Lesson 3

Lesson Goals

Texts

Core

• • “A Translator’s Reckoning with the Women of the Odyssey,” Emily Wilson, The New Yorker, December 8, 2017

• • The Odyssey, Homer, translated by Robert Fagles, Penguin Publishing Group, 1996

Materials

Tools

• Character Note-Taking Tool

• Evaluating Ideas Tool

• Mentor Sentence Journal

• Vocabulary Journal

• Working with Mentor Sentences Tool

Reference Guides

• Academic Discussion Reference Guide
• Questioning Reference Guide

Question Sets

• The Odyssey: Section 4 Question Set

Editable Google Docs

• Character Note-Taking Tool

• Evaluating Ideas Tool

• Mentor Sentence Journal

• The Odyssey: Section 4 Question Set

• Vocabulary Journal

• Working with Mentor Sentences Tool

Activity 1: Discuss – Read – Write

We will discuss the article “A Translator’s Reckoning with the Women of The Odyssey” by Emily Wilson.

Step 1

In pairs or small groups, discuss your annotations and the guiding questions you used to guide your reading of the article. Listen for ideas that are similar and different from your own. Bring up any ideas or places in the text that are confusing.

:

1. According to Wilson, in what ways does Penelope fit the ideal of an empowered woman? In what ways does she not?

2. How are Penelope’s choices defined by her marital status and social position? How do they compare to that of Odysseus?

3. Wilson claims, "The silencing of female voices, and the dangers of female agency, are central problems in the poem." Do these problems still exist today? If so, share examples. If not, explain how these problems are central in other books or movies.

4. Create one or two questions that you have about the article or create one or two questions about ideas that you would like to discuss with your classmates.

Step 2

The Evaluating Ideas Tool supports and guides a process for evaluating a text, and it focuses on the author’s purpose, perspective, and credibility. It can help you think about and analyze relationships among details in the text, how those details suggest the author’s motivation for writing the text and how the author views the topic. This tool focuses on a guiding question related to the author’s purpose or perspective and helps you make an observation or conclusion about the overall ideas, believability, and relevance of the text.

Step 3

Complete the Evaluating Ideas Tool as a whole class using the following question:

1. In this article, Wilson claims, "The silencing of female voices, and the dangers of female agency, are central problems in the poem." Does Wilson sufficiently justify this claim using evidence and reasoning?

• Write down the guiding question so that you can refer to it as you read. You might be assigned the guiding question by your teacher, it might come from a question set, or you might think of your own question. This question can help you focus your reading, or it might give your reading a specific purpose. It will usually be a question that leads to an evaluation or judgment about the text based on evidence that suggests its purpose, perspective, or credibility.

• As you read, note details (words, phrases, or sentences) that relate to the guiding question or that might give you evidence of the author’s perspective. Depending on how long the section of text is, you might find several examples. You can use the Attend to Details row on the tool to write down the details that most strongly relate to the guiding question.

• Determine and analyze the author’s perspective based on the details you identify. The Analyzing Perspective row asks you to look at the words or phrases you selected in the previous row and think about why the author chose those words or phrases and not others. For example, if the author is using words like urgent or critical, you can get a sense of their perspective on the issue: the author considers it important and in need of immediate attention or action.

• Evaluate the author’s ideas, the author’s position, and the information the author presents. Your guiding question will probably hint at what you are supposed to evaluate; you might be looking to assess credibility or relevance.

• Evaluate the text based on the evidence you have gathered and your analysis of that evidence. The previous rows provide that evidence and analysis. In the Evaluate the Text row, you are making connections between your analysis and your evaluation. For example, if your evaluation involves determining whether the author’s argument is reliable, you will draw on the previous rows to support your judgment and observations about the text’s reliability.

Step 4

Work with a partner and discuss the following questions:

1. After completing the tool, consider Wilson’s audience. Who might Wilson be trying to convince with this article?

2. How might a modern audience interpret Penelope’s agency or power? How might modern readers react to Wilson’s claims?

Activity 2: Read – Discuss – Write

We will add to our Vocabulary Journal and mentor text journal. We will share our thoughts using a gallery walk.

Step 1

In groups, reread or skim the article "A Translator's Reckoning with the Women of the Odyssey," noting two things:

• words to add to your Vocabulary Journal

• sentences to add to your Mentor Sentence Journal

Then, spend some time working in these journals to add words and definitions and to add and analyze mentor sentences.

Step 2

Your teacher will ask you to chart your ideas for vocabulary or mentor sentences. Create a chart that includes three to five vocabulary words and their definitions as used in the article or a chart citing a mentor sentence and what makes the sentence interesting or a strong example of a language concept.

Step 3

Participate in a gallery walk. As you look at your classmates’ charts, note additional vocabulary words and mentor sentences to add to your journals.

Activity 3: Read – Write

We will respond to questions in our Learning Log.

Step 1

Drawing on The Odyssey and the article "A Translator's Reckoning with the Women of the Odyssey" for evidence, respond to the following questions by writing briefly in your Learning Log:

1. How are women portrayed in The Odyssey?

2. In what ways does this portrayal demonstrate power or lack of power?

3. Specifically, in what ways does Athena’s womanhood impact her power?

4. Specifically, how does Penelope demonstrate her power or lack of power?

Using your annotations and Learning Log notes, share your responses and ideas in a group discussion, and potentially as a class.

Step 2

Add additional information about Penelope into your Character-Note-Taking Tool.

Activity 4: Read – Write

For homework, we will read the conclusion of The Odyssey, Book 24.

For homework, read Book 24 of The Odyssey using the following questions to guide your reading and annotating:

1. How do the suitors’ relatives respond to Odysseus’s actions, and how does Odysseus respond? Did either response surprise you or seem unlikely? Support your answer with reasoning.

2. Explain the arguments on both sides in the conflict among the townspeople. With whom do you agree? Why?

3. Yet again, we find Odysseus hiding his identity. Why do you think he hides his identity from his father? Describe the test Odysseus put his father through and explain why he does it.

4. Does Athena need to intervene to bring about peace, or do Odysseus and Penelope have the power to bring about peace in Ithaca?

5. What did you think about the ending of the poem? What might Homer be suggesting about how to end conflicts based on the ending of the poem?

While reading, update your Character Note-Taking Tools.