Read the excerpt from Part 2 of The Odyssey. We would entreat you, great Sir, have a care for the gods' courtesy; Zeus will avenge the unoffending guest.' He answered this from his brute chest, unmoved: 'You are a ninny, or else you come from the other end of nowhere, telling me, mind the gods! We Cyclopes care not a whistle for your thundering Zeus. What theme is best revealed by this conflict? It is important to use manners in new situations. It is wise to know the enemy you face. Guests should honor the traditions of their hosts. Guests should offer gifts to their hosts

The theme best revealed by this conflict is:

B.  It is wise to know the enemy you face.

Explanation:

Even though Odysseus, the epic hero in the poem "The Odyssey", is known for his wittiness, in this particular excerpt he reveals his ignorance. Odysseus had assumed the Cyclopes would show the same hospitality as was expected of humans. He also had assumed the Cyclopes feared the gods. He was wrong in both assumptions. The Cyclopes were half-monsters who saw men as prey, not as guests. Upon hearing the name of the god Zeus, one of them gets utterly irritated and offended. This leads to the demise of Odysseus's crew, and shows the importance of knowing one's enemy. Had Odysseus known about the Cyclopes' race, their customs and traditions, their beliefs and intelligence - or lack of intelligence, for that matter -, his approach would have been different. He might have had saved his men.