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| Hero of Troy. In the Odyssey he is seen in Hades wishing he was still alive. |
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| The husband in Euripides Alcestis who is allowed not to die, provided someone else volunteers in his place. Tries to hide the fact that his wife died when Heracles comes to visit. |
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| The island where Circe lives, and where she turned Odysseus’ crew into pigs. |
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| King of Athens and the father of Theseus. In Euripides’ Medea, he tells her that she can have asylum in Athens because he believes she can help him produce an heir. This gives her a place to escape to. |
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| He was the lover of Clymnestra, and he helped her kill her husband Agamemnon. He was eventually killed by Orestes, an event much discussed in the Odyssey around Telemachus. |
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| The king of the winds. He gave Odysseus a bag containing all the ill winds to allow him to go home quickly. When Odysseus returns, Aeolus sends him away, saying that Odysseus must have angered a major god. |
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| A playwright and contemporary of Sophocles and Euripides. He wrote Prometheus Bound and the Orestia trilogy, detailing the death of Agamemnon and the revenge extracted by his son. |
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| The leader of the Greeks at Troy who is murdered by his wife and his lover when he returns home, but avenged by his son. Odysseus sees him in the underworld, and he warns him to not trust women and to be cautious of Penelope. |
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| A Greek warrior at Troy, who Odysseus sees but does not talk to in the underworld. He is still angry that Odysseus won Achilles’ armor and he himself is possibly guilty of rape while at Troy. |
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| The wife of Admetus who dies in his place in the Euripides play. She is brought back to life when Heracles assaults death to get her back, although she can’t speak initially. |
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| The father of Nausicaa and the husband of Arete. He sends Odysseus back to Ithaca with lots of gifts on his fastest ship. |
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| Odysseus’ mother who died grieving for him. She tells him about his family who are still alive. They try and fail to embrace. |
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| Daughter of Jocasta and Oedipus, she is executed by Creon for trying to bury her brother, Polyneices, whose body had been left outside in the Sophocles play. |
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| In Euripides’ Hippolytus, she drives Phaedra mad with lust for her stepson who ignores and refuses to honor Aphrodite, goddess of love, by not marrying. |
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| Olympian god who gets death to give Admetus an extension on life, if someone will take his place. |
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| Nausicaa’s mother and the true power in Phaiacia. |
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| In Hippolytus, she is the patron and friend of the main character. She sets things right with Theseus and his son, while promising to get revenge on Aphrodite. |
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| The goddess of wisdom and Odysseus’ main patron. |
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| Followers of Bacchus, they tend to be drunk and frolicking in nature. They can also commit unbelievably violent acts, like in the play of the same name where they rip Pentheus apart. |
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| God of wine. He incites his followers to great merriment or great violence. Associated with wild women and satyrs, he is the son of Zeus and Semele, technically making him Theban royalty and a god. |
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| Another name for Bacchus, often used in Euripides’ Bacchae. It means Thunderer, signifying his link to Zeus. |
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| The brother of Europa, who founded Thebes after he couldn’t find her. He battled a snake/dragon and eventually was turned into one with his wife after he abandoned his tragic city. |
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| The “concealer.” She was a nymph/goddess who saved Odysseus from drowning and kept him on her island for 7 years. |
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| Odysseus’ men ate them, angering Apollo who had Zeus destroy their ships, killing everyone except Odysseus. |
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| The whirlpool across from Scylla that sucks everything in, or alternatively spits everything out later on. |
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| Allies of the Trojans who Odysseus and company attack shortly after leaving Troy. After pillaging them, the Greeks leave and heavy storms eventually drive them to the Cyclopes’ island. |
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| A sorceress who transforms some of Odysseus’ men into pigs. She tries to trick Odysseus but is overcome by the moly. She becomes his lover and advises him to speak with Teiresias in the Underworld. |
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| A theater competition and religious festival which Sophocles and Euripides participated in. There would be 3 tragedies and then a fourth “satyr” play (like a comedy) upon which the playwrights would be judged. |
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| The wife of Agamemnon and lover of Aegisthus. She kills Agamemnon when he returns from Troy with Cassandra, but is ultimately killed by her own son Orestes |
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| The setting of the play Medea ruled by Creon, whose daughter Glauce will marry Jason. |
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| The king of Corinth in Euripides’ Medea. He is the father of Glauce, Jason’s new wife. Medea kills him as well. |
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| Jocasta’s brother who becomes king after Oedipus leaves and his sons kill each other. He forbids the burial of Polyneices in the Sophocles’ play Antigone, and his hubris leads to the death of Antigone, Ismene, his son Haemon, and his wife. |
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| A one eyed giant monster. In the Odyssey, one of these creatures eats some of the Greeks and is blinded in retaliation by Odysseus. Unfortunately, his father is Poseidon, so he has a curse placed on Odysseus. |
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| In Euripides’ Alcestis Death takes the title character in place of her husband Admetus, because Apollo was able to offer his friend that deal. Heracles attacks Death, forcing him to allow Alcestis to return to life. |
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| Son of Zeus and Semele, a Theban princess. He is the god of wine and his followers are euphoric and capable of great destruction. In Euripides’ Bacchae he arranges for the death of Pentheus, because he doesn’t believe Dionysus is a god |
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| He got drunk and fell to his death from Circe’s roof. Odysseus sees him in the Underworld and promises to return to the island to give him a proper burial. |
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| The son of Oedipus who became king of Thebes when his father left, he killed/ was killed by his brother Polyneices in battle for control of the city. His uncle Creon deemed him a true champion of Thebes and buried him with great honors. |
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| The swineherd who takes the disguised Odysseus in when he returns to Ithaca. He later helps his master kill the suitors. |
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| A Greek playwright who wrote Medea, The Bacchae, Alcestis, and Hippolytus. His tragedies almost always came in second place to Sophocles in the City Dionysia. |
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| She was Odysseus’ nurse who recognized him as she washed his feet due to the scar on his thigh. She identified the maids who had remained loyal to Penelope and which ones had consorted with the suitors. |
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| She was Creon of Corinth’s wife. She kills herself in Antigone when she learns her son Haemon had done the same. |
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| The son of Creon and Antigone’s fiancé. He tries to reason with his father about her punishment, creating a rift between the two which would lead to his suicide so he could be with Antigone. |
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| Helen of Troy. In the Odysseus, Telemachus meets her and her husband Menelaus in Sparta. She tells stories about Odysseus and confirms Telemachus’ identity as his son by recognizing him. |
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| The greatest of the Greek heroes. In Alcestis, he stays at Admetus’ house and has a good time, until he learns why everyone is in mourning. He then goes to the tomb and attacks Death, forcing Death to allow Alcestis to return with him. |
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| The messenger god who warns Odysseus about Circe, and gives him the moly so he can overcome her. He also tells the nymph Calypso she must let Odysseus return home. He appears in the final book as a psychopomp leading the slain suitors into the underworld where they see the Trojan War heroes. |
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| The son of Theseus and the title character in the Euripides’ play. He scorns love and marriage, favoring Artemis over Aphrodite. In retaliation, Aphrodite causes his stepmother to fall in love with him. He rejects her but agrees to keep the whole thing a secret, which eventually leads to his father banishing and cursing him. |
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| The poet who composed the Odyssey and the Iliad. He was an oral artist. |
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| In The Bacchae, she is an aunt of Pentheus and Bacchus. She helps Pentheus’ mother rip him apart in their frenzy. |
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| Antigone’s sister. She tries to dissuade Antigone from burying her brother’s body against Creon’s decree. After Antigone is caught, Ismene tries to say she was involved as well. Antigone tells her not to bother, while Creon winds up sentencing her to death. |
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| Odysseus’ home, the one place he is trying to get to during the entire course of the Odyssey. |
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| Medea’s husband who leaves her to marry Glauce the Corinthian princess. Medea kills their children in order to punish him for leaving her. |
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| Oedipus’ mother and wife. She kills herself when she realizes the truth. |
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| Odysseus’ father who lives alone in his vineyard, grieving the loss of his son. Odysseus tests him when he returns. Laertes kills the father of the suitor Antonius, right before Athena tells the Ithacans to stop fighting. |
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| A race of giant cannibals who attack and kill a large number of Odysseus’ men before he encounters the Cyclopes. |
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| People who eat the lotus lose all memory of home, instead focusing themselves entirely on staying on the island and eating the fruit. A few of Odysseus’ men do eat it. |
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| These are the same as the Bacchae, the female followers of Bacchus. |
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| A witch and the wife of Jason. She kills her children, his new wife and her father to punish Jason for leaving her. She then flees to Athens. |
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| The husband of Helen and king of Sparta. He hosts Telemachus and instinctively realizes he is Odysseus’ son, confirming his identity. |
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| He was the king of the Cicones who were attacked by Odysseus immediately after leaving Troy. |
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| An herb and its root that Hermes gives to Odysseus to protect him from Circe’s bewitchment. |
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| In the Bacchae, she is the mother of Pentheus and the aunt of the god Dionysus. Driven into a frenzy by the god, she and her sisters tear Pentheus apart, which she doesn’t realize until the end of the play. |
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| Son of admetus, led pherae in the trojan war on the greek side |
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| metis, nostos, homophrosyne |
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| King of Thebes. Killed his father Lauis and married his mother Jocasta. Uncovered this truth while investigating the cause of a plague on Thebes. |
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| son of Agamemnon who avenged his father murder, by killing Clytemnestra (mother) and his mother’s lover. Used as a comparison for Telemachus (Penelope plagued by suitors). |
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| metis, trick of the loom, the bridal bed |
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| King of Thebes, he banned the worship of Dionysus (his cousin) because he doubted his divine lineage. Lured into watching Maenads during a Bacchic frenzy and eventually pulled apart by his mother Agave. |
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| Wife of Theseus, step-mother to hippolytus, made to fall in love with Step-son by Aphrodite who was punishing hippolytus for only worshiping Artemis. Kills herself, makes it look like Hippolytus’ fault. |
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| another name for Scheria. A nation of shipbuilders. Lead by King Alcinoos. |
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| Home of Admetus and Alcestis. |
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| Father of Admetus. Refuses to die for his son, saying that life is precious no matter what age you are. |
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| Son of Oedipus, killed in a bid to take over Thebes from his brother. Creon declares that he is not to be buried, as he is a traitor. Antigone disobeys this order and is subsequently sentenced to death by starvation. |
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| The Cyclops who held Odysseus and his men captive. Blinded with a sharpened log. Odysseus leads his men out of the cave by lashing them to the bellies of sheep. Son of Poseidon, calls curse upon Odyssesus. |
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| Father of Polyphemus, tries to prevent Odysseus from getting home. |
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| Also known as Phaeacia. Odysseus lands hear after his raft is destroyed. He recounts much of his story over a banquet with King Alcinoos. They are regarded as having the fastest ships and take Odysseus back to Ithaca. Their ship is turned to stone by Poseidon because of this. |
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| Six headed monster who eats six of Odysseus’ men. Odyessus doesn’t tell them about this. The other option is the whirlpool Charybdis. |
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| Aunt to Pentheus, and mother of Dionysus. She is seduced by Zeus, but is later killed after Hera tricks her into asking Zeus to reveal himself in his true form. |
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| Their song makes men forget about their journeys and steer towards the song, where they are shipwrecked. Odysseus puts wax in his men’s ears so they can’t hear the song and has them tie him to the fast so he can hear it. |
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| Oedipal criminal, encountered by Odysseus in Tartaros, continually pushing a boulder up a hill. |
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| Famous Greek tragedy writer. Wrote Antigone and Oedipus the King. Almost always beat Euripides in the City Dionysia. |
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| Telemachus’ second stop after talking to Nestor. He is entertained by Menelaus and Helen who recognize him as Odysseus’ son. |
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| First husband of Clytemnestra, killed by Agamemnon. |
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| Blind prophet. Oedipus asks consults him about the killing of Lauis. He is reluctant to reveal the answer but Oedipus provokes him until revealing the truth. Odysseus meets him in the underworld and he gives him advice about the rest of his journey, specifically about the cattle of Helios. |
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| Discovers bad secret, ends up making situation worse. Think Hippolytus. |
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| The quintessential “tragic city”. The Bacchae, Oedipus the King, and Antigone all take place here. Founded by Cadmus. |
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| Father of Hippolytus, bans Hippolytus and calls down a curse upon him (via Poseidon) after Phaedra blames Hippolytus for her death. |
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| Island home to Helios’ cattle. Where Odysseus’ men betray |
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| Oedipal criminal who tried to rape Leto. Streteched out and has his liver eaten |
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| Orders Calypso to let Odysseus go, bars Poseidon from out right killing Odysseus, and destroys the ship when they eat the cattle |
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| Antigone, buried in her wedding dress (engaged to Haemon). |
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| “There are many wondrous things and yet nothing is more wondrous than man" First stasmos of Antigone. |
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| a wealthy Athenian citizen who assumed the public duty of financing and paying the expenses of the preparation of the chorus and other aspects of dramatic production that were not covered by the state. |
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| the manifestation of the possession by a god., e.g. Dionysus’ possession of the Maenads. |
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| act of eating raw flesh, closely associated with Dionysus. Usually preceded by sparagmos. |
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| the concept of charecteristics shared by two or more people. Most obvious with Penelope and Odysseus and even Telemachus to a lesser extent. |
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| A story which begins in the middle of the action. (Odyssey starts on Calypso’s island) |
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| A journey “downwards”, usually to the underworld. Shown in book 11 “Nekuia”, of the Odyssey, where Odysseus travels to the Underworld to speak with Teiresias. |
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| term meaning pleasant place, usually one which offers safety from danger. Usually represented as a lawn or valley (think Eden). |
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| knowledge, perhaps Odysseus’ strongest trait, also shared by Penelope. Evidenced by the trick of the loom and by the escape from Polyphemus. |
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| a journey to the Underworld. Undertaken by Odysseus to consult Teiresias about how to return to Ithaca. Also the name of the 11h book of the Odyssey. |
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| pain or sadness related to longing for the past. |
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| a homecoming, the central theme of the Odyssey |
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| Greek word with know clearly defined meaning, but could mean anything from ‘many ways’ or ‘many handed’ to ‘multiple skills’. |
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| self-control and moderation. |
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| A Dionysian ritual of sacrificing a live animal (or humans) by pulling it into pieces. Usually followed by homophagia. Pentheus killed by Sparagmos. |
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| A Dionysian ritual of sacrificing a live animal (or humans) by pulling it into pieces. Usually followed by homophagia. Pentheus killed by Sparagmos. |
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| the staff carried by followers of Dionysus (Bacchus) covered in Ivy and leaves, and topped with a pine cone. |
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| hospitality, an important part of Greek culture to show hospitality to traveling guests. |
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