicated my view of the Odyssey. I must likewise thank Dr. Alison Keith, who directed my Minor Field comprehensive exam and who sat as internal examiner during my defense. It has been a pleasure to be her student and to work with her so closely. My thanks are also consummately with Dr. Riemer Faber from the University of Waterloo for his candor and constant support. In the years that I have been at the University of Toronto, I have been fortunate to develop such close bonds with my classmates. I would like to take this opportunity to record my thanks for posterity. Megan Campbell, Sarah McCallum, Miranda Robinson, Robert McCutcheon, Melanie Racette-Campbell, and Kevin Lawson have been the perfect compatriots. I cannot thank them enough for their support and for their wonderful ability to get together and forget about everything else. Above all, I must thank my family. Theirs was often a thankless task. From sitting through phone calls in which I explained my latest roadbump, to their honest but not-so-successful attempts at understanding why anyone would write about such an esoteric topic, they have stood by my side. My mother and father have supported me and encouraged me without question and without reservation. They will always have my deepest gratitude and love. I must also thank my sister iv Stephanie, brother-in-law Matt, nephew Cole, and niece Lucy for being the most hilariously distracting family members that a PhD student could have. They constantly challenge me to peak back in on real life; everyone needs that reminder. I owe my greatest debt of gratitude to my husband, Nick. You are right when you say that together we will go places. And I will never lose my way because with you, I am home. v Table of Contents Chapter 1—Introduction ................................................................................................................. 1 1 Walking .................................................................................................................................... 3 2 The Sea, Ships, and Maritime Travel in Archaic Greek Literature .......................................... 9 3 Theories and Methodology ..................................................................................................... 15 3.1 Modern Spatial Theory and Phenomenology .................................................................. 15 3.2 Narratology ...................................................................................................................... 20 4 Outline of the Work ................................................................................................................ 21 Chapter 2—From Fleet to Foot ..................................................................................................... 25 1 Odysseus’ Apologue: Fleet to foot .......................................................................................... 30 1.1 The Cyclopeia: From Active to Passive and Back Again ................................................ 34 1.2 From Aeolia to Ogygia: Odysseus’ Endurance ............................................................... 42 2 Ogygia: Landscape of Stagnation and Isolation ..................................................................... 54 Chapter 3—Odysseus on Foot in Scheria ..................................................................................... 69 1 Setting the Scene in Scheria: Odysseus’ Outsideness (Exteriority) ....................................... 73 2 Nausicaa and Odysseus: Proxemics, Non-verbal Communication and the Pedestrian Journey ................................................................................................................................................ 83 3 Two Feet In/To Fit In: Odysseus’ Experiential and Place-making Journey to the Phaeacian Palace ............................................................................................................................................ 93 4 Nature and Culture, Periphery and Centre, Outsideness and Insideness: The Ramifications of Odysseus’ Centripetal Movement ................................................................................................. 98 Chapter 4—Odysseus on Foot on Ithaca .................................................................................... 107 1 Insideness on the Periphery: Hospitality, and Ithaca’s Unique “Ethical Geography” ........ 113 2 Towards the Centre, Away from Belonging: Periphery and Centre, “Insideness” and outsideness .................................................................................................................................. 127 3 Odysseus’ Spatial Relations: Proxemics and Non-verbal Communication .......................... 142 Chapter 5—Conclusion ............................................................................................................... 150 References ................................................................................................................................... 157 vi 1 Chapter 1 – Introduction This dissertation examines the narratives of two pedestrian journeys made by Odysseus in Homer’s Odyssey. Both walking journeys take place after the hero has lost his ships and companions during his maritime wanderings through unknown and exotic places; the first journey takes place on the Phaeacian island of Scheria in Books 6 through 7 (6.254-7.135) and the second, in Book 17, begins on the outskirts of Ithaca and ends at the hero’s palace (17.182- 17.341). Both of these journeys will be investigated in apposition to Odysseus’ maritime adventures in the Apologue in order to consider their relationships to the plot of the Odyssey and their effect on the characterization of Odysseus. Though the Phaeacian episode (Books 6-8) and the episode encompassing Odysseus’ return
Recommended publications
  • The Humour of Homer

    The Humour of Homer

    The Humour of Homer Samuel Butler A lecture delivered at the Working Men's College, Great Ormond Street 30th January, 1892 The first of the two great poems commonly ascribed to Homer is called the Iliad|a title which we may be sure was not given it by the author. It professes to treat of a quarrel between Agamemnon and Achilles that broke out while the Greeks were besieging the city of Troy, and it does, indeed, deal largely with the consequences of this quarrel; whether, however, the ostensible subject did not conceal another that was nearer the poet's heart| I mean the last days, death, and burial of Hector|is a point that I cannot determine. Nor yet can I determine how much of the Iliadas we now have it is by Homer, and how much by a later writer or writers. This is a very vexed question, but I myself believe the Iliadto be entirely by a single poet. The second poem commonly ascribed to the same author is called the Odyssey. It deals with the adventures of Ulysses during his ten years of wandering after Troy had fallen. These two works have of late years been believed to be by different authors. The Iliadis now generally held to be the older work by some one or two hundred years. The leading ideas of the Iliadare love, war, and plunder, though this last is less insisted on than the other two. The key-note is struck with a woman's charms, and a quarrel among men for their possession.
  • A Level Classical Civilisation Candidate Style Answers

    A Level Classical Civilisation Candidate Style Answers

    Qualification Accredited A LEVEL Candidate style answers CLASSICAL CIVILISATION H408 For first assessment in 2019 H408/11: Homer’s Odyssey Version 1 www.ocr.org.uk/alevelclassicalcivilisation A Level Classical Civilisation Candidate style answers Contents Introduction 3 Question 3 4 Question 4 8 Essay question 12 2 © OCR 2019 A Level Classical Civilisation Candidate style answers Introduction OCR has produced this resource to support teachers in interpreting the assessment criteria for the new A Level Classical Civilisation specification and to bridge the gap between new specification’s release and the availability of exemplar candidate work following first examination in summer 2019. The questions in this resource have been taken from the H408/11 World of the Hero specimen question paper, which is available on the OCR website. The answers in this resource have been written by students in Year 12. They are supported by an examiner commentary. Please note that this resource is provided for advice and guidance only and does not in any way constitute an indication of grade boundaries or endorsed answers. Whilst a senior examiner has provided a possible mark/level for each response, when marking these answers in a live series the mark a response would get depends on the whole process of standardisation, which considers the big picture of the year’s scripts. Therefore the marks/levels awarded here should be considered to be only an estimation of what would be awarded. How levels and marks correspond to grade boundaries depends on the Awarding process that happens after all/most of the scripts are marked and depends on a number of factors, including candidate performance across the board.
  • The Cyclops in the Odyssey, Ulysses, and Asterios Polyp: How Allusions Affect Modern Narratives and Their Hypotexts

    The Cyclops in the Odyssey, Ulysses, and Asterios Polyp: How Allusions Affect Modern Narratives and Their Hypotexts

    THE CYCLOPS IN THE ODYSSEY, ULYSSES, AND ASTERIOS POLYP: HOW ALLUSIONS AFFECT MODERN NARRATIVES AND THEIR HYPOTEXTS by DELLEN N. MILLER A THESIS Presented to the Department of English and the Robert D. Clark Honors College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Bachelor of Arts December 2016 An Abstract of the Thesis of Dellen N. Miller for the degree of Bachelor of Arts in the Department of English to be taken December 2016 Title: The Cyclops in The Odyssey, Ulysses, and Asterios Polyp: How Allusions Affect Modern Narratives and Their Hypotexts Approved: _________________________________________ Paul Peppis The Odyssey circulates throughout Western society due to its foundation of Western literature. The epic poem thrives not only through new editions and translations but also through allusions from other works. Texts incorporate allusions to add meaning to modern narratives, but allusions also complicate the original text. By tying two stories together, allusion preserves historical works and places them in conversation with modern literature. Ulysses and Asterios Polyp demonstrate the prevalence of allusions in books and comic books. Through allusions to both Polyphemus and Odysseus, Joyce and Mazzucchelli provide new ways to read both their characters and the ancient Greek characters they allude to. ii Acknowledgements I would like to sincerely thank Professors Peppis, Fickle, and Bishop for your wonderful insight and assistance with my thesis. Thank you for your engaging courses and enthusiastic approaches to close reading literature and graphic literature. I am honored that I may discuss Ulysses and Asterios Polyp under the close reading practices you helped me develop.
  • The Faculty Advisor to the Student Writing the Thesis Wishes to Claim Joint Authorship in This Work

    The Faculty Advisor to the Student Writing the Thesis Wishes to Claim Joint Authorship in This Work

    WILLIAMS COLLEGE LIBRARIES Your unpublished thesis, submitted for a degree at Williams College and administered by the Williams College Libraries, will be made available for research use. You may, through this form, provide instructions regarding copyright, access, dissemination and reproduction of your thesis. _ The faculty advisor to the student writing the thesis wishes to claim joint authorship in this work. In each section, please check the ONE statement that reflects your wishes. 1. PUBLICATION AND QUOTATION: LITERARY PROPERTY RIGHTS A student author automatically owns the copyright to his/her work, whether or not a copyright symbol and date are placed on the piece. The duration of U.S. copyright on a manuscript--and Williams theses are considered manuscripts--is the life of the author plus 70 years. _ I/we do not choose to retain literary property rights to the thesis, and I wish to assign them immediately to Williams College. N",vnohllO the in no a s1lldent \,vo.rk: the studerv \VCHIJd} bO\Vevcf) need conLJct the in this case to also per'missir)D to sltilatlOn arose, the Archivcs wou!d be in had _I/we wish to retain literary property rights to the thesis for a period of three years, at which time the literary property rights shall be assigned to Williams College. Selectmg this the amhor a years to make use the in m><:o,mltI2 ,II/we wish to retain literary property rights to the thesis fer~ea of __":Y'88:F&;-Qf­ until my death, whichever is the later, at which time the literary property rights shall be assigned to Williams College.
  • Fulgens, Singularis, Sacra: the Many Facets of Beauty in “Nausicaa”

    Fulgens, Singularis, Sacra: the Many Facets of Beauty in “Nausicaa”

    Papers on Joyce 15 (2009): 73-92 Fulgens, Singularis, Sacra: The Many Facets of Beauty in “Nausicaa” BENIGNO DEL RÍO MOLINA Abstract Tommy Caffrey’s “fancy” bib may stand as a metaphor for the decorative, recycled kind of beauty of the first part of the 13th episode. After the Joycean digestion of much sentimental literature, it suggests the author’s “aesthetics of nausea” although beauty also unexpectedly appears as judgmental, sacred and unique. After re-evaluating Gerty as a commodity, we reach the conclusion that her excessive embellishment and the staging of her high “persona” is her career. Being born lame and in the context of a ruthless marriage “marketplace,” her survival as a woman depends on the richness of her displays, as beauty can not only be life- saving, but the eventual, propelling force that leads to a much dreamt of, future home. lthough many aspects concerning beauty are visible in Athe lexicon, style and techniques in the thirteenth episode, beauty, as traditionally depicted by sculptors and painters throughout the centuries, also emerges from human bodies. It has become a legend, for example, the way Leonardo da Vinci used to walk around the streets of Florence, in a frenzied state, chasing beautiful eyes and neat FULGENS, SINGULARIS, SACRA: THE MANY FACETS OF BEAUTY IN “NAUSICAA” profiles in order to depict them as angels’ and Madonnas’ features. Beauty induces us to repeat and multiply the obJect perceived, as Gerty MacDowell senses in “Nausicaa”: “How moving the scene there in the gathering twilight…she could see far away the lights of the lighthouses so picturesque she would have loved to do with a box of paints…” (U 363; my emphasis).
  • 23 Hero-Without-Nostos.Pdf

    23 Hero-Without-Nostos.Pdf

    1 23 Your article is protected by copyright and all rights are held exclusively by Springer Science +Business Media Dordrecht. This e-offprint is for personal use only and shall not be self- archived in electronic repositories. If you wish to self-archive your article, please use the accepted manuscript version for posting on your own website. You may further deposit the accepted manuscript version in any repository, provided it is only made publicly available 12 months after official publication or later and provided acknowledgement is given to the original source of publication and a link is inserted to the published article on Springer's website. The link must be accompanied by the following text: "The final publication is available at link.springer.com”. 1 23 Author's personal copy Int class trad DOI 10.1007/s12138-014-0367-6 ARTICLE A Hero Without Nostos: Ulysses’ Last Voyage in Twentieth-Century Italy Francesca Schironi © Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2015 Abstract The article reviews the reception of Ulysses’ last voyage in twentieth- century Italy. Ulysses’ last voyage is used by Italian authors to discuss different and often opposing views of the ideal human life as well as the intellectual and exis- tential angsts of the twentieth century. In addition, the Italian twentieth-century Ulysses becomes part of a metapoetic discourse, as going back to the Homeric and Dantesque myths of Ulysses for an artist also means interrogating oneself on the possibility of creating something new within a long tradition. This metaliterary dimension adds to the modern Italian reception of Ulysses, making it a unique case of the intersection of many different layers of reception both in chronological and thematic terms.
  • A View of the Odyssey

    A View of the Odyssey

    Curriculum Units by Fellows of the Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute 1983 Volume II: Greek and Roman Mythology A View of The Odyssey Curriculum Unit 83.02.02 by Anna K. Baker I plan to teach Homer’s Odyssey to a high school English class on an intermediate-advanced level. I teach at High School in the Community, where students are divided according to ability, interest and, at times, maturity rather than by grade level. I expect to have in my class sophomores, juniors, and seniors and perhaps a scattering of freshmen. The purpose of this unit is to help students see themselves in the mirror that mythology holds up to us all. Times have changed and so has the pace of our lives; but people are confronted by the same basic choices today as when Homer decided to put the story of the wanderings, tribulations, and homecoming of Odysseus into his own words. Students who study this great epic poem which tells a fundamental myth of our civilization will read of witches, cannibals, and monsters as well as of Olympian gods, human princesses, and dead spirits out of the underworld. These students will also read a story about human beings, Odysseus, Telemachus, Penelope, and Nausicaa, as well as about others who have experienced many of the same difficulties around growing up, making choices and becoming mature that people of today experience as they leave their childhood and enter the world of adolescence and adulthood. Today’s high school students are faced with a world that presents ever more complex choices: for example, careers, family, morality, and so forth.
  • Nausicaa: a Feminine Threat Author(S): Nicolas P

    Nausicaa: a Feminine Threat Author(S): Nicolas P

    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by UT Digital Repository Nausicaa: A Feminine Threat Author(s): Nicolas P. Gross and Nicholas P. Gross Source: The Classical World, Vol. 69, No. 5 (Feb., 1976), pp. 311-317 Published by: The Johns Hopkins University Press on behalf of the Classical Association of the Atlantic States Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/4348437 Accessed: 08-08-2016 18:29 UTC Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at http://about.jstor.org/terms JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected]. Classical Association of the Atlantic States, The Johns Hopkins University Press are collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to The Classical World This content downloaded from 128.83.205.78 on Mon, 08 Aug 2016 18:29:03 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms FEBRUARY 1976 THE CLASSICAL WORLD 311 Nausicaa: A Feminine Threat From ancient times to the present Homer's treatment of Nausicaa has elicited scholarly criticism. The scholiasts (probably Aristarchus alone), despite conclusive evidence of authenticity, doubted every explicit suggestion of marriage between Odysseus and the Phaeacian princess.' Even when modern scholars are more sympathetic to the romantic potential of the young woman's story, they are no less critical of Homer.
  • "The Odyssey": Derek Walcotû Dramatization of Homers "Odyssey"

    "The Odyssey": Derek Walcotû Dramatization of Homers "Odyssey"

    Review Article "The Odyssey": Derek Walcotû Dramatization of Homers "Odyssey" ROBERT HAMNER WEN DERER WALCOTT chose to rewrite the epic genre in Omeros (1990), his primary innovation was to create his own version of what a modern Homer might have written in the twentieth century rather than adhere once again to the time- honored narrative line that mutates from Homer through Virgil, Dante, Milton, Joyce, and Kazantzakis. As a matter of fact, Wal- cott insists repeatedly that before writing Omeros he had read only excerpts of Homer and Virgil's works (Bruckner 13, Lefkowitz 1, White 35). Judging by the extensive parallels be• tween Homer's original and Walcott's The Odyssey, that reading gap has been meticulously closed. On first approaching Walcott's latest play, I had two primary concerns: I wondered how my familiarity with Homer's epic would weigh against Walcott's use of the material, and I had my usual apprehensions about treating a stage play in terms of its written text. Regardless of all the interaction that reader- response theorists have shown to take place between the reader and the written word, vital aspects of dramatic performance are supplied by actors, musicians, directors, costumes, technicians, and the communal presence of a live audience. Although no two people may see exactly the same play, I can draw upon at least one reviewer's assessment of the Royal Shake• speare Company's production of The Odyssey at The Other Place in Stratford. Robert King writes that Walcott "introduces both artful elements and artsy touches" in the three-hour dramatiza• tion of Odysseus's adventures.
  • Classical Studies

    Classical Studies

    Classical Studies Tadhg MacHugh Classical studies HIGHER LEVEL 2020-2021 THE ODYSSEY CONTENTS Past Questions 2-6 Study Breakdowns 7-8 Question Breakdowns 9-10 Sample Essay 11-13 Sample Plan 14-16 Penelope & Telemachus 17-20 -Marking Scheme 21-22 Athene 23-24 The Phaeacians 25-27 Odysseus as a Leader of Men 28-29 Loyalty & Faithfulness (Love and Justice) 30-34 Agamemnon Story 35-36 Poseidon 37-39 Odysseus & Penelope Reunited 40-41 Eumaeus 42-44 Telemachus’ Character and Development 45-48 Hospitality and Gift-giving 49-53 T.MACHUGH. CLASSICAL STUDIES. LEAVING CERT. 2020-21 QUESTIONS: 2019: 1. (a) Describe the character of Penelope as revealed in Homer’s Odyssey, up to her reunion with Odysseus in Book 23. (35) (b) What do we learn from their reunion about the relationship between Odysseus and Penelope? (15) 2. Nausicaa is one of the most appealing characters in Homer’s Odyssey. (a) Describe the character and role of Nausicaa in the Odyssey. (35) (b) For what reasons does Odysseus not stay with the Phaeacians? (15) 2018: 1. In Homer’s Odyssey, Telemachus developed from being a shy and depressed young man into a confident and strong support for his father, Odysseus, in his battle with the Suitors. Trace this development and explain how it came about. (50) 2. Loyalty is the virtue most valued in Homer’s Odyssey and its absence is severely punished. Discuss this view with reference to the text. 50) 2017: (a) Describe the practice of hospitality and gift‐giving as described by Homer in the Odyssey.
  • The Rebirth of Odysseus , Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies, 25:1 (1984) P.5

    The Rebirth of Odysseus , Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies, 25:1 (1984) P.5

    NEWTON, RICK M., The Rebirth of Odysseus , Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies, 25:1 (1984) p.5 The Rebirth of Odysseus Rick M Newton F THE MANY supplication scenes in Greek literature which have Oreceived close examination, the Odysseus-Arete episode in Od­ yssey 7.133-206 has attracted considerable attention. Two rea­ sons may be suggested. First, Homer himself lavishes a large share of attention on the scene, presenting a highly detailed account of the ritual of hiketeia: Odysseus crouches before the queen and grasps her knees, then sits at the hearth, and is finally raised by Alcinous, who escorts him to a seaU Other supplication scenes contain some of these steps, but few other accounts-and no other Homeric account-in­ clude them all. When Thetis supplicates Zeus in Iliad 1.493-530, for example, she clings to the god's knees, but Zeus does not lift her by the hand. In Iliad 24.468-517, to cite another example, Priam kneels before Achilles, kissing the hands of the man who has murdered so many of his sons. Achilles responds by lifting the aged king from his knees. But there is no mention of Priam's occupying Achilles' hearth. The closest parallel to Odysseus' supplication is found in Thucydides 1.136: Themistocles places himself at the feet of the Molossian queen and takes his place at the hearth, holding the king's infant son.2 When King Admetus returns from abroad and finds Themistocles, he raises the suppliant by the hand.3 Homer's account in Odyssey 7 is noteworthy, then, for the fullness of its description.
  • Ulysses's Journey and Homer's Odyssey

    Ulysses's Journey and Homer's Odyssey

    Ulysses’s Journey and Homer’s Odyssey: An Eternal Return MARTINA TREU Abstract Homer’s Odyssey provides a perfect case for showing the eternal return of the Greek myths in contemporary literature, and culture: tales of Ulysses’s journeys have always been popular, till nowadays. He is the only survivor of an entire crew: he safely arrived home alone, and soon left, heading for a new journey. Today, in a way, he keeps coming back, on and on: in all sort of books, in fine arts, inside and outside theatres. Ulysses and his myth are also “surfing the web”, as I proved with a recent survey on the use of the terms ‘Odyssey’, ‘Odysseus’, and ‘Ulysses’, on the Internet. Moreover, the last decades recorded, all over the world, an increasing amount of modern versions of Odyssey, and related myths. I focus particularly on the most recent translations and adaptations for the stage: many of them are dedicated to those who did not come back home – unlike Ulysses – or did not survive at all. In 2010, for instance, the Italian playwright and director Marco Martinelli wrote Rumore di Acque (“Noise in the Waters”), a play later translated into English, French, German, and other languages. Ulysses’s myth and its happy end are reversed, in his antiheroic Odyssey, inspired by the tragic death of immigrants, in the shipwreck of their boats, while they try to reach Southern Italy and Sicily. The play was staged in Lampedusa – the island on Italy’s Southern border where many ships land, and countless corpses are found – and it is still on tour in Europe, Africa, and U.S.