Omeros Analysis

Have we said that you have to pay close attention when reading this work? Just in case, we'll say it again: Keep on the lookout. There's a lot of globe-hopping going on here, and if you're not care...

One of the hardest tasks you will have in reading this poem is simply figuring out who the heck is narrating at any given moment. The work starts off in third person (omniscient) as Philoctete perf...

It's pretty clear from the title and the length of the work that we're heading into an epic poem. But what does it really mean to be "epic"? You know—when you're not using the word to describe a...

Since Walcott has taken Homer's Iliad as a model for his work and deals with some of the greatest struggles in history, it's no surprise that he also adopts the serious tone generally reserved...

Check out this passage from Omeros, in which the narrator describes his experience with the foam bust of Homer at Antigone's house:But if I could read between the lines of her floorlike a white-hot...

The narrator's ex-lover explains that Omeros is Homer's name in Greek. But why does Walcott choose an ancient Greek poet as his guide for his work about Caribbean fisherman? There are a few differe...

The last chapter of Omeros functions like an epilogue for three main characters: the narrator, Helen, and Achille. The narrator takes one last shot at explaining the purpose of his "singing" or poe...

On a scale of 1 to James Joyce's Ulysses, this work ranks pretty high. It takes concentration and creativity to read it well, so make sure all your synapses are firing when you take this work on. T...

Welcome, StrangerWe're introduced to the cast of characters, and learn about the encroaching tourists, Philoctete's leg wound, and the feud between Achille and Hector over Helen. We see Plunkett an...

The CallSince we have several narrative threads in this work, we also have more than one call to take a spiritual or physical journey—and they happen in a variety of moments in the text. Worry no...

The first act comprises Books I and II, and it's when the major storylines are laid down and the characters established. This act's all about globetrotting: Achille to Africa and the Middle Passage...

Derek Walcott had a twin brother, Roddy, who was a playwright and an influential figure in Caribbean theater arts. (Source.)Walcott admires the works of Cézanne and Giorgione and is a painter in h...

Since the story revolves around two jealous men and their potentially promiscuous lover, it's hard to ignore the sexual nature of the plot. There's also the story of Helen of Troy—two nations fig...

Philoctetes (throughout)John Keats, "Ode on a Grecian Urn" (II.ii.13; II.iii.15) Dante Alighieri, Inferno (X.ii.59; XIII.ii.74; XIII.iii.75)Dante Alighieri, Purgatorio (XIII.ii.74)&#...