Term Paper on "Greek Myths"

Quoted Instructions for "Greek Myths" Assignment:

BECAUSE THIS IS THE LAST PAPER THAT I AM REQUIRED TO DO FOR THIS COURSE, THERE ARE 6 DIFFERENT TOPICS THAT YOU CAN CHOOSE FROM. ONLY CHOOSE 1. IT REALLY DOESN'T MATTER TO ME WHICH ONE YOU CHOOSE, I WILL LEAVE THAT DECISION ENTIRELY UP TO YOU SO THAT YOU MAY USE THE QUESTION YOU FEEL MOST COMFORTABLE ANSWERING. IT'S REALLY NOT THAT BIG A DEAL, BUT IF AT ALL POSSIBLE, I WOULD REALLY LIKE THE ***** WHO WROTE MY LAST PAPER FOR ME: mocosteinman. SO, THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND COOPERATION, AND BEST OF LUCK!! HERE ARE THE REQUIREMENTS/QUESTIONS:

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Topic: For your final paper you have a choice of ONE of the topics below, each of which involves working with primary texts and a range of myths. Note that three of the topics involve myth and movies.

Length: 4 pages, double-spaced, 12-point font

Topics

1.Overcoming mortality is central to the Heracles myth, as he always strives for godhood, yet Odysseus' rejection of immortality is just as central to his story. Compare and contrast these two heroes' attitudes to becoming a god, using this choice to examine the different visions of heroism and humanity each represents. Bring in other hero (Achilles?) for further comparison. Why would a hero turn down an eternal life of youth and sex with a beautiful goddess? You'll need to read Book 5 of the Odyssey for this topic, since HP lacks it. Read it at http://www.mala.bc.ca/~johnstoi/homer/odyssey.htm

2.Mothers in Greek myth. Towards the end of the trial of Orestes, Apollo claims that matricide does not involve the killing of a blood relative (p.619, l.470), and therefore Orestes' has not really killed one of his parents. According to the larger frame of Greek myth, is this "true"? Is Apollo correct? In addition examining to the trial of Orestes and the actions of his mother, you'll need to consider other important mothers in the myths we have studied; do their stories make sense if they are not really parents? Choose three, and chose them carefully. Is Apollo the voice of truth here, or a slick-talking lawyer who will say anything to get his client acquitted?

3.Apollodorus preserves a myth that "Achilles lives on after his death as the husband of Medea on the Isles of the Blessed." Discuss the brief, but rich passage. How "Homeric" is this conception of the afterlife of Achilles? Would this marriage work? Why would myth imagine Medea and Achilles married forever? Discuss these questions based on texts we have read about both figures. You'll need to study Euripides' Medea closely to see how they resemble and differ from one another.

4.Compare Oedipus as a hero with three other heroes in Greek myth. In what ways is he a typical Greek hero, and in what ways is he different? In what way is the larger story of his life based on the standard pattern of hero myth, but how also is it different?

5.Discuss TROY: The Movie as a heroic narrative about the Trojan War, setting it in the context of Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, and Vergil's Aeneid (essential for its depiction of the Trojan Horse in Book 2). Keep in mind that there is no "true" version of any myths, just some that work better than others. Thus, your task is not simply to list differences from the ancient sources, but try to make some sense of the effect of those differences on the meaning of the film. What vision of heroism is being offered? Is heroism still possible in the world that TROY presents? Why? Why not? Make sure you discuss not only what has changed from the ancient versions you have read but why the screen***** and director might have made those changes.

You might want to keep in mind that movies about the ancient world are almost never about the ancient world, but about contemporary events (consider GLADIATOR that way, for example. btw, I have a a terrific new book on that film)

If you use any sources from the internet, you must cite them (by url).

6.Study Disney's animated movie Hercules in the light of what you have read about Greek heroes in general and Heracles in particular. Discuss what changes from the original versions of Heraclean myths have been made and what meaning those changes have. Consider to what extent Hercules has been turned into an American. Does the movie present a coherent version of Hercules?

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BEST OF LUCK, AND THANKS AGAIN FOR ALL OF YOUR EFFORT!!