TMA 07: Myths and Conventions
TMA 07: Myths and Conventions With careful reference to two of the works studied in Block 5 (Medea and Pygmalion), show how attributes traditionally associated with masculinity and femininity are contrasted. Medea by Euripides (431 BCE) and Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw (1913 ACE) are plays that share common themes of sexuality and alienation with both their roots firmly set in mythology. Euripides and Shaw employ a range of techniques to present the compelling personas of their female protagonists, Medea and Eliza Doolittle respectively. The plays revolve around the powerful and physiological transformation of Medea and Eliza's striking aesthetic reform through the writers' skilful use of stage direction, language, tone and theme development. The actions and dialogues of the supporting characters also manipulate the audiences' and other characters opinions. The playwrights have carefully considered each effect when constructing and developing their lead character. Euripides has already launched the transformation of his protagonist at the opening of the play. Medea the queen, wife and mother shows signs of a more masculine and at times, an extremely 'barbaric' role, through her howling lamentations. The play begins with Medea's nurse setting the scene, she introduces the main
On December 31 1896, a large seagoing tug called the Commodore set sail for the open sea - Author Stephen Crane was on-board as a war correspondent at the time.
Diane M. Hess College Composition II Instructor: Dr Hazel Cooper-Watts On December 31 1896, a large seagoing tug called the Commodore set sail for the open sea. Author Stephen Crane was on-board as a war correspondent at the time. During the trip the vessel ran aground a couple of times, this damaged the hull of the ship. The Commodore was eighteen miles from land when the damaged hull gave way and was swamped with water. Stephen Crane and three other men managed to escape in a lifeboat. The short story "The Open Boat" is a fictional story based on his real-life account of what happened during that fateful time. Through the use of symbolic language, metaphors and irony, Stephen Crane allows us to experience what had happened during that crisis and how the people involved came together to fight for survival out in the open sea. Writers, often use these three elements of literature, in order to make their audience react to the story they are telling. They set the tone, give of the plot and setting, and give images of what is happening to the character or characters in the story. First let us look at how Stephen Crane uses symbolic language in the story of "The Open Boat". Symbolic language is used in the "The Open Boat" to set the tone or the mood, as well as, the setting of the story and gives us insight to the hopeless feeling the men were experiencing while
What has drawn so many writers and dramatists to the story of Oedipus or Antigone?
What has drawn so many writers and dramatists to the story of Oedipus or Antigone? Sophocles' Antigone, written circa 441BC, deals with the protagonist Antigone's fight to give her brother, Polyneices, the proper burial that had been denied him by the king, Creon. It is considered among the great Greek tragedies of the time, and is still translated in modern times. When Greece was succeeded by Rome as the great city of the West, the Romans were more concerned with power and commerce rather than culture, therefore Greek drama was pushed aside by the majority, except a small number of Roman playwrights (Bowra, 1970, p. 154), such as Seneca. However, around 16 centuries after the birth of Christ, a collection of the plays were put into print, heralding the return of Greek drama, which is now present in countless different ways in our culture. As Knox explains in his preface to the plays, Sophocles was known to be one of nine generals campaigning against the revolt of Samos at the time the play is assumed to have been written (Sophocles, 1984, p. 35). His knowledge of politics is clearly reflected in his writing, and Antigone is no exception, as it is greatly concerned with the political issues of the polis (state). Political problems will always have great relevance in society, and Antigone has been used by many practitioners in the twentieth century 'to articulate new visions
Review of The Odyssey by Homer.
Throughout history, women have been expected to behave a certain way in order to uphold some kind of ideal image. The woman is expected to be a virtuous and upright person, forever loyal and subservient to her husband. However while history adheres to this common image of the woman, a very different mold is shaped for the man. This establishes a double standard between the two genders. The dictionary defines the term 'double standard' as a "system, code, or criterion applied unequally; specifically a code of behavior that is stricter for women than for men, especially in matters of sex" (Agnes et al. 429). This phrase defines women's history, as women are constantly viewed under different guidelines and principles than their male counterparts. Written by Homer, the epic poem entitled The Odyssey epitomizes the idea of the double standard in Ancient Greek society. It revolves around the subject of promiscuous behavior in the sexual sense, as males engaged in the behavior while females were expected to abstain from it. The idea of sexual promiscuity in The Odyssey creates an unfair double standard between its male and female characters. The difference of accepted sexual behavior between gods and goddesses is exemplified in an angry speech given to the gods by the goddess Calypso. When Hermes informs her that the prisoner Odysseus must return home, Calypso becomes frustrated.
The Hospitality in the Odyssey.
Omar Hernandez 95-1809 06/15/03 The Hospitality in the Odyssey In the epic, by Homer, "The Odyssey", hospitality is demonstrated at various points. It is never really genuine, but forced upon due to circumstance. Throughout the entire epic Odysseus finds himself stranded on many islands and is greeted by a being that either dwells or has control over the island, and at one point or another they display some form of hospitality. Kyklops, Aiolos, and Kirke have self-motivated reason for showing hospitality, but never the less they are hospitable. Kyklops, a one-eyed giant that consumes humans, showed very little hospitality. The only time that he was hospitable to Odysseus is when he was drunk, and asked Odysseus for more wine. In return for the wine, the Kyklops promised him a gift. The gift was that he would eat Odysseus last. Even though it does not seem like much of a gift, Kyklops felt like it was a great honor. The only reason that Kyklops was sociable at all was because he desired the wine and Odysseus was the only one that could bring him the wine. The act of kindness had absolutely nothing to do with the idea of being kind, it was all to gain something greater in return. The Aiolia Island belonged to Aiolos Hippotades, the King of the wind. When Odysseus arrived he welcomed him with great hospitality, but made him stay for one month and tell him the
Two Visits to the Underworld 750 Years Apart: The Odyssey and the Aeneid.
Rachel Doyle Dr. M. Reichert Cultural Foundations Two Visits to the Underworld 750 Years Apart: The Odyssey and the Aeneid Virgil wrote the Aeneid for a variety of social and personal reasons. Besides wanting to eat and support his family, Virgil also wrote to please rulers of Rome as well as other patrons, who looked up to the Greeks as great scholars (they employed Greek tutors) but very much wanted to honor the founders of Rome. Besides wanting to elevate Aeneas's stature as a hero, Virgil was also competing with Homer to see if he could produce a greater work of literature. Both the Aeneid and the Odyssey are stories about heroes and their ordeals. In order to fully appreciate the motivations behind the creation of Virgil's Aeneid, it is necessary to read Homer's Odyssey beforehand. Undoubtedly Virgil read and studied Homer's Odyssey, as did any educated Roman of his time. Virgil revered Homer but desired to write a story that would be about Roman heroes rather than Greek heroes. The visit to the underworld was one of the most dramatic, riveting parts of Odyssey. Comparing the different visits to the Underworld in the Aeneid and the Odyssey helps to expose the strengths and weaknesses of both narratives. Now I have a greater appreciation of Virgil's achievement as a great poet, perhaps greater than Homer. I also have a greater appreciation of Homer as a
The Journey of Our Lives.
The Journey of Our Lives By Courtney Wallace "Some people come into our lives, leave footprints on our hearts, and we are never the same." -Anonymous Chris McCandless was very successful in his journey. Some of us judge success by how people advance, usually financially or even physically, during their journey. I feel that success can be interpreted in many different ways. In the book, Into the Wild a young man by the name of Chris McCandless takes a journey to Alaska by way of many strangers that he meets along the way; however, in this book, Chris never sees saw them to be strange. Chris found his place in society and he found what he wanted to do that shows success. If Chris had survived his trip and come back the same person that he left as, the trip would not have been successful because he would not have learned anything, and learning something is very important to your success. At the beginning of the book, Chris wanted to go out on a journey to Alaska because he did not want to follow the mold that society had made for him. He thought that his father was trying to pressure him into going to law school to be successful and to get married and to live in a suburban neighborhood with two kids and a golden retriever. Because Chris thought that he did not want to do that, he set out for Alaska to in the wild to try to find his place in the world. He went there
Path To Freedom
Path To Freedom Draft copy There was a 6.5ft tall built man who wore Italian suites and comb his hair back with lots of hair gel and spoke in a deep voice by the name of Kirk "Ketchup" Soprano and was commonly known as "KK" . He lived in a town called Sun City. He was a very successful businessperson working as a stock broker, until a new Sun City president was elected, his name was Gaven Hope people called him president "Hope" he always had a suspicious look on his face. The president decided to, implement two new laws. The first law was called the "Family Law", which stated that you had to have a wife and children to work. The second law was called the "Crime Law", which stated if you commit over five crimes you will be sent to the underworld to live with the underdogs. The underworld was about 250km deep underground and was dark and extremely cold; there was only one source of light it was an enormously big and bulky lamp going all the way around the underworld. The underdogs were uncivilized human beings their behaviour was appalling, they were very unhygienic, ruthless, unforgiving and insane people. Kirk had no family and he was fired from work, this was exceptionally upsetting for Kirk. Without thinking, he went to the group centre this was a gigantic glass building where the president held all his conferences, Kirk protested against the laws using violence, he was
Aristophanes' Lystrata
Introduction to the Western Theatrical Tradition. Question 2. "Aristophanes was not a subtle writer, and his plays - more than most - are a theatrical rather than a literary experience." Robert Corrigan Analyse Lysistrata to estimate how accurately Corrigan's statement describes Aristophanes' anti-war play. This essay perceives Corrigan's statement to be accurate that Lysistrata is definitely a more theatrical than a literary experience. There are many reasons for Lysistrata's theatrical proficiency and they include it being written in the style of 'Old Comedy' the audience and their expectations especially at the festivals of Dionysus and Lenaia, the loose structure of Greek comedy, the impossibility of the plot, the language, and the intense Aristophanic parodies. Old Comedy is typical of Aristophanes in the 5th Century BC. Its characteristics are that it is surreal and fantastical, and its butts of jokes are specific individuals or even current political ideas. Old Comedy as contrasted with New Comedy contained more slapstick routines, physical energy music and dance. Old Comedy fulfilled a function in Greek festivals to entertain the audience and was in contrast to tragedy at the time, which contained a stronger moral message. "His work is often so formless."1 Brander Matthews believes that Aristophanes used little structure in all of his plays. However, the
In Tennyson's poem 'The Lotus Eaters' how do ideas of realism and nature interweave? Draw on different cultural traditions for that.
In Tennyson's poem 'The Lotus Eaters' how do ideas of realism and nature interweave? Draw on different cultural traditions for that. Tennyson's poem the 'Lotus Eaters' tells us of the conflict between nature and realism, with nature being represented by the world of lotus-eaters, and the real world that of toil and struggle. It is this intertwining of these two worlds that present us with the main conflict of the poem. In order to compare the two we must look at nature as represented by the lotus, in comparison with the 'real' world of work and toil. First however we shall look at the context of the poem itself. The poem is derived from Homer's Odyssey where Ulysses and his mariners on the homeward journey to Ithaca encounter the land of the Lotus Eater's, the tale goes on to say that Ulysses bade 3 of his men to journey inland in search of men and food. We are told the effect of the lotus had on those of his crewmen that ate them 'their only wish to linger there with the lotus eaters, grazing on lotus, all memory of their journey home lost forever'. It is this desire of his crewmen that inspired the choric song in the Lotus Eaters by Lord Tennyson. The lotus, or rather the enchantment encountered after eating a lotus is a representation of nature, in the sense that it is the opposite of toil. The lotus-eaters wish to be like the God's 'careless of mankind'. The