Book of the Year

The Book of the Year for 2024-25 will be Homer’s The Odyssey. 

The BOTY for 2024-25 is Homer’s The Odyssey, the 2018 Norton edition translated by Emily Wilson (ISBN-13: 978-0393356250). Considered by many to be the greatest of all stories and one that has influenced the creators of other stories, songs, movies, and video games, The Odyssey is a most suitable participant in the Book Of The Year Program. Many readers have testified that reading Homer contributed to their formation as human beings and helped them wrestle with big, complicated questions about both their desires and their obligations. One of the things that has led readers to return to Homer again and again is because he is so perceptive and true about the both the fulfillments and the trials of human life. 

Because the tale of The Odyssey started to be told almost a thousand years before the birth of Christ, there are no explicit Christian connections. However, there are many opportunities for readers to contemplate important questions about character, virtue, and purpose. Countless readers of The Odyssey have noted the ways in which this book has helped them face trials in their own lives with greater discernment, wisdom, and courage. The Odyssey also leads the reader to consider many important questions. How am I to welcome the stranger? What does it mean to be pious? What is the value of glory compared with that of home? These are questions worthy of thought for all readers, including Christian readers. While reading and discussing Homer together, we will ask how his themes and those of the ancients “translate” for us as Christians living today. This has been an important project since the very beginnings of the church. Christians have always wrestled with what their relationship should be to the tradition and to the secular world more broadly. Through reading The Odyssey together, we will have opportunity to engage this issue and ask ourselves: What lessons would The Odyssey have us reflect on? How are these lessons either in-line with Christian thinking or not? All of these experiences garnered through reading The Odyssey are an important part of our life’s work of faith formation.

General questions on The Odyssey

1. At the beginning of The Odyssey, we are told that Odysseus suffered much on his long, arduous journey homeward. How much of his suffering was the result of his own choices and how much of it was beyond his control? How are the two to be distinguished?
2. What is the relationship between the actions of humans and the dictates of the gods throughout this poem?
3. Do you think Odysseus was a good leader? Why or why not?
4. What roles do women play in The Odyssey? Which women hold the most power? Why do you think this is?
5. Hubris, a Greek word for excessive pride, is one of the downfalls of many characters in works of ancient mythology. Does this apply to The Odyssey?
6. Do you know of any other books or movies about home and the challenges of reaching home that come to mind when reading The Odyssey?
7. How does reading The Odyssey affect your thinking about telling the truth? Are there ever situations in which it is justified to hold back some true things?
8. In several places, Odysseus tells long, elaborate, and untrue stories about his life to introduce himself to others. Why does he do this?
9. Many people value being sincere or guileless or transparent. How does reading The Odyssey affect your thinking about these things? The poem is filled with accounts of their opposites--disguises, transformations, and attempts to hide true appearances. Why is this?
10. Homer scholar John Rexine has written that Odysseus “represents humankind in its supreme form, a combination of physical strength, intellectual ability, and the will to survive all obstacles, all odds.” How do you respond to this characterization? Is Odysseus an exemplar for you? Why or why not?
11. The 6 themes of our Honors Program are: Exploring fundamental questions; Facing disputed questions; Cultivating a Christian worldview; Growing and applying talents; Engaging in conversation; and Enjoying community. When reading The Odyssey, did any of these come to mind or seem relevant?
12. One of the most important cultural values in The Odyssey is xenia, a Greek word for hospitality, generosity, or courtesy shown to those who are far from home. Where do you see this? Why do you think hospitality was held in such high regard in Homer’s time? In what ways is this value still applicable today?
13. How does reading The Odyssey affect your thinking about piety? Is Odysseus a pious man? Why or why not? Is there anything about piety that you can learn from The Odyssey?
14. The Iliad especially focusses on kleos, a Greek word for glory or renown. The Odyssey focusses more on nostos, a Greek word relating to the challenges of reaching home when far from it. How do you think about these two things? What is the value of kleos (glory) compared with that of nostos (home)?
15. How does reading The Odyssey affect your thinking about fidelity and faithfulness? Should these to be understood as universal moral and ethical goods? Why or why not?

Student requirements for the BOTY in 2024-25:

• By August 27th, read introductory materials and Books 1-4.
• By October 7th, read Books 5-8.
• Week of October 7th-11th - attend a discussion seminar on Books 5-8.
• By November 11th, read Books 9-12.
• November 13th, 7:30 PM - attend lecture by Dr. Christopher Perrin on Homer's The Odyssey.
• By January 20th, read Books 13-16.
• By February 3rd, read Books 17-20.
• Week of February 3rd - 7th - attend a discussion seminar on Books 17-20.
• By February 24th, finish Homer's The Odyssey (through Book 24) in preparation to write a paper in HONR 200: Pursuing the Good Life.
• TBD date in the spring - attend panel presentation on Homer's The Odyssey.