Question

read the excerpt from the odyssey

the wind that carried west from ilium
brought me to ismarus, on the far shore,
a strongpoint on the coast of cicones.
i stormed that place and killed the men who fought.
plunder we took, and we enslaved the women,
to make division, equal shares to all—
but on the spot i told them: back, and quickly!
out to sea again! my men were mutinous,
fools, on stores of wine. sheep after sheep they
butchered by the surf, and shambling cattle,
feasting,—while fugitives went inland, running
to call to arms the main force of cicones.
this was an army, trained to fight on horseback
or, where the ground required, on foot. they came
with dawn over that terrain like the leaves
and blades of spring. so doom appeared to us,
dark word of zeus for us, our evil days.
my men stood up and made a fight of it—60
backed on the ships, with lances kept in play,
from bright morning through the blaze of noon
so holding our beach, although so far outnumbered,

which central idea should be included in a paraphrase of this excerpt?

odysseus and his men
fought the forces of
cicones better on the
ships than on land.

the forces sent by
cicones to stop the
plundering of odysseus
and his men were skilled
and powerful.

the forces sent by
cicones to fight
odysseus and his men
arrived during the early
morning hours.

odysseus views the
army sent by cicones as
punishment from the
greek god zeus.

Explanation:

To determine the central idea for the paraphrase, we analyze each option:

• The first option: The excerpt doesn't compare fighting on ships vs. land in terms of "better" fighting; it just says men fought backed on ships. Eliminate.
• The second option: The excerpt focuses on Odysseus' plundering, the Ciconian fugitives calling for arms, and the resulting battle. The description of the Ciconian army as "trained to fight on horseback or... on foot" and coming "like the leaves and blades of spring" (implying strength) supports that the forces sent to stop the plundering were skilled and powerful. This aligns with the central event of the plundering and the subsequent strong response.
• The third option: The arrival time (early morning) is a detail, not the central idea. Eliminate.
• The fourth option: The excerpt says "doom appeared to us, dark word of Zeus", but the main focus is the battle with Ciconian forces, not Odysseus' view of it as Zeus' punishment. Eliminate.

Answer:

B. The forces sent by Cicones to stop the plundering of Odysseus and his men were skilled and powerful.