Question

Homer included a very funny, though dark, situation in Ulysses’s interaction with Polyphemus the Cyclops. In no less than seventy-five words, describe that situation, and tell why it was not only funny, but dark, as well.

Answer 1

of bounty, and Odysseus's men simply want to take some cheese and leave, but Odysseus refuses.

When Polyphemus, strong and gigantic, returns, the mood changes. After Odysseus asks for hospitality in the name of the gods, Polyphemus reveals himself to be a barbarian in his disrespect of the deities, saying he won't "blink at" Zeus and that he has gotten more by "force" than from worshipping the gods. He then fully shows that he is, in Odysseus's words, a "ruthless brute" by taking two of Odysseus's men and "rapping them on the ground" until their "brains gush . . . out." Polyphemus then rips the corpses from limb to limb and devours them. Odysseus describes his response to him at this juncture as "paralyzed" and "appalled."

Odysseus is horrified at the animalistic, savage, and ruthless behavior of his host. He wants to stab him to death, but he waits, knowing only Polyphemus has the strength to move the "slab" blocking the door.