Writing on World Literature

From Gerald R. Lucas
Revision as of 15:36, 28 April 2019 by Grlucas (talk | contribs) (Added some sample exam questions.)

John William Waterhouse, Ulysses and the Sirens (1891)

The following are introductions and background to texts I teach regularly in ENGL 2111 and ENGL 2112. Many links within the essays go to Wikipedia.

Epic

Achilles

First, begin by familiarizing yourself with Epic Poetry, The Epic Hero, “On the Primary and Secondary Epics,” and “The Heroic Ideal.”

Gilgamesh

Homer

Iliad

Odyssey

Virgil

Ovid

Tragedy

Oedipus-statue.jpg

See Tragedy Overview.

Sophocles

Euripides

Sample Exam Questions

Also see questions under each study guide above.

  1. Gilgamesh and the Homeric epics are concerned with periods of expansion: i.e., when peoples are struggling to build their nations, both literally and ideologically. Discuss similarities in these three works in what seems to be necessary in building a strong nation and national identity.
  2. Discuss and illustrate the theme of hospitality and its importance to the social structure in the Odyssey.
  3. Discuss the implications of Odysseus as narrator in Book 9-12 of the Odyssey.
  4. In the Poetics, Aristotle cites Oedipus the King as exemplifying the best of tragedy. Discuss how Oedipus the King defines and illustrates what we know as tragedy.
  5. Many have called Euripides an “iconoclast,” not in a literal sense, but suggesting that his work seems to break the conservative icons of his society; for example: tradition, hierarchy, belief, etc. Examine his iconoclasm citing specific instances from Medea.
  6. Scholars frequently define an Ovidian concept of love as one that lives “close to the flesh,” suggesting that love in Ovid’s work is really just lust or desire. Discuss the implications of this view on those who love and those who are loved in at least three tales from The Metamorphoses.