Women in Greek Mythology Essay Example for Free

Women in Greek Mythology Essay A myth is a legendary traditional story, usually concerning a hero or an event, and typically involving supernatural beings and events. Informally, the term is also used to describe false stories, due to the usual lack of determinable basis or fact in most myths, but the academic use of the word has nothing to do with truth or falsity. Myths are stories woven from the need of having models for behavior. They are sacred stories revolving around sacred events and sacred characters idealized perfectly to be the suitable role-models in the eyes of the society from which they spring, which makes myths a valuable resource for explaining how the human race came to what it is today. Ancient Greek society had very specific gender roles, where men were expected to be controlling and domineering, and women passive and obedient. It was believed that if women were busy in their domestic homes, then they will not turn to their evil nature in which men of that time strongly believed in. â€Å"From her is descended a great pain to mortal men† (Leftowitz and Fant, p25). In Homer’s Odyssey, one of the oldest and most fundamental works of literature to western canon, the importance of women in the poem’s plot lies in their roles as seductresses. When Odysseus crew arrives on Circes island, they are attracted to Circes house because of the alluring voice of the beautiful but monstrous goddess. Homer describes her as singing in a sweet voice, as she fared to and fro before the great web imperishable, such as is the handiwork of goddesses, fine of woof and full of grace and splendor. (Homer, 850 BC) But evil seductresses was not the only portrait of women offered by Greek Mythology. Penelope, the wife of the main character in the Odyssey, Odysseus, is a prime example of what an ideal wife was in Ancient Greek society. She has only one son by Odysseus, born just before Odysseus was called to fight in the Trojan War. Penelope remained faithful to Odysseus for 20 years as he was away fighting, doing all she can to curb the unwanted attention of many suitors and their requests for her hand. She has devised many plans to delay an answer, one of which was pretending to weave a burial shroud for Odysseus’ old father, and promising to choose which to marry of her suitors when she finishes it. Every night for three years she undid a part of the shroud until her trick was exposed. She is a symbol of fidelity in marriage, even though she begins to get restless and ambivalent, due mainly to Athena’s encouragement, after 20 years of waiting. As Irene De Jong comments: â€Å"As so often, it is Athena who takes the initiative in giving the story a new direction Usually the motives of mortal and god coincide, here they do not: Athena wants Penelope to fan the Suitors desire for her and (thereby) make her more esteemed by her husband and son; Penelope has no real motive . . . she simply feels an unprecedented impulse to meet the men she so loathes adding that she might take this opportunity to talk to Telemachus (which she will indeed do)† (De Jong, p.44) But as Odysseus comes back disguised as a beggar, Penelope vows to marry whoever can string Odysseus Bow and shoot an arrow, which leads to Odysseus and Penelope reuniting together. Penelope’s story shows what Greek men expected from women, undying fidelity and a good, sharp and reliable mind. And albeit the fact that Penelope starts longing to show off for her suitors and eventually agrees to marry whoever strings her former husband’s bow, she is still shown in a good light in Greek myth. On a high contrast to the passive Penelope is Medusa, the gorgon female monster, who is well known for hair of snakes and her horrifying glare that turned onlookers to stone. She was born an exceptional beauty, the jealous aspiration of many suitors, with her hair being her best feature, but after she was ravished in Athena’s temple, the goddess was so enraged she punished her by turning her hair into snakes and whoever looked at her into stone. She was later killed by the hero Perseus, who beheaded her and used her head as a weapon, then gave it up for Athens. Medusa has become a symbol of feminine rage, she was punished for being a victim of rape, while the man escaped with no consequence, and she had spread terror and fright as her revenge for the unfairness of the world, and later is beheaded, and her murderer is labeled a hero, giving her head to the goddess who had started it all with her curse. Interestingly enough, her name means the protector, or the guardian. The most interesting Greek mythical woman in my opinion is Pandora, the beginning of it all. Her name means â€Å"The giver of all†. She was Zeus punishment to mankind after Prometheus stole the secret of fire, the symbol of education. Zeus ordered her to be mould out of the earth, and he and all the other gods joined in offering this â€Å"beautiful evil† all manners of seductive gifts. It is said that she had opened a jar, known in modern days as Pandora’s Box, out of curiosity, and unintentionally released all the evils of mankind, disasters and illnesses and malaises, leaving only hope inside after she hastened to close it. The curious part is how women were viewed not just as a punishment, but a punishment for man’s attempts to broaden his mind and satiate his curiosity, and how the evils of mankind all came to be, not as a result of malice or malevolence, but that same innocent curiosity, which is one of the natural attributes of the human race. It appears as though the Greek did not approve of snooping around, especially of women, which brings to mind the modern stereotype of nosey idle housewives. Her other name is Anesidora, which means â€Å"She who sends up gifts†, implying her lower status as a female. In conclusion, while myths might not describe real events, they are nonetheless one of the most valuable tools to understanding human nature and ideals, they are fantasies that man had created and they reflect his thoughts and theories and explanations and hopes and ideals. Women had took up major roles in the Greek mythical world, as villains and victims, but rarely as heroines, which shows that the society at the time and place of the creation of those legends was dominantly ruled by men, with women staying to their homes and looking after their families. These gender stereotypes have continued for many years after the downfall of the Greek Empire, and are still popular throughout the world even today. References Bulfinch, T. , and Goodrich, N. (1995). Bulfinchs mythology: The age of fable. Plume. De Jong, I. (2001). A Narratological commentary on the odyssey. Cambridge University Press. Retrieved Dec 6, 2009 from http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Penelope Definition of Myth. Dictionary. com unabridged. Retrieved (2009, December 6) from http:// dictionary. reference. com/browse/myth Gender in Odyssey. Bookrag. Retrieved Dec 6, 2009 from http://www. bookrags. com/ essay- 2005/11/23/13450/292 Graf, F. , and Marier, Thomas. (1996). Greek mythology. Johns Hopkins Univ Pr. Hesiod, Schlegel, C. , and Weinfield. (2006). Theogony and works and days. University of Michigan Pr. Homer (fl. 850 B. C. ). The Odyssey. The Harvard Classics. 1909–14.. Bartleby. Retrieved Dec 6, 2009 from http://www. bartleby. com/22/10. html Homer, Fagles, R. , and Knox, B. (1998). The Iliad. Penguin Classics. Katz, M. (1991). Penelopes renown: Meaning and indeterminacy in the odyssey. Princeton University Press. Lefkowitz, M. R. , and Fant, M. B. (2005). Men’s Opinion. Women’s life in Greek and Rome. USA: The John Hopkins University Press. Pandora, by Jules Joseph Lefebvre(1836–1911), Oil on Canvas.

Emily dickinson Essay examples -- essays research papers

Emily Dickinson’s poetry powerfully indicates values of society of the time. It does this through its conciseness, its simplicity and its control. Indications of society’s values are seen in many of Dickinson's poems, but they are especially noticeable in ‘It was not Death’, and ‘Because I could not stop for Death’. In Dickinson’s poem ‘It was not Death’, she demonstrates how restricting and stereotyping society can be on an individual, and how society values the conformity of the whole community, even though they may not want to. In Dickinson’s poem ‘Because I could not stop for Death’, she is questioning society’s values on religion and everlasting life. Emily Dickinson’s poems analyze her perception of the world and society, which is different to that of the commonly accepted, objective perception. The reader sees this perception in her poem ‘It was not Death’, where Emily appears to perceive a world full of confusion and chaos. She also observes that society tries to place people into stereotypes, and feels that she herself is restricted to one. The Figures I have seen Set orderly, for Burial, Reminded me, of mine – Dickinson shows in these lines that her own life reflects that of a dead persons – it appears to be a living thing, but lacks something that makes it alive. It seems that life is a convential pattern, and she is conformed in society just like the people in the coffins. She resents the way that in her society people were heavily placed into stereotypes. As if my life were shaven, And fitted to a frame These lines express Dickinson’s thoughts about the restrictions of her life in her society. The fact that her life was ‘shaven’ seems to give the image of being cut down to size with a razor to fit her frame, and this is a very sharp image. It also seems to hold connotations to the times of torture and the methods they used, and she may be suggesting that the rest of society make her life torture. It is as if her whole life has been shaped and trapped, which is not by its own nature, and from which it can not escape. Emily Dickinson also gives the impression of confusion and chaos through the verse techniques employed in her poem ‘It was not Death’. There are a mixture of images which give the impression of confusion and chaos. In the poem there is action (‘I stood up), sound (‘Bells’), frost, heat (‘Siroccos’, ‘Fire’), shipwreck (‘Without a Ch... ...else, it just simply stops, whilst you are still aware of it. Since then – ’tis Centuries – and yet Feels shorter than the Day I first surmised the Horses’ Heads Were toward Eternity – The lack of punctuation in the last stanza is to show breathlessness and panic as the woman realises that she has come to a state of eternity, and also emphasises that this is a long time – forever. This is how Emily Dickinson shows her theory of eternity after death, which contradicts the values of the rest of society. Values of society of the time can be seen through Emily Dickinson’s poetry. She powerfully shows society’s values of conformity in her poem ‘It was not Death’, as well as how she and many others were expected to fit into stereotypes, even if it meant sacrificing their natural state. This is shown through the form of the poem and the poetic devices that are used. ‘Because I could not stop for Death’ powerfully shows some of society’s values by contradicting them. Emily Dickinson displays her own beliefs on what comes after death, and they are certainly not to do with an afterlife in Heaven, or other religious beliefs. These are examples of how Emily Dickinson’s poems are powerful in

Dawn of the (Evil & Symbolic) Dead Essay

Over the past decade, interest in zombies in pop culture has sky rocketed. There have been over 100 games and movies featuring the living dead. George Romero’s 1978 film Dawn of the Dead, sequel to Night of the Living Dead, gives its audience insight into these evil symbolic structures known today as zombies. In this film, there are four survivors that take refuge in a huge shopping mall, sealing the doors and creating a zombie-free hideout. This movie is often referred to as one the best horror films of its time and a door way to today’s interest in zombies. Throughout the film, the four survivors deal with hundreds of zombies and at the climax are also having to deal with a biker gang. Although not all four of these characters survived, the mall was a perfect spot for the movie to take place according to a review done by the Spinning Image Company. â€Å"The mall is a brilliant location, not just for the satirical possibilities it offers Romero, but also for creating some clever, unsettling imagery,† said Daniel Auty in his review. Auty is speaking of the several times throughout the film where Romero would cut to a scene of just zombies roaming random parts of the mall. These zombies were different than what we see today however. â€Å"[The zombies] look silly, they fall over a lot, and Romero mostly shoots them in either broad daylight or the stark fluorescence of the mall† (Auty). The zombies in Dawn of the Dead appeared from the first minute without Romero giving any sort of insight on how it happened. So in order to understand the body in its monstrous state, one must know the origins of the zombie. Many scholars agree that the term zombie originated from the voodoo religion in Haiti. In â€Å"Slaves, Cannibals, and Infected Hyper-Whites: The Race and Religion of Zombies†, writer Elizabeth McCalister discusses these origins in great detail. â€Å"The word zonbi appears in writing as far back as colonial Saint- Domingue, glossed by travel writer Moreau de Saint-Mà ©ry as the slaves’ belief in a returned soul, a revenant†(3). The Haitians still heavily believe that this is a part of the spiritual world. They say that these entities separate the body and the soul and compel one to work without the other, in this case the body without the soul. Over the years, however, these origins have begun to vanish due to new forms of the zombies. In the early 20th Century, films began to show Eurocentric ideas that created African-Americans to be viewed as these zombie creatures. Films such as White Zombie (1932) and I walked with a Zombie (1943) â€Å"invariably cast black sorcerers plotting for conquest of and control over white women, and blackness is unmistakably linked with primitive menace, superstition, and the diabolical† (5). These views began to change by the time Romero’s films came out. Now this monstrous creature is as simple as â€Å"a ghoul who lumbers around trying to eat people.† Today’s society is used to seeing these ghouls in pop culture. Because of the more than 100 shows, movies and video games on the market now, people are more accepting of this idea of a â€Å"zombie apocalypse.† In many places, they have held events, such as 5K races and obstacle courses, that center around a zombie theme. In Muskegon, Michigan they held a zombie apocalypse day where civilians dressed as zombies and chased after those that were dressed as civilians. â€Å"Zombie participants got creative and tore up and stained their clothing. They also added scars and bloody makeup,† said an article in the Muskegon Chronicle. This goes to show how immune today’s society has become to the idea of these flesh-eating monsters. Not everyone is taking it lightly though as some have plans set in stone for when the apocalypse may happen. The CDC, Center of Disease Control, has its own website dedicated to a zombie outbreak. The blog includes a brief history of the creatures, a list of survival tools for a kit and their own plan for survival if it would ever happen. â€Å"If zombies did start roaming the streets, CDC would conduct an investigation much like any other disease outbreak.† The CDC tells us that it would be taken just as seriously as any other disease, and thanks pop culture and today’s society in helping to prepare for that day. Christopher Moreman takes a look past the plan in his book Zombies Are Us: Essays on the Humanity of the Walking Dead. The author looks into a world that is already ruled by the dead and sees how society would have to live to survive. He speaks for society as a whole through one line by referencing the graphic novel The Walking Dead: â€Å"In a world ruled by the dead, we are forced to finally start living† (5). The creatures in Romero’s Dawn of the Dead may not be the scariest or deadliest of monsters, but it is when they are in large numbers that they can cause havoc. It is hard to deal with hundreds of flesh eating monsters at once no matter how fast or intelligent they may be. Much of the films’ audience saw Romero’s zombie as a symbolic structure of other things that could take down America. McCalister analyzes all of Romero’s films on the living dead and the time frame that they were made. â€Å"Night of the Living Dead attacks the nuclear American family, patriarchy, and racism; Dawn of the Dead fastens its attention on the deadening effects of rampant consumerism; and Day of the Dead offers an indictment of militarism and American misuse of science and technology† (17). These things were on the minds of Americans in the time the movies were made. Now they can be related to something different such as the events going on in the Middle East. Stephen Asma takes a look into the torturing of Iraqi soldiers and how the Americans may be the ones viewed as the evil creatures. In his book On Monsters, Asma references Dr. Philip Zimbardo and his theory called The Lucifer Effect. This idea helps to explain how good people can become evil in specific ways. He focuses on the torture of Iraqi soldiers. â€Å"The fact that seemingly normal American soldiers engaged in torture and degradation techniques on Iraqi detainees offers more evidence, Zimbardo thinks, for his view t hat abuse and aggression are not the results of inner character flaws† (Asma 413). He goes on to explain how Zimbardo believes these soldiers were not just a case of just one spoiled apple, but a bad barrel that spoiled anything put into it. In the case of the zombies, one can make the case that everyone on this planet will eventually fall to the disease and it is not because of the one zombie who started it all, but because everyone is infected to begin. These kinds of ideas are what bring the monstrous view of zombies into society. Kyle Bishop writes in his book American Zombie Gothic about how the use of the zombies in Dawn of the Dead creates a connection with the audience. He says that because the zombies look very similar to just another regular human being, it can make the audience feel terrified of the creatures. However, the way that the zombies act can tell the audience obvious differences between one that is still human and one that has turned. â€Å"Romero’s monsters are primarily ‘othered’ creatures, possessing virtually no subject ive, human qualities and encouraging almost no psychological suture with the audience† (Bishop 159). The comparison of zombies to human qualities can go on forever. Asma continues to analyze the psyche of the monstrous through the Id. â€Å"Rage is a powerful force that, along with other socially deleterious impulses, lives like a frustrated virus in the dark cellars of the Id† (354). The Id is the part of the personality that can make decisions unconsciously based off of desire and instinct. In the case of the zombies, all they want and need is food and in this case, the flesh of the protagonists. The zombies in Romero’s film were often times the ones being killed, whether it is a gunshot to the head, a bat to the head, a car hood to the head or a screwdriver through the ear. However, Romero kept scenes where humans were eaten by these creatures to give the audience a clear understanding of what to expect from the movie and who would be the good guys. In David Gilmore’s Monsters, the author discusses of ways on how to approach the monster. â€Å"Mythologistsâ € ¦ have written much about the theme of the Epic Hero who goes out to fight monsters in order to rescue maidens or to save society as a whole† (12). The monster is obvious in film but no Epic Hero is there to save the day. Taken this perspective into Dawn of the Dead, the audience can tell that it is society as a whole trying to fight the monsters to save the world from the dead. There are several ways to see why Romero’s Dawn of the Dead was up for awards. Much of it was not based off the effects and acting but what thought and background was put into the project. The study behind the zombies was thorough and began giving more meaning to the story. The symbolism of these creatures and how the good human being became an evil, flesh-seeking monster were just two of the things to write about. When all is said and done, the zombies may never come, but if they do, it is because of films like this that could help with survival. Works Cited Asma, Stephen T. On Monsters: An Unnatural History of Our Worst Fears. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2009. Print. Auty, Daniel. â€Å"Dawn of the Dead.† Rev. of Dawn of the Dead. n.d.: n. pag. The Spinning Image. Web. Bishop, Kyle William. American Zombie Gothic: The Rise and Fall (and Rise) of the Walking Dead in Popular Culture. Jefferson, NC: McFarland &, 2010. Print. Gilmore, David D. Monsters: Evil Beings, Mythical Beasts, and All Manner of Imaginary Terrors. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania, 2003. Print. â€Å"Haiti and the Truth about Zombies.† Www.umich.edu. N.p., n.d. Web. . McCalister, Elizabeth. â€Å"Slaves, Cannibals, and Infected Hyper-Whites: The Race and Religion of Zombies.† Anthropological Quarterly 85.2 (n.d.): 457-86. Web. â€Å"Public Health Matters Blog.† Public Health Matters Blog RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Nov. 2012. .

The Arab Uprisings Improved Human Rights - 3403 Words

Chapter 1: Origins (Intro) How have the Arab Uprisings improved human rights in Egypt? MUBARAKS GOV BAD FOR HUMAN RIGHTS MORSIS GOVERNMENT WORST IS THERE HOPE NOW (WITH NEW GOV) 1. Where did uprisings begin? Which rights existed? DEFINE -Muslim Brotherhood -Sharia Chapter 2: Women’s rights in Egypt There is a widespread belief in Egypt that gender equality is an attack on Egyptian culture and a foreign agenda imposed by the West rather than a basic human right. All successive Egyptian governments, since 1952 onwards, have used xenophobia to create a sense that there is a conspiracy in Egypt, according to Hossam Abdalla, an Egyptian political commentator and activist speaking to Al Ahram weekly, an Egyptian newspaper. However, this has not silenced Egyptian civil society on the issue of women s rights, with the Arab Spring helping many women find their political voices. For example, the National Council for Women and other NGO’s in Egypt have worked tirelessly to defend the legal status of women and their place in society. The Arab Uprisings have made popular the belief that change is possible, and many established organizations have united with younger volunteer-led organizations in fighting for fundamental change. The most important recent development for Women s Rights in Egypt is the new constitution which was approved in January 2014, with 98.1% of people voting in favour of it. This constitution is tailored to the freedom of its all its citizens asShow MoreRelatedIn This Part Of The Essay, Tunisia And Libya Are Discussed1716 Words   |  7 PagesIn this part of the essay, Tunisia and Libya are discussed in terms of freedom, whether it is political or social and how former ruling systems facilitated the process of recovery after Arab Spring. Both Tunisia and Libya started their promising journey in the post-coup era towards a more democratic political environment. However, it has proven a challenge particularly for Libya as they never experienced a democratic rule despite having elections in accordance with democratic values during the reignRead MoreWomen s Rights Of Women1396 Words   |  6 Pagesattack on Egyptian Culture and a foreign agenda imposed by the west rather than a basic human right. However, this has not silenced Egyptian Civil Society on the issue of women s rights, with the Arab Spring helping many women find their political voices. The National Council for Women and other NGO’s in Egypt have worked tirelessly to defend the legal status of women and their place in society. The Arab Uprisings have made popular the belief that change is possible, and many established organizationsRead MoreThe Cuban Missile Crisis : The Cold War1472 Words   |  6 Pagesleave. This pretty much meant the communist system was dead. The death was confirmed in 1991 when the Soviet Union fell apart. This made the remainder of the country much weaker and also marked the end of communist rule. U.S. and Soviet relations improved in the middle 1980s. At a summit meeting in Iceland, President Gorbechev proposed a fifty percent reduction in nuclear weaponry on both sides. While this summit was a failure, on December 8, 1987, The Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty was signedRead MoreThe Importance Of Journalism And Photogra phy955 Words   |  4 Pagescitizens are aware of them. This is where journalism and photography come to play. Journalism and photography allow for current events in other parts of the world to be shown to the public for awareness. Some of these events such as the time during the Arab Spring, where revolutions and protests broke out across the Middle East and North Africa, allowed for citizens to get an idea of what is going on in that particular part of the country. A world without journalism cause much of the people to be in theRead More10 Ways e-Voting Could Save or Destroy Democracy1000 Words   |  4 Pagesdemocracy Australia, in its relatively short history has always had an emphasis on social, personal and political freedoms – and a strong allegiance to the system of democracy. Democracy has since spread to corners of the globe thanks to uprisings such as the Arab Springs which has spread democracy throughout the Middle East and North Africa (Andelman, 2012). As time and technological advancements progress the concept of democracy has been challenged, but never overthrown. One of the fundamental tenetsRead MoreEssay on The Brutality of Terrorist Groups in Afghanistan and Libya1237 Words   |  5 Pages Throughout history, Afghanistan and Libya have had various difficulties in dealing with harsh terrorist groups throughout the country and the way they negatively affected women’s rights. They have unwillingly embraced the terrorist groups but are fighting for them to get out. While police forces attempt to handle the situation and remove these groups, it so far has not made a lasting impact. In some cases the country was fighting against its own citizens. Currently in Libya, thereRead MoreThe Development Of Libya During The World War II2225 Words   |  9 Pagesresulted from the Italo-Turkish war fought over North Africa; this marked the beginning of Italian Imperialism in Libya. Italian rule in Libya played a pivotal role in the industrialization of Libya. Italy built railroads, highways for the military, and improved agriculture to support a growing population. This was Libya’s first modern ruler and the beginning of Libya’s industrialization. T his industrialization was crucial to the development of Libya as a major oil exporter. Libya became involved in globalRead MoreThe Past and Present of Terrorism and Counterterrorism in China3253 Words   |  13 Pagescomparative framework. The fundamental question then becomes what is terrorism in the contemporary world. In the United States (â€Å"U.S.†), the Executive Order 13224 defines â€Å"terrorism† as â€Å"activity that (1) involves a violent act or an act dangerous to human life, property, or infrastructure, and (2) appears to be intended to intimidate or coerce a civilian population; to influence the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion; or to affect the conduct of a government by mass destruction, assassinationRead MoreThe Government s Dependence On An Outsourced Income Hurts The State Of The Middle East1865 Words   |  8 Pagesremaining dependent on foreign income and, therefore, moving too slowly towards modernization. However, as Steff en Hertog assesses, there are a small group of rentier states who have broken through these barriers; these include Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar—states that are involved in the Gulf Cooperation Council, a political and economic alliance shared with Kuwait, Oman, and Bahrain. While these states consist of monarchies as the primary form of rule, they have embraced the ideaRead MoreThe Objectives Of The National Military Strategy Essay1980 Words   |  8 Pagesand a â€Å"causus belli† action. McNamara stated that â€Å"It was luck that saved us during the Cuban Missile Crisis; rational individuals nearly came to nuclear war.† The message of the Cuban Missile Crisis is that the combination of nuclear weapons and human error can start a catastrophic war.. This lesson is of main importance because the potential for nuclear war still exists today as the number of nuclear state actors has increased. â€Å"If indeed war should break out,† Kh rushchev wrote President Kennedy