a) There are many different times that Odysseus shows cunning behavior but the one scene that sticks out the greatest in my mind is when he names himself "Nobody" when convincing the Cyclops to drink some of his wine (pg 310, lines 408-411). Being that this was a rather serious moment, a moment of life or death, I do not believe that Odysseus' character should be questioned. Although, in my mind this was an excusable situation for Odysseus, there are other moments where I believe his character could be questioned. For example, only moments after the men drove the stake into the eye of the monster, still in an extremely dangerous situation, Odysseus begins to laugh about how cunning he had been (pg 311, lines 461-463)! Many times, he himself refers to being cunning. This is where his heroism could be questioned. Although He was a hero and courageous, I believe that the true hero's are humble and by all means, they do not have a heart of laughter while staring death in the face. He had many life's in his hands and should have been more focused on those around him and not his own cunning ways. Therefore, I think it does make him less heroic.

b) One of the things that the grotesque details tell us about the Greeks is that they were used to not only hearing about such graphic scenes but also they were used to visually experiencing such grotesque things. War was a very prevalent thing in Ancient Greece. According to www.ancientgreece.com, there were 6 different wars that enveloped this people group. Although Homer was extremely detailed in the way He described the gruesome pain Cyclops experienced, I do not think it was to detailed for the people of Greece. The reason I do not think he was to detailed is because, I would imagine the people were used to such language as well as reality. Once again, war was something that inundated this people group. From what I gather, especially from Homer's piece is that such brutality is celebrated. One of the main reasons it is celebrated is because Odysseus and his men were able to escape because of their extreme actions. I suppose it is only appropriate for these men, to deeply explain their victory, success and bravery in such detail. This enabled those around Odysseus to truly experience and grasp the intensity of such a moment.