Cards (18)

  • keeps Ody on Ogygia for 7 years - explains away a big chunk of time of T growing up and Ody's travels
  • only see the last days of his confinement
  • her name is significant - means 'concealer'
  • detailed description of her cave gives the audience a clear setting for the action
  • rich vegetation with vines and fountains represents a magical natural world that the audience could only dream of
  • vine has mystical and erotic connotations
  • Circe and Calypso sing and weave
  • recognises her place in the divine hierarchy and knows she must obey Zeus' commands
  • doesn't stop her showing her indignation
  • doesn't show her outrage to Ody
  • pretends she has decided to let him go because of his unhappiness
  • provides Ody with his needs
  • he is suspicious, fearing that she is plotting mischief
  • she strokes him and gently rebukes him for his cunning mind
  • she foreshadows Athene in bk 13
  • she is portrayed as a sensitive human
  • the lasting impression of her is a woman desperate to keep the man she loves
  • once she knows he must leave, she provides good xenia