The poet of the Odyssey takes care to present the island of Ithaca as a real land, well connected with the other Ioanian islands and with the west coast of central Greece (Acarnania, Thesprotia) and of Peloponnese (Elis, Messenia). Throughout the poem there are many references to places where people from Ithaca can go or from where people can reach Ithaca. This means that Odysseus – who after leaving Troy loses his way, sails on unknown seas and touches unknown lands, but at the end is able to get back to Ithaca – can be perceived as the epic model of the Greek sailors of the 8th century (the Euboeans and the Corinthians), who opened – or re-opened – the sea routes to South Italy and Sicily. The heroic cult of Odysseus in the cave of Polis (on the west coast of Ithaca), testified by the bronze tripods which were found during the British campaign of excavations, shows that epic traditions on a marine hero were in fact active in the Ionian islands already in Sub-Mycenaean age.

I luoghi dell'Odissea tra geografia reale e geografia dell'immaginario / G. Zanetto (AMBROSIANA GRAECOLATINA). - In: Mtscellanea Graecolatina IV / [a cura di] S. Costa, F. Gallo. - Prima edizione. - Roma : Bulzoni Editore, 2017. - ISBN 9788868970666. - pp. 221-234

I luoghi dell'Odissea tra geografia reale e geografia dell'immaginario

G. Zanetto
2017

Abstract

The poet of the Odyssey takes care to present the island of Ithaca as a real land, well connected with the other Ioanian islands and with the west coast of central Greece (Acarnania, Thesprotia) and of Peloponnese (Elis, Messenia). Throughout the poem there are many references to places where people from Ithaca can go or from where people can reach Ithaca. This means that Odysseus – who after leaving Troy loses his way, sails on unknown seas and touches unknown lands, but at the end is able to get back to Ithaca – can be perceived as the epic model of the Greek sailors of the 8th century (the Euboeans and the Corinthians), who opened – or re-opened – the sea routes to South Italy and Sicily. The heroic cult of Odysseus in the cave of Polis (on the west coast of Ithaca), testified by the bronze tripods which were found during the British campaign of excavations, shows that epic traditions on a marine hero were in fact active in the Ionian islands already in Sub-Mycenaean age.
Homer; Odyssey; Ithaca and the Odyssey
Settore L-FIL-LET/02 - Lingua e Letteratura Greca
Settore L-FIL-LET/01 - Civilta' Egee
2017
Book Part (author)
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/2434/485069
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