eCheat.com RSS Feedhttps://www.echeat.com/ Christmas with a good Reflection 2021-01-14T15:45:40.343-05:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Christmas-with-a-good-Reflection-45505.aspx Life and death in Homer's Literature Life and death in Homer's Literature In today’s society life and death coexist together; a life is brought into this world at the same time that one departs. Our views about life and death change according to our religion, which in term connects, to past generations. It is logical to assume that our current believes and views are a reflection of past civilizations and they have been handed down to us through time. The Odyssey portrays a wonderful and unique view to the relation between life and death in the ancient world. Even more interesting are his “life after death” views. Does it relate to our beliefs of the subject, or does it take us into a different set of mind? Book eleven tells us through the blind prophet Teiresias, what will happen throughout the rest of Odysseus “life journey”, making it an important event his stance there. At the entrance to the “Land of Death” we see the landscape of this land and immediately we can relate to the view. The following line explains the atmosphere of the place: “the realm and region of the Men of Winter, hidden in mist and cloud” (11.404.15). This tells us that the land of death is an island in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by darkness, fog, and with an inflicted coldness by the “dead”, which is the Men of Winter that chills our bones. Is a place where the sun does not shine: “Never the flaming eye of Helios lights on those men at morning…”(11.404.16), and the vegetation consists of nothing more than rotten vegetation in a swan. It is incredible how perfect this view has been kept throughout the years. In the movie What Dreams May Come we see the boat that drives you to the land of the dead, the image given by the Odyssey is exactly the same. It is a darkness that surrounds you and sets the tone for what is coming next in the text. He then goes on into the “land of Death” and starts the rituals that Circe commanded. In this ritual we see the first communication with death. Odysseus must sacrifice certain animals and take their blood together with some other condiments so the dead can drink from it and come to talk to him: 2007-04-25T21:21:18-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Life-and-death-in-Homer-s-Literature-33166.aspx Comparing the Aeneid and Dracula Comparing the Aeneid and Dracula The Aeneid by Virgil and Bram Stoker’s Dracula are both works centering around love and tragedy. In both of these misfortunes, love is intertwined with suffering. Why are love and suffering connected as such? In The Aeneid, Aeneas suffered a great deal and then was fated to lead his people to Italy and Rome. Aeneas "marries" the Queen of Carthage, Dido, who eventually kills herself out of despair. In Dracula, Elizabetha takes her life after being informed that her beloved prince was slewed in the battle field. Dracula comes home from a victorious battle to find his only true love to have committed suicide. Dracula then makes a pact with the devils that he will walk the earth forever in search for his true love again On the way to Rome, Aeneas and his men landed at Carthage. Aeneas met the Queen of Carthage, Dido, and during a storm arranged by the gods they consummated their love. When Aeneas had to leave Carthage, he reasoned that he was not married to Dido and that he had no obligation to her. Dido, on the other hand felt that there was a commitment between her and Aeneas and that the experience that they shared meant that they were married. After Aeneas left Carthage, Dido killed herself on Aeneas’’ funeral pyre by throwing herself on to Aeneas’’ sword. When Aeneas saw Dido in Hell, Aeneas begged her to forgive him, but she didn’’t answer him. Since Dido committed suicide and she refused to forgive Aeneas for wronging her, the love between them was tragic. Dido was a very significant character in The Aeneid. Dido represents both love and suffering. Aeneas and Dido shared a common bond. They both loved each other. Dido represents suffering because she died in the name of love, when she committed suicide. Aeneas consummated his marriage with her in the cave, however, knowing that he was fated to lead the Trojans to Italy and Rome, Aeneas was careless in starting a relationship with Dido. He then picked up and left Carthage, acting to the benefit of his countrymen. Dido belongs in The Aeneid as a character of love and suffering. Dido is an important character in The Aeneid because she illustrates how Aeneas behaved heroically. Aeneas has no choice 2007-04-19T21:26:53-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Comparing-the-Aeneid-and-Dracula-33057.aspx Antigone Vs. Creon Antigone Vs. Creon “Morality is always the product of terror; its chains and strait-waistcoats are fashioned by those who dare not trust others, because they dare not trust themselves, to walk in liberty,” writes author Aldous Huxley. In “Antigone” the root of Creon’s immoral behavior is not an inability to distinguish between what is wrong and what is right, but, rather, a fear or a terror of what may occur if he were to choose the morally right way to operate. “Very well, I am afraid, then. Does that satisfy you? I am afraid that if you insist upon it, I shall have you killed. And I don’t want to (46).” Antigone acts in the complete opposite manner to Creon. She, as Creon can, is able to differentiate from right and wrong and is not afraid of the consequences of what acting on her morals may bring. These consequences have almost a reverse effect when compared with Creon; when faced with the consequences, she expects them and is almost too willing to deal with them. “You are mistaken. Quite the contrary. I never doubted for an instant you would have me put to death (41).” In “Antigone”, the characters of Creon and Antigone stand for two completely different, completely opposite, feelings and belief systems. Creon stands for numbness; a numbness that encompasses what he does, how he copes with what he does, and his morals. “Kings, my girl, have other things to do than to surrender themselves to their private feelings (42).” Creon does not bother himself with what he personally thinks is right or wrong, he detaches himself from his state of being as a person and creates just the entity “Creon the King”. This way he, Creon, never encounters or solves any moral dilemmas for he has “Creon the King” for that. Antigone on the other hand, represents strong ethics, courage, and righteousness: “alive” to Creon’s numb. “I didn’t say “yes”. I can say no to anything I think vile, and I don’t have to count the cost. But because you said yes, all that you can do, for all your crown and trappings, and your guards- all that you can do is to have me killed (45).” She is alive to what happens in her surroundings; reacting with every move. 2005-12-27T02:02:44-05:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Antigone-Vs_-Creon--28275.aspx The Grave Tragedy of Oedipus the King The Grave Tragedy of Oedipus the King Tragedy is one of the most prevalent forms of drama produced around the world. There are certain criteria that a drama has to follow in order for it to be characterized as a Tragedy. The criteria is established by Aristotle and is still being used today. It includes having a tragic hero, harmartia, peripateia, a plot consisting of a time period of 24 hours, and finally catharsis. Oedipus the King is a great example of a Tragedy written by Sophocles. In the play, Oedipus the King, Oedipus is the tragic hero spoken of in Aristotle’s rules for a tragedy. Oedipus is the tragic hero because he possesses characteristics that would ultimately follow that of a hero. His nobility is the most important when determining his title of tragic hero. Either way he could not escape being king. Born of a noble line of blood made him noble, but even when they tried to kill him, he ends up by fate being raised up by a king and queen of another land. The other act that set Oedipus as the tragic hero is his heroic efforts to free Thebes from the Sphinx; “You saved us from the Sphinx, that flinty singer”. Together with other valiant deeds Oedipus is ultimately the tragic hero. Hamartia is a tragic flaw, which accompanies the tragic hero but does not lead to the hero’s death. Oedipus’ tragic flaw was his temper or his pride. He displays his temper when he kills Laios and all the travelers with him; “Swinging my club with this right hand I knocked him out of his car, and he rolled on the ground. I killed him. I killed them all.” His temper is also displayed when Teiresias reveals his fate and the answer to the question that he has posed to all of Thebes. “…Damnation Take you! Out of this place! Out of my sight!” The third rule from Aristotle is that of Peripateia. Peripateia is the complete reversal of plot in relation to the tragic hero. Oedipus starts out as the king of Thebes. In relation to peripateia, the 2005-09-14T00:08:40-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/The-Grave-Tragedy-of-Oedipus-the-King-27964.aspx The Odyssey versus The Epic of Gilgamesh The Odyssey and The Epic of Gilgamesh (Similarities and Differences) Both The Odyssey and the Epic of Gilgamesh are two incredible stories written long ago everyone knows this but what a lot of people don’t is that these two epics share many of the same concepts. Such as the nostro (the Greek term for homecoming), xenis (guest/host relationship), oikos (household), and aganoriss (recognition). In both epics these themes are illustrated. In The Odyssey the theme of nostro is very prevalent in this epic. Basically the whole story is based around this concept. The main character Odysseus whole goal in the book is his homecoming. Along his journey he faces many challenges separating him from his home Ithaca and his family. The main thing that keeps Odysseus going is the thought of one day being home with his family no matter how many set backs he faces. In The Epic of Gilgamesh the theme of nostro is more or less established the only difference between the two epics is nostro is not the main focus in this one. The main character in this epic is the great and powerful king Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh is not affected by the theme of homecoming until the end of the book after his best friend Enkidu is killed by the Bull of Heaven and he goes looking for eternal life. Unfortunately he is not successful in his quest and realizes he is mortal and realizes how important his family is and returns to Uruk to be with them. The next theme that is incorporated into the Odyssey is the theme xenis. This theme is also well incorporated into this epic. It seems wherever Odysseus goes he is welcomed with open arms. For example when he arrives in Scheria the home of the Phaeacians the princess Nausicaa and her handmaidens bath him and take him to the palace of king Alcinous where he is invited to a banquet. This is very important in his successes after all without the help from all these people he would not be able to make it home. The relationship between guest and host is something needed in this epic. Xenis is represented in the Epic of Gilgamesh after Enkidu battles with Gilgamesh and they become friends and he accepts him. He then stays with him and is treated like a guest. It seems in this epic xenis does not play as 2005-05-27T07:02:36-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/The-Odyssey-versus-The-Epic-of-Gilgamesh-26775.aspx Aeneid And Iliad: How They Relate To The Modern World The Relation of Iliad and Aeneid to Modern Society The world we live in today isn't the same as it was a couple hundred or thousand of years ago. But we still live in kind of the same way and concept. As each year, decade, and/or century goes by it gets more complicated and more technologically advanced, which makes it more difficult in a way and easier in another way. The style we live in also changes. The world around us changes as well. The Iliad and Aeneid are two examples of books that relate to our modern livings today. The Iliad is about two groups of people. Which are the Achaeans and the Trojans. The conflict in this book was because of Chryseis and Briseis, which were capture by the Achaeans. The world today is still corrupt just as it was back then. People still get kidnapped no matter if they are young, old, pretty, ugly, big or small. People say that the United States is a safe place to stay but it actually isn't. It might be safer to live in compared to other countries. There are many ignorant people who live in this world who bring dreadfulness and fear to the world we live in. Bin Laden can be a great example. He is a terrible person who has brought terror to the world. Because of his halfhearted self he killed thousands of innocent people because he didn't like us and that he was jealous of how we lived and how our government was like and also we were better than him and his people were. We have wars all the time between neighboring countries just as they were in the Iliad. People today cant live in peace and harmony. People have dreamt to live in a peaceful and safe place but we cannot succeed if our attitude about living is this way. In wars counties always have allies. We still have allies now; if we didn't have any we would probably wouldn't be able to win a war. When honorable people die they have proper burials for honor and bravery. In the book Patroclus and Hector were both respectable people on one side or the other who died in the fierce battle. They were both appropriately buried. In the 2005-01-08T08:49:45-05:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Aeneid-And-Iliad-How-They-Relate-To-The-Modern-World-26151.aspx Compassion in The Iliad and The Aeneid Trojan Compassion Both Homer’s The Iliad, and Virgil’s The Aeneid, recount the many grave occurrences, and key hero’s and gods and goddesses of the tumultuous Trojan War. The Trojans and Greeks are for the most part evenly matched; however, the Greeks triumph after ten years of restless war comes about because of many factors. The people of Troy suffer to a greater extent than the Greeks, because of Hector’s unwise actions, Paris’s gluttonous decision, and the gods’ involvement in the war. Hector’s hubris and imprudent decisions result in massive losses in Trojan life. Although a leader and hero of the Trojan forces, Hector makes a colossal mistake by slaying Achilles closest friend, Patroclus, “just as a mountain lion overpowers a mighty boar” (64). Hector also “removed Achilles’ shining armor from Patroclus and took it for himself,” (64) to demonstrate superiority. However, this arrogant act, only further enrages godlike Achilles, and compels him to reenlist in the Greek army, and wreak havoc upon the Trojans. Another absurd decision that Hector makes, is when he refuses to heed wise Polydamas’ advice, and fortify the soldiers behind the walls of Troy. Instead of listening to the wise man’s words, Hector’s hubris gets the best of him, and he orders his forces to commence with an attack upon Greek ships, even though Achilles anger runs high from the death of Patroclus. This full throttle attack, called on by Hector, causes “the black earth to swim with Trojan blood” (66). The judgment, and unthinkable act that Paris makes, ultimately leads to the downfall of Troy. When Paris is given the opportunity to evaluate and judge who the fairest goddess is, he chooses Aphrodite, instead of Athena or Hera. For this decision, Aphrodite rewards Paris with the love of the most beautiful woman in the world, Helen, the wife of Menelaus. Shortly after this judgment, Paris, with the help of Aphrodite manages to send a fleet of ships, break into Menelaus’ palace in Greece, and abduct Helen. This abduction entices Helen’s husband Menelaus as well as her former suitors, who took a vow to protect her, to lead an assault upon the city of Troy. In one instance, Hector, the brother of Paris and son of Priam, scolds Paris for his lack of courage during battle, telling him, “The Trojan people must share your cowardice, or they would have stoned you to death long before this, for all 2004-12-29T08:25:54-05:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Compassion-in-The-Iliad-and-The-Aeneid-26100.aspx Reasons for the Trojan War The Commencing of the Trojan War Approximately thirty centuries ago, on a distant land known as Troy, a colossal war raged between Grecians and Trojans on behalf of three discrete reasons. As a result of this war, many lives were lost but the relentless Grecians eventually triumphed after ten tumultuous years. This grave war was fought because of the capture of Helen, the most beautiful and benevolent woman in all of Greece. It is said that the apprehension of Helen was a result of the tragic curse on the House of Atreuis. However, others believe the Trojan War occurred on account of Heracles mercy. Some still think the second collapse of Troy happened because of Paris’s gluttonous ruling. There could be an ample amount of reasons that can determine why exactly the Trojan War started, but the three primary reasons were, the First Fall of Troy, the Judgement of Paris, and the solemn curse on the House of Atreuis. After the treacherous ruler of Troy cheated Heracles out of a well-earned remuneration, an enraged Heracles lawfully retaliated with a large army. Heracles’s militia eventually reduced the town’s solid walls to nothingness, ended King Laomeden’s rule and occupied the rich city of Troy. Amidst the detainees was princess Hesione. She was the beautiful daughter of Laomeden and had once been rescued from an enormous sea monster by none other than the great Heracles. Heracles said that the princess would be given to his dear friend Telamon and she should choose a captive to go free as a wedding gift. As one would think, she requested that her brother Podarces be permitted to live as a spoil of war. She promised that Podarces would reconstruct the city of Troy and rule justly. The honorable Heracles mercifully spared Podarces and left the fallen city of Troy with his followers. Podarces, along with the villagers of the town, rebuilt Troy far better than it ever was. Podarces had many children with his new wife Hecuba. The most renowned child of Podarces and Hecuba was Paris, the eventual assessor of the goddesses and captor of Helen. Since Heracles allowed Podarces to live, he unknowingly allowed Paris’s birth to take place; these actions ultimately lead to another birth… the birth of the Trojan War. The initial fall of Troy and the curse on the House of Atreuis indirectly intertwine and together cause the Trojan War. Zeus’s favorite 2004-06-19T22:54:55-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Reasons-for-the-Trojan-War--25183.aspx