Post 28

One of the best bloggers in my opinion this semester has been Devasha Washington. Her responses are always so thoughtful and well planned. She has had very educated opinions and responses. For example, she described Hamlet as a "plain jane", which was a very interesting perspective.

Post 27

From this semester, I really enjoyed Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer. I would definitely read it again because the Wife of Bath character really intrigued me. Her trailblazing views and "socially unacceptable" actions really intrigued me. Her blatant promotion of sex and sexuality grabbed my attention.

Post 26

Hamlet is more of a modern hero because of the types of struggles he deals with. Most of Hamlet's struggles are internal. For example, one of Hamlet's biggest internal struggle was deciding "to be or not to be" (Hamlet). Most of the ancient heroes dealt more with external problems, such as a monster or some sort of disaster. As the stories become more modern, the stories begin to incorporate more feelings and emotions, which are still easily relatable today.

Post 25

Hamlet is quite similar to Oedipus. Both characters struggle in an internal way. Also, both characters eventually lose their fathers. In Hamlet, when the ghost is seen, he says that "if it assume my noble father's person, I'll speak to it" (Hamlet). Likewise, in Oedipus, he aims a threat to the unknown murderer, stating "and on the murderer this curse I lay" (Oedipus). Both Hamlet and Oedipus seem to have a certain respect and some sort of connection with their fathers.

Post 24

At the moment. the United States shows little resemblance with Thomas Moore's Utopia. According to Moore "Kindness and good nature unite men more effectively and with greater strength" (Moore). The United States is nowhere near united at this particular time, especially with the recent change in power. Moore also states "personal prejudice and financial greed are the great evils that threaten courts of law" (Moore). These two characteristics are two of the most common traits in the American system. In fact, I believe that it actually drives almost every action and decision, especially regarding government. Moore mentions that "the folly of men has enhanced the value of gold and silver because of their scarcity" (Moore). Money, in value of silver and gold, is the backbone of the American economy which relates to America's power. With these examples, America is not an utopia.

Post 23

Machiavelli states that "it is better to be feared than loved". As for Trump, the people of America, as well as the leaders of other nations, surely fear Trump rather than love him. In a Machiavellian view, this is a good thing for him as President. Machiavelli also mentions that "he who wishes to be obeyed must know how to command". As President so far, Trump has made it a point to command or order certain things regardless of public opinion. In a democratic society's view, this is not a good thing in a leader. However in a Machiavellian point of view, this would be another characteristic of a good leader.

Post 22

The song "Losin' Control" by Russ is such a beautiful song. It talks about a relationship that has ended, but neither one of the couple has moved on yet. To me, it's so beautiful because I think a lot of people can relate to the feeling. One line in particular, and also my favorite, is "He redefines in every way what love is, she fell for him and hasn't gotten up since". Everyone has had that first love, and more than likely, someone from that relationship struggled to move on. This song captures that moment and those feelings in such a beautiful way. This song captures the beauty of feelings and emotions.

Post 21

The nights become shorter as the days become longer.
The sun shines its warmth across the Earth.
Classes have become such a bother.
Summer, please don't take your time.

Post 20

In my opinion, Socrates does not deserve to be in Hell. The citizens of Athens wouldn't agree with me, but they were just scared of the change Socrates was creating. The best quote to explain this is when Socrates states "my plainness of speech makes them hate me, and what is their hatred but a proof that I am speaking the truth" and I think that is well said. Socrates doesn't belong in Hell for simply trying to educate the people (Apology). In the Inferno, there is a quote that I think describes Socrates' situation perfectly. In Inferno, it says "Do not be afraid; our fate cannot be taken from us; it is a gift" (Inferno). Even though Socrates knew the Athenians wanted his death, he continued to teach his philosophy without fear. For his courage and teachings, I don't think Socrates deserves Hell.

Post #19

Dante's concept of Hell came to the audience in an interesting way as it was told through the journey through Hell. Dante's Hell is full of various levels and areas. Different sins had its own distinguishable space. Each level kept the sinners of different crimes. As for pain and suffering, these emotions will always attract an audience. The level of intensity of these feelings allows everyone to relate and understand the feelings. Though pain hurts on different levels, it's still a feeling that can be attractive. On some subconscious level, we never really escape pain. So since it's inevitable, we run to it and it grabs the audiences attention. A quote from "Inferno", "they yearn for what they feel for" describes the thirst to read and hear about the negative emotion.

Post 18

Just like in the Bible, Jesus is also presented in the Qur'an. Like in the Christian face, Jesus is also the son of Mary. In the Qur'an, Jesus is presented as the messenger of God or Allah. One verse that highlights this is "When Jesus found unbelief on their part He said: 'Who will be my helpers to Allah?'" (3:52). In the Qur'an, Jesus is a prophet. Jesus is an important religious figure, although it is made clear that he is still under Allah, as shown by this verse. "In blasphemy indeed are those that say that Allah is Christ of the son of Mary" (5:17). Islam, in the presentation of Jesus, is actually rather similar to the presentation in the Bible.

Post 17

The Qur'an and the New Testament are both written words of religion. Though the New Testament is mainly used for Christianity religion and the Qur'an is mainly used for the faith of Islam, both act as sacred scripture, with teachings of each religion. The Qur'an is derived from the Arabic language while the New Testament is derived from the Hebrew language. Both religious works are broken into verses. One quote from the Qur'an is "Then fight in the cause of Allah, and know that Allah Heareth and knoweth all things". This verse is similar to this verse from the New Testament, "Whenever our heart condemn us. For God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything". In both religious works, God is all-knowing.

Post 16

Personally, I think that high government officials should lead by personal example and high ideals. The media will stop at nothing to achieve and spread any tiny, little information about any government official, especially a high ranked one. As a leader, naturally the official would need to lead by example so that the people under him can observe and strive to be like him or her. Anyone in the government is usually expected to have high ideals, although this is actually rarely found. The people under the government official more than likely voted for him or her for his ideals and motives. If the people didn't like or agree with the ideals, then the person wouldn't be in the position of power. Realistically however, I don't think that either of these things are actually achieved in the political world. Especially with the power of media, one never knows the truth from the fake. But in an ideal society, the higher official would, of course, lead by example for the people.

Post 15

Socrates was punished for "corrupting young minds" according to the Athenians. Obviously, this is not a role the country would want a president to fulfill. But when it comes to President Trump for example, this seems to describe him perfectly. His actions and words can lead to some harmful effects on the youth, such as discriminating against others. Socrates also was a big advocate for self-improvement, which I think represents past presidents like George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. They understood that the country at that time had a lot to improve, especially with the issue of slavery. Confucious was a big believer in healthy relationships and leading by example. As for the healthy relationships, I would say that Theodore Roosevelt really created a relationship with the American people with his fireside chats. This new approach at the time let the people feel connected with their president. As for leading by example, though not a president but rather a First Lady, I relate this to Michelle Obama. As an advocate for healthy eating and a healthy lifestyle, I believe that she did a great job with the embodiment of what she was advocating for.

Post 14

In ancient history, many cultures had specific gods for war like in mythology. The ancient Greeks and Romans each had specific gods for war. For example, the Greeks had Ares as their god of war, while the Romans had Mars. The gods served simply as a representation for war, and used them to boost their moral in battle times. As for modern times, gods are not really involved in our idea of war. If anything, most of the people combining gods and war are using the gods to speak out against the war. However in some religions, like radical Muslims, gods can used to as a validation to, for example, bomb an occupied building. The use of gods in this particular religion gives the radicals a reasoning for their murderous behaviors. Yet in religions such as Buddhism, the god(s) support the total opposite, opposing the torture or killing of any other living thing. This would make it impossible for followers of Buddhism to support war. So more than anything, gods essentially work to shape people's view of war.

Post 13

The war in Iraq sparked after the acts of terrorism on US soil. It is hard to say whether one supports or doesn't support the war, however I believe that the US had enough reason to begin the war. The attacks on September 11, 2001 was the worst loss of life that America had ever seen in its history. Sun Tzu says that "it is a matter of life or death, a road either to safety or to ruin" (Art of War 356). As this applies to the United States, not retaliating to the attacks would have let the nation be viewed as weak and vulnerable. Attacking Iraq allowed the US to be seen as a force to be reckoned with. President Bush went with this point, as he addressed the nation, clarifying that we "will not live in at the mercy of an outlaw regime" (Times 1). Americans refused to be fearful, and, instead, became furious. In a way, Americans were "blinded by lust and wrath" (Bhagavad Gita 476), but more wrath than anything. With the amount of wrath and hatred the nation possessed, something had to be done. Therefore, a war seemed to be the solution to all of our problems.

Post 12

Srinivas Kuchibhotla an Indian man who was married to a loving wife, was killed this week. Kuchibhotla was shot and killed, while his friend was also injured, but is recovering. The alleged shooter, Adam Purinton, was reported to have yelled "Get out of my country" before pulling the gun and shooting the two Indian men. Another man was injured, as he "attempted to intervene" in the heated situation. This event unraveled in a town in Kansas. According to witnesses, before the shooting, Purinton began to "hurl racial slurs" at the Indian men after he had had a few drinks. The families of the injured and murdered men place blame on the Trump administration for its campaign which is run on hatred of immigrants. The US Embassy even released a statement calling this a "tragic and senseless act". Either way, the tragedy that unfolded in these families live's won't be forgotten, and neither will their undeserved suffering.




Washington Post - https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2017/02/24/get-out-of-my-country-kansan-reportedly-yelled-before-shooting-2-men-from-india-killing-one/?utm_term=.1f52b1d983a8

Post 11

It's senior year. It's the last game of the season. Jesse puts on his basketball jersey and ties his Nike shoes for the last time. Tonight, two teams battle for the championship title. The two teams are also in a long rivalry, so tensions run high. After a few minutes of warm ups and the reading of the starting line-ups, the whistle blows. The clock starts. The game begins. The game remains close, with the score being tied 32-32 at halftime. Each team goes into the locker room, and go through the same routine they've gone through all season. Jesse knows he needs to step up for his team. He knows that this game, this night, is his last chance. The game resumes and the intense battle continues. The clock is running down. The score is 51-50, with Jesse's team behind. The clock keeps running, with ten seconds left. Calling for the ball wildly, Jesse gets the ball in his hands with two seconds left on the clock. He shoots. The ball floats in the air with a beautiful arch. It comes down, rolls around the rim, and falls out. The buzzer sounds. The final score is 51-50, and Jesse doesn't get that championship title.

Post 8

The Wife of Bath's Tale Wikipedia article is does a fairly decent job in covering the Wife of Bath's presence in the Canterbury tales. However, the article fails to focus on the character of the Wife of Bath. It barely focuses on the actual character and her characteristics. The article itself is pretty decent. It includes vital information about the Tale and does reference some very important things about the story. The article says that the  the Wife of Bath "she holds her own among the bickering pilgrims". This is one small snippet where the article actually focuses on the actual character of the Wife of Bath's Tale.The article also highlights that "sexuality is a dominant theme", which is very common throughout the story. Overall, the article does a good job of summarizing the portion of the Wife of Bath's Tale, however it overlooks some simple, important information.  

Post #9

In my eyes, Barack Obama could be considered a "modern epic hero". Not so much for the things he did or didn't do in office, but rather this accomplishments. Obama destroyed barriers when he became the first African-American president in the entire history of the United States. This is no small feat. For many, and especially the entire African-American community, this feat created infinite possibilities for the community. His accomplishment delivered hope and embodied the entire meaning of progress. And Michelle Obama developed her own style of epic. As the nation that is the most overweight, Michelle Obama took measure after measure to create a healthier nation. Whether for or against these measures, improvements were ultimately made, as well as progress. The Obama's made history. The Obama's created standards. The Obama's represent the goals that most of us work to achieve. Barack Obama served a term as the first African-American term, and was even re-elected for a second term. Throughout the eight years, there were no major scandals are discrepancies as there have been with presidents in the past. Obama led with strength and confidence, while Michelle Obama represented grace and power. In my book, these two are some pretty epic modern heroes.

Post 7

All of these nations had something in common at this time. Most marriages or courtships, at the aristocratic status, were usually arranged or fixed or basically forced. For the people in this time period, real life relationships weren't necessarily about love or romance, but rather family status or duty. In order to escape this reality, it was easier to focus on the dream of romance. The unattainable at the time action of marrying or courting someone because of want and attraction. The people at this time in Europe, China, India, and Japan became attracted the story telling of chosen romance rather than the forced romances in which they lived.

The Wife of Bath's view of love was more of lust and pleasure than romance. Rather than the typical romance story of falling in love with and marrying one, The Wife of Bath went on to court five men. Also, she claims to "love the fifth husband the best", though this is also the one who was physically violent with her. If this relationship was the closest one to her version of romance, it was very twisted. Though she looked past his violent tendencies and focused on the romance between them, or possibly the lack of. She claimed he knew when to give and withhold affection, which is what attracted her. This is very different from the romantic love stories developing at this time. These romance stories were closer the prince and the princess rather than the Wife of Bath and her many men. 

Post 6

Both Metamorphoses and the Wife of Bath's stories are heavily focused on the sexual concepts, most of which are still just as relevant today as it was then. Sex You by Bando Jones is a perfect theme song for certain sections of "Metamorphoses". This song basically voices the thoughts that Apollo had about Daphne. His extreme lust for her is basically written out throughout the lyrics of this song. This song also basically spells out the thoughts that Jupiter had before raping Io. However, the song is more written about sex between consenting individuals, not forcing sex upon someone against their will. Even so, the basic concept still revolves around sex, similar to the stories.

As for the Wife of Bath's, the song that  I associate with the story is Promiscuous by Nelly Furtando. In the story, she argues a strong case about women and sexuality. She talks about Christ and asks "where did he command virginity?" (28). She begins to sound like a feminist, defending a woman's right to be a little promiscuous. Though in her case, being promiscuous is less of sleeping around with multiple men and more of pushing society to accept the thought of being married more than once. As for the knight, once again, Sex You by Bando Jones describes him perfectly. King Arthur's "lusty young knight" (35) is the epitome of most music made today. Lust is an emotion that's been around throughout the years and will always be alive.

Humans are sexual beings. Both of these stories play on that human emotion or behavior and create stories that people, even of different generations, can understand or relate to it. Even our music today relates to the stories from times before it.

Post 5

The Wife of Bath's view of romance, at least regarding her husbands, is very old fashion. Though some concepts are still relevant today, her overall attitude toward them is old fashioned. Her religious view of having her husband's bound to her is old fashioned. Today, marriage is seen more as a combining of the two persons, not necessarily the bounding of one to the other. She also explains that a smart woman will work for the love she has yet to earn. Though relevant to older times, this still comes into play today. Often, a woman will give extra effort to capture the attention from a guy in which she may have gone unnoticed. As for modern though, the Wife of Bath claims that a wise woman will cleverly deceive a man in order to escape trouble. This idea seems very modern, or has possibly simply been working for generations and generations. Most men always get caught in a lie, whereas women seem to have a special gift for avoiding controversy with high amounts of skill. Rarely will a woman become discovered in her web of lies. Her idea of only being married once is definitely of an older fashion. It is becoming increasingly more common to remarry, even more than once. We are even in an age where single parenting is larger than ever. As for modern, her willingness to offer forgiveness to the rapist is extremely modern in my opinion. Majority of women in that situation would have been more than thrilled to simply let his life be taken away. But she overcame and displayed true restraint. One certain view is extremely modern and probably will always be. She basically states that women, are any gender really, will crave whatever we cannot easily have. So really, many of her views on romance and human nature are still true today.

Post 2

Certain aspects of "Metamorphoses" can be compared to the Christian story of creation. When the god "split off the earth from the sky, and the sea from the land" and  such, these works closely resemble the first seven days of the creation of the Earth in the Holy Bible. God made the sea and the land along with the animals and eventually, man. And compared, even the order is similar. Before mankind appeared in Ovid's story, there were already wild animals and creatures. In the Bible, animals were also created before God made Adam.

In "Metamorphoses", there was a time with "no fear or punishment". Like in the Bible, there was a "Golden Age" with Adam and Eve before the incident with the apple. Throughout the story, it slowly switches from matching with the Christian creation story to a more mythological tone. When the  "all-powerful father of the gods hurled his bolt of lighting", obviously Zeus is being referenced although he is not named. Even the city of Olympus is referenced in the same paragraph.

Personally, I believe in the creation of the Earth and everything in it by God. "Metamorphoses" pretty much plays along with the same story line, without naming the god directly. As for modern times, there is also the arguement of the Big Bang Theory. A valid theory to ponder on, though it's not my belief. While the Native American creation story resembled more of a mythological tone, Ovid's story is written more closely to the story I believe.

Post 1 (Creation)

As someone who has been raised in the Christian faith, the story of creation begins with the molding of the Earth by God and the formation of Adam and Eve. Obviously, this "story" is one of the many variations of the creation of the world. One pattern that can be found throughout all however, is the sense of positivity in the beginnings of the stories.

In a sense, Ovid's story resembles the Christian story of creation with the "Separation of the Elements". The separation, made by a higher power resembles the separate creations made each day by God. Ovid's story resembles more of a mythical theme rather than a biblical. There is a higher power, as seen in biblical stories, however the the powers are unnamed and mythological type characters begin to appear within the chapters.

Myths were created to suggest an explanation for the unexplainable. It could be argued that religion was founded on the same basis. But myths were created to provide a set way and steps involved in what happened and an reason as to why it happened. Whether religion or myth, each one was created to establish a picture of the beginning. Also, Ovid's story plays on common, intriguing emotions of the human race. Almost everyone can relate to the lust of Apollo for Daphne.

In the end, the names of the characters in the mythologies are not necessarily important. They may simply relay where the creation of this character came from or the relation of one to another. The important part of these characters are there characteristics. The importance is to know which character is this emotion or this natural event. But throughout all creation stories or mythologies, the world in which we live or learn was created.