Even when he believes himself to be finally at home in Ithaca based on the word of a young woman -- actually the goddess Athena in disguise, unbeknownst to him -- he lies about who he is not because he feels that he needs to but out of "the instinct Continue Reading...
Oedipus Rex Outline Introduction Paragraph: Hook: The story of Oedipus has surpassed the original play in that even people who have never seen or read Oedipus Rex know the basic elements of the story. Connection: Tragic irony is what leads to th Continue Reading...
Oedipus does not show unusual arrogance, no more so than his father did when he abandoned his child to cheat death. Oedipus leaves his natural parents out of a desire to protect them, as any son possessing filial pity should do, in the eyes of the G Continue Reading...
Oedipus the King At the beginning of Oedipus the King by Sophocles, Oedipus clearly sees it as his purpose in life to be the best leader he can. In his mind, this meant to be as close to his people as possible, especially when the play opens and the Continue Reading...
Odysseus & Polyphemus Odysseus and Polyphemus are a study in contrast. In fact, these two characters of Homer's The Odyssey are polar opposites. Odysseus is a bona fide hero and exemplifies some of the best qualities of mankind. Polyphemus is a Continue Reading...
The tragic hero always elicits sympathy from the audience. According to Struck (2002): "Finally, Oedipus' downfall elicits a great sense of pity from the audience. First, by blinding himself, as opposed to committing suicide, Oedipus achieves a kin Continue Reading...
role of women in Oedipus the King with the role of women in any other ancient Greek writings we have read this term. Be sure to do more than just observe the differences or similarities. I want to see a point argued here. The role of women in "Oedi Continue Reading...
Their prophecies completely shape the life of Oedipus. It was the oracle who informed Oedipus that he will kill his father and marry his mother. This prophecy led him to abandon Corinth for fear of killing his father and marrying his mother. When he Continue Reading...
Warrior Hero: A Stranger in a Strange Land The figure of the hero is set apart from the common herd of ordinary men by virtue of his special qualities and abilities; in some works, this separateness is literal - he is in a strange land apart from h Continue Reading...
Leed (1991) notes another commonality Gilgamesh shares with contemporary society, and that is the habit of travel. In contemporary society for example, millions of people travel far from their homeland each and every day, whether for work, in the p Continue Reading...
contemplated an individual's relationship with his or her environment. In Oedipus Rex and Antigone, Sophocles explores the relationship an individual has with the world and society. In each of these plays, Sophocles juxtaposes divinity and humanity Continue Reading...
She suggests the contest of the bow and the axes, which allows Odysseus to reveal himself and put the fear of Zeus into the suitors. Odysseus gets the credit for his great feat of arms, but it is Penelope's idea. Homer is showing that though man is Continue Reading...
Adaptations Mythology - Adaptations When watching the Coen Brothers' film Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?, it becomes immediately apparent that the film is meant to be a creative adaptation of The Odyssey by Homer. Rather than a straightforward mimicki Continue Reading...
Similar to many other initiation myths, Gilgamesh has to overcome obstacles such as the scorpion monsters that bar his way. The intense desire that Gilgamesh has to find the answer to eternal life is shown in the poem by the fact that he rejects th Continue Reading...
3. What are some of the themes you notice in the "Love Songs"? The Egyptian love songs use the terms "brother" and "sister" as generic references to male and female lovers and suggest intimacy as well as the taboo of incest. Brother-sister unions Continue Reading...
Life After Death: Afterlife Within the Realm of Ancient Greek Beliefs The question as to what happens after death is not fathomable within human reason. As such, it remains one of the biggest mysteries of life. The belief in life after death is what Continue Reading...
In the Old Testament, Eden appears as a lush tropical rainforest full of fruit and life. In other words, it is presented as an image of perfection. In the Old Testament, the character of Cain is said to have a mark on him. This mark signifies his br Continue Reading...
Aristotle desired a reversal because of the suddenness of the impact, which heightens the emotional impact of the plot. As a constant element, the juxtaposition of opposites is less emotional and more intellectual in its effect. There are other det Continue Reading...
For Aristotle, true freedom and liberty consists in ruling and being ruled in turn and not always insisting on fulfilling one's own personal desires at the cost of others. Thus, for Odysseus, true freedom can only come about when one is allowed to Continue Reading...
43). In The Odyssey, Jocasta demonstrates loyalty to her family by urging Odysseus to give up his pursuit for the truth. She literally begs him to stop quarrelling with Creon but he refuses to listen to her. He becomes obsessed to Jocasta's demise. W Continue Reading...
Homer was a legendary Greek poet who is traditionally credited as the author of the major Greek epics the "Iliad and the Odyssey," as well as the comic mini-epic "Batracholmyomachia" (The Frog-Mouse War), the corpus of Homeric Hymns, and various othe Continue Reading...
In the "Odyssey" Achilles says to Odysseus, that it is better to be a living dog than honored in Hades. Submission to fate is ultimately what the Greeks seem to honor as a 'good' attitude. Oedipus the King finally accepts his cursed status, rather Continue Reading...
He is described as being of gigantic size and of tremendous emotion. Always Achilles is described with the most exaggerated terms, shining like the sun or falling in the most absolute wretchedness. In a moment of sublimity oddly precognizant of goth Continue Reading...
War is a fact of life, a terrible fact of life, but when it is willed by the gods it cannot be ignored. Achilles does have some positive moral characteristics: although he spends much of the Iliad retreating from the fighting, he is clearly not a c Continue Reading...
In other words, the Greeks did not merely triumph in the dominance of history books, but their teachings still culturally resonate with simple, human questions and concerns that we ask ourselves as a society -- why do we love, why do we fight our f Continue Reading...
Crow & Hawk: the Bird Spirit Poetry of Ted Hughes Poets and prophets from Aesop to Isaiah to Blake have traditionally used animal figures to convey a criticism of existing culture, endowing the natural with metaphoric import. In most preliterate Continue Reading...
Reason vs Passion: Comparing Aristotle and Plato Introduction It must be well known among all students and scholars of philosophy that both Plato and Aristotle have a high regard for reason. But what is their view on passion? It might be surprising t Continue Reading...
Folktale: Hansel and Gretel Hansel and Gretel by the Brothers Grimm is a narrative tale and one can easily read it aloud to children. It is about two siblings whose father is a poor woodcutter and can no longer afford to feed the family. The cruel an Continue Reading...
Sophocles, Shakespeare, And Walt Williams Many great writers -- including these three, Sophocles, Shakespeare, and Tennessee Williams -- use illusion in their narratives. This paper will present some instances and passages in which these writers emp Continue Reading...
But her loyalty is not to her father or brother, but to her husband, thus it is viewed more charitably in the ancient Greek system of values. Also, her actions protect the state, as she prevents a wrongful king coming to power by refusing to remarry Continue Reading...
Aristotle: Virtue Aristotle is considered to be the philosopher of philosophers, he virtually wrote about everything, he pioneered most of the disciplines like psychology, biology, meteorology and political science. For almost a thousand years Arist Continue Reading...
The Everlasting Influence of Greek Mythology Greek mythology has permeated various facets of our modern world despite being rooted in stories that are millennia old. This ancient framework of gods, heroes, and epic adventures not only served a relig Continue Reading...
