Your posting for this grading period must be completed by April 17th at midnight, so that we can use it for a follow-up assignment in class that Monday.
Find an article of any length that relates to a topic being studied in class. Your posting must include:
- A link to the article
- An explanation of why you chose this article/ how it relates to what you’re studying in English class at the moment (~50-100 words)
- A summary of the article (~200-250 words)
- Your personal thoughts on the article, for example whether you agree or disagree, how interesting it was, or how well it helped you understand a the topic from class. (~200-250 words)
- This is meant to be an academic extension of what you do in class, so your source must have some level of professional or academic credibility. No tabloids, please.
AFTER you have posted the above response, wait until your comment has been approved to do a follow-up assignment: read a posting that someone else has created for this assignment, check their article out, and respond to their posting by addressing their opinion. (~150 words)
Mr. Pores English Postings 
April 14, 2016 at 4:36 am |
Amber Wolf
Mr.Pores P.6
English 1,2
Article: http://hubpages.com/education/Why-Ancient-Greek-Mythology-is-Still-Relevant-Today
Independent Reading
I chose the article, “Why Ancient Greek Mythology is Still Relevant Today” by Geri Mileff because I was wondering why Greek mythology is still something that people study and are interested in. I’ve heard that there is much to learn from studying their myths but have never been told what that actually is. This relates to what we are doing in class because we are currently reading and analyzing, The Odyssey by Homer. The Odyssey is one of the many stories in Greek mythology which is why I decided on an article about Greek mythology.
The article, “Why ancient Greek Mythology is still relevant today” by Geri Mileff explains what Greek myths are and highlights why they are important to study in modern times. First, Mileff explains what the purpose of Greek myths were when they were first being told. He claims, “These myths aren’t just legends and while they are “just stories” they are stories with a purpose and reason.” They weren’t told just for entertainment they were meant to impart knowledge such as a moral, warning, or philosophy. Next, he describes what their myths are meant to do. He writes, “These myths were told to people and it helped them realize the difference between right and wrong.” The tales showed them how to be humble and showed them that even great heroes have flaws. Finally, he discussed why people should still study Greek myths. He states, “These myths, for their part, show modern people a glimpse of how they thought in the past, what they considered important, how their morals worked, etc.” We should study Greek mythology for the same reason we study any other culture, to learn about them. Studying Greek myths gives us an insight on what people were like in that time and how we have changed as a species since then.
This article was very helpful in assisting my understanding of Greek mythology and what relevance it has in today’s society. I didn’t realize that many symbols in modern literature originated from Greek myths. For example, the medical field is symbolized by a snake entwined staff which is a symbol for the god of medicine, Asclepius. Additionally, a Pegasus appears on many stamps used for air travel and Pegasus’s originate from Greek myths. I also agree with the article claiming that the world is still fascinated with Greek mythology. We have many movies and pieces of literature today that are Greek themed or influenced such as the Percy Jackson book series and movies. It was interesting to learn about how their tales were used to impart knowledge. I had never really thought about their stories as more than just tales that their ancient bards would tell for entertainment. The myths do seem to give a good outline between right and wrong and that probably helped people in that time live better, safer lives. Greek mythology still to this day influences our society and we can learn a lot from it.
April 19, 2016 at 9:08 pm |
I enjoyed Amber’s summary/ analysis on the article, “Why Ancient Greek Mythology is Still Relevant Today” by Geri Mileff. First of all, i agree that it is very interesting to learn about the past and how the Greeks thought of life including culture, religion, and beliefs. It is also important to understand and learn the life lessons taught in most Greek mythology stories. Greek mythology seems to be some of the first examples of heroic stories with great adventures, obstacles to defeat, and morals. I believe that the reason that Greek Mythology is still relevant today mostly has to do with the type of stories that they are. These stories are very enjoyed, because they include a strong, brave, and heroic main character who has to face many challenges which change that character for the better throughout the story. The story always end with the main character accomplishing a goal and learning an important life lesson. Finally, I agree with Amber when she says it assists her understanding of Greek mythology and what relevance it has in today’s society. Greek mythology surprisingly includes many ideas and items we use today which is very interesting and nice to know.
April 16, 2016 at 2:04 pm |
Marc Anthony Stangland
Mr. Pores
English Seminar Per. 6
4/15/16
Independent Reading Assignment
Recently today a women was found writing “help” in sticks in an Arizona forest for 9 days. She went missing around March 31 and her car ran out of power and gas but they didn’t find her there instead they found her dog and then they found her a day later if she stayed near her car and the “help” sign. Well, I chose this article since it relates to what Odysseus is going through in the Odyssey and how he asks Alcinous for help and tells him his story and how he got to where he is, but as we all know he gets help from him. Personally the article was really boring about the women but how do you get lost in Tucson? Anyway it was sad and I disagree on the part about how she didn’t just stay at her car because they found it first and it was near the road so she’s dumb very dumb.
Well it helped me understand the topic that were learning in class since the women experienced hardships during those 9 days and she would have had to know major survivor skills to survive that long. Overall, that must really suck to be lost in a forest for 9 days! Another relation I can make to Odysseus is that Odysseus was lost even longer than the women and the women may have faced similar hardships like starvation and dehydration but not mythological creatures or gods. Some comments I need to make about the article.
Why didn’t the women just “call” or stay near the road for upcoming cars? And the article needs to give more detail about her situation. More details were on the actual website on FOX news. It turns out that she took a hike and got lost and started a signal fire and nearby Fort Apache Reservation but they found her dog a day earlier but if it wasn’t for the signal fire she would have never been found!!! Well my overall opinion is that it was an incredible “story” and adventurous for the women and the dog mostly but very good “story” very good.
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2016/04/12/woman-lost-9-days-in-arizona-forest-wrote-help-in-sticks.html?intcmp=hpbt2
April 19, 2016 at 9:17 pm |
I think Marc’s independent reading assignment is interesting. It was smart to compare this lady with Odysseus. It is true that they both experienced pretty bad hardships. I can see his point on why she was “dumb very dumb” to leave the location of her car. It was smart of her to spell out help with sticks she found though. I wouldn’t call the article boring. Wondering why she would leave the car and how she spelled ‘help’ made it pretty interesting. Marc could work on his grammar as it’s kind of hard to understand him at times. Plus, the article is a bit short and should challenge yourself more next time with a longer article. Overall, I think he found a great article and made a fair argument on the situation.
April 16, 2016 at 7:16 pm |
Sara Eckmann
Mr. Pores
English per.2
15 April 2016
Independent Reading #2
Link to article: http://www.nytimes.com/2000/07/04/science/greek-myths-not-necessarily-mythical.html?pagewanted=all
I chose the article “Greek Myths: Not Necessarily Mythical” from the New York Times. I chose this article because I was interested in where Greek Myths come from and whether they are totally made up stories or have some grain of reality in them. I was wondering where the story of Odysseus came from and how all the monsters and creatures he encountered were thought of by Homer.
This article is about a folklorist and and scholar, Adrienne Mayor, who has realized that if you take all the places that are mentioned and written about it Greek myths, those same specific places are all major fossil sites. This proves that the Greeks knowledge of fossils was very in-depth for pre-scientific people. The Ancient Greeks and Romans actually displayed fossils in temples and museums. Ms. Mayor has discovered that the more extraordinary and curious fossils were used as evidence to support existing myths or create new ones. Many Homeric legends may have a paleontological origin. Some of the most savage monsters in Greek legend were inspired by the Greeks finding massive fossils and bones. For example, the idea of a griffin, or a lion with the beak and wings of an eagle, may have come from the nomads’ observations of dinosaur skeletons in the deserts of central Asia. The Homeric legend in which Heracles rescues Hesione by slaying the Monster of Troy is depicted on a Corinthian vase, where the monsters skull that is painted closely matches up with the skull of an extinct giraffe. These skulls are easy to find on the Greek islands. The article goes on to give many examples and to prove the point that many fossils found near the Greeks today and that the Greeks most likely found match up with depictions and descriptions of mythological monsters in ancient Greek texts, such as Homer’s work The Odyssey.
I thought this article was interesting, it didn’t exactly answer my question about whether myths are completely made up or not, but it did give me some insight into Greek culture and how they explained the monsters they wrote about in their stories. It did help me understand a topic from class because I feel like I have a deeper knowledge now about the way Greeks wrote their myths. I also thought it was very interesting how Greeks appreciated and even displayed fossils like we do today. We think of Greeks as such an ancient culture but they had fossils that were even older than them that they thought were ancient. The Greeks displayed fossils in temples and museums which is amazing considering how old their culture was! They also interpreted that these fossils were bones of animals and then came up with stories about these animals and how they were. I thought these things were very interesting to learn about because I did not know this and didn’t appreciate it until now. Overall, this article expanded my view about Greek culture and made me see how we are actually similar to them, even though they lived thousands of year ago.
April 19, 2016 at 3:56 pm |
I thought that Sara’s Independent Reading was very intellectual. i too chose the same article, so i was familiar with the summary and her statements. Reading her essay gave me a different view on the article and showed me her opinions that i could compare and contrast with what i had to say about the article. We both found the article intriguing and were interested in how the Greek myths came to be. We both retained the same information,but in different ways. Reading her essay showed me how she gathers information and her perspectives on similar things. My essay was different than Sara’s by the fact that hers was written with a more scientific view i believe. This article cleared up an questions we had and informed us about new ideas that we both agreed with and found interesting. I enjoyed reading her interpretations of the article and relating them to what i wrote about.
April 19, 2016 at 4:22 pm |
Sophia Lipkin
I agree with Sara that it’s an interesting article. I wish like she does that it discussed where myths came from more. However, it was very interesting to read. The theory that ancient monsters came from animal bones from ancient times in very interesting. I remember in class that we talked about how elephant skulls were thought to be Cyclops skulls. I always wondered where people got the ideas for mythical creatures and giants in myths and this explanation makes sense. Its also cool how scientists figured it out. Ancient vases had pictures on them with monsters that resembled normal animals. Griffin looked like dinosaurs, and many sea serpents look like giraffes. It is really interesting that scientists made these connections and realized that as well. The article is written very well and is interesting to read. There are several pictures that break up the article t make it seem less daunting as well. I am glad that I chose this article to read because it is very interesting and I agree with Sara’s opinions.
April 16, 2016 at 11:20 pm |
Lipkin, Sophia
Pores p2
4-16-16
Independent Reading Assignment 2 Semester 2
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/11/books/review/myths-made-
modern.html?_r=0
This article talks about three different books that take classic myths and turn them I to modern tales. In class we are studying The Odyssey, which is a Greek myth of the homecoming of Odysseus. Earlier in the week, we were talking about how myths relate to modern life and about the trends that modern stories follow. The article talks about different Greek myths that have been changed to take place in the modern world and talks about the roots of myths and cultures.
The article “Myths Made Modern” talks about the first three books in a series of books that retell classic myths and about the connections of myths to the beginning of human life. Caroline Alexander, the author of the article, briefly talks about how myths are constantly adjusted to life before talking about “A Short Story of Myth”. She discusses how humans first created myths and religion to help comprehend death. Religion was created when people became conscious about unexplained events. Alexander then turns to the book, “The Penelopiad”, and discusses how myths constantly change. “The Penelopiad” drastically changes Penelope’s story of what happened in “The Odyssey” while Odysseus and Telemachus were gone on their journeys. The story twists character motives and decisions to make the story less mythological. The main material of the original story was thrown into the back of the book. Alexander feels that the book is a riff of a much better story and is an example of mythology changing in modern society. The third book she discusses is “Weight”, a retelling of the story of Heracles and Atlas with a different tone from the original story. However, this time Alexander feels that the change of tone and characteristics displayed is a fitting and unique take on the story. She feels that the tone used fits the boorish personality of Heracles. Weight adds modern references, such as the Russian dog Laika, to the story that fit and help connect the myth to modern humans.
I enjoyed reading this article because it both summarized the three books and applied the knowledge to other ideas. The three books are the start of the series of books retaining to modern myths. In everyday life, you usually do not consciously understand how myths apply to you and very few people recognize that myths change with humans. Alexander often connects the retelling of myths to adaptions in human society. While many people still want to read about ancient societies and their beliefs, people can relate to stories more if they seem more modern. While the article may seem like a series review, it is really a discussion of how myths have adapted. It helped me understand the importance of myths in our society and how people interpret myths differently. Some people see certain characteristics of a character while other people see other ones. Each person interprets myths a different way and subconsciously connects what they read to life. In myths, there are many underlying motives that you do not always see, and reading other people’s interpretations of the myths help you thoroughly understand them. The article helped me gain a deeper understanding of the importance of modern interpretations of myths and why we should read them.
April 17, 2016 at 4:24 am |
Shania Leveille
Mr. Pores
English, period 2
16 April 2016
Trojan Horse
I chose this topic because in the beginning of the story around book IV when Menelaus and Helen were marrying off their children the story was being told and I have only known a little bit about it and reading about it I got even more interested. One thing that I really do not understand about the horse is that their enemy would really accept the gift and not really question it but instead they just welcomed it into their kingdom.
In this article it explains how the Trojan horse was made and how they ended up getting the others to accept it. Basically, the horse was constructed by a carpenter, Epeius who wanted the Greeks to win the war. They made it hollow so that the Greeks could get inside of it and no one would suspect a thing. The Greeks said that they had given up and that this was a peace offering to Athena who is the God of war. Two people Lacoon and Cassandra had warned Troy that it could be a trick or that something bad was going to happen. Troy should have listened to this warning because it turned out that the Greeks infiltrated their castle. They ended up letting in all the Greek soldiers at night so that they could be ready and more powerful. Today the Trojan horse is very famous and most people know about it, a lot of people refer to it if there is a situation where people on the inside of something let people on the outside in so that they can do something. It is also refereed to in the odyssey and a couple of other books as well.
My opinion is that this article was very informational. After I read this article I finally understood exactly what went down during the Trojan War. But one thing that I did not get after reading this was that if it was called the Trojan war just because of the horse, since it was the most famous and memorable part. Although other then that it had all the key points and said them clearly and straight forward. Not only was it informational but it was interesting as well. As I stated before I have always been curious about what really happened with the Trojan horse and now I am really enthusiastic that I finally was able to. Most of the details were very specific and helpful like the names of the people that tried to not let the horse in and who had the idea to build it. Epeius must have been a really smart man to come up with such an elaborate and devious plan. It kind of weird how he was able to do it all alone it was planned out so perfectly and everything went alright it seems like someone else would have had to help him work out the bugs and issues.
Link: http://www.britannica.com/topic/Trojan-horse
April 17, 2016 at 6:59 am |
Andrea Tran
Period 2
Seminar English
16 April 2016
Link: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2015/01/150104-homer-iliad-odyssey-greece-book-talk-travel-world/#
I chose this article because I really wanted to know more about Homer, the author of The Odyssey. I didn’t really know much about him, and I find it strange that he’s only known by what I can assume is his first name. Who was Homer exactly? That was the question I really wanted answered.
Article Summary:
The article talks about Homer and how nobody knows for sure who Homer was. It states how Homer’s birthplace has been narrowed down to seven locations. There are even debates as to when The Iliad and The Odyssey were written. Some people believe that they were written at around 800 B.C while others including the author believe that it was written long before that. The author also talks about how The Iliad and The Odyssey, when it comes down to it, are authorless works although they are linked to Homer. His reason for this claim was that his works were orally transmitted and performed, which would lead to major changes as they were not written down until 700 to 750 B.C. He discusses the oldest complete manuscript of The Iliad, known as Venetus A, which was discovered by a French scholar in the 18th century. But not only did it contain the complete manuscript of The Iliad, it also contained marginal notes of the editors of The Iliad which shows us what the ancient commentators thought of it. The author also talks about how in Homer’s works certain women are empowered and talked highly of like Penelope, Odysseus’s wife while others are not. In conclusion, the author of this article really wanted to express his opinions and thoughts about Homer. Judging from his writing, he really enjoys Homer’s works for the reason that Homer, in his works, really expresses that even in difficulty and suffering, the thing that really stands out is love and that even in difficult times, there will always be love or the possibility of it presenting itself.
Personal Thoughts:
I really liked this article, because the author pretty much answered everything that I had a question for. And I also really like how he shared his opinion on some subjects, like when The Iliad was written. I really liked it when the author shared their opinion on how they believe that Homer should be referred to as an “it” as his works were not written down until years and years of oral storytelling. The author believes than an entire culture changed and refined the stories to what they are now, essentially shaping Homer’s works. Because of this, there are multiple versions of it that can be read, which I think is really cool. I think it’s really cool, because there are different versions, we get to see how different people perceived and portrayed Homer’s stories. I really like how the author talks about how modern society wants to know who an author is, essentially their biography. But Homer doesn’t have one, which I think makes his stories even more interesting. Both The Iliad and The Odyssey were probably written by some Greek guy named Homer at some point, but years and years of passing those stories on, especially orally, must’ve changed them which I think it really nifty.
April 20, 2016 at 1:47 pm |
I enjoyed reading Andrea’s article because I, also was curious about Homer. It was nice to find out a little bit about him even though their wasn’t very much information to be told. I think its funny how there isn’t very much information except for his books, but you can really tell a person from their writing style. But like Andrea said, we don’t know how much has been changed since we cant even put a date on when the book was published. Anyways I thought this article was a good choice and Andrea did a good job representing it.
April 17, 2016 at 6:45 pm |
Karine Kim
Mr. Pores
English Period 2
17 April 2016
Independent Reading Assignment
I chose this article because reading about ancient Greece in the Odyssey made me curious about the customs in modern Greece. Customs such as hospitality appear many times during Odysseus’s journey home, and they are quite different from our customs. For example, in the time that the Odyssey takes place, it was expected that a stranger be welcomed and fed before their name was asked. Wanderers were also welcomed, as it was said that Zeus protected wanderers.
In the article, “Greek Culture: History, Culture, Traditions, and Religion,” RYAN discusses many different aspects of Greek culture, including food, music, religion, fashion, and customs. Greek people eat more fruits and vegetables and less meat than other cultures. Some popular foods are olives, gyro, moussaka, pastisio, and ouzu, which is a very strong alcoholic beverage. Greeks today listen to a genre of music called laiko-pop, but their folk songs use instruments like the lira, bagpipe, shawm, drum tambourine, and violin. For religion, 98% of the population is Christian Orthodox. However, they are not strictly bound to religion, and are accepting of different views. Along with the religion of Christianity, they also respect the ancient greek spirit of independence and freedom. In ancient Greece, people wore simple pieces of fabric with a hole for the head, but today many different styles are worn, just like in America. An important day for people in Greece is Name Day Celebration. This is the day that the person was named by the church, and is celebrated how we celebrate our birthday. On this day, friends and family can visit without invitation to give gifts. Easter is another important holiday. Greeks also celebrate Greek Independence Day on March 25. This is the day the Greeks rebelled against the Ottoman Empire.
This article was interesting and informative. I liked how it was formatted into small sections because that made the article easy to understand. This article gave me a good general overview of Greece. Another element that was great about this article is it compared ancient Greece to modern Greece. For example, when telling about music, it stated, “During Ancient Greece, music was considered a gift from the gods.” Then in another paragraph, it stated, “Today, the mainstream music in Greece is called modern laiko, or laiko-pop.” The article also had visuals that helped deepen my understanding. Although this article did a great job of summarizing Greece, I predict that if I ever visit Greece, I will have many views of Greece that are different from this article. This is not the article’s fault, but is simply that some beauties and faults of a country cannot be depicted without actually being seen with ones own eyes. My favorite subject of this article was music. The different ages of music were mentioned to show how laiko-pop originated, as well as the importance of music in Greek culture. Last but not least, I enjoyed comparing the Greek culture to American and Japanese cultures. Some things were similar, and others were very different.
April 19, 2016 at 4:10 pm |
I thought that Karine’s Independent Reading Assignment was very well written and provided lots of interesting context for the story of the Odyssey. Throughout the book, the concept of hospitality and culture runs strong. The characters rely on this concept of hospitality throughout the story and learning more about the traditions peaks my interest. In today’s American culture, things are different than what Greeks of Odyssey’s time. Karine provides information about modern day Greek culture and how it connects to ancient Greek culture. My eyes were opened to the variety of culture and typical activities in a Greek household. Now I can further understand the concept of hospitality and Greek culture during Odysseus’s time while reading the story in class. Karine successfully connects the article to what we are learning in class not only by choosing a related article, but supporting her connection and ideas throughout the Independent Reading Assignment. It makes it easy for the reader to see her understanding of the topic anyhow it relates.
June 13, 2016 at 2:47 am |
https://blog.udemy.com/greek-culture/
April 17, 2016 at 7:47 pm |
Independent Reading #2
Logan Quessenberry
Mr. Pores
English per. 2
April 16, 2016
I choose this article because it seemed like an interesting review of the television special called, “Joseph Campbell and the Power of Myth” and a commentary on the journalist Bill Moyers who is the name the author of the article associates with, “American television at its best,” The review is of the conclusion of the six-part series called “Joseph Campbell and the Power of Myth” and is related to what we are doing in class because we read some of the interview between Bill Moyers and Joseph Campbell.
The article starts out with talking about how Bill Moyers’s most recent example of how, “…he takes himself and the rest of us very seriously.” Which is, “Joseph Campbell and the Power of Myth” a six-part series. The second paragraph talks about Moyers’s previous experience with Joseph Campbell and how eight years before Campbell died in 1987 there were two conversations recorded. The third paragraph talks about the difficulty Moyers had working at a public news station particularly CBS news. The fourth paragraph explained how that interviews with Joseph Campbell are not exactly in high demand, however Moyers believes that there is a thoughtful audience looking for something better than sitcoms or music videos, and proof is the fact that the book that accompanies the series is a bestselling paperback. The next paragraph describes the program being aired the night of publication. The second to last paragraph describes what Bill Moyers brings to the show seeing as he is an ordained Baptist minister and how he adds a strong moral and ethical edge to the program but how both men grapple with the, “…very essence of life and living.” Campbell quotes Schopenhauer, who concluded that life has an order and a consistent plot. And the final paragraph talks about the producers paying for this so that broadcasting excellence.
The article is pretty interesting and I very much enjoyed knowing about the interviews between Joseph Campbell and Bill Moyers. I also found it interesting that it took me a solid twenty minutes to find an article related to the subject of what we are studying class. You would think a best selling book would show up in google search even if it came out in the late eighties. Once I found the article and it was somewhat academically credible, seeing as it is from the New York Times, it was very loosely related and short as well, but still enjoyable and a good article. The author however talked more about Moyers’s life rather than the actual television special which is some thing I would have loved to hear about. All in all, it is a worthwhile article to read and informative as well, like who knew that Moyers worked for CBS and then went back to public television because CBS was a very difficult place to work. He also does not go into depth about Campbell which is another thing I dislike about this article mentioning him in two paragraphs out of seven in the entire article. Even when he is mentioned it is for but a second. The real focus is Moyers.
April 17, 2016 at 7:58 pm |
Maravilla, Javier
English Period 2
April 17, 2016
Independents Assignment #2
I chose the article about teamwork because throughout the book Odyssey there were parts about some gods helping Odysseus get home back to his family. The gods were helping him get over huge obstacles that no other could get through. These gods were giving him directions and tips to help him get over those obstacles. Such as when Odysseus crew were getting turned into pigs and Hermes one of the gods that is a messenger gave Odysseus something to not being turned into a pig. There was teamwork there to help him and his crew out of this situation.
This article was about a high schooler that made it to semi-finals in Robotics and teamwork changed his mind about engineering. Its really difficult to understand how things will cooperate with each other and how all the functions can help each other. They all had to cooperate and everybody would have to think for each other and solve each other’s mistakes to all be successful. The only way for him to beat everyone else was to team up and everybody can help each other find a way to win the finals. The point of the robotics competition was to inspire everyone to work with each other and not to give up. There were many teams fighting to be the best of the best and it must have been really difficult because they had to find out how everything was going to work but that’s why there are teams to help each other get through the obstacles and to have fun. They had to work all night sometimes to catch up on time in a limited amount of days. Today he is now considering majoring in robotics when ge goes to college and this is a really big deal to him.
This article made me understand that to get to the finish line you must work together to overcome many obstacles that are going to be in your life. You may also learn something throughout the way of working together. You can learn from each other and the outcome may be great for working together. I may want to share this article with people because this can also inspire anybody else who has trouble working with others. This article is very interesting because I love working with robots and I bet you that this kid actually won the tournament due to their teamwork. I really like the point of the competition because it was meant for people teaming up and having so much fun along the way. I disagree that they say its lot of fun
because I have worked in teams for many things but many people yell at you for doing something wrong even though you’re trying your best. I Have never seen anybody not yell at each other for working maybe on a project and someone just messes something up but they also probably try their hardest.
http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2010-03-14/news/bal-md.robot14mar14_1_regional-first-robotics-competition-inspiration-and-recognition-school-spirit
April 19, 2016 at 8:49 pm |
Interesting article choice to relate to The Odyssey, but you did a nice job of tying them together. The article talks about how teamwork was applied by the robotics team and The Odyssey revolves around Odysseus helping people and Odysseus being helped himself. It would not have been possible without teamwork. Nice summary of the article and how it relates to the book.
May 10, 2016 at 9:08 pm |
I really liked Javier’s article as i feel that it brings an interesting link between the two of the articles. The link between the drive of the robotics team to succeed and the drive of Odysseus to return home are very similar, and the teamwork fostered between the students that were in the robotics competition and the students who worked on the robots was also fairly similar. The students winning the tournament due to their teamwork is also how Odysseus finally managed to return to Ithaca, whit the help of many others, and through collaboration. Another important factor is how the students did not pioneer the field of robotics, they were lead by others, in a similar manner as to how Odysseus did not manage to get back to Ithaca by himself, as he was instead aided by the gods. Overall, i quite enjoyed Javier’s article summary, and i feel as if he did a very good job on it.
April 17, 2016 at 9:57 pm |
Kenneth Bach
Mr. Pores
Period 2
Apr. 17, 2016
Independent Reading:
The Greek Gods and Goddesses
Link: http://greekgodsandgoddesses.net/
In The Odyssey, the main hero, Odysseus, and his son, Telemachus, both get help from the gods from above in Olympus. Although it was mainly Athena assisting the two in their journeys, the other god did help in the background. I would like to know who the gods and goddesses are and their abilities.
In Greek mythology, there are many gods and goddesses, but in that, there are the main 14. These gods and goddesses are very well known and appear in basically all Greek mythology. Starting with gods, there is Apollo, Ares, Dionysus, Hades, Hephaestus, Hermes, Poseidon, and Zeus. Apollo is the god of the sun, medicine, and arts. He also is the twin brother of his sister, Artemis. Ares is the god of war, as he represents all that is about violence and he is known for cheating with Aphrodite. Dionysus is the god of wine and theater, and is the only god with a mortal parent. Hades is the god of the underworld and he abducted his wife, Persephone. Hephaestus is the god of fire and forging, and is the “ugliest” god. Hermes is the god of travel, trade, and sports, and he is the messenger of the gods. Poseidon is the god of the ocean and earthquakes, and he is the most moody god. The last and strongest god, Zeus, is the god of the sky, and is the brother of Poseidon and Hades. Those are also 6 goddesses: Aphrodite, Artemis, Athena, Demeter, Hera, and Hestia. Aphrodite is the goddess of love, and is the husband of Hephaestus. Artemis is the goddess of the hunt and the moon, and is the twin sister of Apollo. Athena is the goddess of wisdom, and was born straight from Zeus’ mind. Demeter is the goddess of agriculture, and her daughter was abducted by Hades. Hera is the goddess of marriage, and is the queen of Olympus. Hestia is the goddess of the hearth, and is somehow technically the youngest and eldest daughter.
This article really helped me recognize the various, main gods and goddesses of any Greek mythology and their abilities. It also became apparent that some of these gods and goddesses might not be as important as I thought, like Hestia being the goddess of the hearth, or homes. She is somewhat useful, for something like keeping families safe in shelter, but she doesn’t really seem to do more than that. It’s as if the Greeks gave the first gods and goddesses all the important abilities and the leftover ones were given secondary, less-important skills. Apollo and Athena both have specialties that appear too general and makes them more powerful than they think. Apollo is the god of all the arts, which branches out to many of the arts in the world, like visual arts or martial arts. Athena being the goddess of wisdom and strategies can overlap Ares, the god of war, as she is the epitome of “brains-over-brawn”. She might as well take over Ares’ job, since she has many other abilities other than just violence, war, and cheating with other gods. This also can show that the Greeks are unaware, or aware, of the loopholes in their mythology.
April 19, 2016 at 9:14 pm |
This report about the gods and goddesses of the Greek world was really well thought out. It discussed some of the many of the main important people that the Greeks long ago used to look up to for guidance. I liked how the report names the god and talked about their role that each god and goddesses plays in the world. The Greeks has many gods that represent the different aspects of life they have to go through. We can see that the gods that the Greeks worships aren’t perfect and has many flaws. In the article, we can see that Ares is cheating and Hephaestus being called the ugliest god. This is different than other religions that depicts God as this almighty being that is perfect. Overall, this report showed me a lot of various information about the Greek gods and how it affect the daily lives of the Greek people.
April 17, 2016 at 10:43 pm |
Independent Reading Assignment #2 Pablo Kelly
The article I chose to write about is titled “Greeks ‘discover Odysseus’ palace in Ithaca, proving Homer’s hero was real’”. I chose to read this article because we are reading The Odyssey In English class, and I heard that a discovery had been made that could prove the story of Odysseus had actually happened. It had always been thought that Homer’s epic was a work of fiction, so I decided to look into it.
The article starts off by giving a brief summary of the tale of Odysseus for those who are not familiar with it. Apparently, some archeologists were convinced that the tale was anchored in truth, so they went looking for Odysseus’ home on the island of Ithica, an island off the northwest coast of Greece. The team of archeologists from the University of Loannina found a three-story building dating from the 8th century, which they believe belonged to Odysseus. The team had been digging for 16 years at that site, and claims that the location fits Homer’s description “like a glove”. Scholars who are convinced that Homer’s work is purely a work of fiction however, met this claim with much doubt. Others believed that ancient Ithica was located on the Paliki peninsula, on the island of Cephalonia. Even if this discovery has no relation to Odysseus, it remains a great discovery of an ancient royal palace, whose founders should be proud of.
I would like to think that this discovery is indeed related to Odysseus in some shape or form. If it is, it could revolutionize the way mythology is viewed today. It would motivate more archeologists, historians and scientists to seek proof for other myths that are seen as just fictional fables today. This article has helped take a new perspective when reading The Odyssey. Now when I read The Odyssey, I try to view it like a historic account more than a myth. I question the events in the book and the characters’ responses. Could all of this really have happened? The story took place 3,000 years ago. If the findings are in fact Odysseus’ palace, they are ruins three millennia old! I found this article very interesting, especially since we have been reading The Odyssey in class.
The link to the article is found here: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/greece/7962445/Greeks-discover-Odysseus-palace-in-Ithaca-proving-Homers-hero-was-real.html
April 19, 2016 at 3:54 pm |
I really liked the article that you chose because i really match up with the story. I was reading it and found out the spoiler of the book which really made me sad about the ending because i havent read the ending yet. Your summary is very on point. Its so crazy that the team were digging for 16 years at the same site and actually found something about this tale. This is a very interesting topic and i also thought that the discovery related with Odysseus in some way even though they say that it doesn’t. The Story took place a long time ago which means that it should’ve related to the Odyssey some how. So last this article was very interesting even though there was a spoiler and your essays were very clear and organized and ill see you later.
April 18, 2016 at 12:13 am |
Mia Pearson
Mr. Pores
English, Period
April 17, 2016
Odyssey Independent Reading
Article: http://www.ancient.eu/Greek_Mythology/
Currently we are studying Homer’s Odyssey in class. The Odyssey, in addition to a lot of Greek culture, features a great amount of mythology, mentioning a multitude of myths and gods. I chose this article because it discusses ancient Greek myths and culture, a lot of which being reflected in what we are currently studying. This article answers some of the questions that the Odyssey leaves me with; and describes many of the gods and myths mentioned in the text.
In ancient Greek culture, myths were told to help people understand why things happen. The article discusses the origins of myth telling, and explains how each time a myth was told, it most likely was slightly altered, to make the audience more interested, or to add in local events. After a long time, this resulted in many explanations for various events. Many stories and myths described important events in history, like the Odyssey and Iliad describing events during and following the Trojan War. Mark Cartwright, the author of this article, says that myths explain “just about every element of the human condition.” For example, in Greek myths, earthquakes are caused by Poseidon crashing his trident into the ground, and the passage of the sun is actually Helios riding across the sky in his chariot. Mythology has themes describing both positive and negative human qualities, as well as rewards and consequences for them. Usually, when they display the negative human qualities, the gods punish them, or their own decisions are punishment enough. The article gave an example of this by mentioning that the mythological character King Midas wished that everything he touched would turn to gold. His wish came true, and literally everything he touched turned to gold, and he died of starvation because he couldn’t eat. In the Odyssey, characters would make mistakes or upset gods, and those gods would punish them. That’s what happened to Odysseus; he upset Poseidon, and was punished with very bad luck.
I enjoyed this article a lot. I found it quite informational and interesting, and it mentioned many myths that I’ve heard of and/or studied at some point. It helped me understand why people tell myths and stories; to help them make sense of the things that they see taking place every day. I found the article very interesting; and I like that the author included some examples of myths and how they explain certain events that occur. It gives me an idea about ancient Greek’s beliefs, and how they reasoned. I think this article would be an interesting article to read in class because it mentions and briefly discusses the Odyssey, as well as the Iliad, which we will be studying sometime within the next few years. I think this article would be good for any audience; someone who’s never studied any myths would still understand what it’s talking about, which I like. I think the article helped me understand the Greek mythology in the Odyssey and I have a better overall understanding of mythology in general.
April 19, 2016 at 9:13 pm |
I really liked this article because it explained why mythology was created, and why it is incredibly important to us today, and back then. In your article, there were many references to actual myths and where they show up in incredibly old literature. Mythology is important to us because it used to explain to those who believed why things are the way they are. We also learn many things about the gods temperament from this article, and their behaviors. They tend to mate with humans quite a lot, which gives us a good idea of how the mortals and gods were different, they really weren’t that different, but the gods had much more power. That was basically the only difference, the gods were still as sinful as us, they were more like mortals than god is presented in other religions. These are just a few of the things we can learn from this article.
April 18, 2016 at 12:36 am |
Yee, Dylan
Mr. Pores
English Per. 6
March 17, 2016
“A Legend in His Own Right: A library in Carpinteria is devoted to the legacy of Joseph Campbell, who celebrated myth and spirituality” connection to what we are learning is it’s about Joseph Campbell. Mythology is the main idea we are learning and Campbell studied mythology very thoroughly. A big part of this article talks about the interview, which we read, between Bill Moyers and Campbell. I chose this article so I can learn more about Joseph Campbell and the many discoveries he found in mythology.
“A Legend in His Own Right: A library in Carpinteria is devoted to the legacy of Joseph Campbell, who celebrated myth and spirituality” by Sue Reilly is about the great life of Joseph Campbell. The article highlights his achievements and accomplishments. Campbell wrote numerous books such as The Hero with a Thousand Faces and The Hero’s Journey. “The guiding idea behind his work, he once said, was to find in all world myths a common spiritual principal.” He said this in the PBS documentary Joseph Campbell and the Power of Myths, later published as a book. Interviewed by Bill Moyers, Campbell is asked, “You’re talking about a search for the meaning of life?” He replies saying it’s the experience of being alive. This idea attracted many people including Steven Spielberg and George Lucas. The interviews’ ratings were “through the roof” and so were his book sales afterwards. When Campbell died in 1987, many people had different thoughts on him. Some said he was a “shoddy scholar.” Others said he was a “great original thinker.” But everyone could agree that Campbell was one of the greatest storytellers to ever live. He has had a great impact on how people are educated today. For example, Pacifica Graduate Institute has a course called depth psychology. Campbell visited Pacifica many times for lectures and depth psychology is an idea that Campbell pioneered. Overall, Joseph Campbell was a brilliant man that took mythology to whole another level.
I enjoyed reading this article and would definitely recommend it to everyone. It helped me learn more about Joseph Campbell and his impact on the community. I never realized how popular he really was nor did I realize how much a success the PBS show was. Having an impact on big name directors Lucas and Spielberg, I think, is really remarkable. Who knows how Star Wars or Jaws would have turned out without Campbell? The ‘experience of being alive’ is an interesting concept that I don’t quite understand about. I hope as we continue with mythology, I can get a better understanding of what he means by that. Anyways, mythology is now being taught differently throughout schools all over the world because of the works of Campbell, as we are seeing in our own class. Trying to put meaning in myths is something that only Campbell can do. I don’t know if I’d call him a shoddy scholar or a great original thinker. I’m probably leaning more to great original thinker, though I can see why people would call him a shoddy scholar. But no matter what people think, he was one of the greatest mythologists of all time and his legacy will live on for many years.
April 19, 2016 at 8:42 pm |
Well I agree with your opinion since he was a shoddy scholar. I can tell since I read an article about him and from this I can now see what Dylan is trying to say.
April 18, 2016 at 1:58 am |
Ashley Meader
Mr. Pores
English, Period 6
April 16, 2016 Meader 1
Independent Reading #2
In What Makes a Great Hero? by Mark O’Bannon, the author discusses the makings of a realistic and likeable hero to a story. He discusses traits such as character values, skills, and weaknesses, and how they all contribute to a protagonist that the audience can like and relate to. We can compare this overall character structure to the traits of Odysseus, the hero of Homer’s story The Odyssey. By examining how Odysseus’s character matches the structure in this article, we can see how his character is flawed in his creation and development, or where he is successful.
Throughout the article, O’Bannon mentions different aspects of a protagonist and how they are all important in the reader’s relation to that character. The author first examines the special abilities of a heroic character. He explains that making your character special in some way is important to a successful protagonist. Although this ability does not have to be mystical or supernatural, the hero of the story should have a skill that makes them stand out. The author says that this ability will set your character apart from normal people and make it clear that the story is supposed to be about them. O’Bannon also remarks that character flaws are an essential part to a good hero or heroine. Flaws provide something that we can relate to about the character, and add a humanizing element to the story. Moral flaws are also powerful, and allow room for character development. The author warns to proceed with caution, however, and to not give a hero a flaw that will make him unlikeable. For example, if your protagonist is unabashedly arrogant, the audience will be less likely to relate to him or be interested in his journey. To prevent this, the character might be right about his own greatness, or may go through an ordeal that shows to him that he is not as good as he thinks he is. Another important trait to be addressed is the hero’s value system. What does he find important in life? What standards does he expect in people? When your character has beliefs that oppose with another character, or perhaps the antagonist, it sets up for a deep and layered character conflict in which two value systems collide. The author explains how putting your hero under a character archetype can be helpful. An archetype is a general type of person that can help define how your character is perceived by others, or even by himself. For example, both Luke Skywalker and Harry Potter would fit under the orphan archetype, while a character such as Obi Wan Kenobi would be considered under the hermit archetype. Having a general category for a protagonist can help the author or storyteller envision the kinds of traits they might have. To conclude, O’Bannon stresses the importance of the hero’s opponent. Characters are largely defined by how they interact with others, and so having a powerful antagonist is a good way to show your protagonist grow through their struggle to defeat him or her. All of these aspects are important to consider when creating a real and relatable hero.
This article has a good outline of the traits of a successful protagonist, explaining how each of the characteristics is important in drafting a humanized hero. By comparing this to The Odyssey, we see how each of these traits come into play. Odysseus is both physically and mentally skilled, giving him the abilities needed to be the hero of a seafaring epic. Odysseus is also very arrogant, however. This flaw in his character makes him less likeable, but this is balanced by the timeline of the story, and by his development as a hero. Odysseus is also a bad leader, because his crewmembers don’t respect him. This flaw in his personality is more relatable, and sets him up for trouble when his sailors disobey him. One of Odysseus’s best aspects, however, is his opponent. Throughout the story, he battles the will of Poseidon, a major Olympian god. This instills a sort of awe in the audience, making them wonder how he could possibly defy the will of this powerful being. When he finally reaches his home, the audience is rooting for him, because they can understand his homesickness and his struggle to see his loved ones again. O’Bannon’s article, although an interesting and applicable read, could have gone into more depth about each of the traits listed. The explanations provided were a bit shallow, and did not often provide too many examples. Overall, however, the article was entertaining and provided a different outlook on characterization.
Works Cited
O’Bannon, Mark. “What Makes a Great Hero?” Better Storytelling. n.p. n.d. Web. April 16. 2016.
April 19, 2016 at 10:32 pm |
This is the link to the article:
http://www.betterstorytelling.net/thebasics/whatmakesagreathero.html
April 18, 2016 at 2:06 am |
Patric Berard
Mr. Pores
Seminar English Period 6
17 April 2016
Link to Article
http://www.biography.com/people/homer-9342775
Independent Reading
In the past few weeks, we have been reading and studying the Odyssey, as well as a little about literature and storytelling from around the time of the Odyssey. The Odyssey is widely credited as the work of a storyteller named Homer, but at the same time, virtually nothing it known of him. The idea that the author of such a famous story is still a mystery intrigued me, and I began to wonder who he was, and how much is currently known about him. I chose this article to learn more about the identity of this mysterious storyteller.
This article is a summary of the known information about Homer, as well as lots of the speculation and theories. The article is sorted into different sections, such as where he was born, when he was born, what he was like, and more. While there are a few facts given about him, the vast majority of content in the article was speculation, and it was made clear that very little is known of him. The only truly known fact of Homer, as stated by the article, is that he told the story of the Odyssey and the Iliad. Every other aspect of him is all speculation. In fact, It isn’t even known for sure if Homer is a single man, or a group/community of storytellers. While all other information is not confirmed, the article shows that historians have still done a very good job in inferring information from what facts are known. For example, historians have thought that Homer may be blind, as is suggested by the character Demodokos in the odyssey, who like homer, is a storyteller. Or another example of speculated information, is that historians believe he must have lived between 1200 BC and 750 BC. In summary, the article is a compilation of information about Homer, both known and speculated.
I personally really enjoyed this article, and while it had very little factual information on Homer, I still was able to learn a bit more about him from reading it. But surprisingly enough, the amount of speculation and uncertain information didn’t bother me at all, and I actually found it very interesting that historians were able to learn so much about this person (or possibly group of people) based only off assumptions and the limited amount of prior knowledge they had. One example of this is that people were able to make a logical guess as to where he was born from the language that dialect was in, paired with what seems to be a familiarity with certain locations, hints to where he may have lived. Another example is that people have come up with the idea that he was likely blind, as a character from his story The Odyssey is blind, and seems to be modeled after Homer. Although after reading this, I have one main question remaining, which I can’t seem to figure out. If so insanely little information is known about homer, why is it that people think he existed in the first place? Why is it that this concept of him is, by many, strongly believed in, if we barely know anything about who he might have been? Overall, This article was very interesting and intriguing, and I enjoyed it very much.
April 19, 2016 at 8:50 pm |
Simon Tan
Mr. Pores
English, Period 6
19 April 2016
I think that Patric’s article gives off information about what type of background Homer lived in and how long he lived. Patric states that he enjoys the article even though there is very little factual information, however I think that this is to be expected since Homer lived during the times of Greek era. The article gives a lot of speculations on where Homer lived and how long he lived. Patric’s opinion about how people actually believe in Homer is very interesting to me. I can understand his point of view since as he states “If so insanely little information is know about Homer, why is it that people think he existed in the first place?” I don’t think that anyone will be able to actually figure out if Homer actually existed, but I do believe that there was someone to start off the story. The story just couldn’t have popped out of nowhere into the world. In conclusion, this article gives a connection to The Odyssey since the article is a biography about Homer.
April 19, 2016 at 9:11 pm |
Your response was well-written. You chose an interesting article and summarized it nicely. You used the example of Homer possibly being blind in both the summary and analysis paragraph and it is a slight bit repetitive. The question in the end is a good question, however, nobody would have a true answer. Perhaps it is that he was accredited with the story when it was being told or perhaps people know that it must have been written by Someone. May I point out that the name “Homer” is similar to the word “Home” and the Odyssey is all about Odysseus’s journey home and what he does when he has returned. But that is simply yet another theory.
April 18, 2016 at 2:25 am |
Tori Michaelian
Mr. Pores
Period 6, English
4/17/16
Why Mythology is Important Today
http://parmaobserver.com/read/2013/02/01/why-mythology-is-still-important-today
This article describes how and why mythology is still an influential part of everyone’s lives today. It uses some great examples, and since we are studying mythology in class, it applies very well because one can learn how mythology is still very relevant in today’s society. One can learn many things from an article like this.
In this article, the author starts off by relating mythology to other cultures and their stories told down from many generations, such as Scottish or gothic legends. Then the author defines what a myth is, which is “a story presented as a historical, dealing with traditions specific culture or group of people.” Many of these stories can involve Gods or other deities, or just normal people. Even in America today we have our own set of myths, like Paul Bunyon or John Appleseed. Native Americans have contributed greatly to our methods of storytelling. Mythology is important because it is a basis for some religion these days. They have fundamental teaching morals like the battle between good and evil, and through the journey to accomplish the goal, the hero learns many lessons and morals. Modern comics and stories are affected by mythology as well. Such as spider man, Percy Jackson, or even Harry Potter. These stories use tactics from mythology to teach young readers morals they will carry out throughout the course of their life. In the end, everybody loves a good story. Whether it’s about the tales of Zeus and Odysseus, or Harry Potter and his group of friends. Myths were originally used to explain reasons why certain things are the way they are in the world, but even though we have found the scientific reasons for those things, myths have many important values. Mythology has influenced much more literature that we realize, the article explains.
I personally thought this article was incredibly informative and it helped me a lot to understand why we still study mythology, and it’s extreme importance to our lives. I now see quite a few connections to the mythology we read in school and the literature I read on my own time. It helps a lot knowing this information, because learning things in school I tend to ask, “why does this matter?” but now I know! The odyssey is a great source for many great morals and literature. Even though there are many double standards, and some terrible things are overlooked, such as slavery, it teaches great lessons. Obviously mythology is one of the very many inspirations for literature, and we can learn other things from other inspirations, but one of the oldest forms of literature, the odyssey is a pretty unique and impressive read. I believe it is a must-read, as some of the oldest stories have developed from it. The article itself was well rounded and informative, but I would have liked to learn about the way mythology has shaped the world we see today, but I’m sure I could find that in many other articles. This is useful knowledge I will definitely use in the future.
April 19, 2016 at 9:12 pm |
I really like the article you chose; it was very informational and interesting in my opinion. I like how the article didn’t only mention mythology in Greek culture, which is what we are studying now in the Odyssey. It also talked about mythology in our American culture and religion(s). I like the way you described the article, and I agree with your opinions. The article you chose helped me understand mythology and why we are studying it more. Mythology is basically storytelling; and the stories explain why things happen in life. The article mentions modern mythology, for example Spider-Man is a modern myth. I think Percy Jackson is a modernization of many different myths. It mentions Poseidon, Zeus, and other gods and myths from Greek culture.
April 18, 2016 at 3:19 am |
Alyssa Jamotillo
Mr.Pores
English, Period 2
17 April 2016
Poseidon
The article I choose was about Poseidon. This relates to what we are doing in class, because Poseidon is reason why Odysseus isn’t home in Ithaca yet. I choose this article, because Poseidon is one of my favorite gods in Greek mythology and I wanted to learn more about him.
This article is about Poseidon and explains who he is, his significant, and his relationships. Poseidon is known as the god of the sea, earthquakes, storms, and horses. He was probably the most disruptive of the Greek gods. Theseus, Polyphemus, Orion, Pegasus, and Charybdis are some of his children and all of them have a different mom.The article states that he had various children with various people like Medusa and Aithra. He is also to blame for the creation of the Minotaur, because he made Minos’ wife fall in love with the bull Minos wouldn’t sacrifice.The article also states that his parents are Cronos and Rhea and his siblings are Zeus, Hades, Hera, Hestia, and Demeter. He has played a major role in multiple battles the decided the ruler of the universe like the battle against the titans. Poseidon was also in the Trojan War and supported the Archaeans. Poseidon tried to overthrow Zeus with Hera and Athena, but failed and as punishment, was forced to build the walls of Troy.He is known to have a trident which can create an earthquake by striking it to the ground. He is usually portrayed as a bearded man riding a golden chariot pulled by a creature that is half horse and half serpent with fish tails or by a gold-shod horses.
I enjoyed learning about Poseidon and find his life interesting. I can’t believe he actually raped Medusa and I wonder how a Pegasus was created. Isn’t Medusa part snake, so how does a god and a snake person create a winged horse. Why are gods so promiscuous? I only thought Zeus was promiscuous, but Poseidon is also promiscuous. He even tried to do it with his sister Demeter. Poseidon has always been one of my favorite out of all the Greek gods, and learning about him is very interesting. I didn’t know that his trident was that powerful. If he was that strong and was still defeated by Zeus, then Zeus must be really strong. I only knew that Poseidon was the god of the sea and storms. I didn’t know that Poseidon was also the god of earthquakes and horses. It’s weird how he’s the god of horses. The god of earthquakes and storms make sense, since storms can be created from the sea and he can create earthquakes with his trident, but why is he the god of horses. It’s weird how Cronos might’ve swallowed Poseidon with the Hades, Demeter, Hestia, and Hera. The other belief that Rhea saved Poseidon by saying that she gave birth to a colt and hid Poseidon with a flock of lambs is also weird, because Cronus might’ve believed this.
Article: http://www.ancient.eu/poseidon/
April 19, 2016 at 4:07 pm |
Since Poseidon is seen as the main so called villian in the Odyssey, he’s a really important topic to discuss. Being the brother of Zeus, the all-mighty god, he has a lot of power over all the seas. I really like him as a god too because he seems to be a mythical creature being half serpent with half a human like body. I didn’t know that Poseidon was the god of earthquakes and horses either! I mean horses? That’s so unlikely of him! And the creation of the Pegasus is so wierd! How does the fusion of a snake and a fish make a horse?! But overall, it’s a really great topic!
April 18, 2016 at 3:22 am |
Kate Encio
Mr. Pores
English, Period 6
17 April 2016
Independent Reading 2
In the article, “Why Ancient Greek Mythology is Still Relevant Today” by Geri Mileff, is an article that explains the reasons why we study Greek myths today, the importance of myths to the Greeks, and how they are applied in the modern world. Geri Mileff thinks that Greek myths have shaped the way we think today and that they aren’t just stories that were created. These stories were written not for entertainment and satisfaction, but for a purpose. Their main purpose was to share the lifestyle of the Greeks and what they thought thousands of years ago. This purpose has spread to the modern world influencing fine arts, literature, as well as performing arts. These Greek myths help us realize what is right and what is wrong. We have leaned these concepts through the mistakes and achievements of the heroes mentioned in the Greek myths. Studying Greek myths have shown us how the control what we feel and how we make decisions. Mileff says, “people still study the ancient Greeks and their myths much in the same reason they study other cultures and that is so they can learn from it.” Our generation still studies Greek myths because we learn and apply these ideas to our everyday lives, as well as, pass them on from generation to generation. Greek myths helped us establish our culture and the personalities of the people today.
I chose the article, “Why Ancient Greek Mythology is Still Relevant Today,” by Geri Mileff, because in class we are reading “The Odyssey,” by Homer. Since The Odyssey is based on Greek mythology, I chose to do an article that was related to mythology. Though, I didn’t choose an article that revolves around the history of Greek mythology, I chose an article on why we study Greek mythology today. Before I found this article, I asked myself, “why do we even study Greek myths? Is there a specific reason as to why they are so important to society?” Out of curiosity I came across this article, and I thought that it was interesting. For these reasons, I chose this article.
I thought the article, “Why Ancient Greek Mythology is Still Relevant Today” by Geri Mileff, was a very informative and interesting article. This article was very informative because it had lots of information on the reasons we study Greek mythology and some extra facts on the most famous authors in Greek mythology. The article was also very interesting because I learned the real reason why we study Greek mythology and the impacts that Greek myths have made on our society today. I agree that Greek myths have influenced, not only our culture, but also how we live our daily lives. These stories that were told thousands of years ago, have shaped the way we think and live. Mileff mentions that, from these stories, we have learned the difference between right and wrong, how to make decisions, and how to control what we feel. I agree with this because we have learned many of these concepts by reading Greek heroes’ achievement and mistakes they make in their journeys. This article has helped me understand the reason why we are reading The Odyssey in class. We read Greek myths to be more knowledgeable about the Greek culture, so we can apply their lifestyles to ours. I have also learned how powerful the influence of Greek mythology impacted the modern world today.
Link to article:
http://hubpages.com/education/Why-Ancient-Greek-Mythology-is-Still-Relevant-Today
April 19, 2016 at 9:03 pm |
I enjoyed Kate Encio’s article review because she included a lot of information and ideas that made me understand why we study mythology. I also liked that she included direct quotes from her article. I agree with the main idea of her article that reading mythology increases our knowledge about culture and that we can learn from mistakes the characters in the stories make. Another thing i agreed with from her article was that the influence of Greek mythology impacts the modern world. Asides from everything I liked about this article review, there were a few things that I didn’t really like. First, there were a few misspellings throughout this article. Also, she said what the name of her article was at the start of every paragraph. However, I overall enjoyed that the article gave me an understanding of why we read mythology and its importance to the modern world.
April 19, 2016 at 9:43 pm |
I really enjoyed how Kate went into full detail about the relevance of greek mythology in the modern day world. Kate claims that the article she chose explains how greek mythology describes the lifestyle in ancient Greece and the understanding of humans in general. I agree with Kate about the impact greek mythology has made on modern day world’s fine arts, literature, and performing arts. The article as well shows how we, as humans, make mistakes and that we can learn from it. Greek mythology is a perfect example of do’s and don’t’s. “These stories that were told thousands of years ago, have shaped the way we think and live.” I really enjoyed Kate’s research.
April 18, 2016 at 3:38 am |
Victoria Rednoske
Seminar English 1, 2
Period 2
Mr.Pores
4/17/16
Independent Reading
Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2000/07/04/science/greek-myths-not-necessarily-mythical.html?pagewanted=all
I chose this article because its topic is about how Greek myths may not be as mythical as one may think. I found it interesting because we just finished reading another article about myths and the author’s opinion on them and now another author believes that myths might be more than just myths, but lead to actual clues and artifacts. Also, because The Odyssey is based on Greek mythology and so is the article.
“Greek Myths: Not Necessarily Mythical”, by John Noble Wilford, discusses the discovery Adrienne Mayor has found. Mayor finds that all the places from Greek myths lead to large fossil sites. She explains that historians in classical Greece were unable to conclude that these fossils were organic remains of the past. Yet, they still collected them and displayed them in museums. They believed these fossils instead to be supporting evidence of existing myths, or created new ones. Mayor was able to connect the relation between fossils and Greek myths; saying that they believed the fossils to be representations and supporting evidence of events and characters that were embedded in their myths. She draws that the Greeks were finding these fossils, recognizing them, and connecting them to the myths they have heard. Once the fossil’s true identity was revealed, the myth vanished. Mayor sparked plenty of conversation, mainly good. Paleontologists strongly agreed with Mayor’s discoveries and concluded that it was the most logical reasoning. To summarize the entire article shortly, the Greeks did not identify fossils as the remains of organic organisms, but identified them as evidence of myths. They used them also to create new myths, and Adrienne Mayor was able to find this connection and share it with paleontologists along with many other historians and archaeologists.
I definitely see Mayor’s point of view. I agree with everything she had to say and believed her discoveries to be accurate and logical. It makes sense that the Greeks did not know how to connect the fossils to actual prehistoric creatures because they were more attached to their beliefs. The evidence that Mayor was able to find supports her statements very well. Especially since many other historians were able to agree wither findings and support them, makes me believe in it more. I found this article very interesting because it explains many things. It is able to explain why all of these fossils were found in Greek places; because the Greeks displayed them in their own forms of museums. It also connected myths together and formed new ones which I thought was neat. It helped me understand just how much Greek myths meant to their culture and civilization since because of these fossils, it shaped civilization, helped create new beliefs, and allowed us to figure out that these myths might not have been all based on their beliefs, but of surrounding artifacts that they discovered.
April 19, 2016 at 3:58 pm |
I thought that Victoria’s independent reading article was very interesting and gave me a different perspective on this article, since we both read the same article! I was already familiar with this article, but reading her response to it helped me to appreciate the article in a different way and see a different view on it. We both found the article interesting, which is probably why we both picked it. I was familiar with her summary but the way she thought about and wrote about the article was different that mine. We both picked the article for the same reason, because we were interested in Greek mythology and it’s history and how Greek mythology came about. This article was interesting for both of us because it explained many things about Greek mythology and myths. I enjoyed reading her response and seeing a different point of view on the same article.
April 18, 2016 at 3:46 am |
Lauren Stack
Mr. Pores
Seminar English, Period 2
17 April 2016
Independent Reading #2
Link to article: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/24/science/24home.html
During our study of the Odyssey, I have become interested in how events in the book relate to events that actually occurred. During my research to find an article relating to the story, I came across a particularly interesting piece that had to do with my interest in how realistic the story was. John Noble Wilford, the article’s author, discusses how Odysseus’s return to Ithaca in Homer’s epic may have actually coincided with an eclipse. If this is true, then the epic will have more historical truth to it than previously thought.
The article tells the reader about the possibility of Homer describing a real event that happened. When Odysseus returns to Ithaca, a complete darkness comes over the land. The suitors of Penelope sit down for lunch and see their food splattered with blood. Then darkness falls on the land. This line in the scene hints that the darkness may have actually been a total eclipse. Such an eclipse occurred in the Greek islands on April 16, 1178 BCE around noon, a date that was rather close to the estimated date of the sack of Troy, which would make sense for the timeline of the story. Two scientists believe that Odysseus may have been a fictional character set in a real historical event, which occurred about the time of the eclipse. Though scholars that study Homer and his works may not believe that this hypothesis is anything important, it is certainly interesting that the dates correlate so well. Though it is simply a hypothesis, the scientists’ discovery may also peak the interest of historians, who only estimate the date of the sack of Troy. If it were to prove valid one day, the dating of the Trojan war could be estimated with more confidence and accuracy.
This article peaked my interest. Not only am I enjoying the book in class, but I enjoy the sciences. This article provided a connection between the two in the form of astronomical correlation with an event in the story. Though the mention of darkness is probably a coincidence, the idea of it is intriguing. Homer, a blind bard, might have known about a once in hundreds of years occurrence that just happened to go along with the Trojan war. This could show how some events in the epic relate with natural occurrences that happened in the time period. I believe it was most likely a wonderful coincidence rather than a known historical event recorded by the bard, but I remain open minded to the idea of Homer having knowledge of the total eclipse of 1178 BCE. Odysseus’s journey and homecoming is a fascinating work of myth and fiction, but the idea of it containing important bits of historical truth only makes it more interesting to me. If the scene with the total eclipse was recording history, I would have to question what other events in the epic actually happened. Even if it is a wonderful coincidence, it takes nothing away from this wonderfully crafted tale of a hero from the mouth and pen of a blind bard.
April 18, 2016 at 3:52 am |
Independent Reading #2
The article I chose for my Independent Reading was, “Greek Myths: Not Necessarily Mythical”, by John Noble Wilford of The New York Times. I chose this article because I thought it was interesting to read about a possible explanation for the monsters written about in Greek mythology. This article relates to what we are studying in class because we are currently reading The Odyssey, which is a piece of Greek mythology. This article could give me information on how the monsters in the story were created by the Greeks.
In the article, “Greek Myths: Not Necessarily Mythical”, by John Noble Wilford of The New York Times, the author talks about an interview with classical folklorist and independent scholar, Adrienne Mayor, and her explanation for the connection between mythological monsters and fossils. First, Ms. Mayor talks about how ancient Greeks knew a lot more about fossils than we give them credit for. John Noble Wilford says, “Yet much like today’s fossil hunters, Ms. Mayor found, ancient Greeks and Romans collected and measured the petrified bones they encountered and displayed them in temples and museums” (Wilford 1). This states that Greeks were interested about fossils and collected them as we do today. Next, Ms. Mayor talked about how the mythological stories about monsters took place where many fossils are found in real life. She refers to the legend of Heracles which is painted on a Corinthian vase that depicts a monster. Then, she makes a connection that the monster very closely resembles the skull of giraffe and that such fossils are plentiful on the Greek islands where the legend takes place. “Ms. Mayor pointed out that in the earliest known illustration of the Heracles legend, painted on a Corinthian vase, the monster’s skull closely matched that of an extinct giraffe. Such fossils are plentiful on the Greek islands and western coast of Turkey and are mentioned in classical literature.” stated John Noble Wilford (Wilford 1) This proves the fact that the monsters in the mythological stories not only resemble fossils, but they also take place in the same place where the fossils are abundant. Finally, Ms. Mayor talks about how the Greeks made connections between the fossils and natural disasters around their land. “Fossils found and displayed in antiquity on the island of Samos probably inspired the story of savage monsters called Neades, whose reverberating bellows were said to tear the earth apart.” says John Noble Wilford (Wilford 1) This shows that the Greeks connected the fossils and the natural disasters into one story.
I thought that this article was very interesting and fascinating. I thought this because this article talked about many explanations that can connect fake monsters to real life fossils. I also liked how the article talked about a connection between the mythological monsters and real natural disasters in Greece. The fact that the Greeks made up these monsters based on the fossils they found and the natural disasters occurring around them makes me appreciate these myths more and find them even more interesting. After reading this article, I am starting to think more about what the monsters in The Odyssey could be based on from real life. With this new explanation for the monsters in mythology, not only does it make you think about what the monsters are based on, but it also makes you think about what the entire myth itself could be based on.
April 19, 2016 at 9:03 pm |
After reading Isabelle Shepherd’s article review, i thought that it was very informative and interesting that she wrote about an interview with fossils that are related to the greek myths. At first I thought that the monsters in Greek mythology weren’t real, but after reading her review, places that were just myths are now proven real. Well now i know, the monsters of the greek myths are not real, but they are closely related to the animals living on earth today. I really liked how she included quotes from the article to support her review. I agree that the article,”Greek Myths: Not Necessarily Mythical,” by John Noble, is interesting because after reading Isabelle Shepherd’s review, i can catch a glimpse of what her article is about and i can tell how she expresses her feelings about the article she read. I like how she includes why she chose her article and how she felt about the article. Now i know that the mythical characters from the myths aren’t real because they are based on the animals on earth today. SO, they aren’t called monsters anymore.
April 18, 2016 at 4:26 am |
Janet Newman
Mr. Pores
English, Period 2
Who was Homer?
Homer was said to be a bard who told the stories of Odysseus and Achilles. As we are reading The Odyssey by Homer in class, I thought it would be a good idea to delve deeper into the background of the author of this epic to find out how he came up with these stories. Homer is not very well-known, but he reflects his story-telling skills through Odysseus when he tells his story to his hosts.
Historians still are not sure if Homer was male, female, one person, or a group of people. Even though there is no physical proof to confirm or deny any of those claims, Homer is usually portrayed as a single male. No matter the gender or size of Homer, there is no denying that The Odyssey and The Iliad are truly epics. There is still so much about Homer that is unknown. How did he remember all of The Odyssey and The Iliad if he told them as verbal stories? Is he really blind? And if not, how did he learn how to write? There is still so much to Homer that is a mystery, and it is unsure if historians will ever learn the whole truth about who Homer was.
Homer expressed himself through Odysseus in some ways. When Odysseus told stories, he didn’t reduce his normal storytelling level down to match the way Odysseus would have told the story; Instead, Odysseus matched him in story-telling prowess, reflecting that Homer was truly a great story-teller and bard. This article also describes the plot of The Odyssey and The Iliad, but I am not going to write about those, seeing as you probably already know what they are about.
This article didn’t give me very much information about Homer. But then again, can anyone? This article was one of the lengthier ones I found that describes who Homer was, and there is not a very overwhelming amount of information on him here. That being said, I did enjoy this article, and it did give me a slightly higher understanding of The Odyssey and the background of the author, which can consequently lead to higher understanding of the book. All in all, I enjoyed this article. It was useful to me in helping me understand more about Homer and how much, or little in this case, people know about him. I agree with the author when he says that even though we don’t really know Homer at all, he still contributed lots to our modern society and is still shaping the world of literature today. In conclusion, I would like to thank Homer, whomever that may be, for steering society and modern literature in a positive direction. Thanks homie.
http://www.ancient.eu/homer/
April 19, 2016 at 4:08 pm |
Great job! Your ideas are awesome, and well formed. Your intentions are clear. I can tell that you understood the article clearly. I agree with you in that article was not extremely informative, but as you said, that cannot be helped as historians have not yet found the information. I always think of Homer as a single man, so it would be weird if Homer was a group of people! There was just one thing I thought when reading your assignment. When summarizing an article, you need to state the name and author of the article. For example, “In the article, “Homer” James Loyd explains…” You started your summary with no intro, so it sounds like that is what you think about Homer, not what the article wrote. I like the play on words at the end because I can see the humor that you have in real life.
April 18, 2016 at 4:37 am |
Independent Reading #2 – “The Myth of Sisyphus”
The Myth of Sisyphus relates to what we are studying in English right now, because it is about a character of Greek mythology. This story provides insight on the punishments of the gods and displays what the afterlife of Greek mythology was like. This knowledge will give me a better understanding of Odyssey, the book we are reading in class. I specifically chose The Myth of Sisyphus because it was an interesting story to me out of all the characters in Greek mythology. I have heard of Sisyphus’ punishment in a book I read called Matched and in Odyssey and I wanted to learn what Sisyphus did to get this harsh punishment and if he ever accomplished his goal.
Summary:
Sisyphus was a cunning, sensible, and well known mortal. However, he deceived the gods by stealing their secrets and manipulated them with blackmail. When a god needed to receive one of their secrets, Sisyphus would only tell them the secret if he could trade it for something in return. In addition to his devious blackmail, Sisyphus broke promises with immortals when he wanted to live with his wife in the underworld to test her love for him. He left the underworld promising to return, but never did when he experienced and remembered the glories of Earth. This made the gods very angry to the point of sending him to the underworld with a never ending punishment. The gods wanted to give Sisyphus the harshest punishment so they decided on punishing Sisyphus to futile and hopeless labor. The punishment was to roll a large rock up a hill that would always fall back down due to its heavy weight. Sisyphus was told that once he got the rock to the top of the hill, he would be freed. However, Zeus ingeniously cursed the rock so that it would slip away from Sisyphus every time he was near the top. The idea of this punishment was to make Sisyphus so frustrated and tired of pointlessly pushing a rock that he would wish he was dead.
Analysis:
The Myth of Sisyphus was very interesting to me, because I enjoy stories about strong and cunning characters. I also enjoyed how even though the task that Sisyphus was forced to do was extremely pointless and exhausting, he never gives up. Sisyphus is an inspirational hero, since he perseveres on constantly rolling the large rock up the hill, even though it falls back down every time. I chose a story of Greek mythology, because I enjoy how so many of the characters are heroes in their own way and learn valuable lessons throughout their lives. Furthermore, this helps me better understand the book we are reading in class, called Odyssey, because it shows that the gods are not always perfect and forgiving. As shown in the myth of Sisyphus, they can be very brutal and careless. I believe that the gods could have given him a life lesson to change his ways instead, but a punishment like Sisyphus’ was just a waste of a man’s life and spirit. Even though I think Sisyphus did not deserve such a cruel punishment, I believe he was very dim-witted to think that he could get away with tricking the gods. Overall, I have learned that devious acts towards superiors can lead to very miserable outcomes.
April 19, 2016 at 8:44 pm |
Article: https://www.nyu.edu/classes/keefer/hell/camus.html
April 19, 2016 at 8:54 pm |
I really enjoyed Kimmi’s independent reading article because I had also thought about this myth. We had been wondering about how Sisyphus had gotten his punishment because the book did not specify how he did. It is interesting to read about how the gods reacted to sisyphus deceiving them. I also agree with Kimmi saying that sisyphus’s punishment was too harsh for what he did . Although maybe it was harsh because the greeks used this myth to teach people that disobeying there superiors has very harsh punishments. It probably helped keep order and make some people think twice about rebelling. Overall, this article helped to clear up my questions about the fate of poor Sisyphus.
April 19, 2016 at 9:17 pm |
I agree that the Sisyphus’ story is an interesting one, and his perseverance during his punishment was inspirational indeed. The myth reflects that overall desperation and hopelessness that people can feel when faced with a difficult and challenging task. (And yet they still go through such tasks as most times there isn’t really much of an alternative.) Rather than dim-witted, I’d say that Sisyphus did what many men do when facing a threat greater than him. Equipped with his cunning skills and the idea that he deserves more than staying in the underworld, he committed an act of rebellion against the gods. His punishment was, in my opinion, rational because the gods as portrayed in greek myths were seen as high, important entities who’d get furious when things don’t go their way. I also don’t think that his punishment was a waste because it was a life lesson in itself, showing Sisyphus the realities of not getting everything he wanted by taking away the one thing that he now needs – the release of death.
April 18, 2016 at 4:52 am |
Simon Tan
Mr. Pores
English, Period 6
17 April 2016
Independent Reading #2
The reason that I chose the article, “Greek Mythology”, is because the class is currently reading The Odyssey by Homer. The story takes place after the Trojan War and focuses on Odysseus’s journey back home to Ithaca. During the book, Greek gods and goddesses assist or interfere with Odysseus’s trip back home causing him to wait for several years before returning home. This article will help us understand more about Greek mythology and the different types of gods Greeks believe in.
The article, “Greek Mythology”, introduces the concept of Greek gods and myths. It begins by explaining how Greek myths have two functions. One of the functions is to answer questions such as how the world began and how will it end. The second function is to establish a system where the gods, goddesses, and other creatures have different roles in life.
The article then explains where Greek myths come from. Compared to other religions such as Christianity, Greek mythology doesn’t have a single text that explains everything. For example, the epics The Illiad and The Odyssey don’t introduce the gods and goddesses because the readers and listeners would already know about them. Greek myths were passed down in an oral tradition until the myths were slowly recorded and written down.
The article also explains how the universe came to be according to Greek mythology. Hesiod’s Theogony explains the family tree of elements that evolved from Chaos. These beings that came from Chaos include Gaia, Ouranos, Pontos, and Tartaros.
An important part of Greek mythology is the Greek gods and goddesses that live on Mount Olympus. The gods and goddesses looked like men and women and were also exposed to human weaknesses and desires. The twelve main gods are Zeus, Hera, Aphrodite, Apollo, Ares, Artemis, Athena, Demeter, Dionysus, Hephaestus, Hermes, and Poseidon. There are also other gods apart from the twelve main gods such as Hades and Eros.
Another part of Greek mythology are the heroes and monsters. Examples of this are when Heracles performs twelve impossible tasks for King Eurytheus, Arachne turns into a spider by Athena, and many others. These stories are just as well known as the gods and goddesses of mount Olympus.
This article gives a deeper understanding of Greek mythology and allows me to comprehend the book we’re reading in class, The Odyssey, more. The article gives me information about the Greek culture and mythology that can be seen in The Odyssey. I am also intrigued by the information about how Greek myths were told before they were written down. It makes me wonder if children heard the myths like they were nighttime stories or if the children heard the myths through a public setting like a classroom or from a person on the streets. It makes me wonder more about the Greek culture and what other fascinating aspects it holds. Another part that I found to be interesting is that Greek gods and goddesses are a lot like humans in their physical appearance and emotional state. It makes me wonder if there are humans that are a better person than the gods and whether or not the gods committed selfish acts against people that respected them. In conclusion, this article gives me a lot of insight on the Greek culture, it makes me want to know more about the culture and read more myths with heroes and monsters.
April 18, 2016 at 5:02 am |
http://www.history.com/topics/ancient-history/greek-mythology
April 18, 2016 at 4:57 am |
Morgan Wills
Mr. Pores
English P.2
17 April, 2016
Independent Reading Assignment #2
http://mythologyteacher.com/Why-Teach-Mythology-.php
I choose this article because in class we are reading and discussing the Greek mythological story of The Odyssey. The article, “Why Teach Mythology”, gives reasons why we should and are being taught mythology in schools. I was interested in learning about what mythology teaches us so I found an article that links together what we are going over in class and this assignment. The Odyssey has many morals and lessons that are reflected into the article “Why Teach Mythology”.
“Why Teach Mythology” is an article that shows the true meaning of why we study and learn all of the tales of ancient mythology. The author explains that mythology has many benefits to students of any age. It strengthens their use of language, allows them to be in contact with a variety of cultures while comparing those cultures to their own, and it increases students appreciation for literature. One of the main reasons mythology is studied in schools is because it is interesting and fun for all students. The author argues that if it is taught the right way, mythology can be both educational and entertaining. Mythology can also be taught to help strengthen students’ knowledge of history. Mythology teaches history by examining ancient times effect on the modern world. By studying ancient mythologies, students also start thinking analytically about modern culture. They are able to put together the pieces of how multiple aspects from history came together to become a whole culture. The author says how ancient mythology is able to give advice and help us through problems in our lives by showing how strong your inner power really is. No matter how ancient mythology is taught, or what ages it is taught to, it is still an interesting and important topic to be learned by all ages.
I agreed with this article on all levels. I believed that it gave multiple accurate reasons on why my class and all other classes are and should be taught mythology. I agree that mythology is fun, as well as educational when it is taught right. Mythology has a fascinating plot line, and if taught well, students will be interested in the activities and lessons that go along with the enjoyable story. I thought the article gave very interesting information, such as the fact that since mythology is very entertaining and interesting to students, it strengthens their appreciation for literature and the English language. I think this article helped me understand the multiple reasons on why we are studying The Odyssey in class. I think one of the main reasons we are learning about it in Mr. Pores class is because it allows us to think deeper and realize what the author is really trying to say. The Odyssey provides life lessons such as the importance of family and what true perseverance is, no matter how hard life gets. Mythology allows us to compare our cultures to ancient cultures and see the differences and resemblances. It also strengthens our skills in both history and English.
April 19, 2016 at 4:07 pm |
You’re nice for this. I think that your opinion is true. If taught correctly, mythology can be very interesting. When learning about the oddessy, i fell engaged because of the interesting stories in the book. Mythology represents life lessons that we actually go through so it helps you go through real life problems. it helps us look into our lives and learn more about ourselves. I think the points you featured are accurate.
April 19, 2016 at 9:10 pm |
I thought that Morgan’s Independent Reading strengthened my love towards mythology. Although I have been aware of greek mythology for 3 years, this essay gave me a deeper understanding and appreciation of mythology. I always thought mythology was entertaining but, this essay gave me a different view on mythology. After reading this essay I understand that mythology can give us an appreciation for literature and can give us an understanding of history. This article has deepened my appreciation of Campbell’s article, and I thank you for that. This essay has inspired me have a more open mind when listening to the history of mythology. Now when Mr. Pores will explain the origins of a certain myth, I will be more appreciative than before. I am very glad that Morgan wrote this essay, because if she didn’t I wouldn’t be able to able to get this deeper understanding of mythology.
April 18, 2016 at 4:59 am |
Benito Hurtado
Mr. Pores
English Seminar, Period 2
17 April, 2016
Independent Reading Assignment #2
http://www.ptsd.va.gov/public/PTSD-overview/reintegration/overview-mental-health-effects.asp
I chose “Mental Health Effects of Serving in Afghanistan and Iraq” as my article to read this grading period because in the Odyssey, Odysseus is trying to come home from war and has defiantly seen the horrors of the battle field. Reading this article will enlighten my on how modern day veterans of war were affected by the violence that went on.
The article is about what combat does to a soldier during the combat and after. The first section of the article explains what goes on in a typical combat zone and what the solders we send to war have to go through and the battles that they face, both external and internal. The article states a key point that most of the battles that the personnel actually fight are more internal and emotional battles then the violent combat battles that they were send to war for. The second portion of the article gives us statistics on the types of combat soldiers were exposed to during their service. This section showed that the worst place in the war in the Middle East was Iraq marines because they fought in the front line of the battle and has to lead the way of battle. These soldiers were really willing to risk it all for the better on someone else’s country. The final section of this article answers commonly asked questions about uninformed people on the topic of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). It explains the scientific aspect of why combat and violence is harmful to the human brain. It stats some factors that affect the intensity of PTSD. Lastly it shows how people can get help from these disorders.
I agree with this article in the aspect that solders who have seen the horrors of combat will have mental disorders after the war. I also agree with the article when it said that there are many different factors that determine the intensity of Post Traumatic Stress Disorders such as where they are stationed for service. This article will help me understand what Odysseus must have been feeling when he was trying to come home from war along with other things such as homesickness and fear for his family well being.
April 19, 2016 at 4:22 pm |
I found that Benito’s Independent Reading Assignment showed an outstanding connection between Odysseus and the traumatized soldiers of war. The article Benito chose pointed out what combat does to a soldier during combat, and what may occur afterwards. This article may connect to Odysseus, and his personal experiences because he was once a soldier, and most definitely witnessed the horrors of the battle field. The article Benito chose explains how most of the battles that the soldiers fight are more internal rather than physical. The battles that soldiers fight are also emotional, and Odysseus faces these battles too. Throughout the Odyssey, Odysseus faces bouts of depression. In one portion of the epic, Odysseus begins to cry, and the recalling of battle, similar to how a soldier faces emotional hardships after war.
April 18, 2016 at 5:06 am |
Ashley Casden
Mr. Pores
English, Period 6
April 17, 2016
Independent Reading 2
I chose this article because I felt that I could relate this to what we were learning about in class. The story we are currently reading, Odyssey, tells the story of a man named Odysseus as he ventures home after he fought in the Trojan War. Along the way, Odysseus encounters many hardships including being trapped on an island with Calypso and encountering the sorceress, Circe. This article relates to what we are learning because in Homer’s Odyssey, there are many cases of sexism, and a lack of equality between the men and the women.
This article, Gender Roles in society, explains how gender roles are the socially acceptable ways for men and women to act in comparison to each other. For example, traditional gender roles express that it is the job of women to cook and clean while the men have a job and make money. Gender roles are taught to each new generation by the generation before them. A mother might tell her daughter that playing in the mud is, “unladylike” or a father might tell his son that toy dolls are for girls. By the time the children are about seven, they begin to see for themselves what behavior is expected of them and will confine themselves to the roles of their genders. The article then explains how gender roles do change through time and that the gender roles of today are slightly different than the gender roles from centuries ago. However, many factors of gender roles have stayed the same. Even when you compare ancient civilizations such as those in Greece, and Egypt to today’s society, there are many of the same beliefs when it comes to the different genders. All in all, gender roles provide for many of the reasons that men and women are not treated equally.
This article relates to Homer’s Odyssey in many ways. For example, Penelope, Odysseus’s wife, is seen as the perfect, loyal partner for Odysseus yet she does nothing but cry when he does not return. Penelope is helpless, yet that makes her a perfect wife. When her son, Telemachus, leaves his home, she is not even able to do anything about it. He doesn’t even tell her that he is going to leave because she is a woman and the only consenquence of Telemachus telling her of his departur would be to bring her grief. Other women in the story, such as Circe, who do not find themselves bound by their gender roles are viewed as evil temptresses. In the story, many references have been made to the story of Agamemnon and his wife. In simple terms, Agamemnon’s wife was cheating on him when he was off at war and she, with the help of her lover, killed Agamemnon when he came back. By Greek culture, it was justified for Agamemnon’s son to take revenge and kill his mother’s lover. However, Odysseus has slept with multiple goddesses throughout the story. He slept with Calypso for years and slept with Circe after that. Odysseus may insist that he was forced to or that he was loyal to his wife in his heart, but a scene in Book X of Odyssey displays Odysseus’s willingness to sleep with Circe. Odysseus made Circe swear that she would not harm Odysseus and then Odysseus climbed immediately into bed with her. Odysseus’s actions are not considered cheating while the actions of Agamemnon’s lover are. The article helped me understand the blatant sexism displayed in Homer’s Odyssey.
http://study.com/academy/lesson/gender-roles-in-society-definition-lesson-quz.html
April 18, 2016 at 5:07 am |
http://www.sfgate.com/books/article/Who-really-wrote-Odyssey-Iliad-Evidence-2515621.php
The Article that I chose was, “Who really wrote ‘Odyssey,’ ‘Iliad’?”, by Lisa Montanarelli. I chose this because I was trying to find an article that was about how the odyssey was written, and this article applied quite nicely to this subject matter, as it covered who wrote the poem and included a bit of how it would have been written down.
The Article, “Who really wrote ‘Odyssey,’ ‘Iliad’?”, by Lisa Montanarelli, focused on who most likely first wrote the odyssey, and also how it was written down. The article used “Rediscovering Homer”, by Andrew Dalby for reference, and started by talking about the writer of the Odyssey possibly being female, as there are a lot of strong female characters in the book. The article next discusses how the two poems were most likely written down by the same person, as two different people would instead try to outdo one another. Next the article talks about how the person writing the poem down would have needed a vast amount of recourses, as a poem of 16,000 lines cannot be inscribed into one goatskin. The article also discussed how the recording of the poem must have been done on private time, not be a scribe during a performance. This also supports the idea that the writer would have been female, as male bards of the time were accustomed to large parties, and a woman, who is already stuck at home, would have been more likely to think of the writing as a reasonable venture. But as the article suggests, why would such a momentous task be entrusted to a woman in Greece?
The article that I chose, “Who really wrote ‘Odyssey,’ ‘Iliad’?”, by Lisa Montanarelli, was about who the writer of the Odyssey and the Iliad were. I liked the article a lot, as it brought up questions that I would have never thought of, and then answered them right there for me, without much search engine work. The article was also written well as it tied in questions that it brought up in the beginning of the article back in the mid section and ending section, either helping or hindering the solution. I mostly agree with the article, as it had a good amount of believable proof incorporated into the article, but as I did not do any external research, I cannot be sure how accurate the claims are. The article has helped me understand the topic in class more, as it will make me think more of the perspective that the story was written from, and how different engagements in the story could symbolized different things about the writer, or even the translator. Over all, I am glad that I chose this article, as it has helped me further my understand of the poem, and has made me think more critically of it.
April 18, 2016 at 5:11 am |
Fishell, Josetta
Mr. Pores
Seminar English, P.6
17 April, 2016
The Importance of Mythology to Manhood
I chose this article because although I personally like mythology a lot, I didn’t know much of why it was important or what the purpose of myths were, except for entertaining and teaching lessons. Also, I chose this article because in class, we are currently reading The Odyssey, which is a famous Greek myth by Homer.
In “The Importance of Mythology to Manhood”, the author (account) Jon Socrates explains the importance of mythology through explaining and quoting Joseph Campbell.He explains how our inner spirit is represented through the animating force that forms a meaning or purpose for our connections with others, society, and the world. He says that myths are able to guide us to that force, to help us with our spiritual journeys. Campbell explains, in one of his quotes), how society has shaped the world to no longer believe in forms that can’t be understood by the human mind, and how the “spiritual energy” we once had, is no longer present. As a result from this, people have disregarded traditions and rights when they have become ‘unbelievable’ or ‘inconvenient’ to people. Jon Socrates then goes into detail about the Monomyth and its structure, and then explains what it all means. He explains that the more familiar you are with the Monomyth, the more you will be able to appreciate myths, and in a completely different way that enables you to learn valuable lessons. Basically, in this article, Jon Socrates describes how learning more about myths can lead you to learning life lessons and will increase the growth of our ‘inner spirit’.
I enjoyed reading this article, and It definitely let me see myths in a completely new way. I wouldn’t have thought that myths would change my way of seeing the meaning of my connections with society and people, along with my ‘inner spirit’. I was skeptical at first when Campbell mentioned myths having to do with your “inner spirit”, but now I agree with him, because it makes sense that people of modern society no longer have “spiritual energy”, mainly because many religions aren’t believed in anymore, caused by no explanation of those beliefs. I think that reading this article has made me understand the purpose of myths better. Also, this article gives a good reason for people to read more myths and understand mythology better. I think that reading this article made me appreciate myths more, because of the beneficial effect that they can have on people. This article also helped me see the book we are reading in class (The Odyssey) in a different way. It helped me understand the lessons being shown better, and made it so I actually try to learn from what the characters did, and to not make the same mistake that they did.
Link: http://www.returnofkings.com/51736/the-importance-of-mythology-to-manhood
April 19, 2016 at 9:04 pm |
I disagree with some of Josetta’s opinion on Cambells views on myth. Myth seems to play a big part in modern life. There are any lessons taught in myths that could help in life, but I don’t understand what “spiritual energy” is. Myths can probably help find morals, but spiritual energy seems like a completly different thing. He describes lack of religion as a casue of losing “spiritual energy”, but I don’t think religion is the only kind of believing, so it isnt the cause of losing “spiritual energy”. I feel that Cambell may have been a very religious person if he is saying that we are loosing spiritual energy just becasue religion isn’t as practiced now. I agree with Josetta because myths are important, but I don’t really believe that it rely on religion. Although I diagree with Cambell, I agree with Jon Socrates because myths teach life lessons and grow your “inner spirit”.
April 18, 2016 at 5:24 am |
Wilkinson, Robyn
Mr. Pores
English, Period 2
17 April 2016
Independent Reading Assignment 2
The article I chose was Greek Myths: Not Necessarily Mythical by John Noble Wilford from the New York Times. I chose it because it discusses how myths may not necessarily be completely made up, but may originate from scientific fact. I thought that it correlates slightly with the article that we read in class which also analyzed myths, so I decided to read it.
The article, as stated above, is about a developing theory that explains Greek mythology as being partially inspired by fossils. The article chronicles the discoveries of Adrienne Moyers, who is the proponent of this theory. Moyers has said that most of the places mentioned in Greek mythology have an abundance of fossils there. In her book The First Fossil Hunters: Paleontology in Greek and Roman Times, Moyers discusses a vase depicting the struggle of Heracles slaying a monster. This vase had long stumped scholars, because the monster did not match any of the written descriptions of the beasts he slayed. Moyers found that the painting resembled ancient giraffe skulls buried in the region where the vase was made. She presented this information to the scientific community, and it was widely accepted as why the vase may have been so different from other depictions of Heracles. Moyers also explains the myth of Dionysus’s giant elephant, by connecting it with large bones found on the island of Samos. She claims that ancient Greeks most likely confirmed their belief for this myth by assuming that the bones of ancient mastadons must have been Dionysus’s giant elephant. In conclusion, this article claims that myths may have been partially inspired by fossils found in ancient Greece.
On the whole I am not entirely sure whether I agree with this article or not. When I first read it, I honestly was quite confused by the way the article was written, and I couldn’t tell what some of the lines meant. During the article, it seemingly contradicted itself a couple of times, which made me question the validity of the information slightly. Furthermore, Moyers is not actually an expert in any of the fields of paleontology, archaeology, or mythology. This also made me unsure as to whether I believed the theories proposed in the article. But, after re-reading the article, I was able to understand more of what the author was trying to communicate. At this point, I think that Moyers’s theory could hold some amount of validity. I do think that the idea of fossils tying into myths is quite plausible, but I am not sure if the evidence revealed by Moyers is actually strong enough to confirm this theory. I think that reading this article will help understand mythology better in general, because it explains how Greeks came to believe some of what they did, and gives a window into how intelligent they were as a people.
April 19, 2016 at 4:15 pm |
I agree with this opinion because I also feel that the Greeks probably based some of their stories on things that could be explained by science. It makes sense that, because of their strong belief in the gods, the Greeks would attribute some of their findings to the gods’ might and power. Although the New York Times article is well-written, Robyn is right in pointing out that the author does not have any credentials or certification in the fields of paleontology, mythology, or archaeology. This fact alone makes me more uncertain of the author’s credibility. Even though I question the author, I do not question the source, because the New York Times has a mighty reputation for being a great newspaper and a credible source. Overall, I agree with Robyn’s opinion that mythology can be partially proven untrue by science, and that maybe not all myths are the gods’ doing.
April 19, 2016 at 9:04 pm |
Robyn displays exemplary comprehension of her chosen article, summarizing its main points effectively. One of the strongest sections of her assignment was her analysis of the article. Robyn explains her hesitance to trust the author and the evidence presented, but then elaborates upon her thought process as she reread and began to accept what Moyers was saying. She then ties her opinion on the article into other areas of learning. Her professionalism displays itself in the other aspects of her assignment as well, evidenced in her advanced vocabulary usage and organization. One thing Robyn could do to improve her post would be to watch for word repetition and to improve a few other points regarding word usage. For example, in the first paragraph, she describes her article as correlating “slightly” with the one read in class. The post may have had a more confident tone if this word had been omitted. Nevertheless, her post was very precise and followed the assignment well.
April 18, 2016 at 5:25 am |
Tara Maxwell
Mr Pores
English period 2
17 April 2016
odyssey independent reading
In english, we are currently reading the Odyssey, by Homer about a legendary story about how a man named odysseus had to get home after 17 years of being away and what he does after he gets home. The article i chose had to do with The Odyssey because it related the book to real life. It talked about the story which is the story we are currently reading.
The article first goes into detail about the middle of the book when odysseus arrives on the beach of ithaca, it shows the feeling he must have felt that he finally made it home. Then it relates that war veterans get the same feeling when they see their families and are finally home since they also leave to go to war and have a possibility of not making it back. And just like odysseus’s man and many others in the book, some veterans don’t make it back with their lives. The article then gives background information about the story (talks about before the story starts, during the journey, telemachus’s part of the book, and then relates back to the beginning of the article when odysseus arrives on ithaca) and ends with commemorating veterans.
I agreed with the articles points. When i started reading the book and got to the part of odysseus’s tale I also thought it reminded me of war veterans although the experience is a lot different in the modern times. Since this story is a myth, that means it’s suppose to portray a message but who knew that after so many years we would repeat history over and over again and not be able to learn the message. We still fight pointless wars and we still have lots of people dying and families that have to mourn. The only difference is the technology has improved making it easier to kill. The people who do come back from war will not be the same since they experienced such a traumatic experience just like i’m assuming odysseus will be when he started being with the people who used to know him. People who fight for a purpose is a true hero in my opinion. It doesn’t necessarily have to be physical fighting though, just doing all you can to help the cause. They should rewarded for their heroism as long as they put forth the effort. War veterans fought for their country and odysseus fought to help a friend and they put forth their energy to try and protect others and that should be rewarded.
April 19, 2016 at 4:21 pm |
You make some really great points Tara. How we are advancing our technology yet we are not advancing our humanity or peace between people. I feel as though there are always going to be conflicts that people, or gods like in the story want to solve with violence because they cannot express their emotions without fighting and violence. People over the years should have learned to use their words and not to just shoot or stab someone without trying to come up with a better solutions before hand. Another great point that you made was that people will miss their family or that things will be different by the time they come back. In the story, once Odysseus goes to his home town he explains how nothing really looks or seems the same. This is because a lot can happen in the time these Veterans or Odysseus is gone nothing will stay the same and they will have to adjust to the change.
April 20, 2016 at 1:09 am |
I agree with Tara’s opinion, because her points were really good. I also really liked how she connected it back to The Odyssey. For example, when she mentioned how war veterans aren’t the same after their war experiences like how Odysseus changed a lot because of his journey and his experiences. I also strongly agree with Tara’s description of a true hero and how it doesn’t necessarily have to be someone that physically fought, that it could be someone who puts their all into fighting for what they believe in. I also agree with her point that The Odyssey shows that we’ve been fighting pointless wars that result in numerous deaths for so long, and that we’ve repeated this history of war multiple times, because we’re not grasping the idea that war isn’t necessary in life, and that we can achieve peace without it.
April 18, 2016 at 5:28 am |
Jonas Schulson
Mr. Pores
English, Period 2
17 April, 2016
Independent Reading and Research: Modern Mythology
Link to article: http://nytimes.com/2014/11/30/books/modern-mythology-yours-for-a-dime-.html?referer=&_r=0&referer=
Today, mythology is looked upon as superheroes. Society no longer is educated about myths and Greek culture from thousands of years ago. However, as a class, we are learning about Greek mythology, and how it played a role in stories and such. Yet, myths have evolved from monstrous creatures, to muscular superheroes. There was an urge to learn more about how modern mythology influences life today.
From its birth in the 1930s, the comic book has become a “crowd-pleasing part of the cultural stew that includes film and TV, pop music and bubble gum cards, radio and news of the day” (Jennings 1). Comics have always been open to youth trends, and comic companies supplied to those trends. For example, in the 1960’s surf culture was exceptionally popular. Because of this, it was no surprise when the character “Silver Surfer” was released into the pages of “Fantastic Four” in 1965. Despite comics once being an immense part of modern culture, it is hard to imagine that there was a time when comic books were in genuine conversation with the broader culture, instead of being mined for profit by other media. Comics such as “The Incredible Hulk” were not always thought of from thin air. In actuality, the comic was heavily influenced by Mary Shelley’s, “Frankenstein” written nearly 150 years before the release of The Hulk’s famous comic and movies. At the top of the comic book industry was Steve Ditko, a cartoonist. Mr. Ditko however, let money rush to his head, and began working on three comics at the same time. In fact, Ditko used one of his comics characters, “Gorgo”, in an issue of an early Spider-Man comic. Another ploy of cross-marketing came the cast of “Saturday Night Live” appearing in a Marvel comic, while an “S.N.L.” sketch in 1979 included Marvel characters such as the “Thing” and “Spider-Man”. The comic book industry changed, just as our understanding of mythology has.
The article “Modern Mythology, Yours for a Dime” discussed how mythology has developed to our modern lives. Mythology no longer consists of one-eyed beasts, but instead presents a hero of great strength, and special abilities. Even so, modern mythology has become a way for media to mine profit off of. Occurrences of this view were presented throughout the article, for example, when Saturday Night Live and Marvel began to cross paths, and market in one another’s entertainment. At first glance, I doubted this article would provide hard evidence of such an idea. However, it pointed out how obvious it was that the comic book industry became possessive of their new marketing schemes. I strongly agree with this article’s position, and was heavily influenced on its ideas, as they changed mine. This article eased my understanding of modern mythology, and assisted me on my journey to learn more. I discovered some of the ways Marvel and such companies develop their comics to lure people into purchasing them. I also discovered Martin Goodman’s ( A Marvel founding publisher) intentions in the comic book industry. “Goodman never met a genre he couldn’t imitate and then inundate” (Jennings 1). Goodman created comics that people could relate to in an overwhelming manner. Instead, comics have drifted off for the media profit off of.
Works Cited:
Jennings, Dana. “Modern Mythology, Yours for a Dime.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 29 Nov. 2014. Web. 17 Apr. 2016.
April 19, 2016 at 4:14 pm |
This comment by Jonas Schulson was a comment on how modern mythology has changed over time. He talked about how comics have become modern mythology and how it is starting to become a cash cow. However, he goes off topic on how there was crossovers about the comics. Also, he didn’t explain about how it relates to his learning about the Odyssey in class. This article has taught me about how comics have changed from being a modern mythology to a way for people to get rich. Jonas has an interesting point, however he is almost always repeating his previous thoughts and very rarley conveys a new idea in his articles. Perhaps to better his comment, Jonas could convey a new idea on this fight about how modern mythology turned into a profit turning organizations instead of just rewording his exact ideas, then restating them.
April 19, 2016 at 8:45 pm |
Interesting choice of article. I appreciate the vivid examples of mythological stories and their superhero counterparts, like Silver Surfer and Gorgo. My favorite part of the article was “Works Cited” Altogether, your essay touched me on a spiritual level.
April 18, 2016 at 5:33 am |
Independent Reading: Greek hospitality
Article: http://minerva.union.edu/wareht/gkcultur/guide/8/web1.html
I selected this article because, in the Odyssey, there were many examples of Greeks being hospitable to people who came to their homes often in search of shelter or there to talk to them. Even though there were no laws, being welcoming even to total strangers seemed very common as well as giving them gifts upon their departure without even asking them who they are.
The article describes Xenia as the Greek word describing their form, of hospitality, a relationship between two strangers from different areas. Some of the main reasons why this hospitality was necessary was because there were no set laws between regions that guaranteed safety, so many travelers had to find it or rely on people i. The area to welcome them. There were no inns or hotels then, and if there were one could often not afford to stay at one for a long amount of time while they were traveling slowly by boat, cart, or foot. However, this hospitality is not completely out of goodness. They did it for the gods, as they believed that the gods could come to their doorstep disguised as a stranger and by treating everyone as if they could be a god, they would not make the mistake of neglecting a god if one were to come by. There was a general code of conduct for both the guest and the host, as the host would help and provide for the guest as long as the guest showed that they were a polite and kind member of society. There are also examples of punishment to the host from the guests if they are not being welcoming. The Cyclopes, not treating the crew kindly at all, prompted them to attack him and ultimately blind him. An example of proper Xenia from the article is between Odysseys and Calypso. Calypso helped Odysseus, providing him with food, water, gifts, and shelter for a rather long period of time, while at the same time she was not left completely alone on her island.
I think this article is very interesting. We did learn a little in class about how the Greeks treated every stranger as if they were a god, however I didn’t know about what Xenia was until now. It does make sense that they would give shelter not only because they feared the gods, but also because times were tougher with no laws between lands. They also did it to gain a good reputation for helping behind their name as the traveller continues. Their custom of not asking for someone’s name really isn’t that much different from now even though it seemed like people were more trusting of strangers then. Although we may not just accept a stranger into our home without asking who they are now, if you were to help someone by the side of the road now, you generally don’t need and won’t ask who they are, it really isn’t that different. This definitely did help me understand it more and give a lot more reasoning behind their actions of blindly helping one another. It is almost like the golden rule – do unto others as you would have others do unto you – because they also would know that they would want others to help them and treat them well if they were traveling, so they would in turn help the person passing through.
April 18, 2016 at 5:37 am |
Donovan Todorov
Mr. Pores
English, Period 2
April 16, 2016
Independent Reading #2
I chose an article about ancient Greek sailing ships and war ships. I thought this was a very interesting subject because we are reading the Odyssey in class and the hero of the story Odysseus is trying to get back home and he is mainly traveling by ship. Since Odysseus travels a lot by ship I wanted to learn about the ships that they would use in ancient Greece. This is the main reason I picked this particular article.
In ancient Greece ships are one of the main types of transportation and there are many different types of ships, but not all of these ships are used for transportation one of the first naval ships was invented by the Greek. The Minoan ship was one of the first naval ships and these ships were first used during about 1500 B.C. The next type of Greek ship is a Homeric ship which is one of the first ships used for expeditions and many famous expeditions were conducted with these ships. The defining feature of these Homeric ships is the very long black hull. These are also the ships that are described in Greek mythology and used usually by the hero’s in their expeditions. Then there are also post-Homeric ships that were like the other Homeric ships with a long black hull but lacked a high sail. Instead this long ship was moved using about forty men rowing. Lastly there are ships from the Hellenistic period which were mostly used to transport different things. They transported 150,000 tons of grain every single year. This ship was used by the Athenians. This ship was owned more commonly because it needed as little as 4 people to operate it. These were the most common ships throughout ancient Greece and were also crucial blueprints to how we build our ships today.
This article about how the ships in ancient Greece looked like and were built was intriguing because it relates to the Odyssey and how they use the Homeric ship to sail long distances to complete Odysseus’ journey back home. Now I know and I have an idea of how the ships look in function for whenever I’m reading the book I can create an image in my head of how the ship looks like. This article was very interesting because it gave me the years and time frames of when these ships were used. Too bad none lasted long enough to be used today. How the ships looked helped the ship for the specific task that it was supposed to perform. Such as the naval ships and the trade ships. I enjoyed how the article had pictures that I could see to help visualize how the ships looked. The post Homeric ships were the most interesting for me because it was amazing that at least forty men had to be rowing to get it moving. Overall this article was very interesting and it actually helped me visualize in my mind so I can see what is happening in the Odyssey and understand it better.
WEBSITE: http://www.hellenicaworld.com/Greece/Technology/en/Ships.html
April 19, 2016 at 9:02 pm |
I think that Donovan Todorov did a very good job reviewing the article that he chose. His article tied in very well with the subject that we are learning about right now in english class. He summarized the article very well and provided us with his own useful insight about ancient greek war ships. After reading both the article and his summary of the same article i noticed that i did not even need to read the actual article to gain the same information. It reminded me of the dyssey when Donovan Mentions that these kinds of ships are the ones that odysses and his crew used to come home. I agree with him that this article had a very interesting subject because it makes reading the oddyssey more fun and interesting because now i have better mental images for the scenes where odysseus is sailing. Overall, I feel that donovan did a great job summarizing a great article
April 18, 2016 at 6:03 am |
A link to the article: http://www.diffen.com/difference/Greek_Gods_vs_Roman_Gods
In class, we are reading Homer’s Odyssey, that takes place in Ancient Greece. In the story, many gods and goddesses such as Poseidon and Athena, play essential roles to Odysseus’s Journey. Gods were an important part of Greek mythology and showed an insight on their values in life. There were another group of people who lived many years later that also believed in very similar gods, the Romans. I wanted to know the different perspectives the Greeks have from the Romans concerning gods.
The article compares the two against origins of mythology, traits and counterparts of the gods, beliefs on afterlife and role of mortals. First of all, Greek mythology was reported in Homer’s Iliad, but origins of it unknown while Roman mythology was recorded in Aeneid written by Virgil about 700-1,000 years later. Many of the Roman gods originated from Greek gods but have altered names and personalities. Gods in Greek mythology are based on personality traits and like love, honor and dignity and these characteristics determined their actions and godly role. However, the roman counterparts were named after objects and believed that the deeds of the group were much more important than those of one alone. As we already saw in the Odyssey, the afterlife in Greek mythology is not very important and people can travel to and from the afterlife with not much concern. On the other hand, Romans believed in doing good deeds to be rewarded in the afterlife and also gain a place among the gods in heaven. Another thing it addresses is the roles of morals. In Greek myths, Gods are just as important as mortals because it was their role in society that truly mattered after all but Romans thought that the actions and deeds of gods were more important believing that mortal life was not important after death.
It was very interesting to see the different standpoint the two cultures had on Gods and mythology. It made me understand how different cultures can believe in things very similar but yet very different. I have though Greek myths were more exciting than roman myths and I now have an understanding on why that is. I think the values and ideas of the people in ancient Greek are similar to my views and what I think is important. While the Romans were much more warrior like and predatory. I feel that the idea of the gods being based on humans’ traits is cooler because it connects the mortals to the gods. And while Greek gods are egotistical, Roman gods believed that that they were much more important that mortals. In the Odyssey, the gods help the mortals yet don’t take over and do the deed for them. This shows that the gods respect the mortals in a way and believed that they had some importance to society. The Greek gods are much more fascinating also. First of all, they’re personalities are less war-like are artsy and poetic. They were beautiful and creative their stories were interesting lessons.
April 19, 2016 at 9:05 pm |
I enjoyed reading Dina’s opinion on the article. I agree with Dina that this article helped me see a different view on Greek and Roman myths and Gods. I found out more about Roman myths and Gods. Before reading the article and Dina’s opinion, I didn’t know anything about Roman myths. I thought they were the same as Greek myths. I also find it interesting that Gods represent human traits. It makes it easier to relate to the myths told from those times, and much more interesting to read. Although I agree with Dina’s opinions, I think she should’ve included more information on comparing the two types of myths, and not only have information on the Gods. Also, I think that the article she chose did not have enough information. Maybe a different, or two, websites should have been used. But, the information she did include from the article was key and essential to validate her opinion.
April 18, 2016 at 6:14 am |
Lieu, Timothy
Mr. Pores
English 1-2, Per. 2
17 April 2016
Independent Reading Assignment #2
I chose this article because its topic is on Mythology and the book we’re reading right now, The Odyssey, is comprised of the gods and goddesses of Greek Mythology. I had chosen this article because it was about myths themselves and what they do and what they are. The article was interesting in that sense because myths are an interesting concept to me and learning more and more about how people think of myths help me to understand myths.
The article starts off talking about just myths and what they are considered to be. For example myths could be factual or fictional but either way they still are stories that mean just as much to us now as it did to the people living centuries before us. Myths are stories that are made to satisfy our thoughts as humans and ones that help us live better lives. Their topics being the main parts in life like birth, death, or meaning of life, our virtues, and lots of other thought provoking things. The article goes a little out of the way to mention that even those these myths were created by people that lived miles away from each other at different periods of existence all myths have very close similarities, not surprising to say the least. The myths are put into comparison with fairytales as myths don’t always have the “happily ever after” endings that fairytales usually sport. Myths are made by the people to be used as guidelines, an example being the way to act in society norms. Myths are also known throughout growing up as part of education picks up on these myths. The article uses examples like seeing a horse filled with soldiers as an obvious reference to Odyssesus tricking the Trojans into letting an army past their walls.
The article wasn’t that great of an eye-opener to me since a lot of the text that was written there is stuff that I’ve already picked up on or things that I’ve learned and read from other sources. The only thing that the article did for me that was wholly beneficial was reinforce these ideas that I already had on myths themselves. That humankind had made these myths based on real or imagined events in order to get an understanding of things that are unclear or uncertain. Humans use these myths to get through their lives and the reason that the myths are similar on a global level are simply because humans, what do you know, think alike. Nothing about this article is false and it’s not a bad one. It was just redundant for me since I already knew a bit about mythology because of classes beforehand. It did put into perspective of how much we as a people talk or think about these myths since those examples like the Trojan War, Medusa’s freezing glare, or Hercules’ amazing strength are all things that we learn growing up but never take into account when or where. These myths just creep into our lives and we know them because they’re memorable and teach us lessons. Just how myths were planned to be.
Link: http://www.pbs.org/mythsandheroes/myths_what.html
April 18, 2016 at 6:28 am |
Jeff Livers
Mr.Pores
English, Period 2
17th April, 2016
Independent reading article #2
http://news.discovery.com/history/archaeology/curse-tablets-discovered-in-2400-year-old-grave-160405.htm
I chose this article because in class we are currently reading the book “Odyssey” by homer. This is about specifically Odysseus but there is a lot about the culture, gods, and geography of Greece. This article is about then uncovering ancient “curse tablets” in Athens Greece. I chose this because it talks a lot about the beliefs of the underworld and Greek curses in the article, thus relating to the overall study of Greece and its ancient culture and history.
This article is about 5 lead tablets that were discovers on a grave in Athens, Greece. Only four of the five tablets were engraved with curses already on them. The last tablet was blank. The tablets were lead and they were engraved with an iron nail. It was believed that the gods would do the curse if you put the curse inside the victims grave. In this case the curse was directed towards the husband and wife owners of a tavern. One of the curse itself says “Cast your hate upon Phanagora and Demetrios and their tavern and their property and their possessions. I will bind my enemy Demetrios, and Panagora, in blood and in ashes, with all the dead…” (jarus). These tablets were found north of Piraeus, the port of Athens. The person buried might not have actually been the one who did anything wrong, the curse might have been put there just so the gods could reach it. It is believed that the person who wrote these curses was a very professional person due to the length and detail put into how they were written. The curse maker most likely used charms spells to enchant the tablet with a curse. This was a common way of setting curses at the time of Greece.
I thought this article was very interesting. I did not know that the Greek culture even had partaken in curses before I read this article. I found it very interesting how they delivered their curses to the gods also. They engrave the words onto a tablet then bury it or put in something below the earth so the underworld gods can read the tablet then put it in action and curse the person. I also learned that it doesn’t really matter who’s grave or where they put the curse, it was the words on the tablet that really count. They probably just put the tablets in the spot that they chose, because it was an open casket and easy to gain access to. I also found it interesting that they were determine the type of person it was that wrote the curses just by how it was worded and how it was overall written. I think it’s really cool that they were able to uncover these tablets and how they are able to give us a hint of what they did and the kind of culture they had. This will help me in class because we were learning about the Odyssey which has lots of Greek history and if it has anything about curses I’ll be able to identify it, and have a lot more knowledge about it.
April 20, 2016 at 12:00 am |
I agree that this is a very interesting article. It seemed to me that the Greeks were all about building up good karma, even if they didn’t necessarily call it that. The lead tablets seem to indicate otherwise, though, and they prove that the Greek rituals weren’t always for good. Most sacrifices, requests or prayers to the gods in The Odyssey are people asking for good fortune and blessings, while these tablets show people wishing misfortune upon others. The only example of this so far in The Odyssey is the Cyclops making a prayer against Odysseus, and hoping he doesn’t reach Ithaca, but without such evidence as these tablets, we would assume this was the behavior of a savage beast lacking tradition. It’s intriguing to see that this behavior was common, or at least existent among what Homer most likely would have called “god-fearing men”. I concur that it is a useful article that sounds potentially helpful further on in The Odyssey.
April 18, 2016 at 6:31 am |
Vivian,Avila
Mr. Pores
English SM period 6
April 16, 2016
Independent reading assignment
I choose this article because for the past few weeks in class we have been reading The Odyssey by Homer, and in relation to that we’ve had an insight to Joseph Campbell’s work. Campbell was an American mythologist best known for his works of comparative mythology. In this article written by Jonathan Young, it gives the reader a background knowledge of his early years as a writer as well as the stories of a many people who were influenced by him throughout his lifetime.
This articles starts off by informing the reader on Campbell’s early years as a Catholic altar boy, it also explains on how from an early age he was very interested in Native American mythology. He spent his college years at Columbia University where he was heavily influenced by literature. Later he found himself in Paris where he made connections about how the real world is connected and is in relation to many themes in literature. Once he returned to Columbia, he wanted to expand his knowledge on mediums of art and psychology. After some time, nothing seemed prosperous so he turned to Woodstock for a few years where he went through an extensive study of the imagination. Campbell also met the interesting thinkers of the time such as the philosopher Krishnamurti and Adelle Davis. Fast forward a few years he meets his future wife, at Sarah Lawrence College. It wasn’t until the publication of his most known work, The Hero With a Thousand Faces, in 1949 that he became well known as the comparative mythology of our time. In that book he explains how many obstacles and challenges in life can be in relation to great adventures. Overall, The Hero With a Thousand Faces includes an intertwine between real world problems and ancient stories. The rest of the article explains how many people were influenced by his extensive works at different colleges. He spent his last few years in Hawaii, his happy place of natural beauty.
I really enjoyed this article by Jonathan Young, it was very informative about Joseph Campbell’s life and extended works. In class we read a section of an interview where he explained how there are many aspects of our lives where relations to mythology can be seen, but its oblivious to us. Similarly this is explained in his book, The Hero With a Thousand Faces, where many relations to conflicts in the real world are explained though adventures. I agree with his ideals that the wisdom of mythology has shaped and influenced Western culture, from simple things to the name of companies, movie productions to everyday interactions. Campbell believed that in order to fully understand mythic reality you need to undergo rituals that show your appreciation, simple things such as giving thanks for the animals that have sacrificed for your food. I believe this is true as well as his television series, The Power of Myth, which impacted many viewers on a spiritual level of love and passion. Overall, Joseph Campbell is an influential writer that has many ideals that have shaped our views on many aspects of our lives regarding mythology, and how we can relate to it in the real world.
http://www.folkstory.com/campbell/campbell.html
April 18, 2016 at 6:41 am |
Brenn Bragado
Mr. Pores
English, Period 6
15 April 2016
Heroism
Why Heroes are Important: https://www.scu.edu/ethics/focus-areas/more/resources/heroism-why-heroes-are-important/ By Scott LaBarge
I chose this article as it describes heroes and their roles, which can compare how the main hero, Odysseus is portrayed in the Odyssey. The article pokes at the fact that heroes aren’t perfect, and can have some not redeeming qualities, such as Odysseus’ temper and his not-so reputable ways of accomplishing tasks. It also relates to “The Power of Myth”, of which we’ve read in English class, on how modern media can have a tendency in affecting people rather than mythology, or in this case, heroes. Referencing back to the Hero’s Journey, by Joseph Campbell, this article focuses more to the effects of a hero, rather than the path they go through.
Written by philosophy Professor Scott LaBarge to detail the importance of heroes and how they can shape the world, the article starts off with the speaker, LaBarge, talking about his hero, late author Henry David Thoreau, and how Thoreau changed his mindset about philosophy, as well as making him a better man. The article uses great heroes from Greek mythology as examples on how heroes were treated like gods because of their legacies. Not all were inherently good, such as Oedipus, but were still treated with divinity for being remarkable. LaBarge adds that “heroes expand people’s sense of what is possible for a human being,” which is why people look up to them. And when people do, according to the article, it defines them, their ideals and objectives, as they try to strive to be like their role models. Like Campbell’s and Moyer’s conversation that mythology is being outshined by the portrayal of media, he noted warning signs that society need to realize the issue of picking the right heroes would shape how people think. He references a poll taken by American teenagers about personal heroes they look up to, which consisted largely of literal superheroes and celebrities, saying that “our media make it all too easy for us to confuse celebrity with excellence.” LaBarge considers gang culture “a disaster for heroism” as many turn to gangs as role models because it can be hard for communities to create make an alternative. Due to scandals and fabrication, humanity starts to see heroes with cynicism. But to combat it, LaBarge mentioned that you should human nature into account before judging, as heroes are humans and can blunder and become foolish. What makes a hero, however, is going past those human mistakes and triumphing all obstacles and achieving grand deeds. The article ends with using heroes to make people realize the many possibilities around them and to broaden their horizons.
I’ve originally chose this article as it reminded me of the interview we read in class, “The Power of Myth”, between John Campbell and Bill Moyers, which was about the importance of mythology to today’s society. Similarly, “Why Heroes are Important” plays along with the idea of using how heroes and role models have a part in shaping us, despite not being flawless. I ended up getting really interested in this article because it took a jab at human nature and how media affects how people think and act. It also helped me understand how in the Odyssey, when Odysseus was placed so high on the pedestal, it was to show that he had overcome his struggles and earned the title of hero. For the most part, I’ve agreed with the points the article is making, especially as the speaker truly drives the point about the idea of betrayal when it comes to people’s shortcomings. It’s a shame that scandals and rumors can really slander someone’s image and ruin their lives, as despite being known for something great, they end up being pushed into the limelight for their blemishes.
April 18, 2016 at 6:41 am |
Storm Patterns in the Mediterranean Sea compared to those of the Odyssey
In book 10 of the odyssey, Odysseus describes his time in modern day Sicily trapped by the giant Polyphemus. This giant eats his crewmates one by one until Odysseus gets the giant drunk and blinds him as he is sleeping. When escaping the island, Odysseus reveals his identity (he told the giant before that his name was no one), and Polyphemus prays to his daddy Poseidon that Odysseus will have a tough time getting home. Poseidon does as his baby boy asks him and batters our hero with storms, as well as having other bad things happen to him, but if I were to look at this story with a nonfiction perspective, a man going back home after a war, only to be slowed by constant storms, this would be a rare occurrence as the Mediterranean Sea barely ever has storms, with only 100 recorded from 1948 to 2014 (according to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mediterranean_tropical-like_cyclone and http://www.fromthegrapevine.com/nature/hurricanes-medicane-mediterranean ). Apparently although rare, these storms (referred to as Medicanes) can cause havoc around the areas of Sicily, Lenosa and Malta, reaching wind speeds of over 70 mph, but they never get any stronger as the storms would be surrounded by land, making it unable to grow as strong as a hurricanes or other tropical storms. They do cause the waves to grow to be pretty big though, with videos showing some waves engulfing entire houses and structures. But they don’t happen often and only a few have ever grown to be that large, with six recorded, the latest from 2014(named Quendresa 1 and lasting two days). Some things that cause this are how shallow the sea actually is, the geography of the sea and its surrounding areas, as well as the dry air of the area. Some Medicanes have caused some large-scale damage comparable of that told in the Odyssey. One in 1969 *dies in the north African Mediterranean where 600 were killed and 250,000 lost their lives, and another in 1996 where multiple tornados happened after the storm ended. Near the end of the site pages, it was stated that these storms were occurring more and more frequently (three large storms from 2006-2014 with the last four before that being during 1995, 1996, 1982 and 1969) and states the reason for this to be Climate Change, so we could guess that they happened even more infrequently back when this story was told in B.C. I don’t really think that the pages and stories were as interesting as the topic, which I was wondering about since we first learned that Poseidon was out to get Odysseus in the story and was set on thirsting the quench and looking in depth at this subject.
-Ali Shades
April 18, 2016 at 7:13 am |
Zara Satre
Mr. Pores
English, period 2
April 17, 2016
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ancient-art-civilizations/greek-art/classical/a/polykleitos-doryphoros-spear-bearer
I chose this article for a variety of reasons. One, it loosely relates to what we are studying in class, in that it describes Greek art, ideas, and methods. Another reason I chose this article is because I have experience with Greek art and I thought it would be fun to expand my knowledge.
This article is describes a work of art called the Doryphoros (or Spear-bearer) created by Polykleitos. The artwork shown in the article is actual a Roman marble copy of a an original greek bronze of the same wok. It is lucky that Romans made so many copies of this evidently beloved artwork, because the original work is lost to us. The article begins with explaining the reasoning behind the Romas’ love for Greek art. When Romans began conquering Greek cities, they returned home with works of art instead of the usual monetary treasure. The artworks became so popular that workshops were set up with the sole purpose of copying them. The Greek bronze sculptures were melted down and recast into weapons, after Roman marble copies were made. The article then explains that Roman marble copies are often discovered after being buried for centuries, so sometimes part of the sculpture are broken or gone completely. Finally, the article explains the idea of canons. Canons are ideal rules and standards for beauty. Canons have been around for a long time, but the Greeks’ canon is the most aesthetically pleasing to modern viewers. The canon created for Greek sculpture was created by Polykleitos. It focused solely on proportions of the body. The Doryphoros is the physical resurrection, in a sense, of Polykleitos’s canon.
I thought the article was very intriguing. It was so interesting that I did some further research, and found out that marble is less stable as bronze, which explains why Roman marble copies of Greek bronze sculptures often have small supports to hold them up, or to secure an arm on the body. I thought this was very interesting. I also was wondering why the Romans were so fascinated by Greek sculpture. Was is the aesthetically pleasing composition? Did they not expect such civilized artwork? What kind of art did the Romans create before they found the Greek’s art, if at all? I have many questions, and I would do further research if it wasn’t 4 minutes after when this assignment is due. Also, the idea of the canon was very interesting to me. The amount of time, effort, and not to mention math put in in order to creating such a complicated and complex idea of art, solely to create the most aesthetically pleasing artwork in what I would guess is all of history. The idea of proportions dominating the Greek canon was also intriguing. In a standard of beauty, I would assume that things like positioning of the body and composition of the face, as well as dress, hairstyles, and possibly surrounding would come into play. However, it seems as if Polykleitos was concerned solely with proportions and anatomical accuracy.
April 18, 2016 at 12:13 pm |
*Pretty sure I’m posting this in the wrong place, but better than not posting at all
Hagar Kousba
Mr. Pores
English, Period 6
18 April 2016
http://globegazette.com/features/they-can-t-save-loyal-dog-who-saved-them/article_22ce261e-5219-58c0-a91e-b9339cbc1a43.html
Why I chose this article
I chose this article because it’s a heartfelt story and talks about the bonds of loyalty between dogs and their owners. Loyalty is a relevant theme in The Odyssey, such as Odysseus’ loyalty to his crew, Penelope’s loyalty to Odysseus, and Poseidon’s loyalty to his son. These are only a few examples, but ultimately faithfulness and staying loyal are fairly important in The Odyssey so far, making this article a good fit for what we’re learning in class right now.
Summary
The article is a short feature about a family and their loyal dog throughout a struggle with cancer. It’s written from the perspective of a woman, first going on to explain her husband’s struggle with treatment for the cancer he was diagnosed with. Their golden retriever faithfully sat at their sides, offering kisses, cuddles, and a shoulder to cry on when everything got too much. Eventually, the woman’s husband survived the treatment, and the retriever was there to celebrate with them when the cancer was beaten.
Two months later, all is not well when the supportive and loyal canine is diagnosed with cancer himself, and he’s not likely to get better. The narrator speaks of her struggle and inability to deal with the thought of losing her beloved dog, because he’s been with them through pretty much everything for the past eight years. She just can’t grasp the thought of losing him, and finds her dog offering a shoulder to cry on once again through the struggles of cancer.
The feature ends with the writer discussing the pain of it all. She’s happy to get to spend time with her dog before he goes, and is ready to support him like he’s been supporting her. She just wishes there were a better way to learn that faithfulness, loyalty and caring are important, instead of almost losing her husband, and having to deal with the fact she will inevitably lose her greatest comfort to the same illness.
Response
The article helped me understand loyalty a lot more. Loyalty is not made out of a war pledge, or wedding vows, or other rituals that bind people. It’s the love that people put into those rituals that makes them truly loyal.
The writer of the feature speaks about her dog, and how he’s been through everything with them. Obviously, dogs aren’t the same as humans, but they’re still able to love and care for others. His actions show a deep devotion to his owners by providing all that he can. This shows that he truly cares and wants them to be happy. This is important because the motivating factor for his behavior is the love he has for his owners.
Later, the narrator says she doesn’t want to lose her dog, but knows that she will. She provides support and treatment for him, despite the fact that it will most likely not pay off, and he will be gone in a short few months. She does this due to the emotional bond she has with her dog. Logically, it would be best financially for someone to give the dog away and get a new one, or to put the dog down now rather than continue with treatment. However, her sweet retriever has been there for her through everything, and she loves him for that. Her attachment to her retriever is significant because it keeps her faithful to him, rather than leaving him for another dog.
Ultimately, loyalty is about the love you put into your relationships. The more you care for someone or something, the more likely you are to cherish and protect that person, animal or object. True loyalty comes from the heart, and lasts through all the hard times of life, and the hardest time of all, death.
April 19, 2016 at 9:11 pm |
This was a really sad yet interesting article. The part that I find interesting is the fact that the Rudy, the dog stayed loyal to them through the worst and best times. I agree with Hagar’s view on what true loyalty, and Rudy was a great example of that. While I don’t agree with the authors choice to pay for treatment because of the fact of putting him out of his misery and saving herself finically. However, It is really heartwarming though that they are there for him now, just like he was there for them. It was kind of interesting that 2 months after the author’s husband was declared cancer-free, Rudy was diagnosed with terminal cancer. I know that it was most likely coincidental but it strikes me as a weird and I think it’s more than coincidental thing. This article ties in very well with the theme of fate and loyalty in the Odyssey.
April 20, 2016 at 4:03 am |
I agree with what Hagar said about what she thought of the article, and actually helped me view it in a different way than I originally saw it. At first I saw the article as a woman wondering why lesons were learned in such terrible ways. The woman, although happy that her husband had been cured, she was sand and seemed almost angry that something such as their dog who was so caring, so loving, so innocent that he shouldn’t be taken away. Hagar, however, saw how loyal the owner and dog were to eachother, as the owner stayed by the dog as he is suffering, but the dog seems to remain happy and loving despite the pain he must have been in at the time.
April 19, 2016 at 2:16 am |
Newton Le
Mr. Pores
English 1,2 Period 2
17 September 2015
HOMER
I chose this article because I wanted to know more about Homer. I feel like I don’t know a lot about him compared to other famous authors. In class, we are currently reading The Odyssey, written by Homer and translated by Stanley Lombardo.
This article is about how Homer is an idea rather than an actual person. A man named Simon Worralls talked about how he classifies Homer as a tradition instead of an actual person. We know almost nothing about him. The things we know today can’t be proven to be true. All we know about Homer is that he could be born in seven different locations and he could be blind. No documents can be found about the famous Homer. So Simon calls Homer a tradition instead of a person. Simon Worralls says that The Iliad and The Odyssey are just “authorless works.” Originally, The Iliad and The Odyssey were oral stories that were told by bards and passed down through generations and generations of people for thousands of years. With each generation changing the story as it progressed. Eventually, to the point where someone decided to write it down and revise it to become the story we all know today. Still, we are still retelling that story today because of books like the one we are currently reading in class. For example, we are reading a translated version of The Odyssey by Stanley Lombardo. There are other translated version of The Odyssey with slight changes to differentiate each other.
I thought this article makes a lot of sense to me because it kind of answers my question about Homer. When Simon Worrall said that Homer is a tradition instead of an actual person, I question his thinking. But when I read the article more, I kind of get what he is trying to get across. To me, how can we consider Homer a person when we know almost little to nothing about him. We don’t know when he was born or died. What his childhood was like, adulthood, or any other basic information. If we don’t that basic information, how could we know if he even existed? He could be an alien for all we know and we still can’t prove that he wrote The Iliad and The Odyssey. I think that it is given that we all think that if something can’t be proven, we dismiss it as fake. So why do we still give credit to Homer for writing The Iliad and The Odyssey even though we can’t prove it. I thought this article did an amazing job at getting its point across and it definitely made me change my views towards Homer.
April 19, 2016 at 2:00 pm |
This posting needs a link to the article.
April 19, 2016 at 8:48 pm |
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2015/01/150104-homer-iliad-odyssey-greece-book-talk-travel-world/
April 20, 2016 at 7:43 pm |
After reading this, I too, think that Homer isn’t really a person or thing, but more like an idea or collection; just something not physical. I agree with you that Worralls does seem to get his point across clearly and is very understandable, with the fact that we have no complete evidence of Homer even being alive. I don’t think the alien theory will be the case, but how we don’t know anything about his past life makes more sense and contributes to this idea. I will also add that “With each generation changing the story as it progressed. Eventually, to the point where someone decided to write it down and revise it to become the story we all know today.” sounds like the Bible, which we can’t exactly know who wrote it. Overall, I think that you chose a good topic and I agree with the ideas that Homer isn’t really a person.
April 19, 2016 at 3:57 am |
Vivian Zhang
Mr. Pores
English Period 2
16 April 2016
Independent Reading (The Odyssey)
http://www.greekboston.com/culture/mythology/famous-children-zeus/
There are many Greek myths that describe the adventures of the children of Zeus; however, they don’t all come from the same mother. Although the husband of Hera, Zeus has had many other lovers that have bared his children. I chose this topic because in the Odyssey, by Homer, a goddess named Athena plays a very important role in helping the hero throughout his journey. Athena is known to be the daughter of Zeus, the king of all Greek gods and goddesses.
Athena, the virgin goddess of reason, intelligence, and wisdom, was brought into the world like no ordinary goddess. Her mother, Metis had been a lover of Zeus and was eventually pregnant with a child. When Zeus found out, he swallowed both Metis and the child in fear that it was a boy who would soon grow up to overthrow him as the king of all gods. Nine months later, Zeus developed an intolerable headache. The other gods realized something had to be done and ordered Hephaestus to split open Zeus’s head. Athena leaped out fully grown and clothed in armor, ready to fight. Since she was born from Zeus’s head she became to goddess of wisdom as well of Zeus’s favorite child. Another very well-known hero is Hercules, a demi-god. Up to his tricks again, Zeus disguises himself and goes down into the mortal world where he impregnates Alcmene into having Hercules. It was pretty clear at a young age that Hercules wasn’t human. He had tremendous strength and courage and used it to become a great hero. Before Zeus got married to Hera, Leto, one of the titan goddesses was pregnant with twins. Both children grew fast and became Olympian gods. Artemis, became the goddess of the hunt and the other child, Apollo, became the god of music, poetry, and medicine.
Zeus’s family tree seems very complicated in that he has had so many other affairs with goddesses and mortals other than his own wife. This may explain why Hera gets jealous of the other women that his own husband has been with and curses their child whenever she found out. I feel like Zeus being the king of all gods and goddesses made him feel like he could do whatever he wanted with little restrictions. The only precaution Zeus took was when the faiths told him that the second child that Metis, mother of Athena, would be a son that would grow up to defeat him and take his place as king. This made him swallow Metis to make certain that she would not exist to bare a second child. The mothers of Zeus’s children never seem to get the good end of the deal, but the gods and demigods grow up to change the mortal world hoping for the better. Athena, the goddess of wisdom, also the daughter of Zeus was not cursed by Hera and helped many mortals pursue their destiny and into their fate like Odysseus getting back home even he was cursed to never go back. Hercules, however was cursed and killed his children after being driven insane by Hera. After realizing what he did, he had always held a grudge against himself, but others still see him as a hero. Overall, I feel that although many conflicts have occurred with the children of Zeus, all ended well.
April 19, 2016 at 4:01 pm |
It seems that many gods are promiscuous like Zeus. I wrote about Poseidon and he went to bed with many people, but not as much as Zeus. I feel like Hades might be promiscuous, since both of his brothers are promiscuous. It seems that Zeus has fallowed in his father’s footsteps and ate his wife and children, because Cronos also ate his children. Now that you know who Zeus did it with and his children you should try to create a family tree portraying this information and clearly display who was his wife and who he just did it with.
April 19, 2016 at 9:16 pm |
From a Vivian to another Vivian, i wanted to compliment you on your great work. You showed deep understanding and knowledge on the relationships that tie between Zeus and the other gods. I agree with your opinion on Zeus and him being carefree, getting away with whatever he wants. He acts this way because being he is the king, ruling above the other gods and goddesses, as stated in the article you used. Your connections to The Odyssey show clear comprehension of classwork and outside connections. The article you choose helped me have a better understanding of Greek mythology. Furthermore, i was able to see different ways in which the Western culture has adapted some of these ideals, from simple logo ideas to everyday interactions. Overall, Greek mythology can be seen in many aspects of our everyday lives.
\_(._.)_/
April 19, 2016 at 4:00 am |
Nick van Daelen
Mr Pores
English Period 6
17 April 2016
Independent Reading V
Link: http://archive.archaeology.org/0405/etc/troy.html
Why I chose this article
I chose to read an article called “Was there a Trojan war”. I chose to read this article because it relates to what we are learning about in class right now. In class we are reading the odyssey and that book takes place just after the Trojan War. I think that this article will explain why or why not the Trojan War actually happened. I have always assumed that the Trojan War was a true historical event but I have never seen evidence to prove that it actually is and I have always wondered how historians know what happened. I highly doubt that archaeologist found a giant horse that all of the soldiers supposedly hid inside of. I am hoping that reading this article will explain why the Trojan War is believed to be true.
Summary
In the article, author Manfred Korfmann begins by stating that he is the leader of the excavations at the ruins of the city of Troy. He then mentions that he is often asked whether or not the Trojan war actually happened. Without yet telling the reader his opinion on the controversy he starts giving us background information about the city of Troy. First, he explains how big the city actually was. He says that for the standards of that time, the city was very large and was an important and powerful city because it controlled much of the Mediterranean Sea. He also states that “Troy was also evidently attacked repeatedly and had to defend itself again and again, as indicated by repairs undertaken to the citadel’s fortifications and efforts to enlarge and strengthen them” Then, he explains what the Hittite connection was. The Hittite connections were the relations between Troy and the Hittite Empire. These connections emphasize how powerful Troy had become because they were able to conclude their treaties with the Hittite Empire. Lastly, he answers the question that we all have been waiting for: Did the Trojan War actually happen. His final answer to the question is that he believes that there was not one great war but a series of minor conflicts that occurred over time.
Analysis
First of all, I notice that the author of this article, Manfred Korfmann is the director of excavations at Troy as well as a professor of archaeology at the University of Tübingen. I definitely think that he is a very credible source on this topic and he knows what he is talking about. However, he is not an excellent writer because the article was at times difficult to understand and it was not very organized. He did offer a lot of good information in this article but I had to read everything a couple of times in order to get all of the information. Something that I liked is that while I was reading the article, the new evidence that he shares with us changes my opinion on the question. Throughout the article I kept changing my mind, first thinking that the Trojan War was true and then believing that it was not and back and forth again until he wraps it up by giving us an unclear answer. Instead of simply answering yes or no, he answered the question with a third answer that he had not discussed earlier in the article. I thought that this answer was very unsatisfying and it was a bad ending to a mediocre article.
April 19, 2016 at 8:40 pm |
Very informative article. Each word was very inspiring. This essay touched me on a spiritual level.
April 19, 2016 at 9:21 pm |
After reading both your response, as well as the article you wrote about, I can say that I somewhat agree with you. The idea that Troy may have never existed is one that I’ve wondered about as well, and I also agree that, while informative, the author never really answered the question that he himself brought up. Instead, he gave lots of information on what has been learned about Troy. Although, I actually disagree in your claim that the article was hard to understand. I found the article very informative and easy to understand, and, while it was frustrating that no answer was given to the original question, it was still something I learned from. I liked your response to the article, as It was well written, and good points were made. While I don’t completely agree with everything you said, all the points you made were relevant, and understandable.
April 19, 2016 at 9:07 pm |
Rhyanne Apostol
Mr. Pores
English, Period 6
18 April 2016
Article Research
http://vc.bridgew.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1816&context=br_rev
Judith Stanton wrote the article, A New Perspective on Revenge and Justice in Homer. This article focuses on the themes portrayed in the book, The Odyssey, written by Homer himself. This article relates to what we are currently doing in class, because we are reading The Odyssey, and one of our activities included having to find a few themes in the book, and one of them was revenge.
The article focuses on the themes, revenge and justice, of The Odyssey. Judith Stanton begins by introducing the birth of revenge through Ancient Greece and how the heroes, Achilles and Odysseus served revenge on a hot plate. Stanton describes how Achilles and Odysseus managed to establish justice along with revenge. “… but a study of heroic behavior shows that, while not yet the equivalent of a justice in modern sense, revenge was part of a developing concept of retributive justice based on fairness and reciprocity.” (Stanton 1) Here, Stanton explains that although these acts of revenge performed by these heroes are primitive, they show signs of what modern day justice is. Stanton goes on to talk about the part in the Iliad where Agamemnon and his brother, Menelaos, are turning in captives for ransom money. Agamemnon tells his brother that in order to have proper revenge, all Trojans must be killed. Both Agamemnon and Menelaos kill their captives giving them no possibilities for ransom money. Stanton then shares with the reader that this is an example of revenge for morals and personal sacrifice instead of personal gain. In a way, they had all served justice, but cruelly. When a hero plans his revenge against an evildoer, it is then seen as justice being served by others. Bad people get what they deserve, no matter if it is for sweet revenge.
A New Perspective on Revenge and Justice in Homer, expressed the themes Mr. Pores asked us to write about on book 11 of The Odyssey. The article helped me understand that in ancient Greece, justice was not always served nicely. The heroes’ justice would be translated as revenge in the modern day world, rather than justice like in ancient Greece. Judith Stanton displayed the god like heroes and their way of life as primitive. Therefore, I immediately thought of Odysseus’s action to be revenge with no correlation of justice. “Odysseus returns to Ithaca after a twenty year absence and not only kills all one hundred and eight of Penelope’s noble suitors but then slaughters and mutilates his own disloyal servants.” (Stanton 1) Although at one point, I thought Odysseus was simply bringing justice to his name but I quickly removed that thought from my head because Odysseus’s action seemed inhuman. Of course, it is easy to stamp “Justice” on everything a hero does, especially if it is done onto an evil person. But I thought, “no, Odysseus’s action seem too animalistic for it to be justice”. And so, if I were to do the assignment that included the diamond in the center, I would change the statement. “Justice can be served in many ways, even through revenge.” I completely agree with Judith Stanton when she claimed that justice began to form in Ancient Greece when heroes established their revenge on evildoers.
April 20, 2016 at 2:09 am |
Aoife Fitzpatrick
Mr. Pores
English period 6
April 17. 2016
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1306042/The-legend-Homers-Odyssey-true-Archaeologists-palace-began.html
Independent Reading
I chose this article because we are reading the book The Odyssey by Homer in class. The book it set in various islands in and around Greece. The Odyssey is Greek mythology, so it seems like none of it would be real, but recently one of the palaces from the book The Odyssey was found. The reason I chose this article was because I think it is very interesting that the city could be real, it makes it seem like other parts of the story could be true, but it is a myth. Since some of the locations from The Odyssey may be real, the people in the book could have been real or based off of other people.
In the article new evidence has been discovered that shows that Iliad may be true. Greek archaeologists were excavating on Aghios Athanassios on Ionia Island. The palace of Odysseus was found. It is an 8th century BC palace. In the Iliad there was the siege of Troy and the city was later discovered in modern day Turkey by a German archaeologist in the 1870’s. The palace of Odysseus was found west of mainland Greece. The location of the palace is the best indication that it is actually the palace of Odysseus but the remains that were found are so dated that it would be hard to tell if it was really a palace. There is a British researcher named Robert Bittlestone that believes that modern day Ithaca doesn’t have any resemblance to Ithaca that was described in the odyssey. Ithaca is in the Ionian sea. He also believes that Odysseus’ kingdom was located on the island of Cephalonia. Cephalonia is one of the ionian islands in western Greece. Ithaca is described as a western island and low lying, but modern day Ithaca is not like that because modern day Ithaca is a cluster of islands. So there is some debate over the location of Odysseus’ Palace.
I think that this article is really interesting be she it means that maybe part of The Odyssey is real, but I also think it would be really hard to actually prove that the site was Odysseus’ palace. When Troy was allegedly found, the best indication that it was really Troy was the location. With Odysseus palace the remains don’t look like they could prove that it’s real. The article doesn’t explain why Robert Bittlestone thinks Odysseus’ kingdom is located on Cephalonia. I’m guessing it’s because it resembles the description of Ithaca more than the modern day Ithaca does. Even though the palaces may be real I can’t imagine everything else, like cyclops and giants. I was thinking maybe the palaces were real, but since homer was a storyteller I think that it was a fictional story possibly based on some real events and places. I’m not really sure how archaeologists are really able to identify Greek buildings from centuries ago. Most of what they have to go off is descriptions in books but that doesn’t seem like the most dependable sources. I think Robert Bittlestone may be right about the old Ithaca from The Odyssey not being the current Ithaca. If the description of the land is completely different, it must be another island.
May 1, 2016 at 5:37 pm |
Marijke van der Geer
Pores
English, P.2
Independent Reading Assignment 2:
I chose this article because it is about why we still study The Odyssey and other classics, and the different ways English teachers and professors interpret them while teaching. I thought that this was relevant to what we are studying in class, because we’re studying The Odyssey which is a very old book, and we are all, most likely, interpreting it differently.
This article is about how even after thousands of years, people still want to study “the classics” such as The Odyssey, and how it can be interpreted and studied in many different ways. In the beginning of the article, the author talks about how he has been teaching for 35 years, and that his students never request that he changes his reading list that is full of “the classics”. He states that the real reason he never changes the reading list, is because these books can be interpreted many different ways, “But the real reason I don’t put new authors on the reading list is that the old books are new enough: every year I find that the same texts can be read in challenging new ways”. An example he uses to support this is his teachings of The Odyssey. He talks about how he’s taught The Odyssey by focusing on the ‘archetypal journey of the hero’, and by focusing on just the plot of the story. And how more recently he’s discussed “how long it takes Odysseus to imagine how he might look to other people”, and “I look at Odysseus also from the point of view of the peoples he encounters or intrudes upon, and whose lives he interrupts or destroys altogether”. The author concludes this article by stating how the Greeks needed to understand the world around them to survive. And he wonders how The Odyssey will be taught in 20 years.
After reading this article, I did find it very interesting and insightful into the teachings of classic stories like The Odyssey, and I did agree with what the author was saying. The author stated that this story could be taught many different ways because there are many different elements of it that you can focus on while reading it. This helped me understand why we are learning about The Odyssey in class when it was written a very long time ago, and when our lives are not exactly like that anymore. I think that we still learn about The Odyssey because a lot of the themes in the story can be applied to our everyday life. I thought this was a very interesting article because it was written by someone who has studied The Odyssey a lot, and who has many different opinions on it and who has been able to grasp a lot of the concepts of it. It was entertaining for me to read this because I’ve wondered a lot why we still read and learn from these books when the authors are not even alive, and they don’t apply to our lives. But after reading this I’ve realized that we can still learn a lot from how the ancient Greeks thought and lived.
May 11, 2016 at 12:37 am |
Marijke van der Geer
Pores
English, Period 2
(I seriously thought I submitted this weeks ago, but apparently it didn’t upload)
Independent Reading Assignment 2:
I chose this article because it is about why we still study The Odyssey and other classics, and the different ways English teachers and professors interpret them while teaching. I thought that this was relevant to what we are studying in class, because we’re studying The Odyssey which is a very old book, and we are all, most likely, interpreting it differently.
This article is about how even after thousands of years, people still want to study “the classics” such as The Odyssey, and how it can be interpreted and studied in many different ways. In the beginning of the article, the author talks about how he has been teaching for 35 years, and that his students never request that he changes his reading list that is full of “the classics”. He states that the real reason he never changes the reading list, is because these books can be interpreted many different ways, “But the real reason I don’t put new authors on the reading list is that the old books are new enough: every year I find that the same texts can be read in challenging new ways”. An example he uses to support this is his teachings of The Odyssey. He talks about how he’s taught The Odyssey by focusing on the ‘archetypal journey of the hero’, and by focusing on just the plot of the story. And how more recently he’s discussed “how long it takes Odysseus to imagine how he might look to other people”, and “I look at Odysseus also from the point of view of the peoples he encounters or intrudes upon, and whose lives he interrupts or destroys altogether”. The author concludes this article by stating how the Greeks needed to understand the world around them to survive. And he wonders how The Odyssey will be taught in 20 years.
After reading this article, I did find it very interesting and insightful into the teachings of classic stories like The Odyssey, and I did agree with what the author was saying. The author stated that this story could be taught many different ways because there are many different elements of it that you can focus on while reading it. This helped me understand why we are learning about The Odyssey in class when it was written a very long time ago, and when our lives are not exactly like that anymore. I think that we still learn about The Odyssey because a lot of the themes in the story can be applied to our everyday life. I thought this was a very interesting article because it was written by someone who has studied The Odyssey a lot, and who has many different opinions on it and who has been able to grasp a lot of the concepts of it. It was entertaining for me to read this because I’ve wondered a lot why we still read and learn from these books when the authors are not even alive, and they don’t apply to our lives. But after reading this I’ve realized that we can still learn a lot from how the ancient Greeks thought and lived.
June 17, 2016 at 12:00 am |
Michael Relly
Mr. Pores
English, Period 3
10 May 2016
Independent Reading #2
Article: “How the Great Myths and Legends Were Created”
(https://www.writersstore.com/how-the-great-myths-and-legends-were-created/)
I chose this article for many reasons, the first of which is my fascination with the concepts of religion and spirituality, more specifically my investigation into the purposes for which they were initiated. There is no better article to address this than one titled “How the Great Myths and Legends Were Created”, with this result popping out at me during my research. The essay ties directly into the Odyssey curriculum, as the novel is teeming with these myths.
The article begins to tell us that myths aren’t quite the same as traditional modern literature, in the sense that they aren’t thought up by one person alone. Instead, mythology begins as an event – either actually occurring or made-up – that was worthy enough to be told multiple times. As the story gets passed down from generation to generation and culture to culture, there begins to be over one hundred versions of the story around worldwide, due to the unconscious human tendency to break things apart and put them back together in a way that makes more sense to an individual’s natural tendency to edit. Historical events like the circumstances surrounding the Trojan War and Alexander the Great’s rise to the crown are disputed and clearly not exact replica recounts of the true story, but these examples further the idea that myths are stories that have evolved so much that the things they claim are so far from the truth as to be charismatic and oblivious, and that religions are formed around them.
I agree with the the views presented by James Bonnet, the author, because they state credible claims as to why myths exist in understandable terms, based on psychology and science. Although I likely won’t be using this information to assist with class anytime soon, the historical examples of mythology he presented were captivating and helped me understand the concepts in this article as well as the book I’m studying, The Odyssey.