Do a close reading of the proem of The Odyssey (the part on the first page that begins, "Speak, Memory," and ends, "And tell the tale once more in our time." Explain what this section tells us about the nature of The Odyssey and also describe the themes that it is setting up, as we discussed in class.
I believe that this section is something that an oral singer or poet would say so that it makes the story of the Odyssey more believable. This is because it ends up with the singer asking for the gods do channel the story through him so as to say that the singer isn't singing a story but really an accurate historical piece. He/she uses the gods as a grounding point so that the story remains a truth just like we use books as a grounding point. It lets people know something to be true without them having seen it themselves.
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